ON September 30, the OVO Hydro celebrates its 10th anniversary.
The Glasgow Times is marking the milestone with a week of special features dedicated to the famous venue and its impact on the city.
THE OVO Hydro has had a significant impact on Finnieston’s food scene since it opened 10 years ago, according to one local resident and business owner.
Dounia Cherif was born in Anderston and now owns Argyle Street eatery Finnieston Fez with her husband Ayoub Nadir.
Due to the Moroccan café closing earlier than many of the restaurants and bars in the area, Dounia says before opening they didn’t expect to benefit from the crowds attending the Hydro, however, on days where there are large events taking place, she says the arena has a “big impact” on the business.
The 30-year-old said: “When we first opened the Hydro wasn’t necessarily in our thoughts because we thought ‘it’s a night thing, that’s not really going to have an impact on us’.
“But we were surprised we do still get a lot of custom due to that.
“We close at 6pm so when there’s earlier concerts we do get a lot of people coming in before it starts, and then we’ve had people that are here for a full weekend, they’ve been at their concert so they might come in for breakfast or brunch.”
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Having lived in the area all her life, Dounia says Finnieston has changed significantly since the Hydro opened in 2013 and believes the venue has played a role in helping to establish Argyle Street’s growing food scene.
She explained: “In the last 10 years it has changed so much.
“There are restaurants, bars, the food scene has come to life, a lot of people are coming down from different areas for nights out in Finnieston or even to just try cafes or food spots they’ve heard about online.
“It’s the area to be, everyone wants to stay, it’s so sought after now, people would dream to live here whereas before it was just a residential area for people that had lived there for years and years.”
She continued: “The Hydro has had a massive impact on that, there’s no denying it.
“The events that are held bring people from all over the place, like concerts but also there are events and conferences where you get visitors from all over the world.
“So, it does bring a lot of people to the area.”
Opening in December 2020, Finnieston Fez serves a variety of brunch, street food, coffee and desserts.
Dounia also credits the Hydro with helping the café survive Covid-19 and the cost-of-living crisis which has seen a rise in the price of running the business.
She added: “It’s been handy to have that boost from people that are coming for events, whether it be at the Hydro or SEC [Scottish Event Campus], because a lot of the times that’s what’s helped us survive.
“COP26 was one of the things that helped us make it because we were struggling, then during and after COP26 we were able to push through.
“Those are really some of the main reasons why we are still here.”
Restaurant and bar Joia is also located on Argyle Street, serving Italian food with a modern twist.
The restaurant opened in early 2021, and manager Enrico Ruggeri agrees that the Hydro helps to bring new customers through the doors and says the proximity to the venue is one of the reasons owner Cristiano Strazzullo decided to open in Finnieston.
He said: “Definitely the Hydro makes us busier than what we usually are.
“The Hydro reopening again [after Covid] was very very important for us because we could see the difference.
“Now after two and a half years we have our regular customers, but in the beginning, we didn’t have as many bookings, we had walk-ins a lot so the Hydro was very very important.
“You could tell when there were no Hydro events because we were quiet.”
The 37-year-old added: “It’s been one of the best areas outside the city centre to open a hospitality business.”
Finnieston Fez is located at 1013 Argyle Street and Joia is at 1075 Argyle Street.
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