Writing Wednesdays: Clarkston Beanscene

Recently my blogging compadre, Mark Shields, gave me a reminder about a series of blog posts I started writing a couple of years ago. In an attempt to become more productive (and actually do some bloody writing) I gave myself the 'hard' task of sussing out writing friendly zones on Glasgow's South Side. Since I let those blog posts dwindle away, I have moved house and become vegan which might impact on my venue choices. I have settled into a nice writing routine that does involved visiting some cafes near my new home in the suburbs to get the pen moving across the page. Without further ado, here is the next in the series of my cafe reviews.

Clarkston Beanscene

1-3 Helena Place

Clarkston Toll

South Side

Feed me for a fiver

Beanscene is what it is when it comes to food. It emulates other coffee house chains, like Starbucks, and has a range of pre-packed sandwiches that can be toasted on demand. They can also whip up some nachos or a pizza if you're in the mood for something more filling. The menu does contain the vegan staple of hummus that comes with veggies to graze on. Prices for sandwiches start at roughly £3.95 and go right up to £7.95 for a pizza. My plate of hummus and veggies came in under budget at £4.95 and did tide me over until I got home.

One bonus for this Beanscene is that it comes with an alcohol license. If you feel like drowning your writing sorrows, you can buy a glass of wine from the counter or bring your own for a corkage charge. Might not be a good idea at lunchtime though.

Good coffee

Again, Beanscene coffee is nothing to write home about (excuse the bad pun...). It's hot, slightly too bitter and comes in oversized cups which can be great for giving the brain cells a good prod. They charge extra for soya milk (30p) which can be frustrating for those who avoid cow's milk. I usually order their medium size when I'm settling in for a writing session which comes to a purse happy price of £1.80.

Table space

This Beanscene is unusual because it's spread over two levels. The ground floor is usually busy, regardless of what time of day you visit. There are a number of large sofas that groups tend to take over, with more spacious seating at the back behind the counter area.

Upstairs is where I usually hide out during the day. It's a common sight to see people working, studying or eejits like me writing away upstairs. There are bar stools under the huge windows which look out over Clarkston Toll. It's an excellent spot for people watching and dreaming up characters.

As for the table space, I find the tables for two quite restrictive. You have enough room for a laptop and a small bucket of coffee. During the day it is possible to grab a four seater table, spread out your writing tools and not worry about taking up too much space.

Power outlets and Wi Fi access

On my first visit to Beanscene there was a good level of access to power points but none, that I could see, close to the sofas I prefer to lounge on. The Wi Fi can be very weak if you choose to sit upstairs or non-existent as it was on my visit. You can ask a member of staff at the counter for the password and, if I remember correctly, you do not need to register for an account. That time I decided to give up on the Wi Fi and catch up on web related tasks when I got home.

Friendliness of staff

The staff here are pleasant enough for a chain coffeeshop. They do seem to be kept extremely busy either serving customers, making up food in the kitchen or clearing tables so it's understandable they don't have time to chat. I would say they are very professional and polite but lacking the friendliness I've experienced in, say, Gusto and Relish.

General atmosphere

This Beanscene has been around for some time. I remember coming here to visit friends years ago and its still standing. On my more recent visits, it has been reasonably busy. It is a good meeting hub for the people that live nearby and don't want to trek into town. In the evenings, this place can be absolutely mobbed. I remember coming to meet a friend for coffee on a Tuesday evening and being gobsmacked that every table was taken. During the day, it's a different type of busy and more laid back than the caffeine fuelled evenings.

You can catch a train to Clarkston from Glasgow Central (there's two every hour) or the 44, 44A and 66 buses stop seconds from Beanscene's front door.

On my last visit to Beanscene, I started working on a story which ended up on Write in for Writing's Sake. Pop over and have a little read if you wish. 

The Artist's Way: A Dilemma

Last week saw the return of going to my Paid Job which requires getting up early to brave public transport. Going back to work was one of my concerns when it came to following my New Year resolutions. It's all very well having good intentions when you've got plenty of free time on your hands.  Rising at nine o'clock to do morning pages at a leisurely pace is a very different experience to waking up when it's still dark, with a morning commute ahead.

As a result I completely forgot to do my morning pages ¹ on my work days this week. The last time I tackled The Artist's Way (TAW), it was in the middle of summer and light when I got up in the mornings. Also, my desk was in my bedroom and within eyesight of my bed so it was easy to remember to do the morning pages. So I decided to move my morning pages notebook to my bedside table where it jostles for space with my Five Year Diary and Random Sleep Thoughts notebooks.  Problem solved.

