My old school friend text me to say that he was up for Christmas from Manchester. He asked if was I…read morestill kicking about Blantyre and I sure am so he suggested heading to Asda Blantyre Cafe. When he came to my bit he had fortunately changed his mind and said 'Howsabout EK instead?' Yay, you betcha! I love the East Kilbride Shopping Centre or it's more the Centre West bit that I like best nowadays. It's actually split into several shopping malls, Prince's Mall and The Plaza were the first then they linked up The Plaza to the Olympia with the ice rink and cinema. I loved that part when I was younger. Then they covered up Prince's Square to become a mall then recently added on to The Plaza, Centre West. If you enter from the bus station it is a bit grim but keep heading through and it does get better. I normally park at Centre West but my friend likes parking at the Olympia. We still don't know how you can park in the underneath car park. Hmm?!! Anyhoo it was lovely to grace this entrance, it was completely mobbed, lovely to see the ice rink still as busy as ever. *Flashback* First time I was ever on an ice rink with my mum. Did witness someone fall and have their hand slashed though. I remember the paramedics and blood on the ice. Fortunately it didn't put me too much off ice skating. We mostly window shopped as we didn't see much we fancied in the sales. We decided to stop for a wee coffee at Costa in The Plaza. There's plenty of food courts and coffee shops about in all the malls. I love the food court in Centre West best. The one at the ice rink not so much nowadays, if you saw it you would understand why. It's great to come here especially when it's raining as everything's all under one roof and it's call Toys R er maybe not. Did most of my Christmas shopping here as there's a great variety of shops. There's still empty lets in the various malls but there's still plenty of shops to make you drop.

East Kilbride shopping centre elicits a mixed opinion from me. If you'd shopped here 5 years ago,…read moreit was a plethora of shops and you were able to get absolutely everything you were looking for. Today, it's a bit pathetic and every second lot seems to be lying empty. There's everything here you'd expect in a shopping centre; Topshop, a huge Debenhams, Waterstones and a selection of others. There's also a couple of cafés, a McDonald's and a decent sized food court. There's also a huge ice rink and upstairs there's an Odeon cinema and a library. It has a lot in it, it's just a bit depressing to walk through and see most of the lots lying empty.

Scotmid is really handy for the following reasons: -Ample…read morecar parking on street and in its own little car park -Free cash withdrawals -Wide selection of alcohol (including bottles of ale!) -Regular deals, to rival supermarket prices -Good reductions on food near date -Amazing cobs (bread rolls) from the local baker at 25p each. Soft, crusty or well-fired take yer pick!

The BEST Morrisons I've ever been to. It's enormous, yet because it's a Mozzas it doesn't feel all…read moreclinical and warehousey like a massive Tesco or Asda (and Sainsbury's these days) does. I can't give it five stars because it is just a Morrisons, however if you need to do a weekly shop and you value good deals, good choice and excellent fresh meat, this is the place to go. There's also a restaurant... but I'm not sure I could ever bring myself to trying that!

Morrisons is a chain of supermarkets prevalent throughout the UK…read more The store at Lindsayfield in East Kilbride was originally a Safeway store but when Morrisons bought Safeway out, it was rebranded. I find this to be a particularly nice branch of Morrisons. It has a petrol station which I have used several times and been impressed with. I find Morrisons petrol prices to be very competitive. The store has a large car park at the front and cash machines at the main entrance. Morrisons stores are laid out like old fashioned markets which is something I personally like and when you enter you will find fresh fruit and veg on display, some of which is on a mock barrell to give the feeling of these markets. The store has an excellent selection of groceries on offer and there are Butchers, Fishmongers and Pie departments, as well as the bakery. Morrisons has a fairly decent non-food section offering homewares, kitchenware, CDs, DVDs and games. Lastly this Morrisons has a great cafe which I have used several times and rate highly. I like the fact you order your hot food at Morrisons and they then cook it for you - there's nothing on offer here that has been sitting on a hotplate for too long drying out! This is an excellent supermarket in East Kilbride.

don't shop at this retail park. You will get an £85 fine if more than 4 hours…read more My wife was shopping for clothes for holidays and was at Next,TK maxx Adidas and sainsburys and was 4 hours and 15 mins.

