The most talked-about food places of the year
1. Ka Pao
Housed in the basement of the Botanic Gardens Garage, Ka Pao is a modern, bright, stylish space for 120 covers across an open dining room, with a custom-designed kitchen and a bar area featuring comfortable booths and high tables. A spin-off from Ox and Finch, it’s been a smash hit since opening at the start of the year.
Owner and chef Jonathan MacDonald was inspired to do something different by food he experienced when he was a young chef: “I spent quite a lot of time travelling in my 20s in Southeast Asia, it blew my socks off. Eating chilli crab cakes in car parks. Real street food. I was mesmerised by it all, especially when I lived and worked in Melbourne.” Always order the spicy caramel fried chicken.
2. The Gannet
The menu remains dominated by exceptional Scottish produce, served with precision. If anything, the kitchen seems to have stepped things up a notch this year despite the challenges that has faced the industry as a whole.
What a performance you get across lunch at The Gannet. That’s what we are here for: A restaurant with a sense of occasion balanced with good humour and enthusiasm. We start off with west coast crab punctuated by slivers of parsnip and apple. Aged Taylor’s of Heatheryhall shorthorn beef carpaccio served with kohlrabi, smoked eel, potato is an eye-catching signature dish.
Then comes the double-hit of North Sea monkfish and celeriac in a seaweed butter sauce followed by saddle of Cairngorm red deer accompanied by beetroot, wild Argyll mushrooms and elderberry. As close to an ideal selection of Scottish produce as you will find. A real triumph. Leonardo DiCaprio had dinner here during Cop26.
3. Cail Bruich
It was the signing of the season: chef Lorna McNee (below), protégé of the late two Michelin starred chef, Andrew Fairlie and last year’s Great British Menu Champion of Champions took up her first head chef role at Cail Bruich last year, joining from Restaurant Andrew Fairlie. Dishes on her menus have included west coast crab, raw Orkney scallop and citrus alongside hand-rolled pasta, broad beans, girolles and truffle. Currently, Glasgow’s only one Michelin star restaurant.
4. Unalome by Graeme Cheevers
Former Isle of Eriska head chef Graeme opens his first restaurant in his home city with ambitions to compete at the highest level in the kitchen. Enjoy a remarkable fine dining experience on Kelvingrove Street with a tour of some of Scotland’s best ingredients like Loch Etrive trout, Orkney scallops, Barra cockles and Inverurie lamb.
5. Six by Nico
In March 2017, I proclaimed Six by Nico on Argyle Street Glasgow’s most exciting new restaurant. Six courses, inspired by a food story, available for six weeks. Then the kitchen resets for a new menu, and so it goes. The format is familiar now and Six by Nico has arrived in other cities: Edinburgh, Belfast, Manchester, Liverpool, Dublin and two in London. Two! It’s a remarkable run for a Glasgow chef who has been at the centre of some of this year’s biggest local food stories.
6. Crabshakk
Crabshakk kickstarted the Finnieston food and drink boom when they opened in 2009. Oysters, a cracking fish supper and their Fruits de Mer platter have been on the menu since day one. Study the specials board which changes twice a day. We usually look for grilled langoustines. Glasgow has access to a dazzling supply of fresh seafood and here the flavours are showcased in a compact, cool restaurant with a laid-back vibe and cheerful service. They will open a second restaurant on Vinicombe Street early next year.
7. Five March
A cool neighbourhood hangout with the best sharing plate menu in the west end. Mussels with chilli jam coconut milk and toast. Pork cutlet with sweet potato, puy lentils, cavolo nero and charcuterie sauce. Hipsi cabbage, miso, shitake, garlic breadcumbs. Their fried spuds are a work of art. Bring all your friends and order a round of cocktails.
8. Café Strange Brew
Owner and chef Laurie MacMillan has redefined what it means to be a Glasgow neighbourhood cafe over the last five years while creating a Shawlands landmark in Cafe Strange Brew. Its reputation spans far beyond the Southside. Pancakes have been their signature dish but the waffle-maker has been put to good use with innovative specials like sweet potato waffles with hoisin duck and fried egg.
instagram.com/cafe_strange_brew
9. Celentano’s
Chef Dean Parker and his wife Anna realised their dream of opening an Italian-inspired restaurant at Cathedral House, the boutique hotel beside the Necropolis. Dean worked with chef and restaurateur Robin Gill to open The Dairy in Clapham, London, in 2013 and was his head chef and partner at Darby’s in Nine Elms. The couple decided to change direction and move to Glasgow during a honeymoon touring Italy – Anna is from the city and they wanted to be part of the vibrant food scene here. The seasonal menu is built around sustainably sourced local produce, sourdough bread baked in-house, fresh pasta, wine and cocktails. For snacks try the fatty pork fennel salumi or smoked cod doughnuts topped with kimchi. The main course of whole, dayboat sole on the bone arrives with a leaf salad and barbecue potatoes drizzled with olive oil. A new restaurant for leisurely grazing in style.
10. Glaschu
Modern Scottish fine dining within The Western Club building on Royal Exchange Square. Head chef Dion Scott honed his skills in Heston Blumenthal’s kitchens. They’ve established signature dishes like beef Wellington or lobster and langoustine cannelloni while attracting a stylish crowd. The restaurant draws its identity from its position in a landmark location, with nods to local history and culture throughout the menu. They take an international approach to food that elevates the overall experience.
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