If you are doing a short city break, save a little time for a supermarket and souvenir hunt. Shortbread, tablet, tea cakes, and malt loaf are all excellent choices for travel-friendly snacks. Pack everything in the middle of your suitcase with clothes around the sides for padding, and keep anything delicate, like tea cakes, near the top. Friends & Family will thank you for these unique gifts 🍫
1. Tea cakes
In Glasgow, “tea cakes” usually means the legendary Tunnock’s Teacakes. These are domes of soft marshmallow sitting on a biscuit base, coated in a thin layer of chocolate and wrapped in shiny foil. They are light, playful and a bit nostalgic, and you will see them everywhere from supermarket shelves to quirky cafés. They are not just a snack, they are a little piece of local culture, and the bright red and silver wrappers look great in photos or gift bags.
2. Tablet
Tablet is Scotland’s answer to fudge, but more intense and crumbly. It is made from sugar, butter and condensed milk, cooked until it sets into a firm, grainy slab that almost melts in your mouth. It is very sweet, the sort of thing where one small square is enough, but that is exactly why people remember it. Packed in little bags or boxes, it makes a brilliant, very local souvenir that most people outside Scotland have never tried.
3. Malt loaf
Malt loaf is a dark, sticky, gently sweet fruit loaf that feels like pure comfort with a cup of tea. It is dense, moist and usually sliced and spread with butter, with a flavour that sits somewhere between bread and cake. While you can technically find malt loaf around the UK, buying it in Glasgow as part of a Scottish breakfast or snack run just feels right. It is a nice option if you want something less sugary than tablet, but still very “British”.
4. Shortbread
Shortbread is probably the most iconic Scottish biscuit, and Glasgow is a brilliant place to pick some up. It is rich, buttery and crumbly, made from a very simple mix of butter, sugar and flour that somehow tastes like pure comfort. You will see everything from big brand tins with tartan patterns to small-batch shortbread from local bakeries and farm shops. It is the kind of thing that travels really well, and it feels like a “proper” gift without being expensive. Expect to pay from around 3–4 GBP for a basic box up to 10–15 GBP for a decorative tin or premium brand
5. Caramel wafer
If Tunnock’s Teacakes are the soft, fluffy celebrity, Tunnock’s Caramel Wafers are the sturdy local legend. They are layers of wafer and caramel coated in chocolate, wrapped in that very recognisable red-and-gold foil. As a souvenir they are perfect, because they are very Scottish, easy to pack and not quite as fragile as teacakes.
Personal tip
I like to mix Caramel Wafers into gift bags with tea cakes, so people can try a mini “Tunnock’s tasting”.
6. Aero Peppermint
7. Aero Peppermint
Aero Peppermint is a bubbly mint chocolate bar that you can find across the UK, but it makes a surprisingly good little Glasgow souvenir, especially for friends who like mint chocolate. The inside is a light, aerated peppermint centre covered in milk chocolate, so it feels different from most standard bars.
Flake is one of those very British chocolate bars that visitors love discovering. It is made from folded, rippled chocolate that is incredibly light and crumbly, so it feels different from a standard solid bar. In Glasgow you will see it everywhere, often shoved into ice creams or desserts, but it also makes a fun, easy souvenir to take home.
and so much more… 😋
Scottish macaroon bars are not the pretty French macarons you might be thinking of. These are sweet bars made from a soft, sugary fondant centre, coated in chocolate and rolled in toasted coconut. They are old-fashioned in the best way, very sweet and quite rich, and feel like something your Scottish gran might have bought. Another good souvenir are ginger biscuits, especially the ones with dark chocolate. And look at that package who doesn’t like that.
