Where to Brunch in Glasgow's Southside

I love to treat myself to brunch in a wee café. I used to work from home pre-Covid, and would take myself out once a week with my laptop for a nice coffee and a bite to eat. That all stopped obviously during the pandemic, and I'm slowing getting back out there again! It's been a while since I've worked from a coffee shop, but I've been enjoying brunch with the kids every so often. 

This weekend we visited The Brunch Club in Giffnock for the first time (used to be BRGR), along with Dawn and her daughter. They don't take bookings, and so we did have a little bit of a wait (understandable as we needed a table for 5). I wasn't blown away by my choice of smashed avo (avocado, red onion, garlic, fresh cherry tomatoes, balsamic glaze, poached egg & sourdough toast; £9) although I did enjoy the halloumi that I added (£2.50). My son felt his waffles were a bit dry (waffles with Nutella and fruit; £9.50) but Dawn loved her plate (Alba which was veggie haggis, poached eggs, truffle hollandaise, crispy kale and sourdough toast; £9.50) and the girls enjoyed their pancakes and Nutella. I'll try something else next time... tacos perhaps! Dawn had a virgin Bloody Mary, and it looked ace (I sadly didn't photograph it!). 

It's been a while since I've written a review of a restaurant or café... when the kids were little they tended to love most things and a lot of the restaurants got 5 stars when they were asked to rate them!! Whereas now, my son at nearly 13 years old and my daughter at 11 have opinions! Their favourite meal is steak & chips (we had a fab dinner in York at the start of the summer holidays at Cut & Craft, I'd recommend it if you're in the area... as would they!!), and when we're brunching they're all about pancakes and Nutella.

Anyway, back to brunch...

Our hands down favourite is Bramble, opposite Queens Park at 924 Pollokshaws Road. Similar to The Brunch Club, they are walk in only. So if we're headed here of a weekend I try and go for them opening (Sat 9am, Sun 9.30am). When Bramble was in Giffnock we queued for an hour once to get a table, and that wasn't fun with two hungry kids in tow! Most items on the menu I love, the vegan flatbread (sweetcorn fritters, salsa, pineapple chutney and mayo on a soft flatbread; £9.50) is a favourite as well as the pulled pork tacos (which isn't on the menu anymore *sad face*). The kids tend to order pancakes with Nutella and strawberries (£9.50, or £6.50 for a small portion).

Last on my list, for now, is Café Strange Brew. Again, as with the others, this café is walk in only. I was here with Evie (they're dog friendly) for breakfast a few months ago and didn't have to wait too long for a table. I love the presentation of the dishes here, my yoghurt and granola came with little edible flowers... so pretty! 

If it's just coffee that I'm headed out for, then I do love Grain & Grind. (My son is obsessed with their sausage rolls and brownies!) I love their coffee, and even have a bag in Verity for my Moka Pot.

What's your favourite spot for brunch?

Review - Our Clickstay villa

Last week we spent the October holidays at Villa Zenith in Portugal... our first family holiday abroad and we were super excited, especially the kids! We had won £1000 towards a villa with Clickstay in their Mummy Blogger Awards which made the holiday possible for us.

The whole process of booking the holiday was hassle free - we chose our villa on the Clickstay website, and we paid the difference easily with a secure online transaction into my Clickstay account. The correspondence from Clickstay was great and they kept us informed thoughout.

We travelled with EasyJet from Glasgow to Lisbon via London Luton and overall I'd say the journey with the kids was manageable. We had to wake the kids at 5am which wasn't ideal, but I took them to the airport in their PJs and we got dressed in London! I had planned ahead, buying a few new sticker books and blind bag toys for them to play with on the day of travel, and we managed to kill some time at Luton Airport at Frankie and Benny's having brunch. I had an amazing American brunch of fruit, pancakes, bacon, crispy potatoes and syrup!

Once we landed in Lisbon we collected our hire car (which took forever as there was a queue at the desk!). I had been dreading having to drive on the opposite side of the road and found this part of the trip rather stressful. I've never driven abroad before, so this was a first for me.

The villa is near Cascais and you definitely require a car to get you there and to get out and about - the house is in a residential area and there aren't any supermarkets or restaurants within walking distance. I was organised though and had brought some noodles, rice and brioche rolls with me in my suitcase! Despite this, we did have to go out to find a supermarket on our arrival (at around 8pm at night!) and that just added to my stress levels. Once we were back, the kids were tucked up in bed and we had unpacked the car I was able to relax a bit and enjoy the surroundings.

As you'll see from the photographs, the villa is absolutely stunning. There are the most amazing unobstructed views of the beach and the ocean and the large open plan kitchen, dining and living space is ideal for large groups. The villa can sleep up to 14 guests, and we were being joined by my sister, her partner and his two little ones the following day, making 8 of us in total.

The gorgeous open plan living space 

(with a few strategically placed sheets to protect the cream suede furniture!)

