The Glad Cafe: Glasgow’s cafe and music venue with community at its core
The Glad Cafe: Glasgow’s cafe and music venue with community at its core
Words by Annie Barber
On the Southside of Glasgow, The Glad Cafe brings music, events and plant-based food to the local people. But the cafe, bar and arts venue is much more than that. It is its own community, built with social conscience in mind.
As a not-for-profit vegan venue, it is clear that the business has people’s interests at heart. The business opened its doors over 10 years ago, with the goals of making an accessible, welcoming space for all, and fostering artistic and musical talent. The cafe space comprises locally-sourced recycled materials and second hand furniture, and their menu is fully vegan. They even have a ‘Work Fae Glad’ deal, which allows remote workers bottomless filter coffee from Parallel Coffee and any pastry for only £4.75. Not only is this a total bargain, it also shows that the cafe wants to provide a welcoming environment for those who work from home and may otherwise be quite isolated.
As an arts venue, The Glad Cafe has put on hundreds of shows, platforming talents from the local area and further afield. Located in the basement, the space has a capacity of 120 people, making for an intimate setting. In March, Canadian indie-folk artist Ryan Harris, multi-genre and renowned composer and producer Martin Kohlstedt, as well as country music band First Time Flyers, are set to put on musical performances at the venue, alongside many others. Additionally, the venue will even host a live podcast show on March 1st, which will be recorded for Nicola Meighan’s podcast, ‘A Kick Up The Arts’, and is home to the Crossmylaff Comedy night. This illustrates the wide range of events which the venue hosts, from all different sectors of the arts.
A Palestine fundraiser which took place on February 15th is a reminder of the venue’s social consciousness and values. The event raised money for Palestine Children’s Relief Fund, showing that it is possible to contribute to international funding efforts, even when you are based in a community which is miles away from the conflict in question. Additionally, it shows that the venue does not shy away from taking a stance on contentious issues, here, standing up for Palestinian people’s rights.
Furthermore, its sister charity, The Glad Foundation, puts on music lessons and workshops for young people of all walks of life and capabilities. Additionally, The Glad Rags, a not-for-profit cooperative thrift shop which supports The Glad Foundation, aims to alleviate the effects of discarded clothes on climate change. By selling pre-loved clothes, which would otherwise be sent to landfill, the shop claims that it accepts an average of 520kg of clothes a month, which works out at around 6 tons a year.
It is evident that The Glad Cafe is part of a much bigger movement. Community is at the forefront of everything they do, from promoting artistic talent to ethically conscious practices. The venue is well worth a visit, either for a coffee and pastry, vegan meal or one of the great events they have got planned - or all of the above!