Five days a week, when you're strolling along Byres Road, or rushing to the subway for work, you'll…read moreenevitably come across a little portable fruit stall set up outside the Carphone Warehouse and across from Marks and Spencer's food. They do great offers - such as two for ones on seasonable fruit, and have great fruit bags for a fiver, of which the contents also depend upon the season. Though best to share the bag with a friend, as it's always way too much for an average person to consume alone! The guys who run the stall are always friendly and chatty, and the stall changes in the festive period to a Christmas Tree stall. I really love it, if only for the fact it's the only open air shop on Byres Road, and it totally adds a bit of colour to the otherwise dreary corner. It fits in nicely with the hustle and bustle of the busy road, and the produce is always high quality, so fund the local economy and get your fruit here!

I did notice that the layout of the fruit stall has changed dramatically, basically its just trees,…read moreChristmas trees. This may be a better business incentive but trees are never going to help you reach your five a day. I welcome the return of fresh fruit, they have the most amazing pears, the guy told me they come from China but I've forgotten they're proper name. Real crisp and juicy, ask him he'll know what you mean.

The West End Festival is one of my favourite events of the year in Glasgow. The parade is a mix of…read morecolour and music as the people in it dance down the streets of the West End. Mouths won't go hungry as local businesses set up stalls and seats outside. Burgers, pizza, chips, cakes and pastries: there's lots to fill you up whilst you're entertained by the parade. Outside Hillhead Bookclub is the over 18s area which is a good escape from the pushy prams. You just need to make sure you get a good spot or you might not get to see a lot!

Did anyone make their way to Glasgow Mela last weekend? Cause I thought it was FAB! Lucky enough…read morethat the weather was on our side last weekend too. The festival had so many things and I'm glad that it was free too seeing as it was in Kelvingrove Park! The atmosphere of family, children and friends of different cultures (many Indian folk, locals and a bunch of other random nationalities including myself :D) came by to chill out at the park. Whether it was to play with outdoor installations or at the fun fair, or listen to music with a pint under the sun, or watch silly performances by street artists (and magicians) or even dance along with the amazing traditional performers (and also Irish line dancers) the day was just great! My partner and I explored everything! We were down at the smaller stage listening to Indian music with toddlers dancing everywhere. And then we watched as a parade of what seemed to be circus performers walked by. We slept on the grass while having Pimm's cocktails and listening to some dj sets. And then watched the amazing performers by so many tradition local clubs! If you haven't been before, you should really consider going in the next years to come :) Update: also, went to Chop Pop's exhibition of her Love Letters to Glasgow in the Hillhead Library and it was wonderful! Her artwork is amazing and meticulous! She's also a friendly wee lady and I love her. Check out her facebook if you didn't manage to catch her!

This area comprises a yachting marina (one of the main centres for sailing in the Firth of Clyde),…read morethe P&O ferry port to Northern Ireland, and is also used for fishing. It makes an interesting place to visit if you're in the town it's only a short walk, which I took the other day to wander about the marina's edge and take photos. The harbour has been in use since the 17th century. It was then greatly enlarged and improved in 1812 when the railway was installed. Poor horses pulled the coal wagons along the rails from Kilmarnock to Troon! Sailors will find around 300 moorings here, plenty of marina facilities, with electricity and water on the pontoons, showers, toilets and laundry facilities nearby. You can buy fuel including calor gas. There are many other services offered and a restaurant alongside the marina (quite expensive but has had good reviews).

As you arrive off the train at Troon one of the few places that you will find open is this one…read more Troon station shop is a small kiosk that sells tea/ coffee to go with a selection of hot and cold filled rolls, selection of packet cakes available with cold soft canned drinks with a selection of magazines and newspapers. A bacon roll and a cup of tea or coffee to go £2

Central perks is a small kiosk that sells coffee, newspapers, sandwiches to go ideal if you are in…read morea rush, server behind the counter seems fast and get's through a crowd pretty quickly.

A godsend: good barbecue in Britain--the best we've found, and not just because they actually know…read morethe difference between "barbecue" and "grilled food". In case you're skeptical, they often have samples--after which, resistance is futile. I've now visited just twice and wish I could go more often. Not only does the barbecue smell alluring, look great, and taste wonderful, but Toby also said what any great pit-master should: "We're still experimenting." Oh, to be a test subject for all those experiments. Food (4.5): Excellent applewood-smoked pulled pork sandwiches (£4) made with local ingredients. Personally, I'd suggest skipping the (tasty) chili jam, which I think over-powers the smoke and pork. The ribs (a new experiment) were great--moist and tender with a good bark (no mean feat)--though I personally would've liked a little more of a smoke ring and a tad more of the delicious barbecue sauce. If Toby starts making oak- or mesquite-smoked brisket, I'll have to initiate a weekly pilgrimage to Edinburgh. People (5): Great people; great service. They know barbecue and will sell you a smoker (or maybe a pit). They're also happy to talk shop... though maybe not to divulge secret ingredients. Side note: I grew up in Texas and have a high bar for barbecue. If you're an aficionado, this probably won't be the best you've ever had, but it's very good and it's certainly the best we've had in Britain. Also, they seem to be aiming to master a range of barbecues. (Right now, it seems mostly NC-style.) It's absolutely worth a visit now, and I'd really love to see what they'll have after a couple more years of experimentation. P.S. I can't believe they keep it up through the Scottish winter. That's dedication.

The best pulled pork I've tasted so far.... since first tasting their pulled pork roll last year…read moreI've made the mistake of having it in various other restaurants and realised the thing Jones & Son do so well is the sauce that's added into the pork - it's just so damn tasty!!!! The combo of the "slaw" and chilli jam is just delicious. Go go go!

Very tasty Bratwurst from some very cool guys at this food truck. I like On the Roll a lot. The…read moresausages are very tasty, portion sizes pretty good, and prices not exorbitant. You can get sauce and sauerkraut as well, all in all adding up to a nice lunch in the centre of the student area. They have a loyalty card as well, so you can get rewarded for eating more Bratwurst. Win. Recommended.

Yum, proper German bratwurst, served in a wee bread roll to hold it as you munch - or on a tray…read morewith curry sauce as currywurst. The bicycle-food stand contraption is petty cool and the sausages are great. I now have a loyalty card, and I'll be back!

We'd just pulled into town after a quick flight from Dublin and were looking for a nearby place to…read moreeat. Four of us with luggage when we spied the Boozy Cow sign and decided to give it a try. We were happy with our selection. The staff was very kind and put us in a spot where we could stash our luggage a bit out of the way. The food was great, the drinks were cold and we left ready to hit the town.

This place was very cool we had so much fun here, the staff and service were great. They recommend…read moredelicious food, we wanted to try the burgers and ended up the sliders, thinking they were small, these were huge as was the nachos. We were just looking for a lite dinner and had way too much food. We love the feel of the place. For two old folks this was a 'hip' place my kids would have loved.