Inside new Glasgow cafe and bar where simplicity and quality rule

Pania, a day-to-night cafe and wine bar, opened in Candleriggs at the beginning of January.

Positioned at the corner of Merchant Square that gets the best of the sun (when it’s shining), if you have milled about the area lately you will have stumbled upon it.

The restaurant marks a return to hospitality for Neil Connolly, the industry veteran known for opening Moskito on Bath Street in 2000 and running it (among other places and events) for 18 years.

Neil Connolly (Image: Gordon Terris)

The father-of-three stepped back from the industry when his two youngest children were born.

When his son was diagnosed with autism at age three, Neil, 57, became his full-time carer while his wife worked.

The youngster heading off to primary one was the catalyst that brought Pania to life.

He told the Glasgow Times: "I've had this idea for about 17 years and it's taken a long time."

The stars aligned when the unit (formerly occupied by Marmalade Skies) hit the market last March.

Neil, of the West End, added: “I’ve always had an idea of what I wanted to do and I had a list of things that I wanted.

“I wanted big windows. I didn’t want a kitchen. I only wanted up to 40 seats. This ticked every single box.”

The only issue? Incredibly high ceilings that stretch up six metres tall.

“I was like, how do I fill the walls? About 10 months ago I started collecting things.

"I started thinking that I could get everything off of Facebook Marketplace, recycle and upcycle.”

Over nearly a year, Neil managed to kit out the entire restaurant with second-hand items – including the modern subway tiling behind the bar.

He said: “People always over-order tiles so every single Monday there would be four or five people selling two boxes of tiles for a fiver.

“We collected 24 square metres of tiles in six months.”

The coffee machine, boiler, grinder, fridges, dishwasher and meat slicer were all bought second-hand, serviced and upcycled.

Plants, art, bric-a-brac and other eye-catching pieces line the walls of the interiors which feel like a marriage between Scandinavian and European aesthetic influences.

“My wife wasn’t too happy – the house was covered in boxes,” Neil laughs.

Patrons are invited to come for breakfast, brunch, lunch and grazing platters to be enjoyed over a coffee or glass of wine with no strict cover times (a Covid legacy we can't wait to retire).

Both the drinks and food menus put simplicity and quality first: high-quality coffee from Papercup, fresh bread delivered daily and a large portion of cured meats supplied by Brindisa Shop in London.

Neill said: "We have the best chorizo you've ever tried and I'm quite confident about that."

Pania has seats for up to 36 people inside and come March, the sunny outdoor area will be able to seat around 20.

The perfect place to stop for coffee or wine and a catch-up with friends over charcuterie, the new restaurant signals that things are looking up for the Merchant City after several closures.

So how does it feel to bring Pania to life after more than a decade of dreaming?

Neil said: “My wife kept asking me if I’m excited but I don’t think that’s the word.

"It's only now that we’ve had a couple of weekends under our belt and the staff have started to feel bedded in that I can relax a bit.

“But it feels great, it feels really good and the feedback so far has been phenomenal."

Pania, 60 Candleriggs, Glasgow G1 1LE.