I've been local to Partick on and off for about 20 years now (wow). In that time it has changed quite a lot, for the better thankfully. I used to be told when I first moved to the area all those years ago 'Partick's fine. Just don't go past the train station, that's where it gets a bit sketchy...' Me being the daredevil I am I did upon a few occasions venture past said Partick Train station and it wasn't great but it wasn't as scary as folk made out. There just wasn't much really in the way of decent shops. Now there are lots of great wee shops and businesses in this area. I am a big fan in partick-ular (oh, I had to do the bad pun!) of the many second-hand furniture shops on Dumbarton Road. They're full of great bargains and absolutely brilliant if you're setting up a home in the area & you need some furniture at a really great/cheap price.
There are also loads of nice charity shops, newsagents, cafes, hair salons, nail/beauty bars, pubs and pretty much everything you should require is in the Partick area. It also has it's on library, cricket ground, mini park and aforementioned train station, 2 subway stations (if you include Kelvinhall, which I do) and a bus station. Living in Partick you really have no need to use a car for getting about as the public transport is great. It was one of the reasons why I ended up moving back to Partick.
Favourite places in Partick of mine are: Station Wok & Crazy Wok (Chinese/take away), Cafe Avanti (chip shop/cafe), The Sparkle Horse (pub), The Tea Garden (cafe), Morrison's (for handiness), the HUGE British Heart Foundation shop (great again for furniture), The Pacific (for cocktails), Siempre, Meadow Road, My Home Bakery, Deli/Cafezique and newcomer, For Fika Sake for coffee and cakes and I know there are LOADS more so if you should ever find yourself in Partick you'll never be stuck for something to do or somewhere to eat/drink/shop. read more