If Carlsberg did views, this charming old pub would probably top their list

An early-afternoon drink with one of the most impressive pub views anywhere in Scotland took on an unimaginable significance just a few days later.

We’d only called in while passing through on a drive down the Clyde coast. One of us needed the loo, truth be told. A loo with a view, if you like.

And what’s so good about the view? Well, if you’re watching current BBC drama The Nest and wowing at the views from that house Martin Compston’s character lives in, then just imagine that, but in reverse.

The Cafe Continental is right across the water from the tiny village of Cove, the location of the waterside west-facing home featured in the drama (althoughg the BBC publicity material saying this is Glasgow is a bit of a stretch).

While you can’t pitch up there for a drink, you can in this joint across the water.

The Cafe Continental has been family-run since the late 1800s. Those old floor tiles could tell a story or two, so too that old oak bar gantry, and the seaside adornments reflect its seaside location.

The Norwegian navy used it during World War II and Jimmy Logan’s earliest performances were here (he lived next door) and the trend continues. On a previous visit, Pub Spy enjoyed a performance by Admiral Fallow to a packed house.

One thing older even than that is the vista at the back of the bar. Traditionally the most popular area in the cafe, we were lucky. Previous visits have seen these seats reserved. Its giant floor-toceiling windows let the grandeur flood in.

The mouths of Loch Long, Gare Loch and Holy Loch are over there and, at night, the streetlights on the waterside settlements of Kirn, Strone, Blairmore and Kilcreggan give the view an alluring quality (local artist Kevin Hunter’s oil paintings capture it to great abstract effect).

Pub Spy knows this only because of the handy map on the Cafe’s wall, alongside a tide clock and relief map of the channels of the Clyde. If the view inspires questions, the answers, or some of them, are on the wall.

Back in time, the Cafe – then the Continental Ice Bar – used to sell ice cream but no more. And while it’s very definitely a popular boozer in these parts, especially at weekends, it’s a hot spot for lunch or early dinner too – the pan-fried sea bass goes with the surroundings.

As we sat in the window watching the ferries trace the Clyde, we couldn’t imagine it would be the last time we’d do that for a long time.

But we’ll come back. And when we do, we’ll have a seat at the window, please.