Cardonald - Restaurant Guide

“Fantastic small restaurant” in the West End serving “exceptionally tasty food” from chef Gerry Mulholland, who took it over in partnership with manager Joel Ponfret 15 years ago (it celebrated its 26th anniversary last year). The duo are both from Arran, and visit the island every summer for pop-up dinners.

“We went because Jay Rayner wrote [in 2023] Gloriosa made some of the best Focaccia in the UK and came away having had one of our meals of the year!”. This bright, Mediterranean-inspired café-style venue is very ‘in’ amongst Glasgow’s fooderati and scores well in our survey too as a consistent favourite, including of those from further afield. The sunny flavours of the Med infuse the eclectic dishes on an enticing menu which span pastas and small plates to a few more substantial dishes (for example a whole partridge). The Times’s Chitra Ramaswamy went doolally for it on her December 2024 visit, and agreed the aforementioned bread is “the best in the land… chewy yet light at its hole-ridden centre with a thick, undulating crust, crispy little rosemary needles, and the ideal amount of sea salt (ie almost too much)”.

“Affordable fine dining” – say fans – makes these Fitzrovia and Canary Wharf venues (from Nico Simeone’s Glasgow-based national chain) “good for date nights” and “real value-for-money”. “The tasting menu changes regularly, so it’s a different experience every time” – the formula being “no mystery: you get to taste small samples of delicious food all related to a specific, changing theme”. (“We’ve been twice this year – more themes have caught our eye without the window of opportunity to try them. It’s not filling, but a really enjoyable eat”). There is, though, an alternative jaundiced view, which is that they offer “style over substance – you’ll leave still feeling hungry and the venue is noisy, like being in a canteen”.

This “lively fish restaurant in Glasgow’s uber-trendy West End” is “one of those places where the food and vibe combine to make you want to step in and eat there”. Its ratings suffered this year, though, with very up-and-down reports. Some are of “exceptional food” from a menu that features “lots of fresh fish”. Others though are of an experience that’s “haphazard”: “whitebait was cooked brittle, and the sole, which was ordered grilled, arrived meunière. Service is best described as fluctuating. I would overall call it cheap and cheerful… but it isn’t cheap!”

“Still a top destination in Glasgow” – this West End institution “changed owners in 2022 and now belongs to pub chain Greene King”, who replaced founder Ronnie Clydesdale and (later) his son Colin, but “luckily the ambience, good service, and excellent modern Scottish cuisine” remain even better than ever (and mercifully “far away from pub grub”). The multi-tasking and “trendy” venue (the “ambience is pretty jungle style”) combines pub, restaurant, brasserie, wee whisky bar and coveted roof terrace turning out “inventive cocktails”. “Overall it remains a super (though expensive) place for special celebrations” – if not a wholly “different world”.

Celebrating its twelfth year with a major six-month refurb, this sizable venture in Kelvingrove reopened in April 2025 complete with a scrubbed up but stripped back new look. Its opening was too late to inspire feedback in our annual diners’ poll, but – in her May 2025 review – The Times’s Chitra Ramaswamy exclaimed “What a comeback” and hailed “exceptionally good” modern bistro fare and wine that was just as good as ever. On that basis we’ve restored its former good all-round rating on the basis that this is conservative. It’s comforting not culinarily ambitions fare – with dishes such as Skate wing, crab, capers and pickled chilli, Duck liver parfait, cuts of Scottish beef, and classic desserts, from Apple tarte tatin to Rhubarb, custard and gingerbread trifle.

“Top cooking with no stuffiness” helps win applause for Graeme Cheevers’s “exceptional” venue – a comfortably furnished, somewhat old-school enterprise “located in hip Finnieston” and with “tables set nicely apart so neighbours’ conversations don’t intrude”. There is a seven-course tasting menu for £135 per person, but there’s also a (slightly) cheaper à la carte for £100 per person and all agree that the “set lunch is great value” (at £55 per person – “Michelin quality at a price that’s half that of its nearest competitor”). “You can always walk it off in the park afterwards if needed!”

