FyneFest Trip – Day 1

Published on 29th May 2023

Out of Kilter in Glasgow!

For breakfast on the Caledonian Sleeper I had the full Scottish, as usual. I’m happy to report it’s being served on real crockery again! Mere minutes after I finished my tea, my train arrived in Glasgow Central fifteen minutes early.

To change things up a bit and try something new, I booked a room in the Z Hotel Glasgow this time. It was my first port of call after arrival, not to check in—it was still a bit early for that—but to drop off my baggage.

Today I started with coffee quite a bit earlier than yesterday: at 7.45 I was already sipping my first cortado and killing some time at Gordon St Coffee.

Something I simply had to do after seeing and enjoying the show “Inside Central Station”, was a Glasgow Central Station Tour, so I was booked for the one at 10:00. For a moment I thought I had to do the tour without any celebrities present, but eventually Paul Lyons did make a few appearances!

After an early lunch at Riverhill Coffee Bar, I could then already check in at my hotel, giving me some time to recharge before starting a filled afternoon.

Just before my trip, I renewed my membership of the National Trust for Scotland, and the first of their properties I visited this trip, was the Tenement House.

Because I was well ahead on my schedule, I decided to already visit BrewDog Glasgow Kelvingrove, my favourite Scottish BrewDog bar. Then I reverted back to my planning, to have an Indian style fully vegan burger—the Roberto Bhaji-O—and some beers at BrewDog Merchant City.

By then it was time to change into my hash kilt, and head to The Rose Reilly, to hash with Glasgow H3, where I’m still known as Out of Kilter…

FyneFest Trip – Day 0

Published on 28th May 2023

Under the Sea & Under the Covers

It’s spring, and for me, that’s kind of the perfect time to go to Scotland! The main destination is FyneFest again, because I just couldn’t get enough of it last year. So once again, I found myself deep under the sea in a Eurostar, on my way to London.

After dropping off my bag, my first stop was Camden Coffee Roastery, since I hadn’t had time to have a coffee before leaving Brussels. Some cake would be very welcome as well, knowing beers would follow soon…

And indeed, 3 Locks Brewing Company was just a couple of hundred meters away. Unfortunately, they were only serving in disposable plastic cups, which for me was reason enough to move on after just one beer.

The next stop was The Black Heart. I had been there before, I’m sure, but either because of the the lack of cell reception, or the level of intoxication at the time, I hadn’t checked in a single beer there…

Just around the corner then, BrewDog Camden, the OG London BrewDog bar! Just a short stop this time, but I’ll make up for that on the way back.

The plan was then to have some Malaysian food at Roti King, but the queue in front of the restaurant was way too long! So I ended up at Yatri, an Indian restaurant conveniently right next to the place where I left my bag.

Then it was time for my traditional last pre-sleeper beer stop: the Euston Tap. Here again, only plastic cups, but this time they gave a reason for it: football…

Not wanting to use too much plastic, I then went to the first class lounge for a cup of tea and a muffin.

Finally it was time to board the Caledonian Sleeper! As soon as the train started moving, I made my way to the Club Car for a dram and a cheese platter, the best way to start a trip to Scotland!

A bit of blogging, and then it was time to get under the covers…

London Trip – Day 2

Published on 28th January 2023

Culture, Comrades & a Ceilidh

After a big, hearty breakfast in my hotel—more than pictured—I was ready for a full day in London. I had planned some museums and exhibitions I hadn’t seen yet, and the first one was almost next to the hotel: the London Canal Museum.

The second stop was the library, to see the Treasures of the British Library. Among those treasures were the Magna Carta, and original manuscripts from Shakespeare, Dickens, and Austen. Great stuff, for a bibliophile like me!

I then visited to the British Museum for even older versions of the written word, in the exhibition Hieroglyphs: unlocking ancient Egypt.

After all that sauntering I was well overdue for a coffee, so I went to Monmouth Coffee for my fix. That gave me the energy for one more cultural stop: the Museum of Freemasonry. We have one in Brussels as well, but with London being the birthplace of freemasonry, and quite a bit more traditional, I could not afford to miss this one!

Time for a pie—well, a sausage roll—and a pint—well, halves and thirds—at the Sutton Arms! It looks like a classic pub, but had quite a few modern craft beers on tap! From there I got on the new Elizabeth Line, a train line that had been long in the making, and provides a faster connection with the west of London.

