FOOD & DRINK RECENT OPENINGS
RISING SON
An offshoot of energetic Charing Cross sushi and noodle restaurant Nanakusa brings a new level of sophistication to Japanese dining in Glasgow, as David Kirkwood discovers.
U ntil now, Glasgow has been lacking a Japanese restaurant that brought a touch of elegance to the table. This new venture from the owners of Nanakusa has been two years in the making, as an office block with listed status evolved into a spacious, modern eatery. Original wooden fittings and paper lanterns soften the large dimensions and each table has ample space – an unusual luxury for an Asian restaurant. It’s a classy place serving lovingly presented and vibrant tasting food. Among the grilled meats and fishes, maguro (tuna) is cooked to your specification on the teppan, then carefully arranged in thin slices alongside a colourful selection of vegetables and pickles that add texture and sharpness. They know what they’re doing with duck and its chewy, fatty, crunchy tendencies, whether alongside big, curry-coated udon noodles or dry-fried ramen with an elegant sprinkling of ginger on top. Soft-shell crab is properly crispy, dipping sauces are thick and flavoursome. Further welcome touches include sushi made in full view of diners, as well as a Japanese drinks list featuring sakes, cocktails and three malts from the Suntory distillery.
NIPPON KITCHEN
91 West George Street, Glasgow G2 1PB, 0141 328 3113 Ave. price two-course meal: £16 (lunch/dinner)
The best of the new restaurant, café and bar openings in Glasgow and Edinburgh. Prices shown are for an average two-course meal for one.
Glasgow BURGER MEATS BUN BURGER BAR
48a West Regent Street, City Centre, G2 2RA, 0141 353 6712, burger-meats-bun.co.uk, £14 (lunch/dinner) Evoking a typically laidback American burger joint, with disposable wax paper placemats, kitchen roll to wipe up mess and sketches on the wall, BMB feels like an upmarket (and quirky) fast food venue rather than a bar – and food comes quick. Burgers are proper and simple: juicy medium to medium-rare Scotch beef, additions like bacon, cheese or jalapeños, and buns of the brioche variety. Chicken wings, salads and lovely, earthy chips cut skinny complete a compact menu. There’s no draught beer, but it’s not a big drinking crowd that BMB seeks. They keep fast food in its context.
LUAC (LITTLE URBAN ACHIEVERS CLUB) BARS & PUBS 508 Great Western Road, Kelvinbridge, G12 8EL, luac.co.uk, £12 (lunch/dinner) The owners of Lebowskis have expanded their dude
theme (the Achievers are inner-city kids of promise, embezzled by the Big Lewbowski) at the former Wise Monkey / Hubbards at Kelvinbridge. The venue looks better than ever, with a generous bar and
mixed seating ready to feed a coachload of football- watching Oktoberfesters. They’ll be well fed with the hotdog retro revival menu featuring a choice of bratwurst, frankfurters or the pale pork feast that is the Krakauer. They make for great, if ungainly, munching over one or two of the interesting brews – likewise the various pizzas, long and thin on wooden boards.
THE SQUID AND WHALE BARS & PUBS 372–374 Great Western Road, West End, G4 9HT, 0141 339 5070, squidwhale.com, £13 (lunch/dinner) This kookily named replacement for Bar Gambrino is feeding Glasgow’s broadening taste for mexican/bbq/ street food. The interior has been brightened but not much else altered at a spot whose chief asset is the outdoor seats; roadside but removed enough to entice, especially as they catch any sun going. Tuck into chocolate chicken mole tacos, honey-bourbon glazed shrimp sandwich, blackened i sh or jambalaya. There’s dedication from the kitchen with their own sauces, and diligence from the bar with lots of ciders such as Thistly Cross and a good line in potty-mouth beers such as Flying Dog’s Raging Bitch and Founders’ Dirty Bastard.
Although primarily aimed at those looking for takeaway, there’s seating for around a dozen inside.
MIMI’S PICNIC PARLOUR CAFÉ/TAKEAWAY
250 Canongate, Old Town, EH8 8AA, 0131 556 6632, mimisbakehouse.com, £6 (lunch) After i rmly establishing itself as one of Edinburgh’s go-to cakeries, Leith favourite Mimi’s Bakehouse has expanded its horizons beyond the Shore with a new Picnic Parlour in the heart of the Old Town. The Canongate branch is essentially a takeaway operation, with just a couple of small tables for sitting in. Alongside a daily soup and an array of salads and sandwiches, they’re selling a decent range of their signature, freshly made cakes and bakes. A separate window by the entrance sells takeaway ice-cream, with a number of bespoke cake-inspired l avours created in conjuction with S. Luca.
Edinburgh OINK CAFÉ/TAKEAWAY
TACO MAZAMA MEXICAN KITCHEN MEXICAN/TAKEAWAY 38 Hanover Street, New Town, EH2 2DR, 0131 629 1892, tacomazama.co.uk, £8 (lunch/dinner) One of Glasgow’s leading proponents of the street food concept has established a base in central Edinburgh to supplement its three outlets in the west. The main draw is their take on the Mission burrito, which originates in the San Francisco district of that name. Flour wraps come in three sizes with a choice of i llings that includes a tasty, if rather dry, barbacoa shredded beef and a heady, chorizo-infused chilli. For less carb-heavy dining there are salad bowls or (rather stingily i lled) tacos.
82 Canongate, Old Town, EH8 8BZ, oinkhogroast.co.uk, £4 (takeaway roll) This head-turning piggy takeaway, with its signature roasted hog in the window and a simple menu of pig in a roll – large, medium or small – has moved in near to the Scottish Parliament and is well placed to catch tourists tripping up and down the Royal Mile. A venture from Borders-based Reivers Country Farm Foods, pink- liveried Oink is well established at the weekly farmers’ market on Castle Terrace and a permanent nook on Victoria Street. The new outlet has a bit more seating, while the extras available extend here to salads, coleslaw, coffee and a cake of the day.
Independent write-ups on all the restaurants worth knowing about in Glasgow and Edinburgh are available on our online Eating & Drinking Guide at list.co.uk/food-and-drink 32 THE LIST 22 Aug–19 Sep 2013