Our Story
Our aim at Hopetoun Bar and Bistro is to provide quality food, with a relaxed and unfussy service in a lovely setting. Our owners are a family run catering company based in West Lothian. We are hopeful the place will attract new people into the town and who knows maybe see Bathgate as lively as it was many years ago.
The building’s owners have completely refurbished the building, and although it has been a bar and restaurant for many years, it has quite an interesting past. It sits on Hopetoun street in the centre of Bathgate. Hopetoun Street was developed in the second half of the 18th century and was named after the Earls of Hopetoun, owners of the barony of Bathgate at the time.
In 1856 Hopetoun street was the second-best street in the town (best was Jarvey St) and was where the town’s most prosperous citizens aspired to live. Later in the century, it became a real shoppers street and many shops built in the late Victorian era. Above these shops were dwellings, and although the shop fronts have changed over the years, the architectural qualities still survive today.
The Hopetoun Bistro was the part of D.R Gordons, Bathgate foremost ironmongers and car showroom. D.R Gordon was also a provost of Bathgate (1899-1908) and is believed to be the first person in the town to own a car.
When D.R Gordon died in 1922, he left a bequest of £5000 for Bathgate to build a town hall, this was never built, but the money was used to build what was to become Lindsay house.