Sub Club rooftop bar and restaurant gets go-ahead

The boss of Glasgow’s Sub Club has been granted a licence for a pop-up rooftop bar and restaurant.

The 120-seat venue is set to open at The Schoolhouse, an office building, in Kinning Park.

It has been delayed by a condition that prevented background music, but the issue has now been resolved.

Japanese restaurant Ramen Dayo has been lined up to provide food to visitors to the rooftop terrace at 101 Portman Street.

Sub Club director Mike Grieve was originally granted an occasional licence, allowing alcohol to be served, in May, but the condition prevented amplified sound or music.

The city’s licensing board has now agreed to change that clause and approved a licence until March 31, 2022.

A building warrant – for alterations to an office rooftop to form a recreational area – has also been secured.

Robin Morton, representing Mr Grieve, said the Sub Club boss was a “well-respected figure in the Scottish hospitality scene”.

Mike Grieve, director of Sub Club STV News

“They’ve been trying for nearly a year to licence this space for alternative use for food and drink,” he said.

“It’s a measure of how important the issue about background music is, that he hasn’t operated it yet, even though it was granted in May.

“They don’t feel it’s going to work without this factor.”

Mr Morton said the venue could now open around July 2.

Sub Club has an office in the Schoolhouse building on Portman Street and, Mr Morton said, the rooftop had previously been used for events, including with DJs, without noise complaints or any incidents.

Visitors will need to book in advance, everyone will be seated, and track and trace will be in use.

The “background music” will “simply add to the ambience of this rooftop space in Kinning Park”, Mr Morton said.

It will “add to the customer experience, so it’s not just a big roof with food and drinks”. There will also be wall-mounted TVs.

Food will be provided by Ramen Dayo, which has a restaurant in Ashton Lane as well as a kitchen in the basement of the Schoolhouse building.

The venue can serve alcohol from 11am to 10pm according to the terms of the licence.

Story by Local Democracy Reporter Drew Sandelands