Notice: Undefined index: class in /home/alfihnfk/alfiefoodwala.com/wp-content/themes/themify-ultra/skins/restaurant/functions.php on line 49

Tag: citycentre

July 15 2023

Royâ, Glasgow

Food, LEVENT alfiefoodwala, arabic, chicken tikka masala, citycentre, glasgow, gourmet, LEVENT, mediterranean, rustic 0

Hey Foodwala Boys and Girls… hope you all well

Please remember to subscribe to the Alfie Foodwala Facebook, TIK TOK, and Instagram pages, tag, and please share with six people if you like this review, message me if you have constructive feedback.

If you would like to “Eat with Alfie Foodwala” please email me at alfiefoodwala@aol.com

Furthermore, if you know of a restaurant I should review please let me know.

“If more of us valued food and cheer and song above hoarded gold, it would be a merrier world.”
– J.R.R. Tolkien

I was watching the news and the skirmish in Ukraine came up. now before you go glassy-eyed and lose interest, this is a story of hope and happiness…bear with me.

I was in Beirut a few years back and was walking back to my hotel, Four Seasons at Zeitouna Bay, after a particularly challenging meeting.

I walked from Pigeon Rocks and when I reached Hamra so I felt peckish, So I stumbled upon the Barber Schwarma restaurant, what set this joint apart from the many other shawarma restaurants in Rue du Picadilly was the line of people waiting to get served.

Any restaurant with a line of people must be worth checking out, so I joined the back of the line, I did not have to wait long and It was my turn, The elephant leg-sized shawarma glistened while being roasted on a vertical wood-fired spit and as the outer layer was caramelised and cooked the expert shawarma walla would slice off paper-thin layers of meat using a scimitar type knife and place them in fresh pitta and chuck in some onion and parsley and for the avant grade some chips, he would roll them up and present it the customer.

I ordered a lamb and chicken shawarma, I promptly received my order and settled down to eat.

I noticed a picture of Anthony Bourdain, curious I asked the portly gentlemen in chef’s whites sitting at the next table, why they had a picture of him, apparently he had visited the restaurant some years back when he filmed parts unknown.

The portly chef, I found out was the legendary Abu Waseem, one of the few master shawarma chefs left in Lebanon, the rest have been poached to work in UAE, Qatar and Saudi.

He explained that this is the only restaurant which never closed during the Lebanese civil war, The restaurant was on the no man’s strip of land on the edge of the three warring factions, so what the hungry soldiers used to do was send children to the restaurant to collect the Shawarma sandwiches. So they used to have Hizbollah children standing in line with Marionite Christain children and Druze kids all waiting to take shawarma back to the fighters, some say the friendships struck up in the Shawarma line eventually brought the end to the Civil War.

So the love of food does indeed transcend religion, culture and enmity and should give us hope in such turbulent times.

This week I was with my friend Shai Foodwala, who hails a few kilometres south of Beirut and on the other side of the southern border.

Roya describes itself as a contemporary Middle Eastern and Levant Kitchen.

We kicked off the proceedings with the Dipping platter, Hummus, Baba Ganoush, Mouhamara & garlic Labneh served with a freshly baked Persian ‘barbai’ bagel.

This was lovely and fresh and packed with flavour, although small in size the dips were excellent, the Barbai bagel was phenomenal, the crust was crispy while inside it was soft and pillowy.

Spinach Falafel 6.95 8/10
Shawarma Croquettes 6.95 4/10

Next up was the spinach falafels, the falafels were expertly made, with a deep crust and soft ground chickpea and the spinach centre was defiantly tasty, The falafels were topped with hummus and garlic mayo, a thumbs up from me.

The Shawarma Croquetes, were another matter, it was promised as, Lamb neck shawarma and fried onion-filled croquettes, with saffron and potato sauce. It sounds nice but when we tried it it was another story, the inside of the Croquettes had a slimy texture, and it was very off-putting If I could only “un-eat” it.

The Mixed Grill consisted of 2 skewers of Koubideh kebab, Joojeh chicken kebab, and kebab torsh.