The interior design of the house is mixed... modern glass vases and candlesticks mixed with rustic wooden sculptures... concrete surfaces and lots of glass. I'm going to put together a separate inspiration post as it's given me lots of ideas for my own home.

We had a slight hiccup in that the pool heating was broken on our arrival but Clickstay liaised with the villa owner, a new system was installed successfully and we did get a couple of days use of the warm pool. The additional fee that we had paid for the pool heating has also been refunded and there was a mention of compensation too. This was one of the benefits of booking the villa through an agent, as they were able to do the running around in the background whilst we continued to enjoy the holiday.

The kids enjoyed splashing around in the pool, practicing their swimming and playing games with the floats that we had brought with us. There were also a few inflatable toys at the villa too that we used. There were plenty of options for outdoor lounging which we all enjoyed and there were also large parasols which were needed for the kids when the sun was out.

Enjoying ice lollies by the pool

We enjoyed a couple of BBQs using the outdoor kitchen, which was a great addition to the garden. The villa also had a dishwasher, washing machine and tumble drier - and I used all three!

The outdoor kitchen

Once the little ones were tucked up in bed, the grown ups were able to enjoy some down time. This is the benefit of having a villa as opposed to a hotel bedroom. We were able to relax in the living space, listen to music or watch TV without disturbing the kids.

A glass of fizz for the grown-ups 

There were a few other niggly little things that could have been improved. We were unable to get four of the five whirlpool baths to work and we could only get one of the DVD players to work (and it wasn't the one in the main living space) which wasn't ideal for trying to occupy the little ones. Some instructions as part of a welcome pack may have helped in this instance. The villa did however have wifi which was a extremely valuable as this meant we could view content on the tablet devices that we brought with us.

The website states that the villa is suitable for children, however I'm not sure that the villa is suitable for young children due to the lack of banisters or railings. There is netting to prevent falls, but in some parts this wasn't secure. I did spend a lot of the holiday on edge and keeping a watchful eye on everyone's movements! We had a few incidents of slips on the concrete floor as the kids had wet feet, and trips on the concrete stairs. My son also walked into the glass doors! He's a bit of a klutz sometimes like his mum (I trapped my hand in a door the other day at work!!).

As well as spending time at the villa, we enjoyed a few days out.... at the local beach watching the surfers and jumping the waves, the Oceanarium in Lisbon and a trip to Cascais.

The beach was just a 5 minute drive away

Rick enjoyed a spaghetti pizza!!

The oceanarium in Lisbon

Cascais

Overall the holiday was a huge success - the kids loved it and have been raving to everyone about their trip. It would be an amazing summer holiday for a group of friends or couples sans children!

Review - Giraffe, West Regent Street, Glasgow

It's not that often that I eat out in Glasgow City Centre with the kids. We tend to frequent the obvious family friendly chains at the shopping centres like Braehead, St Enoch Centre, Glasgow Fort or Silverburn. The thought of eating out in town with the kids stresses me a little, as I'm not sure exactly which places are child friendly! It turns out I didn't need to fret... Giraffe is easily accessible in the centre of Glasgow.

Locals may know there is also a Giraffe at Silverburn shopping centre at Tesco, but I hadn't been to either so our visit to Giraffe was an adventure! (The kids have said they had been to Silverburn Giraffe with their dad, so they knew more than me!!). I was aware that Giraffe was taken over by Tesco a few years ago, and I had in my mind that it was a supermarket café rather than a destination in itself.

My previous conceptions were wiped on arrival at the Giraffe restaurant in town. The venue, on West Regent Street, is lovely and spacious. The decor is fab and I loved the bright pops of colour in the chairs and lighting. Definitely surroundings that I'd be happy to hang out in.

We were seated in the window and ordered a few drinks - Mango Mama smoothie as recommended by our waitress for me (£3.85). The little plastic giraffes that came with our drinks were super cute and a unique touch that I haven't seen anywhere before. The kids loved them and they were kept amused playing giraffe families!

 

Orchard Pig, Ginger & Chilli, £2.65

It was like the restaurant had read some of my older restaurant reviews because the kids drinks were served in plastic cups with a lid, so I wasn't stressed about them spilling like a previous experience. We also were given activity/colouring sheets for the kids with crayons which was ideal. 

Food wise we ordered a mezze platter to start with mini pitta bread, halloumi skewers, falafel plus hummus, tzatziki, ratatouille, baba ghanoush and tabbouleh. The kids shared this with us, and it all was lovely.

Mezze Platter, £10.50

For mains, the kids had a salmon fillet with salad and potato wedges (£5.65). I personally loved that there was a choice for a 'grown-up' dinner for them rather than just chicken nuggets or fish fingers. The kids wolfed their meals (apart from the lettuce!) and gave their dinner a big thumbs up.

I had ordered a Thai Duck Stir Fry, and it was really delicious. Rick had Firecracker Chicken Katsu (£11.25) which he also loved. We shared some sweet potato fries too - the kids weren't keen on these but Rick & I enjoyed them very much. The dishes were presented well- I loved the grey bowl that my stir fry arrived in - right up my street!