Alas, the next problem is a bit more pressing. I settled down to start working my way through Week One of the programme. On my last attempt, I gave up around Week Six - halfway through the twelve week schedule. It was hard to work on the Week One exercises without referring back to my previous attempts. One task includes writing a letter to a previous critic of your work and the same individual I wrote to last time kept swimming around in my thoughts (don't worry, I didn't post the letter). And that's what I'm worried about. Will I learn anything if I keep repeating the same information? Is it a cop out if I re-start the course at Week Six? Should I re-start the course from Week One and to hell with it if the same responses keep coming up?

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1 Morning pages are an important feature of doing The Artist's Way. Julia Cameron instructs students to get up each morning and write three pages before they do anything else (although I'm sure you'd be allowed to pop to the toilet). The thinking behind this task is that this 'free' writing allows you to clear your head and let your creativity come more naturally.^↩

Writing Wednesdays: Gusto and Relish

Gusto and Relish

729 – 731 Pollokshaws Road

South Side


Gusto and Relish is two doors down from Tapa, the first cafe I reviewed in this series. I had not visited Gusto before but had heard glowing reports of its food. As well as being a cafe, Gusto has a deli counter filled with lovely goodies to take home. Due to the on-going diet (upcoming post about that) I resisted the temptation today. Though I may return to buy some of the chilli chocolate bars as a treat.

For the newbies, I divide my reviews into the following categories:

·                     Feed me for a fiver

·                     Good coffee

·                     Table space

·                     Power outlets and Wi Fi access

·                     Friendliness of staff

·                     General atmosphere

Feed me for a fiver

Goodness me, Gusto certainly rose to this challenge. I was immediately offered cake by the friendly girl at the counter. As tempting as it was to have a purely cake lunch, I declined and asked for a look at their menu. The choice for a vegetarian was excellent with the lunch menu taking the humble sandwich and making it sound exotic. Eventually I chose the bruschetta with haloumni, olive tapende, red tomato and red onions at £5.65. Over budget by 65p but oh so worth it. I had a generous two slices of bread and hearty helpings of haloumni to chomp down. The plate came with a lovely salad and some delicious cous cous. You can find out more about Gusto and Relish’s menu here. They also have daily specials which you can find out more about on Facebook.

There’s table service and my order arrived rather quickly, despite it being busy with the lunch crowd. Extra thumbs up from me, especially as I was doing battle with my Wi Fi dongle (more on that later).

N.B. Gusto and Relish take credit/debit card payments but add a charge of £0.50 for transactions under £10.00.

Coffee

A black coffee with milk on the side (I’m a fusspot) comes to £1.85. It tasted wonderful and much better than some of the watery concoctions that some chain coffeeshops offer. Excellent value for money.

Table Space

The tables at Gusto must be magic. At a table for two I could easily fit my netbook, A4 notepad, Kindle, glass of water, coffee cup and pencil case with plenty of room to spare. After all, they need big tables to accommodate the HUGE portions they dish out. The front of the cafe appears to cater for large groups (4 or more) while the back has more tables for two. Tables at the back have a mixture of bench and small stool seating which I can uncomfortable for long periods of time. Instead I decided to park at one of the tables for two with your standard-chair-with-back. The tables are well spaced out so you can spy on your neighbours or you can lose yourself in your work.

Power Outlets and Wi Fi

Alas Gusto seemed a bit short on power points. I spotted two but they were up the back beside the bench seating. Instead I decided to brave my netbook battery which seemed to behave for once.

There is no wi fi available at Gusto which is probably a USP for people. I had a wi fi dongle with me but it had run out of credit. Poor planning on my part so I decided to give up on the Web and actually do some work for a change. The battery on my netbook did last longer than usual and I spent less time refreshing Facebook pages. Still, this is a very minor negative and only affects writers that prefer the keyboard over the pen.

How friendly staff are?

As hinted above, the staff here are very friendly. Despite being busy, every customer got a warm welcome and a smile. Nothing seemed to be a bother and they seemed unfazed by the large groups coming through the door. They put up with my numerous questions and were apologetic about the lack of wi fi. My stay was not very long today but I didn’t feel under pressure to buy more coffee for the time I was there.

General atmosphere

I visited during the lunch period and it was very busy; especially with large groups. However the atmosphere was pleasant and I wasn’t distracted by the traffic coming in and out. There was quiet background music being played which become cancelled out by the chatter. I was working on some rather emotive material but I felt so relaxed in Gusto which took the edge off a little.

I have passed Gusto and Relish several times at the weekend and it has been packed out. After visiting today, I’m not surprised. Friendly staff, great food and a lovely atmosphere. What more could a writer girl (or guy) want? 

