St Andrew’s Victorian Snug

Scottish theme pub in the Rydges Plaza hotel Discuss this article

The outer façade may have been plucked straight from Dickensian London, but it quickly becomes apparent that the small Scottish town of St. Andrews – specifically in its golfing capacity – is the dominant theme of this little-known drinking den, set adjacent to the rather more boisterous charms of Aussie Legends.

From the wall, portraits of moustachioed men in plus-fours beam proudly down, whilst the menu has been wackily shaped to resemble a golf ball and lists dishes in categories like ‘From the Green’. That said, as theme bars in Dubai go, the point is only moderately laboured; to the casual observer it looks much like the kind of bland, faux old fashioned pub you’ll find in suburbs or leisure centres the world over, distinguished only by big-screen sports and (rather charmingly) a cat which snoozes on a seat at the bar.

We started by sharing a generous portion of calamari, which set the tone for what the place does best – hearty pub grub, with no great finesse required. Whilst not the best to be found in Dubai, the ringlets of squid were hot, saline and served with a tongue-tingling garlic sauce, providing an excellent counterpoint to the bar’s pints of standard-issue lager. Things took something of a nosedive, however, with our main courses. It’s always a shame to see dishes massacred, especially when they form the cornerstone of any proper British diet, but my friend’s bacon sandwich was pretty poor. Its generous multi-layering of meat couldn’t make up for its limp, dry character or the depressingly dull pile of chips which accompanied it.

Luckily, it’s not all bad news for the Snug’s hungry barflies. The third member of our party’s fish curry – served with rice and a couple of pieces of poppadom – was on the murky side, but spiced in a pleasing, if one-dimensional sort of way. My own bangers, meanwhile, were fat, heavy and cocooned in a bed of mash and salty onion gravy; in other words, exactly as they should be. It’s too hit-and-miss to justify a visit for the food alone, but for filling a hole (in one) this obscure little bar has some appeal. If you’re feeling too weary for the beery Legends, don’t rule it out.

The bill (for two)
Calamari Dhs34
Fish curry Dhs48
Bacon sandwich Dhs41
Bangers and mash Dhs42
2x pint Fosters Dhs42
Total (including service) Dhs207

Time Out reviews restaurants anonymously and pays for meals. Of course, we cannot guarantee the accuracy or independence of user reviews.