The Drake

Three businesses trade out of one townhouse on the corner of Woodlands Road and Lynedoch Street, and the pub in the basement is the one people come to for Sunday lunch.

Why go

The Scotsman reviewed the Sunday roast in November 2023 and found the sirloin "deemed superb," with a room that has "a homely feel to the bar, with its wood burning stove and well-worn rugs" (Scotsman). Merchant Pubs & Bars, the group behind BAaD and Blackfriars, bought the place in early January 2025 and refurbished it, adding HD screens for sport, a new draught range of Birra Moretti, Cruzcampo and Starnberger, and a rebuilt Sunday roast service (DRAM). The pizza on the menu is made by Nonna Said, which shares the kitchen registration with the pub. Rascal sits above it and Cuvee, a Champagne and wine bar, opened on the floor upstairs in May 2025 in the old Faim premises (SLTN).

Order this / avoid

• Order: the roast sirloin from the Sunday set menu, and the cauliflower cheese, which the Scotsman called "the star of the sides" ref. Nonna Said's pizza covers the rest of the week. There are separate vegetarian and vegan menus, plus one for the dog.
• Avoid: relying on the 2023 write-up, since the owners and the menu both changed in January 2025. The same review flagged corn fritters "just too salty" and roast potatoes that "could have been crispier," faults worth checking are fixed.

What locals & experts say

• Scotsman Food & Drink (Rosalind Erskine, 2023): on the Sunday lunch, the beef was "deemed superb," while the corn fritters were "just too salty." ref
• DRAM Scotland (January 2025): area manager Graeme Moffat called the purchase "strategically important for the group's Glasgow operations." ref
• SLTN (April 2025): reported Cuvee taking the floor above, bringing Champagne, cremant and small plates to Lynedoch Street. ref
• Local rec: Jeff's own save, filed for the roast.

Good to know

• Timing: noon to midnight Sunday through Thursday, noon to 1am Friday and Saturday. The roast runs Sunday only.
• Booking: worth reserving for Sunday lunch on 0141 611 2307 or the site; the pub takes walk-ins the rest of the week and has front and rear garden space.
• Price: the reviewed Sunday menu was GBP 24 for two courses and GBP 28 for three in 2023; the current owners run their own version, so check before you sit.
• Hygiene: Food Hygiene Information Scheme Pass, Glasgow City Council, inspected 9 June 2026, registered as The Drake / Nonna Said / Cuvee (FHRSID 36334). ref
• Where: the corner of Woodlands Road at 1 Lynedoch Street, a ten-minute walk from Charing Cross station.

Craft signals (drinks: a fixed keg lineup, the kitchen is the argument)

The drink side is static and the pub does not pretend otherwise. Draught is Birra Moretti and Cruzcampo, there are no handpumps to talk about, and the venue's own site sells bookings, pizza and live sport with no tap list, cocktail card or drinks announcement anywhere on it ref. The January 2025 relaunch changed the ownership, the menu and the drinks list in one go, which is a reset rather than a cadence. Come for the roast; the glass is not the reason.

Jeff's take (his words)

• The verdict: "Famous for Sunday roast"

Verdict (Chef Jeff ladder)

could-visit — A corner pub at Woodlands Road doing the one thing Jeff filed it under, a set-price Sunday roast in a room with a wood burner and rugs, with the beef rated superb by the Scotsman and the sides rated unevenly in the same review. Merchant Pubs & Bars bought it in January 2025 and put money into screens, taps and a pub-classics menu, which is a competent operator's playbook rather than a chef's project. The pizza comes from Nonna Said and the Champagne bar upstairs is a separate business, so the building is a night out more than a kitchen to study. Go on a Sunday, book, order the beef.