Emma 
Decor
Recently refurbished, Ad Lib still looks like a downtown Manhattan bar but is now more classy with booths, hipster filament lightbulbs and the bar has relocated from the left hand side to the back wall. The fridge was fully stocked, when we visited for lunch, with a number of Brookyn beers we hadn’t seen on this side of the Atlantic before but as it was lunchtime we just had glasses of water.
The music was disco funk, ideal for a lunchtime cheer up. Now we have “Yes Sir, I can boogie” in our heads all day!
Menu
Food
Mr Foodie picked The fear of a black pudding, an Angus beef burger, black pudding and fried egg (£13.95) with an upgrade to Texan fries (small thin strip chips with salsa, bacon and cheese).
There was no fear of black pudding here, it was very tasty and almost a breakfast in a burger so some bacon would’ve been good or a runnier fried egg. The burger is stacked with a chunky slab of meat which was cooked well-done, so it’s not a messy burger like you’ll find in some of the newer burger joints in Glasgow.
Mrs Foodie went for the classic with added bacon and smoked cheddar at £8.95 and upgraded to cheese fries for £1.
A traditional-style burger where you can taste the ingredients which aren’t masked by unnecessary sauces. The burger meat came apart in chunks and tasted meaty. The patty was a little dry, however a dollop of mayo helped moisten things up.
Mrs Foodie liked the small crispy fries, a good amount of cheese on them (try them dipped in the BBQ sauce).
With their famous Mac n Cheese on the menu as a side (£3.95) it had to be ordered. Thick, creamy and very cheesy. Not just cheddar but a variety of cheesy tastes: top Mac n cheese!
Dessert and Coffee
We were pretty full but struggled along and ordered a pecan pie for £5.75 between us to try out their puddings.
A perfect pecan pie. Warmed and served with vanilla ice-cream, maple sauce and garnished with strawberry. Crunchy nuts on top, sweet and gooey inside. Very tasty!
Two flat white coffees (£5.00), helped stop the carb coma of lunch.
The lunch menu is a great deal at £6.95 for a variety of meals. We splashed out a bit to try a daily special and added a cheeky dessert. Service was quick and friendly, we liked the disco funk musical accompaniment with the only downside being the gent’s toilets smelling like pub toilets (but that’s Glasgow drains for you!). Ad Lib will be launching a new menu in the coming weeks so we will probably be back again soon!
The Ingram St bar/restaurant is easily reached from Argyle St and High St train stations and from Trongate and George Street for buses. Ad Lib also have a bar/restaurant on Hope Street and one in Lilongwe, the capital city of Malawi!
TL;DR
+ Bargain lunch deal (excluding specials)
+ Good selection of Brooklyn beer
+ Friendly service
+ Great mac n cheese
😍
– Gent’s toilet a bit whiffy
Location:
Ad Lib 33 Ingram Street, Glasgow, G1 1HA
Ad Lib
Telephone 0141 552 5736
Bar open Sun–Thu noon-midnight; Fri–Sat noon-1am.
Food served Mon–Sun noon–10pm.
Website www.adlibglasgow.com
Twitter @Ad_Lib_Glasgow
Disclaimer: Ad Lib kindly invited us in for a meal but Fred is certain that his hoomins are honest in what they say!