Writing Wednesdays

As some of you may know, one of my goals for 2011 is to take my writing more seriously. Alas I do not work very well at home. There are too many distractions such as numerous repeats of Desperate Housewives, dusting, one of the pets. The list goes on and on. So I decided to explore alternative venues for writing outside of the house. Initial searches on Google did not not bring up what I was looking for. Which cafes were writer friendly? Would they hound me out for ordering one cup of coffee in two hours? Then I saw an excellent post by Liz Broomfield, a woman of many talents and who runs her proof reading business alongside various other projects. In her blog post she reviewed a local cafe for a suitable (co)working venue. And I thought "Hell, why don't I do that for cafes around Glasgow?"

So, ladies and gents, I give you my first review of one of Glasgow's many writer friendly cafes. I decided to start local, and cheating a little, a cafe I had used before. 

Tapa Coffeehouse

721 Pollokshaws Road 

South Side 

Tapa has become a Glasgow institution in a very short time. They opened their first outlet, a bakery, in the east end of Glasgow. I remember friends living in Denniston raving about Tapa's bread and other goodies  during my undergraduate days. In 2008 they expanded out into the south side and opened a coffeehouse. Amongst Tapa's many talents they roast their own coffee and provide a variety of mouth watering specials on a daily basis. I'm a vegetarian and it's such a lovely experience to be able to choose from a variety of items on the menu. 

I have based my review upon the following criteria and what I'm looking for in a writing venue. These are:

• Feed me for a fiver
• Good coffee
• Table space
• Power outlets and Wi Fi access
• Friendliness of staff
• General atmosphere

Feed me for a fiver 

Tapa has a range of sandwiches available for under £5.00. On my visit I purchased a falafel sandwich with hummus and a side salad for £4.65. The bread came from Tapa's bakery in the east end and tasted very fresh. Did I mention that you can buy some of Tapa's loaves to take home? Unfortunately I had to resist temptation due to my ongoing diet. They also have a small selection of cakes, including wheat free chocolate brownies, available to fuel mid-afternoon writing frenzies. 

N.B. Tapa do take credit/debit card payments but only for payments over £5.00. 

Good Coffee

One word sums up Tapa's coffee: sublime. It packs a punch, exactly the way fresh coffee should. After two cups my hands were dancing over my laptop keyboard. Unfortunately most of the typing was sending messages on Facebook. A cup of black coffee (with milk on the side) is an absolute steal at £1.90 and extremely wallet friendly to most writers. 

Table Space

Tapa is spread over two levels with seating available in the basement. From previous experience they only tend to open this up during busy weekends. Downstairs doubles as their coffee storage area so its understandable. Some of the tables are a wee bit too close together which can make you feel like you're spying on your neighbour. And this leads me onto.... 

Power Points and Wi Fi access

I counted a total of four power points. They are mounted on the walls that are very close to tables. You don't need to worry about causing any accidents with your laptop power cable. When I arrived the tables beside power points were occupied with non-laptop users. I was a bit shy about asking people to move but luckily a power point friendly table became available not long after I arrived. Still it might be worth charging up your laptop before venturing out. My Acer Notebook has a shockingly bad battery life so I am tied to my charger. 

The wifi access was easy to log into. All I had to do was scan for the networks using my notebook and ask a member of staff for the password. The connection speed is best described as "zippy" apart from when a chap next to me started using BBC iPlayer. Still I was rather impressed by the speed especially as I counted at least three other laptop users over the course of my visit. 

Friendliness of staff

Tapa provides table service which can mean a bit of a wait for your order. They did seem a bit over stretched which was puzzling for a Wednesday morning. There was a delivery being made when I arrived so I assumed it was down to that. However the slight air of "panic" did linger after the delivery men had departed. Less than half of the tables were occupied yet the wait staff seemed in a bit of a flap. This has happened on my other visits but it adds to the quirkiness of the place. The staff were quite happy to leave me on my own and I was not pestered to order more drinks during my time there. Thumbs up in that case. 

General atmosphere

Tapa manages to maintain a rather tranquil atmosphere even when it's busy. The background music playing ranges from The Clash to Mumford & Sons but is kept at an audible level without infringing on your conversation or your concentration. The coffeehouse seems to be popular for people coming in for a morning coffee and a read of the paper. Personally I love the downstairs which has ‘false windows’ installed which gives you the impression that you're not below ground level. I never felt rushed or unwelcomed by staff even though I was there for over three hours. 

All in all Tapa gets a solid thumbs up as a writing venue from me. Just don't forget to charge up your laptop.