Loks Bar & Kitchen

I’ve been to Loks Bar and Kitchen now a couple of times and have been impressed both times. I had been to its previous incarnation (The Pollok FC Social Club) which was a typical old-man’s football club pub and bar. The change is incredible. Gone is the wood panelling, in is in the exposed brick work and glass. The food I tried during the beer and food tasting evening was really good and I’d like to visit for a proper meal. They do have an interesting range of beers in their fridge and a couple of standard «craft» beers on tap which is good.

I’d read earlier today they were having a free craft beer tasting this coming Friday, so when I was in Shawlands this evening looking for somewhere to go for a drink I thought I’d pop along here to check it out. I just spotted the restaurant area at first on arrival and was pleased when we were offered the bar area through the back as another seating option as we’d already eaten dinner and didn’t want to order food.
We bought two craft beers — one by Williams Bros and one by Deeside Brewery, £3.95 each, from their craft beer fridge. I liked that this fridge was easily accessible for people to peruse and select a drink as often it can be hard in bars to get a good look at the selection behind the bar, and also it meant I could look at the labels to read the drink descriptions and ingredients.
On the bar was a basket of crisps (Kettle Chips :)) and nuts priced at a £1 per bag. The Lite Bite food menu didn’t have much on it that looked suitable for me (as a vegan); perhaps the veggie haggis would be ok if there was no butter in the neeps and tatties, and I spotted on the restaurant menu they also have sorbets by Porrellis, which are vegan-​friendly.
The toilets had a nice smell and good handdrier. :)
There were two TVs, each with the volume off, showing different sports. It was really quiet tonight and as we left we were the only customers in there, possibly because it’s not only a Monday but also a bank holiday. I don’t mind quiet places though so that was quite nice. Would be nice if there was something on the menu to take my fancy to make me want to go back to eat, but service was good and they have a good selection of craft beers so happy to give 4 stars for somewhere to go back for drinks if I was on a night out on the southside.

We’d been meaning to eat in Loks for a while, so we popped before going to the Morrisons next door. It’s a nicely decorated restaurant, part of Pollok FC so you wouldn’t really expect much, but you would be wrong, and very surprised and impressed. It’s contemporary, bright and actually slightly formal, yet still cosy. The waitress showed us to a spare table, very amiable, very efficient and offered us our drinks. Loks have got a great choice of bottle beers, but importantly it has St. Mungo on tap! On perusing the menu, it’s a relatively basic bar menu but with some finessing, there were plenty of options for us to pick from. I choose the Haggis, Neeps and Tatties to start and the Braised Beef Ragu Fettucini to follow, and my partner ordered the Braised Dry-​Aged Beef Pie.
The haggis, neeps and tatties showed up quickly. It was a stacked version so that every forkful should have exactly the right ratio of each ingredient and it almost did, I do like more haggis and neep than potato though. The fettucini when it came was nice too, but there simply wasn’t enough beef, not a single decent lump, it was kinda shredded but mostly sauce, great for the pasta but I felt slightly short-​changed! My partner liked her main and the chips, and they did at least throw in some entertainment when we tried to pay, the guy ripped off the receipt and the roll jumped out and rolled across the floor, apparently he accidentally does that every time!
This place would possibly be a five, except I think it’s either a little overpriced (or undermeat) and the service isn’t perfect as no condiments or desserts were offered, so a four!

Positives
Nicely furnished has a good atmosphere
Waiting staff very friendly
Food, was well presented, quality glassware
Duck Starter was delicious
Fish Sharing platter was something a little bit different.
Kids fish and chips got a huge thumbs up.
Lamb terrine was enjoyed
Online booking was fuss free
Negatives
Saw the aforementioned friendly staff a little bit too much (too many check backs)
Asked for cheque, but this was forgotten.
Found the beef pie a bit stodgy but that’s personal taste.
Kids meals are over priced.
Overall
An enjoyable meal the restaurant does a lot of things right and worth a visit.

After a day of grumpy customers at work my colleague & I decided to treat ourselves & go to the newest restaurant in Shawlands. Loks (named after Pollok) is on the site of the old Pollok FC club house, just off Kilmarnock Rx before Morrison’s.
We we warmly greeted by the owner & the waitress was friendly and knowledgeable too. With a mix of curved booths, tables for 2 which can be rearranged for large groups and tables by the window it has a relaxed feel to it.
Open for breakfast — I think porridge is around d the £3 price — all the way through it seems to cater for all. We went for light bites for mini fish & chips and macaroni cheese — approx £6 each — a bottle of wine for £17 and sticky toffee pudding — approx £5 — although they have burgers, steaks, etc on a larger menu this was more than enough for us.
There’s also a public bar and function room (up to 180 people) so I don’t think this will be my last visit.