With its windows obscured by half-drawn blinds and tassled lampshades, the Western Club has long been a mystery to the hoi polloi of Scotland's largest city.
Now, in a bid to bring it into the 21st century, and to increase membership, Glasgow's oldest remaining residential club, which opened in 1825 to those of the professional classes and only started accepting women members in 1970, has opened its doors to the public for the first time with a stunning new fine-dining restaurant.
The 65-cover Western Club Restaurant, overlooking Royal Exchange Square in Glasgow city centre, will offer a daily-changing fixed-price market menu at £22.95 for three courses, alongside an a la carte menu of modern Scottish dishes using locally sourced seasonal ingredients, such as a ham hock terrine with celeriac slaw and quail eggs starter at £9.50, a saddle of Highland venison with parsnip puree, raspberry essence and heather honey foam dish at £23, and a lemon posset at £7. It's been devised by head chef Peter Wilson, formerly head chef at Lochgreen House in Troon and founder of the town's popular Wee Hurrie restaurant. Wilson is also in charge of the menus for the second-floor members' restaurant, third-floor private dining room and overnight guests (there are eight bedrooms).
The bold move is the brainchild of Glasgow restaurateur Alan Tomkins, of the Urban Bar & Brasserie in St Vincent Place among others, who was invited by the club committee to come on board and improve the food offer both for members and non-members in the hope that it would increase membership and ensure the club's future.
Tomkins has overseen an extensive refurbishment of the four-storey Edwardian premises with Scottish interior designer Amanda Rosa (wife of the legendary hotelier Ken McCulloch), and will operate the restaurant in a commercial partnership with the club. He says it's a step that will see the Western Club Restaurant become the flagship eatery of his extensive portfolio.
Let's face it, this has been a long time coming. I've been reading the minutes of the Western Club committee meetings throughout the decades, and although absolutely fascinating, they also hint at a rather limited eating experience compared to the vast quantities of liquor available.
Although Glasgow was noted for the number and variety of its clubs in 1825, a new, rising generation of doctors, lawyers, bankers and stockbrokers and businessmen were looking for something different from the old clubs. According to the History of The Western Club, written by Carol Foreman in 2000, the Western was launched by a group of 33 gentlemen under the presidency of the Lord Provost, Mungo Nutter Campbell, with the purpose of "opening a mansion as [their] own especial hotel and tavern upon the ostensible pleas of eating cheap and well-cooked dinners and on the healthful assurance of drinking wine free of death in the bottle".
The original premises were in Buchanan Street, in the building that is now the Apple store. Membership was subject to very strict criteria, leading to a reputation for elitism: the Glasgow Evening News retorted on October 20, 1924, that "from all accounts it's easier to manoeuvre an OBE for yourself than to gain entry as a member of the Western Club".
As there wasn't a wine manager in the beginning, the committee laid in a "small" stock of 20 dozen port in quarts and pints, 10 dozen sherry, 6 dozen Madeira, 10 dozen claret, 6 dozen champagne, 6 dozen hock, 10 gallons rum in bottles, 2 gallons of Hollands in bottles and 2 gallons of whisky in bottles.
In 1869, by contrast, the Clubmaster was authorised to advance the wages of the present cook from £105 to £120 per annum, yet in 1874 there was a complaint about the fish sent up for dinner and the Clubmaster was called on and instructed to warn the fishmonger to be more careful, or the club would get their fish elsewhere.
In 1904, a member suggested that a greater variety of entremets be available on the dinner list. He wrote that "at present the chef seems capable of only four, viz: omelette and three kinds of canned fruit served up with cold rice which pass under euphemistic aliases" and suggested "that the chef learn 24 new entremets so that four different ones may appear on the menu each night." In the end this was "not considered necessary". In 1914 the secretary drew attention to the very high price of eggs and suggested an increase in the charge for them, "but it was decided to leave this at present".
It was logged in 1942 that "in view of the difficulty in purchasing poultry and the meagre amount of meat permitted, the secretary was instructed to get in touch with the Food Controller with a view to having the allotment of meat increased", but it's not clear if it was. In 1944, it was decided that buttered toast would be discontinued at afternoon teas, as margarine was so scarce (!). However, new potatoes were being released and would be on the menu at a charge of 3d per portion. Contrast that with the Christmas menu for 1975: game pie, £1.25; boar's head, £1; roast beef, horseradish sauce, £1.50; roast chicken, 85p; boiled ham, 70p.
Compare that to now, where the wine list includes Dom Perignon 2004 champagne at £168 a bottle, Pouille Fume 2012 at £60 a bottle and a Cotes de Nuit Villages 2012 at £62, to help wash down aged sirloin of Buccleuch beef or braised beef fillet and cheek at £25 a go.
The Western Club is the only remaining residential club in Glasgow, and has reciprocal membership with Edinburgh's New Club and 21 clubs in London, as well as around the world. Tomkins claims the food offer is better here than elsewhere, and that it will inspire other clubs to follow suit.
The new restaurant is in the midst of the place most associated with the city's past economic success, with fantastic views over the old pillared Stirling's Library, Stock Exchange and Royal Bank of Scotland buildings.
Whether it also cultivates the culinary tastebuds of the modern business community remains to be seen.
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