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Glasgow Times
26-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Glasgow Times
'Supersized sandwiches': New Glasgow cafe is a worthy spin-off
Even before the move to a bigger unit in 2017, the team led by Laurie Macmillan was ahead of the curve, feeding the city's love affair with brunch, one plate of Stornoway Stack or dulche de leche pancakes at a time. Me personally? I'm a huge fan of their breakfast burrito, a warm, heavy parcel wrapped in glittering foil that gives way to scrambled egg and spicy guacamole in a soft tortilla wrap. Nothing sets you up for the day quite like it. That's why the bar was set awfully high for this week's lunch review, as the Strange Brew team ventures into the city centre with a new project, Sister Midnight. This place has a little more edge than the Southside café we've come to know and love, located directly across from the now sadly shut 13th Note on King Street. It's a sizeable corner unit bathed in natural light, which means there's room for some counters and shelf space dedicated to a small but thoughtfully curated range of provisions like jars of sweet pickled garlic oil or tinned sardines wrapped in colourful paper. They also play host to Ripe Magazine, who sell a selection of glossy-looking publications over by the door. On a busy bank holiday, there's zero chance of securing a spot by those lovely big windows, and since there's a reserve of pre-made sandwiches prepped and primed in the chill cabinet, I'll spend next to no time in Sister Midnight at all. A shame, really, because there's a nice little buzz about the place. Although perhaps a direct result of the decision to pack less seating room into the floor plan. Resigned to taking a couple of sandwiches back home for taste testing, I take a moment to study the menu, handwritten in thick blue marker pen and hung behind the counter. If you happened to read our recent list of foodie tips for Glasgow, you'll know I've been raring to try the Tobermory Fish Company bagel the team posted on social media weeks after opening. I'm heartbroken to discover it's absent from today's list, so instead I choose the chicken Caesar, said to be one of their best sellers, and an egg mayo, figuring this will be a decent test of their take on a classic. There's a cheery interaction with a staff member, a tap of a contactless card, and I'm off, sandwiches in hand. In and out of the shop in less than five minutes. Bonus points for anyone in search of a speedy lunch during office hours. Back home, it becomes clear just how huge the sandwiches from Sister Midnight are. I worry I'm becoming somewhat of a broken record with this repeated lunch review line, but it really does seem that bigger is better in current foodie trends. It's focaccia this time. Thick wedges of oily aerated dough separated by an enormous amount of filling. The Caesar is my favourite of the two with fat strips of chicken and crispy onions, a heavy scattering of parmesan, cos lettuce and plenty of dressing. It's crunchy, creamy and immensely satisfying to eat. The herby egg mayo benefits greatly from a whack of fresh dill, with chives and spring onion for a bit more savoury oomph. A different beast entirely to the sad, under-seasoned mush you'll encounter in a supermarket meal deal alternative. And at around £7 or so for these freshly prepared, monster sandwiches, your money really does go a long way. Don't expect to be needing to eat again until dinner. Pictured: Supersized sandwiches from Sister Midnight in Glasgow (Image: Newsquest) Could the ratios here be a little better? Maybe. The egg mayo in particular spills out messily from the slices of focaccia each time I attempt to take a bite, leaving me wishing there was just a little less bread to contend with. But if you're ok with a little mess, both of this week's sandwiches show that the same spark behind Strange Brew is alive and well at the new city centre spot. I'd gladly swap my breakfast burrito for another go at Sister Midnight's menu any time. Price: £7 for the herby egg mayo and £8 for the chicken caesar. Wait time: Sandwiches are prepped and ready to go, so it was in and out in less than five minutes. Rating: 4/5 Sister Midnight is located at 61 King Street in Glasgow.
The Herald Scotland
25-04-2025
- Entertainment
- The Herald Scotland
They do one of Glasgow's best brunches - will the new shop compare?
