Oran Mor

Oran Mor is the quintessential Glasgow pub experience. The converted church pays homage to Scotland's premier naturalists-- John Muir. The atmosphere is cozy, with art-deco interior. Whiskey selection is amazing. Paired with a walk through Glasgow Botanical gardens across the street, this is a must for anyone visiting Glasgow. It's a glowing memory for me, of my time in Scotland.

Highly recommend. I have had occasion to visit the bar as well as the event/banquet/ballroom facility. The former had a cheerful, almost cozy vibe with a decent crowd for a Monday night. The latter sits so high above your average hotel ballroom; the decor is everything - stylish, clean and versatile in layout and design.
Beyond the architecture, what really sets this place apart is the staff. They found my phone and were so kind as to call the "If found..." number on my lock screen. A low bar maybe, but I'm no less grateful for the effort. Special shout-out to bar manager David for his professionalism, patience, and efforts to reunite me with my phone. I'm telling y'all, this is the place. Go by just to check out the spaces (I love reimagined, repurposed buildings), take in the atmosphere over a pint, then book your event there.

I visited this venue twice, during my stay in Glasgow. It's a cool multi-segmented venue in an old converted church, made up of bar, restaurant, and a basement theater.

The evening I arrived into Glasgow, I enjoyed a cider in the vast bar. It was a little drafty but I figured that this was the tradeoff for boozing in a centuries-old stone building with cool details. Lots of stained glass, central bar with carved wood, and little nooks and crannies for seating. Tons of artwork adorned the ceiling and walls. Oh, and my cider from Somerset was excellent.

The following day, I took the group I was traveling with, to attend "A Play, a Pie, and Pint," which was a noontime performance of a play in their basement. Tickets were only $12. The play was a comedy called "Jocky Wilson Said," and featured a lot of bawdy humor, most of which my untrained American ears did not comprehend. It was still entertaining. Such a good deal, when you consider that pie/quiche and pint are included with the show. Such a cool activity for lunchtime, whether you're a tourist or local.

Last stop on my 1st night in Glasgow was no disappointment, we headed on into the Oran Mor, and what a great spot to end the night at. Oran Mor was a church turned into a bar/restaurant, the church was built in 1862, that's a lot of history right there.

The Oran Mor is an impressive building, even has a bell tower. The inside is rich with detail as well. I could easy spend hours just looking around.

After midnight this is the stop to be, it becomes crowded quickly, but still able to get to service. I'm sure if I had more in Glasgow this would wind up my best nigh cap stop.

Such rude staff. Friend spilt drink on me and they insisted on having the small roll of blue roll back

This is an old church building turned pub/restaurant/theater!!! Gorgeous inside and out. Really beautiful old world classic feel in every room. Has three bars that I saw: Victorian bar, Whisky Bar, and John Muir Bar. Sat for a couple drams of Balvanie 14yr Caribbean cask Single Malt Scotch which was just perfect on a rainy day. Bartender chose it as I told him I liked something on the sweeter side. There were stained glass windows, beautiful paintings, and a cozy seat or corner with dim lighting to relax by all around. Good for locals and visitors alike. I'm returning here whenever I get the chance.

For me, the Oran Mor is a bit of a mixed bag. Of course it's a beautiful building and everyone should visit it at least once, but the experience you have in the main bar is a different one to that which you have in the theatre/gig venue downstairs. That is also different again to the experience you have in the the dining room upstairs.

The main bar is a lovely place to sit and wins points for being open quite late and for being spacious and visually impressive. Its a cool place to take visitors to Glasgow, to show off the pub that used to be a bar and to let them try the extensive whisky selection. The food is good. They have a good pub quiz and sometimes live music. However, I'm not much of a whisky drinker and, even if I were, there are other, cheaper whisky bars nearby with longer menus. All of this conspires to make me think of the Oran Mor as being, "for the tourists."

The venue downstairs, on the other hand, is very different. The bar isn't so extensive and doesn't have the same whisky selection, mostly serving beer and wine. It's still a fantastic place to go see live entertainment. There are bigger venues in Glasgow (there are also smaller ones) but it's big enough for a good crowd. A really positive, fun atmosphere can easily develop here and that's true whether you're seeing music or comedy. It's also true if you're seeing theatre, and the Oran Mor's signature, A Play, A Pie and a Pint events are well worth looking out for, especially for theatre that can be a little off the wall.

The dining room upstairs is perfect for a big event like a Christmas dinner or, as was the case when I visited a graduation celebration meal for a full graduating class. The food is good for large scale catering and the staff are absolutely tireless. Possibly the highlight, though, is the ceiling which was painted by Alasdair Gray.

So, my thoughts are: By all means visit for events or for one last drink before pub closing, but don't live in the bar because they have a lot of whisky. This is Glasgow - whisky isn't hard to find.

Yes I kept waffling as to wether or not this should be 3 or 4 stars, but I decided on three because I have to a have a few beers in me before I ever voluntarily come to the conclusion that I actually want to come here. That being said, I have had some pretty ridiculous, fun days/nights that have ended at the Oran Mor (OM). Notice how I said 'ended', this is one of the few late-night bars/clubs in the West End, so the wee hours of the morning are fascinating to say the least. It is usually some interesting mix of posh West Enders, students, and drunk asshats.

Other reasons it gets 3 stars is the lack of music in the main floor pub. I know they want to instigate conversation or whatever, but even a little back ground music would set the atmosphere a bit better. The food, well I have eaten here once and would never do it again. I am definitely a drunk muncher and after the pretty horrible sandwich I had the one time, I would rather eat a Guinness. It can be a bit intimidating walking up to the door with the goon security. They give you a hard stare and say, "Have you had anything to drink?" I think wether I have been 1 beer or 9 gins in, I have said "oh, a few" every time with no issue...just make sure to concentrate walking up those stone stairs!

Oh I forgot to mention, you are basically drinking in a huge, renovated, quite impressive church that has a club in the basement, a concert/theater hall, a pub, and an exclusive room. There is lots of pretty stained glass and cool ceilings etc. I guess at least if there is no music there is stained glass to gaze at.

Another good thing to note, the blues on Sundays, from around 5-8, or so, is very good. Bottom line to do the Oran Mor right, have a few drinks and then pop by, or show up after the pubs close on the weekend for late night people-watching, or go on Sunday Funday to enjoy the live tunes.

Huge selection of whiskey. Great friendly knowledgeable bartenders! Pub is inside an old church! I love the atmosphere. Place is clean and well maintained. Bathrooms are very clean as well.

Truffle fries and crispy goat cheese salad to start. Lots of beer and of course gin and whiskey options too. this place has lots of seating inside and even some old school video games inside. Outside seating as well. When I first walked by I wasnt to sure about it when we walked by on the side because it looks vacant but went un anyway and we where glad we did.