French revolution (Jay Richardson)

The Auld Alliance is alive and well, thanks to a Gallic makeover that’s the epitome of continental style.

One of Glasgow’s oldest drinking establishments and originally a coffee house, 200 years ago Sloan’s was filled with cigar-puffing men kicking back after witnessing a cockfight in the lane outside. Now the cock is making a comeback, at least on the ground floor of the Grade A-listed building.

Re-christened the Bastille Taverne, it retains the classy continental figure bestowed upon it in the 1910s, when David Sloan purchased the building and dispatched his designers to soak up the sights, sleaze and absinthe of fashionable Left Bank Paris. Dominated by dark rich mahogany, with stained glass, marble and tiny chequered tile flooring, the Taverne has an undeniably proud and sternly handsome interior. It’s an eminently agreeable place to repair to and plot revolutions undisturbed, though its fastidious cleanliness distracts and forestalls the Fin de Siecle edginess needed for it to become a true meeting place of creative minds.

Staff are crisply attired and efficient, happy to discuss the merits of the bottle French and Belgian lagers available, while the large candles appear a Gallic touch too much until the brightness of the bulbous Parisian retro lamps dip around 10pm. With its nearly wall-to-wall mirrors and occasional palm frond, the back room especially feels authentically European. Music creeping into it form the main bar never overwhelms conversations, though it may go some way to provoking them.

There is to be a strong commitment to live music and cabaret in the future apparently, and on the night we drop by, there seems precious little distinction between the two dorms. A pianist and drummer periodically interrupt the pleasantly piped jazz to dash off a sprightly mix of Billy Joel, Elton John, selections from the Barber of Seville and what sounds like Jewish waltz. Despite initial misgivings, I actually can’t recommend this eclectic performance enough – it’s quite unlike anything else serenading the Glasgow ether that evening.

Scarcely more than a month old, the booths around the Tavern’s bar are sparsely populated for a Saturday and the back room almost empty, though the test of time will surely be whether it fills reliably with vibrant, sexy types after the official launch on Bastille Day on July 14.

There seems little reason to doubt success in this respect, as the music and forthcoming snack menu of pies, entrecote frite and croquet monsieurs should prevent punters hurrying off when it gets late, though the proposed chandeliers may verge on self-parody rather than refinement.

It’s ever so slightly expensive but it’s worth paying that little bit extra for the piano alone.