Me personally? I'm a huge fan of their breakfast burrito, a warm, heavy parcel wrapped in glittering foil that gives way to scrambled egg and spicy guacamole in a soft tortilla wrap. Nothing sets you up for the day quite like it. That's why the bar was set awfully high for this week's lunch review, as the Strange Brew team ventures into the city centre with a new project, Sister Midnight. This place has a little more edge than the Southside café we've come to know and love, located directly across from the now sadly shut 13th Note on King Street. It's a sizeable corner unit bathed in natural light, which means there's room for some counters and shelf space dedicated to a small but thoughtfully curated range of provisions like jars of sweet pickled garlic oil or tinned sardines wrapped in colourful paper. They also play host to Ripe Magazine, who sell a selection of glossy-looking publications over by the door. On a busy bank holiday, there's zero chance of securing a spot by those lovely big windows, and since there's a reserve of pre-made sandwiches prepped and primed in the chill cabinet, I'll spend next to no time in Sister Midnight at all. A shame, really, because there's a nice little buzz about the place. Although perhaps a direct result of the decision to pack less seating room into the floor plan. Resigned to taking a couple of sandwiches back home for taste testing, I take a moment to study the menu, handwritten in thick blue marker pen and hung behind the counter. If you happened to read our recent list of foodie tips for Glasgow, you'll know I've been raring to try the Tobermory Fish Company bagel the team posted on social media weeks after opening. (Read more: A food and drink writer's favourite things to order in Glasgow this month) I'm heartbroken to discover it's absent from today's list, so instead I choose the chicken Caesar, said to be one of their best sellers, and an egg mayo, figuring this will be a decent test of their take on a classic. There's a cheery interaction with a staff member, a tap of a contactless card, and I'm off, sandwiches in hand. In and out of the shop in less than five minutes. Bonus points for anyone in search of a speedy lunch during office hours. Back home, it becomes clear just how huge the sandwiches from Sister Midnight are. I worry I'm becoming somewhat of a broken record with this repeated lunch review line, but it really does seem that bigger is better in current foodie trends. It's focaccia this time. Thick wedges of oily aerated dough separated by an enormous amount of filling. The Caesar is my favourite of the two with fat strips of chicken in a crisp coating, a heavy scattering of parmesan, cos lettuce and plenty of dressing. It's crunchy, creamy and immensely satisfying to eat. The herby egg mayo benefits greatly from a whack of fresh dill, with chives and spring onion for a bit more savoury oomph. A different beast entirely to the sad, under-seasoned mush you'll encounter in a supermarket meal deal alternative. And at around £7 or so for these freshly prepared, monster sandwiches, your money really does go a long way. Don't expect to be needing to eat again until dinner. Pictured: Supersized sandwiches from Sister Midnight in Glasgow (Image: Newsquest) Could the ratios here be a little better? Maybe. The egg mayo in particular spills out messily from the slices of focaccia each time I attempt to take a bite, leaving me wishing there was just a little less bread to contend with. But if you're ok with a little mess, both of this week's sandwiches show that the same spark behind Strange Brew is alive and well at the new city centre spot. I'd gladly swap my breakfast burrito for another go at Sister Midnight's menu any time. Price: £7 for the herby egg mayo and £8 for the chicken caesar. Wait time: Sandwiches are prepped and ready to go, so it was in and out in less than five minutes. Rating: 4/5 Sister Midnight is located at 61 King Street in Glasgow.
Irish Times
22-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Irish Times
New Irish albums reviewed and rated: Paddy Hanna, Lullahush, Cushla, Maria Somerville and Danny Groenland
Paddy Hanna: Oylegate (Strange Brew ) ★★★★☆ Paddy Hanna has been a critics' darling for years. Oylegate, his fifth album, may not help him cross the line to commercial success, but if there is some contentment in writing songs that make the weight of the world less burdensome, then he has achieved that, at least. Produced by Daniel Fox of Gilla Band, the album features silky-smooth – which is strikingly ironic given that the songs' lyrics are influenced by 'the crushing lows and euphoric highs of parenthood' and 'by an artist embracing change rather than fighting it', as Hanna puts it in the album notes. [ Self Esteem on the music business: 'It's things like dressing rooms with only a urinal which make women give up' Opens in new window ] Lullahush: Ithaca (Future Classic) ★★★☆☆ The Athens-based Dubliner Daniel McIntyre, aka Lullahush, is on to something with Ithaca, his paganistic marriage of traditional Irish music and twitchy electronica. The album is a brazenly multilayered piece of work, by turns serious and skittish. Irish colloquialisms and spoken word sit beside spine-tingling sean-nós (Saileog Ní Cheannabháin's An Droighneán Donn), Hawaiian guitars, techno drones, the vocals of Maija Sofia (radiant on Jimmy an Chladaigh) and the most imaginative version of Patrick Kavanagh's Raglan Road you're likely to hear. Occasionally messy it might be, but McIntyre has fashioned something different here, something bold, something else. Cushla: Tech Duinn (Foehn Records) ★★★☆☆ Cushla's debut album, Tech Duinn, a collaborative project between the Wexford-based producer Marc Fernandez, the Co Kilkenny composer and remixer Leo Pearson and the Co Cork Gaeltacht singer Nell Ní Chróinín, pleasingly ventures to places we're becoming very much accustomed to. Tracks such as The Mountain, 7 Years, Aisling, Fós and Geantraí nimbly fuse sean-nós with soft drum-machine pulses, synthesiser embellishments and engrossing ambient music. Maria Somerville: Luster (4AD) ★★★☆☆ Maria Somerville has never been reticent about drawing influences from her native Connemara, but what marks her out as an original is the way she complements the uneven, magnificent wilderness of the landscapes with lush shoegaze and slow-motion postpunk. She wrote and recorded most of Luster at home, close to Lough Corrib, with notable contributions from Ian Lynch of Lankum, who provides uilleann-pipe drones on Violet, and Margie Jean Lewis, who plays violin on Flutter. READ MORE Danny Groenland: Burning Rome (self-released) ★★★★☆ Danny Groenland's album Burning Rome brings influences of Steely Dan, Weather Report, Marvin Gaye, Curtis Mayfield and D'Angelo to its meticulously executed soul/jazz. The narrative focus may not be joyful – themes include homelessness, inequality, mental health, police brutality, climate change, racism and genocide – but not one song on the album is a drag to listen to. From soulful summer heat (Somewhere) and Steely Dan-style silkiness (Work Out) to piano ballads (Never Going Home) and positive vibes (Chip In), Burning Rome sizzles from start to end.