I love outlet shopping and I ain't afriad to admit it. Having lived in Houston for years, my family…read morehad no qualms about driving to the nearest outlet center to pick up some bargains, after all, it's still branded stuff and the companies still list these shops on the website. I am also a massive Nike fan girl. I go to the gym a lot, bordering too much, so I need a fair amount of sports leggings/tops/bras. Basically, paying a little bit more of good quality, works for me as endless washes doesn't wear through the fabric resulting in see-through tights (my BIGGEST pet peeve at the gym) . The Nike shop in Kingsgate, isn't the biggest shop, but don't let that full you. There is a mens section on the left, womens on the right, kids in the middle and the shoe wall at the back. All the sizes available and all the colours are out for display, and at the very back wall, even further reductions. I picked up some Nike Free Runs for 55, which are normally around 100 in store. The staff were really helpful, even with half an hour to close, and suggested I do take the bigger size as your feet sweat. He also said if I wasn't happy with them after wearing indoors only, to come back and they'd trade sizes. I really appreciate honest staff, and saying this persuaded me to make the purchase as I did have the guarantee of being able to return. The clothes stock can be hit and miss, they didn't have the specific leggings I like, but they do get stock in 3 times a week, so its just a luck game! A great little shop, credit to the Nike brand and well worth the drive. Open till 8pm, Mon-Sat. Thanks to the friendly staff :)

Good purchases and staff Very helpful…read moreGood website- notice about upcoming sales Bargains- suited to previous purchases

This was my 1st visit encouraged by my bf who advised me there is a section for model train…read moreenthusiasts! While he was pondering the trains i was nosying around the gift section. They have a big yankee candle section and loads of lovely little gifts that i havnt seen anywhere else. I picked up a few last min xmas presents. There is a cafe and toilets which are centrally located. Its def worth popping in for a wee nosy when in the area.

Eyecandy is a great little boutique on Clarkston Road, they have outfits which are all very…read morereasonably priced and they also have accessories such as belts and fancy scarves to go with them. The window display is ever changing and everything always looks very sophisticated. The clothes always look great quality and even though the clothes aren't ridiculously expensive, they look like they should cost a lot of money. My aunt has bought a few items from here and I particularly like a couple of scarves she's purchased from Eyecandy. Whenever I have ventured in, I usually have a browse at their costume jewellery, I got my mum a lovely brooch from here a few years ago. They have a good selection and many unusual pieces too. Great little place and the staff are really friendly too I also adore the name!

I used to be a big fan of Lidl but recently I've realised that the low prices you pay are reflected…read morein the longevity of the salad and fresh meat... Lots of the stuff is good quality and cheap but don't expect it to last long. They've just restarted selling mini kegs of German beer which at £10 for 5 litres of good quality German beer is great!

Just recently moved to Hairmyres and this Lidl supermarket was nearby, only a 5 minute walk. Very…read moreclean with friendly, helpful staff. Very reasonably priced goods. Excellent bakery in store. Ample parking. This will probably be my regular stop for groceries.

This is a good sized shopping centre with a few car parks. The centre is split into different…read morenames, plaza, centre west etc. The shops that can be found here range from debenhams, bhs, marks and spencers to primark, card factory, pound shop, so something for every budget. There is a libraray and ice-rink and cinema. There a few pubs and plenty of places to eat with a choice of the pubs or two food courts one at either end of the centre. The centre is clean as are the toilets and they have a customer service desk located in the middle of centre west.

Good shopping centre, very clean and a good variety of shops (over 200). I don't like that you have…read moreto pay for parking (except on Sundays when it is free). They have some one-off local shops as well as big chain stores. There is a big Debenhams, a past times. For food there is loads of places, McDonalds, Pizza Hut, Burger King and Shenanigans pub for pub lunches etc.

I completely agree with Eleanor's statement that the dresses are old fashioned. There is no doubt…read morethat many of these are aimed at more mature ladies and this is pretty apparent from a glance at the window display. However, there are also some rather fancy numbers which would be good for more formal do's. Though, like Eleanor I'm pretty small at 5ft 3", hence didn't even attempt to try on their long, flowing cocktail dresses. This is also the reason why I can't comment greatly on customer service. But, when I popped in for a nosey the staff seemed pleasant enough and after a quick greeting and enquiry as to what I had in mind, they happily left me along to have a browse. Potentially this was only because I clearly had no idea or occasion in mind, who knows? Anyway, this is a pleasant enough shop though up my street; I'm sure it's the kind of place that your mum or older aunt might enjoy a look in.

Cuckoo is a very fancy little boutique on Clarkston Road. I popped in here a few years ago when I…read morewas looking for a dress for my School Leavers Dance. This didn't go as well as I'd hoped. After trying on what felt like 100 dresses, I left disheartened as none of them suited me. I actually thought a few looked quite good but the busybody shop assistant assured me that none of them did after humming and hawing and a series of, "yes, that one's not for you..." I can't say it was a very positive shopping experience and definitely not good for my self-confidence. To be fair, I'm only 5ft so very small and I guess I didn't really do any of the dresses justice. I kind of just looked like a little girl who was trying on my mums clothes. I think the dresses here are generally designed for womanly hourglass figures so unless you're Marilyn Monroe, forget it. The dresses are very glamorous to look at but I found some of them were a bit old fashioned and be warned, if you're looking for an ego boost you definitely won't get it here!