The Mackintosh Tearooms

This is a review of Mackintosh at the Willow Tea Rooms in Glasgow on Sauchiehall Street, I went there to celebrate a friend's 50th wedding anniversary with the rest of my family. I have to say that overall, the accessibility was really good and we all really enjoyed it. The entrance to the Willow Tea Rooms was very flat and easy to get into. Although I have to say that when trying to get to the venue, we parked in the Q park, which is down the street from Mackintosh at the Willow Tea Rooms and it was difficult to get to the actual venue in my wheelchair from the parking lot because there were a lack of dropped curbs, which is something that could be addressed by Glasgow City Council. But as I say, once we were inside, it was very flat, and you entered through the gift shop. So that then means that you take the lift from the ground floor up to the second floor to have canapés before our meal. On the second floor, we had our canapés and the billiard room, which is quite a big room and fits 30 people into the room. And from the second floor, we went to the first floor of the Salon de Luxe to have our meal. Unfortunately, the accessible toilet was on the second floor. So I had to go back up in the lift to the second floor, where we come from, to go to the toilet. The toilet itself was quite small. And the toilet was on the wrong side of the bathroom for me to transfer using my slide board. But overall, I managed in the toilet, even though it was small, because I had the help of a support worker.  The Salon de Luxe on the first floor was quite well laid out in terms of the tables. And the seating plan had been decided by our friends in advance. The table that we were setting at was designed in such a way that it had a bar across the sort of entrance to the table. So I had to take my foot plates off my wheelchair to get properly to the table. The staff, I have to say, couldn't have been more helpful. And they guided me to where I needed to go, and the meal that we had was very nice. And as I said, the staff were really helpful. And they guided me to where I needed to go. When we were finished with the meal, I went back to the accessible toilet on the second floor. And then, when you exit through the gift shop, I met a really nice member of staff called Yvonne, who told me about the accessibility of the Mackintosh exhibition itself. And she actually offered a complimentary tour for our next visit, which I thought was really kind, and we will definitely be going back to visit the National Trust on this property. And they've done a really good job of renovating the property from what it was. So I'm really looking forward to going back, and apart from the toilets, I would really recommend it to anyone who's visiting the area and wants to find out more about the history of Glasgow.

These are tea rooms situated at 217 Sauchiehall Street, Glasgow. They were designed by the Scottish architect Charles Ronnie Mackintosh & opened in 1903. The building was restored to the original designs between 2014 and 2018. The lower part of the tearooms with the attached shop and visitor centre is very accessible with a ramp & level flooring throughout apart from an area that is up one step (see photo). There is plenty of seating on the level. The Room Deluxe is on the first floor though so is not accessible.

This is the newly opened and restored Willow Tearooms on Sauchiehall Street. After 4 years of restoration Miss Cranston's tearooms are now open and well worth a visit. We went for tea & coffee in the middle of a Sunday afternoon shopping trip and felt lucky to get in without booking. The service is excellent and the menu provides for light lunches and afternoon teas. For anyone interested in architecture, design or Charles Rennie Mackintosh a visit is a must. Check the website for photos and details