Thai Duck Stir Fry, £10.95

Firecracker Chicken Katsu, £11.25

Sweet Potato Fries, £3.95

Grilled Salmon Fillet & Salad, £5.65

 

Of course we had to try dessert. The kids had the kids sundae, which of course they were delighted with! I had the Rocky Road Sundae (£5.95) and I didn't anticipate the size being so huge! It was immense, by this point I was pretty full but I managed to eat it all!! We washed down our pudding with a 'Moroccan' Fresh Mint Tea (£1.95), which along with some fresh mint it had a tea bag, so it wasn't the authentic experience I had expected, but it was still a nice end to the meal.

I was pleasantly surprised by my experience at Giraffe and thoroughly enjoyed our meal. The staff were attentive (although they knew we were reviewing the restaurant) and the food was lovely. I'd definitely go back.

The menu for breakfast/brunch looks great - Mon to Fri until noon you can have a Breakfast Burrito with a hot drink for £5! Warm tortilla filled with scrambled egg, chorizo, jalapenos, melted cheese, chipotle sauce, tomato & avocado salsa - yum!! 

 

We left the restaurant, the kids with their balloons, and we walked back to the car

with happy, full tummies :-)

 

We received a complimentary dinner in exchange for this review. Opinions, as always, are our own and are honest.

 

 

Travel - Our Yurt Experience

At the weekend the kids, Rick & I jumped in the car and headed North for a long weekend. I had booked accommodation through Canopy & Stars; basically the website is a selection of inspected quirky places to go glamping. The site is not only for the UK - there are locations throughout Europe too. I was initially keen to stay at a treehouse near Edinburgh but discovered these were fully booked. The staff at Canopy & Stars helped me select a lovely alternative - the Stuc a'Chroin Trossachs yurt near Stirling.

The Canopy & Stars website

I was drawn in by the beautiful photographs of the yurt on the website and couldn't wait to stay there myself!

Photograph from Canopy & Stars website

The farm was very easy to find thanks to the directions provided by the owner Kate. She was a fantastic hostess and met us on arrival. We had a tour of the site and were given some instructions about the facilities and finally were accompanied to the yurt. It was just beautiful. 

After unpacking the car, Kate invited us to watch her feed her 6 day old calf Query (all the calves at the farm had been named alphabetically, and she struggled to think of a name beginning with Q! Query is a twin and her mum was unable to feed both the calves, so Kate was bottle feeding one). The littlest in particular was very keen to ask questions and observe the goings on; as was I. 

Inside the yurt there were lots of interesting touches, from the candle holders, the dream catcher and a selection of wall hangings. It really was a cosy space and I particularly loved the wood burning stove. Kate had provided some home baking for our arrival and I have to admit I demolished the lot myself with a cup of tea... I had told the kids it was full of nuts and was for grown-ups only!!

We managed some grown-up time and enjoyed a glass of wine!

Our home for the weekend

There was a communal kitchen area across from the yurts, and with just three yurts on the farm it didn't feel crowded. We stored our food in the fridge here and used the kettle for my much needed cups of tea! There's no electricity in the yurts, but in the kitchen area there are sockets that can be used to charge phones or cameras etc. 

In the yurt there were two gas rings and a grill so we were able to prepare scrambled egg and bacon for breakfast. We also had a BBQ which we used for dinner on the Saturday night. We bought burgers from Kate that were made using beef from the cattle that graze at the farm. They were delicious!

In terms of the bathroom facilities, there are two toilets both with showers. After spotting a huge spider in one of the toilets on the first night, this loo was not an option for the kiddos as they were too scared to go back in!

Query in her pen

We had hoped to get some grown-up time sitting outside with a bottle of wine, however the weather wasn't as good as I had hoped so we ended up whispering in the yurt whilst the kids tried to get to sleep. It wasn't ideal and I hadn't really thought this through. Plus the kids were sharing a sofa bed and although they had sleeping bags there were still a few arguments about them crossing the line into the other sibling's side of the bed! 

The other thing I hadn't considered was how bright the yurt would be - obviously there is no black out lining! So when it was 7.30pm and I was trying to convince the kids it was night-time they had a hard time believing me. At my house we go into lock-down at 7pm - all the black-out blinds get closed, the lights are all dimmed and it's as good as night-time. This wasn't an option at the yurt! If I had thought ahead I would have brought eye masks for them to wear. 

Next time I think we'll visit the yurt without the children. As ideal the surroundings are for children, it is also a very romantic place and I would love to spend a few days with Rick just relaxing, enjoying the countryside and his company. We really did feel like we were far from home when in reality the yurts are just an hour's drive from Glasgow. Very easy to get to for a few nights rest & relaxation in the countryside.

I'm going to write a separate post on all the activities that we did during our stay at the yurt and I've also got some video footage to put into a short vlog... watch this space.

Have you ever gone glamping and where would you recommend to stay? Or perhaps I have inspired you to give glamping a try?