When it opened in 1996, the idea of ‘tapas’ for any cuisine other than Spanish was in its infancy in the UK and Monir & Smeena Mohammed’s cosy three-floor venue in the West End helped break the mould. It’s not as famous as once it was amongst our diners, but its dedicated fan club remains ardent: “the curries here are absolutely delicious with lots of unusual dishes to try. All so tasty and with vibrant flavours. The staff are so welcoming and the atmosphere upstairs is one of contented diners having a good time, many on long tables with silver candelabra”. Now with four spin-offs locally and with an Edinburgh branch.

Southeast Asian flavours meet Scottish ingredients at this “very relaxed” yet still “lively” venue, housed in a garage by the Botanic Gardens. The “stunning small plates” showcase some truly “creative” ideas, ranging from seafood dishes like clay pot crab curry and noodles, to perennial favourite, the vegan corn ribs – the latter part of a truly tempting spread for non-carnivores. If you find yourself in Scotland’s capital in search of a similar fix, they also have a sibling in the St. James’s Quarter.

“Modou and his team really push the boat out to present a full 10-course menu” at Modou Diagne’s West End feature – originally part of Nico Simeone’s stable of restaurants, now run by his protégé Modou, a former Senegalese refugee who worked his way up through the ranks. Feedback is limited, but continues to say that the value of the imaginative cuisine is almost as good as the backstory!

2024 Review: “Continuing its outstanding reputation in the West End, Stravaigin has been given a recent facelift, which adds greatly to the ambience” – this thirty-year-old landmark of the West End was sold to new owners the Metropolitan Pub Company in 2022 and their investment is breathing new life into this Glaswegian foodie icon. Both The Scotsman and The Times reviewed it after the change and according to Rosalind Erskine of the former, “the food and drink… is a lot like the new look, it’s a refresh but still recognisable for what it always was, which will be a comfort to regulars and new visitors alike”.

Dating from 1870 – and with an evocative, traditional interior to match – this “famous Scottish restaurant” on the periphery of the city centre (from which it’s cut off by the M8) is steeped in Victorian charm. Run by Ryan James, it once traded under the banner of his ‘Two Fat Ladies’ brand, but with the demise of its siblings it generally just goes by ‘The Buttery’ nowadays. Its traditional Scottish fare is consistently well-rated in our survey, but there’s also a sense that “one goes for the ambience more than the food nowadays”. It’s also “very popular with tourists” – not that this should necessarily put you off.

2022 Review: “Never disappoints, even after four decades of being a customer” – a “Glasgow institution” (est. 1964) whose “consistent cooking” attracts “generations of families, all welcome”. The victuals touch on most of the flavours of the subcontinent, while the founder, known to all as Mr Ali, is a bit of a West End dining legend.

2022 Review: This spin-off from Cail Bruich attracts some attention purely on account of its stellar sibling, although the culinary formula is much simpler – sharing plates of locally supplied meat, seafood, cheese and charcuterie, plus an interesting selection of wine. But while we do have some feedback saying it’s “very good”, its volume is too limited for a definitive verdict.

2024 Review: Occupying an interesting looking Edwardian landmark (built in 1914 as a tram stop), this “classic Italian” wins praise for its “well-cooked Italian food” (pizza, pasta, plus classic Italian staple dishes). “It can be crowded, but is very friendly”. It generated national headlines in 2023 (including in the fun-filled Sun), when owner Marco Giannasi ‘secretly’ sold the business to waiter Alex Matheson and his wife Jen Doherty (although Giannasi and his wife still own the freehold). Top Tip – “good value lunchtime offers”.

2025 Review: “Superb seafood” has made this central Glasgow institution one of the city’s most treasured dining destinations of the past two decades. Chef-patron Derek Marshall has reportedly put it up for sale after 26 years at the helm, but as we went to press there was no word on a possible buyer. Top Menu Tip – “the fish soup is to die for”.