Get FREE email communications from Fodor's Travel, covering must-see travel destinations, expert trip planning advice, and travel inspiration to fuel your passion.
Glasgow’s vibrant restaurant culture is constantly renewing itself. Some of Britain’s best-known chefs have opened kitchens here, including Jamie Oliver and Yotam Ottolenghi. More recently, the city has responded enthusiastically to the small-plate and sharing-platter trends, but there are still plenty of fine-dining options on the one hand, and steak houses and burger places on the other. The city continues to present the best that Scotland has to offer: grass-fed beef, free-range chicken, wild seafood, venison, duck, and goose, not to mention superb fruits and vegetables. The growing emphasis on organic food is reflected on menus that increasingly provide detailed information about the source of their ingredients. Around the city, an explosion of coffee shops offer artisanal macchiatos and mochas.
You can eat your way around the world in Glasgow. A new generation of Italian restaurants serves updated versions of classic Italian dishes. Chinese, Indian, and Pakistani foods, longtime favorites, are now more varied and sophisticated, and Thai and Japanese restaurants have become popular. Spanish-style tapas are now quite common, and the small-plate trend has extended to every kind of restaurant. Seafood restaurants have moved well beyond the fish-and-chips wrapped in newspaper that were always a Glasgow staple, as langoustines, scallops, and monkfish appear on menus with ever more unusual accompaniments. And Glasgow has an especially good reputation for its vegan and vegetarian restaurants.
Smoking isn't allowed in any enclosed space in Scotland, but more restaurants have placed tables outside under awnings during the warmer summer months, some of which permit smoking.
This Italian-style café with alfresco seating for good weather serves lunch and smaller bites to a mainly day-visitor crowd. The ciabattas and soups are well made and substantial, if not enormously adventurous, and the staff is attentive.
This popular West End Italian deli/restaurant hybrid is located beside the Gibson Street entrance to Kelvingrove Park. The deli counters are packed with the type of high-quality Italian ingredients that dreamy summer picnics are made of—think cured meats, antipasti platters, and miniature sweet pastries—while the dine-in menu makes use of these quality ingredients with a familiar mix of rich pasta dishes, pizzas, and Italian sandwiches. It's especially busy during weekend lunch service and the summer, when the restaurant doubles in size thanks to its large number of outdoor tables. Make sure to save room for the famous ice cream, some of the best gelato Glasgow has to offer.
Offering all things Italian, this constantly busy, noisy, and extremely friendly café sits in the heart of the West End. Its pizzas, made on the premises while you wait with a coffee or a glass of Italian wine, are probably the best around, and the house-made pastas are just as consistently good. You can create your own pizza combination from the many topping options, but do leave room for the tiramisu. Perch on a stool by the window with a cappuccino while watching the world go by, or grab a seat at one of the crowded tables or in the mezzanine.
Down a quiet lane near Glasgow Central station, this ultracool eatery dishes up a fantastic range of vegan food, from paella and gnocchi to a colorful platter with hummus, red-pepper pâté, and home-baked flatbread. The decor is homey and relaxed, and someone always seems to be nearby reading or writing. Paintings, posters, and announcements of upcoming concerts in the space downstairs line the walls. The music is excellent, but never so loud as to disturb the serious business of eating. The kitchen closes at 9.
Sign up for Travel Tips & News
Thank you for your interest!
