First off, I'm just gonna say this - every single bar in Merchant Square is overpriced. All of them. Bar Square is no exception - but is by no means the worst. It's always totally heaving at the weekend, so I tend to give it a miss then. But during the week it's actually a decent place to go and chill out. Inside the main bar, they had a refurb a few months back - and I like the new look. It's much more open and a bit more stylised. It has the usual range of city centre beers on tap - look out for Drygate's Gladeye IPA which is a more recent addition. I've never tried the food, but the menu looks ok. The best part of Bar Square is the seating area inside Merchant Square itself - again, horrendously loud at the weekend but with a nice chilled out background murmur during the week. Perfect place to round off date night with the Mr. read more

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We went here for dinner and a drink on a Friday evening and it looked very quiet compared to other places in the area. The bar is situated in the lovely Merchant Square so we sat "outside" under the fairy lights which was nice, but the plastic chairs are not very comfortable. The waitresses were very attentive and we were served quickly. We ordered burgers which were fairly average but not unreasonably priced. The bottled beer was tasty and they had a small but good selection, however the tap beer was on the warm side. I think this place is good for a quick pub meal but if you're looking for something really tasty another pub/restaurant in Merchant Square might be better! read more

Bar Square - The sign for the toilets is pretty exciting. - British Near Me - Glasgow, GLG

I've never had the desire to stop in to this bar as it always looks quite empty when I'm walking past, but we were invited to a friends birthday party here and decided to go. The reality of it all is that it really is a great place for large parties, which made the experience so much better than I thought it would be. There's plenty of room inside the actual bar with 'U' shaped tables and lots of room in Merchant Square for dinner parties. Our party was quite large, so we were spread out between two "U" shaped tables inside the bar and a few tables outside the bar area with lots of people standing around. It's big enough inside for people to mingle around and get drinks from the bar with ease. The drinks aren't too expensive, which is nice, so that's a plus for returning in the future. The bar staff that I came in to contact with were quite nice and answered any drinks questions that I may have had. I can see myself coming back here in the future with larger parties. read more

Bar Square - Interesting selection of wall paper? - British Near Me - Glasgow, GLG

I have to add my two cents to this place, which has received the most unanimously poor restaurant rating on Yelp in Glasgow perhaps? I did not order food when I was in here, so first off, I can't really say much as far as the grub goes. While I wasn't bowled over by the service or even the decor, it was a nice enough place upon entering. I didn't really enjoy myself though, with an awkward vibe in the place which I might have made up after reading some reviews on Yelp. Nothing much to sell this place, given the many other places kicking around down here which give you value for money. I had a casual glance on the website which looks like it has been designed by a school kid which never fills my heart with confidence. One to avoid I believe. read more

Bar Square - British Near Me - Glasgow, GLG

Expensive, but a good all round atmosphere I thought. My friends and I sat at the candleriggs entrance, and even though there was music playing, we could still chat away and solve the problems of the world. My friend commented on how good the gin and tonics where. I drank pints of cider all night so cant really comment on that, the others seemed happy with their Peroni beer, and the others where on Carling, which is crap, no matter how good or bad the pub! It was'nt too crowded which suited me, and got served no problem every time, no hanging about trying to get bar staff attention. All round pub, not too poncy for the merchant city either. read more

Bar Square - British Near Me - Glasgow, GLG

Bar Square is often a backup plan when out in Merchant City, as it always tends to have space. It is really busy at the weekend, which is to be expected, and definitely tries to have quite a clubby vibe. It's very loud at the weekend, music-wise and the clientele are quite rowdy - I feel like it is the kind of place people either go pre-club or at the end of their night. During the week I like it more as it's more chilled out,but it is always pretty clean which is one of the reasons it's getting this rating. I wouldn't go out of my way to go here, but it's ok to sit and have a few drinks in. I don't really have a huge amount to say about it - I feel that the drinks are pretty overpriced (I paid £9-odds for a pint of Peroni and a bottle of Sol at the weekend, yep) and while I get that Merchant Square is a really nice place to sit in and sometimes you pay for that kind of thing, I don't feel that other businesses in there do that. This is really more of a 2.5, as there are other places I've given 3 stars to that I like a lot more than Bar Square - but it's not really deserving of a mere 2 in my opinion. It's definitely a lot more pleasant during the week/at less busy times and I've yet to try the food, so there might be an update when I do! read more

