Glasgow pub Sloans is a top wedding venue with ‘legendary’ mac cheese
It was situated in a small courtyard once popular for cockfights, and the three-storey tenement was probably built some years later alongside the construction of the Argyll Arcade in the 1820s.
The name we recognise today came along when prominent city publican David Sloan purchased the café at the beginning of the 20th century with a view to completely transforming it into a more opulent space.
He changed the name to Sloans Café Bar and commissioned Charles Robinson to remodel it into a stunning venue with a lounge, dining rooms, cocktail bar, a gentlemen’s smoking room, a grand ballroom and even an aquarium.
Often described by periodicals of the time as the jewel in the crown of Sloans, the Grand Ballroom features a vaulted ceiling, parquet floor, a period marble fireplace and intricate Art Nouveau-style stained-glass windows.
Its listed category was changed from B to A in November 1996 on account of it being “a rare example of a bar, dining room and coffee house complex with an exceptional opulent Art Nouveau interior”, with “an impressive ballroom.”
Since then, Sloans has only continued to evolve while maintaining its reputation as a bar with a breathtaking aesthetic. In 2007 when it was taken over by Oli Norman, the man behind popular spots Brel and Maggie May’s, it underwent a huge restoration to protect and enhance its original features.
A £10,000 investment included introducing the city’s first-ever year-round Sunday market in the lane, with a range of bespoke food, jewellery, clothing and gifts on offer.
Nine years later, the market was upgraded to include more choices as well as a dedicated ‘mac shack’ to showcase Sloans’ iconic macaroni and cheese.
While you can enjoy a variety of pub classics, mac ‘n’ cheese is a must at Sloans. The bar has a special menu dedicated to a macaroni cheese ‘feast’ that is regularly consumed by the Scottish Macaroni Appreciation Society…
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