And in the west I finally got to visit The Dodo Micropub, where I also met up with some London friends for a couple of beers. On the way back east I stopped at A Pint of Hops for a couple more… Crowded, standing space only, but nice people, and great beer.

Properly sauced, I was ready for the main event of the evening, a Burns Night Ceilidh, my excuse to walk around in London in a kilt all day… Loads of fun, although a bit more chaotic than other ceilidhs I’ve been to!

Before finally heading back to the hotel, there was one more important stop: BrewDog Camden! After ‘a couple’ of beers with Ryan, I then called it a night…

London Trip – Day 1

Published on 27th January 2023

Waterloo & West London H3

The last time I was in London for more than a couple of hours, is almost four years ago! About time to visit it again, so today I finally found myself once again on a Eurostar under the English Channel. Lots of queueing—the train was full—but at least the biometric gates now worked with my Belgian comic strip passport.

Since I didn’t have time for a coffee before my departure in Brussels, and because I had a bit of time to kill before I could check-in in my hotel, my first stop in London was at Redemption Roasters for some—apparently—prison-roasted coffee, and a piece of banana bread.

My hotel for this trip is again the very conveniently located—right next to the station—hub by Premier Inn King’s Cross. I’ve stayed there once before, returning from one of my Scotland trips. A swift check-in, change into my kilt, and it was time to hit the town!

First up was Mother Kelly’s Bottle Shop & Taproom in Vauxhall. Their taprooms had been on my to-do list for years, but somehow I never made it… This one has 33 beers on tap, so it wasn’t hard to find some beers I liked! The music I didn’t like that much, so after two beers I moved on.

The second stop was the Waterloo Tap. The bar is part of the same family as the Euston Tap, my usual last stop before boarding the Caledonian Sleeper, so I kind of knew what to expect: a nice selection of keg and cask beers. I wasn’t wrong about that, but the venue itself was so much more open than the Euston Tap: it was basically a rather narrow railway arch with windows put in on both sides!

Then it was time to visit BrewDog Waterloo. At that moment it was still the newest London BrewDog bar, but that would soon, very soon, change… I’ve visited BrewDog bars of all sizes, but this one is just ridiculously large: apart from the bar space itself—with 60 taps—and a micro-brewery like we’ve seen in other Outposts, this location also has a separate coffee bar, an indoor ice cream van, a hidden cocktail bar, a podcast recording studio, duckpin bowling, and a slide! My stomach was still on Belgian time, so I seized the opportunity to give the Vegan Allstars menu a try, and had a portion of Loaded Skins.

I didn’t want to eat too much, because the next activity on the schedule was a run, with the West London Hash House Harriers. In The Old Star pub I quickly changed into my running kilt and shoes, and off we went! As usual when hashing, I met a lot of nice people, and as luck would have it, it turned out to be a very tourist friendly trail!

The last stop of the evening was BrewDog Wandsworth, for its Equity Punk (pre-opening) night, that just happened to be during my visit to London. So yes, from now on until the next one opens, that is the newest BrewDog bar in London! I managed to chat to some people I’ve been reading on the EFP forum for years, and some I had met before. It was a really nice way to end my first evening in London.

Wien, Bayern & Berlin Reise – 8

Published on 2nd October 2022

DogTap Day

Saturday started with a grilled cheese sandwich at AERA, which was in the area. After that there was still time for some coffee at the new neighbourhood The Barn, but then it was time for the long trek I always make when in Berlin, to Mariendorf.

I was booked for the 13:00 brewery tour of BrewDog Deutschland, as it’s now officially called, which would of course included a little tasting as well…

Matt gave a great tour, and since all participants already knew BrewDog quite well, he deviated from the usual headliner tasting, and gave us some of the locally brewed specials to taste..

After spending quite some time at DogTap, and enjoying some spareribs, it was time to get back to the centre for a coffee at Five Elephant.

A short stop at Birra, and a visit to the Bräugier Brewpub, it was time to eat something

Much to my delight, there was a kitchen takeover at Manifest, and there were some really nice sandwiches by +Kitchen. The Rodeo I ordered was absolutely great!

The last stop of the night was at BrewDog Mitte, for a stamp, and a last couple of beers, of course.

Tag: BrewDog