Bank holiday weekend, perfect weather, feeling chilled. Chose Barsquare for 2 course lunch. Finishing off the breaded mushrooms I notice some movement in the salad - A SLUG! The atmosphere totally reversed instantaneously. We were so shocked we just left there and then. We are usually not shy in complaining if something is poor quality, cold etc but this was unprecedented. So disappointed!!! read more

So seems like there are a few bad reviews for this place. Well I had no big complaints when I was in. The look of the place is forgettable, although granted my memory isn't the best I still usually remember my surroundings, at least until I've had a few. The service overall was very good, friendly and attentive. It was pretty quiet when we were in so I can't comment on the service on a busy day. Me and my friend both ordered jalapeno poppers which came with sweet chilli sauce and were pretty tasty. I had chilli nachos and my friend had steak and chips. He said his steak was a little tough but ate it all anyway. I put this down to a poor cut of meat. Chilli was good but there were too many nachos and not enough chilli for my liking but still pretty good overall. They had a lunch deal which was 2 course for £7.95 it worked out that we both got a free starter. It seemed a decent price for lunch. I would go here again but I won't be rushing back. I've certainly been to much worse places. read more

Bring a full wallet, the drinks are on the expensive side, but at leasst the booths are comfy. They pour a decent pint of european beer here but I can't comment on the food as we didn't eat. What I saw being served looked like fairly bog standard pub grub and probably not the kind of thing I'd usually go for given the fabulous alternatives in Glasgow. Bar Square opens out onto Merchant Square's covered interior where the majority of diners were sitting on a very busy saturday afternoon. Its clearly a great spot for people watching! Fortunately for us there was some free seating in the main bar where I could quite easily have whiled away a whole afternoon were it not for the fact that we had other plans. It was the only pub in the vicinity with free seats which is the reason we ended up there, but it was perfectly fit for our purpose. read more

My god why did I bother with this place again The service is painfully slow and business levels are quiet Ordered a blt wrap 35 mins ago and still waiting ..... I'll update when I get it, thinking tomorrow! Here with my sister and the kids, I'm guessing families know how hard it is to entertain hungry children at a table ..... I do now and my head hurts Oh hold up foods here - 40mins Seem to have no set server - 4 people have been to us - seating - ordering - drinks - food Wonder if we get a fifth for the bill Ok.... Food Poor presentation, lacks imagination or even a side salad. Fries were ok actually .... The wrap was watery and lacked taste and chicken! Really is a dire place in a great location read more

I always really like the Merchant City area and looking for a bite to eat decided to give Bar Square a chance. We sat outside overlooking the court yard and it was lovely and warm. It wasn't particularly busy which I think is normal for a lot of places mid-week, but there was something a bit unatmospheric about it all. The waitress was friendly and the menu had a mix of burgers, pasta dishes and fajitas. I opted for a veggie burger and salad and my mum went for a chicken burger with fries. It arrived quick enough but mine was your usual giant white tasteless bap with frozen out the freezer veggie burger (in fact I've had taster from Tesco or Yates!) Likewise my mums was along a similar vain with forgettable chips probably straight out the freezer. We decided to try redeem the main course with some chocolate cake but the waitress returned to say she had just sold the last slice! Come on - on a Wednesday night! Anyway this was probably a good shout as I imagine it would have been pretty disappointing and it was probably better to cut our loses. I should say that the service was good and there was nothing particularly wrong with what we had, but with so many other places to try its certainly somewhere I won't be rushing back to. read more

I find this one of the better value places to eat in Merchant Square. I love sitting in the courtyard area as I think it's a lot nicer than inside in the bar itself (not that there's anything wrong with the bar, I just like the fairy lights etc of the Merchant Square courtyard.) The menu has a good range of options at a reasonable price and portions are fairly generous. I particularly like the Cajun chicken which comes with delicious sticky rice covered in a lovely creamy sauce. The fajitas are also good. Would also recommend the waffles for dessert, although I've not usually got enough room for dessert to be honest. read more