The Koubideh Kebab was decent, but not the best I have heated, they were small and lacked the succulent fatty texture with saffron flavour notes, I have had better.

The Joojeh Chicken was succulent and well marinated, definitely above average Joojeh, usually, Joojeh is a bit too try, but this was good.

The Kebab Torsh was the star, the lamb was marinaded in pomegranate molasses and lemon and allowed to sit, after grilling you get this magical sweet yet umami-rich sourness. delish.

In Conclusion

Royàs heart is in the right place, it’s young and contemporary, yet not letting the form overtake the function. The ingredients and menu were innovative and fun, the presentation was eye-catching.

The price point was however quite expensive, approx £50 per head,

We enjoyed Royà

The Service was friendly and to the point.

The Star of the Meal?

The Star of the meal was the Kebab Torsh, well marinaded, delicious and excellent execution.

The miss of the Meal?

The Shawarma Croquettes were the miss of the meal, they tasted slimy and grey, did not like the cloying feeling in the mouth.

Honourable Mention

Royà is simply put good, It has some amazing peers in the Contemporary Middle Eastern/Persian scene, particularly like Berenjak in London and Orfali Bros in Dubai, It has a way to go before it reaches those hallowed heights.

Halal Rating

The Lamb and Chicken are halal.

Alcohol is served on the Premises

100% impartial Guarantee

Alfie Foodwala visits all restaurants anonymously and pays for the bill like any other customer, Alfie Foodwala does not accept free meals in return for reviews.

July 22 2022

HO WONG, GLASGOW

Food alfiefoodwala, chicken, Chinese, citycentre, fish, food, gourmet, Ho Wong, seafood 0

Hey, Foodwala boys and girls… I hope you are all safe and well

Please remember to subscribe to the Alfie Foodwala Facebook, TIK TOK, and Instagram pages, tag, and please share with six people if you like this review, message me if you have constructive feedback.

If you would like to “Eat with Alfie Foodwala” please email me at alfiefoodwala@aol.com

Furthermore, if you know of a restaurant I should review please let me know.

“Nostalgia is a seductive liar”

The other day I decided to go for a wee walk, the day was charming so I decided to walk from Maxwell Park to the City centre.

On this occasion, the Foodwala kids decided to come out of hibernation and looked in wonder at the bright yellow object in the sky, which I duly explained was the sun and it comes out very few times in a year.

So to celebrate the coming of the strange object they also decided to come for a walk, you must understand that in itself is groundbreaking, firstly coming out of hibernation during daylight hours and secondly, walking, as the preferred mode of taxi of teenagers is dad taxi.

So off we went…when we reached the River Clyde, a car was idling on the footpath and I could hear the song

“Heart” by the Pet Shop Boys

All of a sudden it took me back to 1988 and when the Garden Festival was in full flow, I could remember the one-loop roller coaster and the half-finished Moat House being built across the river, it felt as if it was yesterday.

Further along our walk, we walked past a gap site on Sauchiehall Street, a street artists speaker was belting out

“When will I be famous” by Bros

This again brought back more waves of 80’s Nostalgia, and the times we visited Victoria’s after work, I can still remember the trek up the mirrored staircase to the young trendy “left” room or the oldie piano “right” room. we had many a teetotal night out there.

our walk continued, now Downhill, and ended up on York Street, where a busker was butchering the 80’s classic

“Sign my name across my heart” by Terrence Trent D’arby

This I explained, to the now clearly exhausted and hungry kids, was the spot of the famous 80’s Chinese restaurant… Ho Wong’s, this was the go-to Chinese restaurant for all the great and the good and shoulder pad-wearing movers and shakers of Glasgow.

The Ho Wong had closed down recently I explained… but hold on, there was a sign on the window… The Ho Wong has just opened on Waterloo Street.

So we decided on another trip down memory Alley, We found the Ho Wong and when we entered it was as if they had just upped sticks and moved to this location, the decor was still the same, the teal green walls and the jade statues.

