Glasgow restaurants with outdoor seating for al fresco dining

Glasgow Times

08-05-2025

From Bib Gourmand winners in the West End to small plates in the Southside, here are eight Glasgow restaurants with outdoor seating, perfect for al fresco dining.
Five March
140 Elderslie Street
The outdoor space at Five March provides a pocket of calm between the West End and city centre.
Flavours here are vibrant, fresh and led by the seasons with the current a la carte offering featuring peach, puntarelle, lemon ricotta, apricot harissa and black pepper or oyster mushroom, lion's mane, king trumpet, celeriac and kimchi sesame.
Although not fully vegetarian, Five March is a particularly great shout for those in search of a restaurant which truly celebrates meat-free dishes and prides itself on using the best of local produce.
Read more: Five March - The Glasgow restaurant which 'deserves to be much busier on a Friday lunchtime'
Celentano's
28 Cathedral Square
Just a stone's throw away from the Glasgow Cathedral and the city's sprawling Necropolis, there are few restaurants in Glasgow with such an interesting setting as Celentano's.
Make the most of that by securing a seat outside before ordering some delicious Italian fare like BBQ Jerusalem artichokes with toasted walnuts and cavolo nero or pappardelle with Dexter Beef ragu.
It's also worth taking a glance at the drinks menu, which has a fantastic selection of organic and natural wines as well as vermouth created in-house by the enterprising bar team.
The ideal partner for Isle of Barra Gin and Campari in their signature Negroni.
Ox and Finch
920 Sauchiehall Street
This beloved Bib Gourmand restaurant is back with a bang after a brief period of closure for refurbishment work earlier this year.
Though the new interiors are looking incredibly chic, the spring menu, including skate wing, crab sauce, guindillas and capers, whipped cod roe furikake or endive or duck liver parfait, negroni marmalade and toasted brioche, tastes just as good outdoors.
The Locale
241 North Street
In their own words, The Locale at Charing Cross mixes "traditional British pub culture with a sprinkle of Americana dive bar attitude and a touch of European café-bar class".
Granted, the yard-style seating area here isn't the comfiest set up.
But, when the sun is shining, the space has a great atmosphere as the kitchen slings a menu of chicken tenders with house slaw and pickles or burgers with your choice of hot honey fried chicken, smashed Aberdeen Angus patties or vegan-friendly meat alternatives.
If you fancy visiting on a weeknight, aim for Tuesday when tacos are priced at £1.50 with a Margarita to wash it down at £5.
Lobo
758 Pollokshaws Road
Slap bang in the middle of a neighbourhood recently voted one of the coolest in the world, the small outdoor seating area in front of Lobo is a real sun trap in the afternoons.
They also happen to serve some of the best Mediterranean small plates you'll find in the city, from roast coley with crushed peas, mint and jamon brown butter to smoked tomatoes, ajo blanco and picada or house focaccia with rich, confit garlic.
If you're a fan of their cooking, it might also be worth investigating Boca (the team's sandwich shop) hidden away within The Cooperage slightly further up Pollokshaws Road.
Mono
12 King Street
You don't have to follow a plant-based diet to appreciate the vegan-friendly food that has helped Mono to become an institution at King's Court.
Their dairy-free mac and cheese is the stuff of legend, served with a wedge of super garlicky bread and coleslaw, while elsewhere on the menu, look out for hand-stretched sourdough pizzas, burgers or tofu satay bowls.
If you're lucky enough to find a seat on one of the benches outside, there are few better places for catching rays around the city centre.
Kelp
114 Cowcaddens Road
Seafood lovers should make a beeline for Kelp on Cowcaddens Road when the sun shines for a menu full of Scottish produce served in their picturesque walled garden.
Choose from Orkney crab doughnut with brown crab emulsion, chilli and sesame, hand-dived Barra scallops with lemon, caper and ajo blanco or keep things simple with a half dozen oysters on ice with a crisp glass of white wine.
The Loveable Rogue
122-124 Nithsdale Road
These days, the Loveable Rogue is perhaps best known for its bargain midweek steak frites deals served across its three city locations or a Sunday roast, which has been celebrated as one of the best in the UK by the Good Food Guide.
But their newest branch in the city's Southside also happens to have a particularly appealing outdoor area, where you'll often spot diners sporting sunglasses and sipping on cocktails late into the evening.
I was impressed with the chicken Kyiv on opening night last year, but it was a charred hispi cabbage dish served with black garlic, hazelnuts and miso butter emulsion that proved the surprise star of the show.
It's hard to believe green veggies can taste that good.