Nice selection of drinks and cocktails, good atmosphere on a friday night, if you sit outside (in the covered square) its pretty quiet, but if you go inside the music is pretty loud so you can choose what you prefer. Drinks are pretty expensive, expect to pay around £8-10 for 2 drinks, or £15 for 2 cocktails. The only complaint I would have is the bouncer who thinks he is a Drill Sargent when it comes drinking up time. Last orders, then less than 5 minutes later a guy who you feel the need to salute shouting in your face DRINK UP, AND MOVE OUTSIDE PEOPLE in an aggressive tone isn't the best way to finish the night though. If it happens to you, stomp your foot and put your hand to your head in a salute see if we can get it to catch on :) read more

Good friendly staff and service. Breakfast available from 9am everyday! Excellent value for a good first meal of the day. read more

Bar Square - British Near Me - Glasgow, GLG

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I actually can't believe how little a portion you get in this place! The main course was ridiculously small. My girlfriend got scampi from the menu and asked for some vegetables instead of chips, she got literally 8 pieces of scampi and a side salad...joke! I on the other hand got the steak and ale pie. The It came with a tiny amount of mash and peas and the gravy was really watery. It was more like stew than anything else. I actually counted the meat I got on the plate and I had 6 prices of beef. I was so shocked at the poor quality of food especially been situated in Merchant Square. I wouldn't even come back for a pint. The service was shocking too. All around I wasted my time and money on this place. I now see why it was dead! read more

I absolutely love this place, been coming here for lunch every Saturday for a while now with a group of my friends. The staff always make sure we get a table and look after us well. The food is good and excellent value for money - which is why we keep coming back!! read more

Truly Terrible Customer Service - Avoid!!! My friend and I went here for breakfast at 10.30 am on Saturday 30 May 2009. The place was empty. They have some seats out in the courtyard in Merchant Square, but we asked to sit inside. The courtyard isn't the best place to sit. The barman refused point blank to serve us because he was the only one on duty so didn't want to serve us unless we sat in the courtyard (dunno why, as our we weren't exactly sitting far away from the bar)- obviously they don't think the customer is always right, and I won't be back - and will happily spread the word about themI did try to e-mail them but their web address is no longer live. Sums them up. Pathetic service. Avoid this place. (By the way, I've only given this 1 out of 5 because you can't award zero) read more

Visited this bar the other weekend as we were up from Manchester and had an early evening dinner which was great (meal deal swayed us in) . After dinner we ventured in from the lovely courtyard to be greeted by a dj playing dance music and it did not take to long for my partner and i to get served at the bar and the cocktails were spot on. A nice bar in a great part of Glasgow. read more

After a hard days shopping I just wanted to relax...Bar Square turned out to be the perfect place. Ate from the lunch menu which was extremely reasonable. Food was very tasty and staff friendly. Having read the other reviews on the website I am a bit shocked...I found the atmosphere very relaxing....so much so that my husband and I spent the rest of the afternoon soaking it up. Thoroughly recommended by me....after taking a look at myself (per previous reviewers advice) I find I'm still liking it :) read more

have just returned from an early 5-8special deal, 2 couses for 2 people and a bottle of reasonable wine for £12.95 per person, very good value for money, couldn't fault the food for the price, service was very pleasant, sitting in merchant square nice as always. friend and i were just wandering around looking for something reasonable and this more than met our expectations. read more

Went to Merchant Square Festival today, it's 10th anniversary. It was great, unfortunately the same cannot be said for Bar Square. We had late lunch, garlic bread and haggis bites to start and classic burger and a steak and onion wrap. We waited a long time before we could order then even longer for the food to come. We were told there was a backlog because they were busy. The food was then served by a frosty faced waitress and what a disappointment. The steak could not be cut and was difficult to chew. the classic burger was a small burnt offering, half the size of a normal McD's burger but only this one was completed charred. We complained to the waitress who just took the food away. We then complained to the manager who said "Oh what a shame I will tell the kitchen staff" and then he took off. We received our bill before we asked for it and sat uncomfortably trying to finish our drinks. If you are thinking of this place,,, I wouldn't better to give it a miss and try your luck elsewhere. A disappointing end to a nice day. My daughter is feeling sick now after the meal. Be warned! read more