I was once reliably informed that Tony had gone to Cheong Fatt Tze’s, Teal Mansion In Penang to get inspiration for the decor.

Since we were famished we kicked off with some Prawn Crackers

Although they hit the spot, the crackers were the standard fayre found in any given oriental restaurant.

First up we chose the quintessential Prawn Toast, yes it was an old-school choice, and yes it was golden and crispy, and yes it had a shrimp taste, however, it lacked a little punch, that umami kick.

The Crystal Chilli King Prawns were delicious, the butterfly-cut king prawns were stuffed and then cooked to a golden crisp.

Har Gow prawn dumplings are by far the most artistry of Dim Sum, with the bright pink chunks of fresh shrimp veiled through the thin, stretchy, chewy, delicate, and translucent wrapper. This really showcases the Dim Sum chefs’ art.

The stuffing was not as soft as I was expecting, possibly it had not rested enough, as the old Chinese saying goes, Har Gow should be soft as an ear lobe.

The Sauteed Chicken was diced and stir-fried, to be honest, it was bland and boring, possibly if you were on a low-carb diet then this is the one to pick but I have had better in PF Changs, I realise that comment is sacrilege.

Next up was the fermented black beans with peppers and onions and chicken.

The chicken was definitely parboiled, as in most restaurants and stir-fried, the peppers and onions were lovely and al dente and the sauce was delicious morish and umami however the chicken was a little rubbery and overcooked.

The Star of the show, King Prawns are generally tricky to get right, cook too little they get slimy, and over cook they get rubbery, but these were done just right, plump and juicy, the natural flavour was further enhanced with the soy based jus and the spring onions and root ginger…first class

The sweet and sour chicken is a journeyman dish in most Chinese restaurants… a safe choice for those with a less adventurous outlook on life.

The nuggets of chicken were fried and then tossed in the sweet and sour sauce, decent but boring.

In Conclusion

Ho Wong is undoubtedly an institution with many a loyal following, however, nostalgia is a seductive lier, we only remember the good things from the past, our childhoods were always full of fun, with endless summers and great friends, most of the time it was the exact opposite. this is also the case with Ho Wong, we always thought the food was better than it was.

It is possible to say Ho Wong is in an 80’s time warp where many other restaurants for example A Wongs in London have moved on from the western version of Chinese food to a more authentic version and have won a Michelin Star

The Service was a little abrupt and sharp, still attentive but not what you call friendly.

The Star of the Meal?

The King Prawns with Spring Onion and Ginger was the star of the show.

The miss of the Meal?

I would go for the chicken lettuce and the sweet and sour chicken, although there was absolutely nothing “wrong” with the dishes, they were just a little boring and ho-hum.

Honorable Mention

Now how does Ho Wong stack up with some of its peers in Glasgow, I would rate Opium as number one, with its imaginative menu and superlative food, secondly Lychee Oriental in Mitchel Street is another restaurant who have overtaken Ho Wong while it has been closed.

Further afield we have the amazing A Wongs in Pimlico who transformed into a more authentic experience.

Halal Rating

The Chicken and Beef are confirmed 100% Halal

Alcohol is served on the Premises

Pork is served on the Premises

100% impartial Guarantee

Alfie Foodwala visits all restaurants anonymously and pays for the bill like any other customer, Alfie Foodwala does not accept free meals in return for reviews.

December 30 2019

Bertie’s Fish & Chips, Edinburgh

Food alfiefoodwala, business, citycentre, comfort food, edinburgh, fast food, fish and chips, haddock, london 0

Hey, Foodwala’s… I am back from my travels, I was in Baku, Dubai, Lahore, Karachi, Beijing, and Singapore and I had quite an adventure, no doubt I will regale you of my eating adventures in future blogs.

I was in the Instagram friendly streets of the old town Edinburgh and some crazy Instagrammers were standing in the middle of the busy street searching for the perfect picture.

“Fur Coat nae knickers” came to mind, in a nutshell this means that Instagrammers are risking life and limb to post a perfect picture, irrespective of the cost and context of the post.

Everything has to look good, Instagram is distorting reality, which in turn is causing a race to the bottom.

Much like Edinburgh itself, It looks nice enough but under the surface its an unfriendly soulless place, whereas on the other hand, Glasgow is the exact opposite, it may not be as Instagram friendly as Edinburgh but it is warm friendly welcoming.

It’s amazing how much difference 50 miles makes.

Another difference between Glasgow and Edinburgh is how people eat their Fish and Chips, in Glasgow and for that matter the rest of the civilised world, Fish and Chips are eaten with salt and malt vinegar, however in Edinburgh, they eat it with salt and sauce, so what is this sauce that the people of Edinburgh so proudly eat.

Apparently it is diluted HP brown sauce! and even the sauce is made in Glasgow, the sauce was a failure in Glasgow but a huge success in Edinburgh.

Fur Coat nae knickers indeed.

Bertie’s Fish and Chips
9 Victoria St,
Edinburgh
EH1 2HE

We decided to visit the newly opened and biggest fish and chip shop in the United Kingdom, Bertie’s, they apparently serve proper fish and chips.

The restaurant is in an old church and again insanely Instagram friendly, will it live up to its claims?

We kicked off the proceedings with Bertie’s house Fish Pie, the moist fish and prawns were in a white sauce and topped with mashed potato and cheddar crumble, the pie was I felt under-seasoned however the ingredients were nice and fresh.

It was served piping hot with twice-cooked fries and was perfect for the cold outside.

Next up was Bertie’s signature battered haddock and chips, the haddock was fresh, moist, flakey and meaty and the batter was crispy on the outside and wee bit soft inside, we requested our Fish and Chips be cooked in vegetable oil.

The fish was very adequate but it was debatable if it was better than Catch Fish and Chips in Glasgow.

We also opted for the Breaded Haddock and chips, the breadcrumb coated fish was served with delicious creamy mash potatoes, The fish itself was perfectly adequate.

In Conclusion.

Bertie’s was perfectly adequate, not sensational but not bad either, it did what it said on the tin without any fanfare, the location was most definitely beautiful and had a lovely cheery festive feel to the restaurant.

The service was efficient and friendly.

In my opinion Catch in Glasgow pipped Bertie’s in the food stakes.

Halal Rating

Fish and Chips are cooked in Beef dripping, but Halal fish and chips can be requested and are cooked in a separate vegetable oil fryer and avoid cross-contamination.

September 3 2019

Turkyie, Glasgow

Food, LEVENT, MEZZE alfiefoodwala, arabic, BBQ, business, citycentre, comfort food, gourmet, grill, LEVENT, mediterranean, merchantcity, middleeastern, rustic 0

97/99 Candleriggs,
Merchant City,
Glasgow, G1 1NP

Hey Foodwalas… Welcome to another tale of Alfie Foodwala

One of my most favorite cities in the world is Istanbul…the place is absolutely captivating, I love sitting on the balcony of the Four Seasons hotel in Sultanahmet, which incidentally was a prison and watching the ships politely waiting to cross the Bosphorus and the majestic Blue Mosque on the right with six minarets framing the picture-perfect view of the Bosphorus and the Golden Horn.

I also love the dark clouds who mournfully sit on top of the Bosperous like petulant gargoyles watching the ships slip effortlessly down the strait that divides Europe and Asia.

The gaze then falls on the enigma that is the Hagia Sofia, which charts the history of Istanbul from the godless Romans to the Christian crusaders and then to the Muslim Ottomans. in the distance is the Topkapi Palace where the Ottomans ruled their empire and equally contributed to the advancement of the trilogy of arts that is science, cuisine, and calligraphy.

The Old city of Istanbul feels like a time machine into the past and the feeling you get touching walls that are two thousand years old is truly humbling.

One the other hand I also love the juxstopition, across the Galata Bridge you abruptly enter the modern Istanbul, and Istanbul where Giorgio Armani boutiques rub shoulders with Lora Piana and Ferraris cruise the boulevards of Nisantasi and the fine young things sit in cafes and you could think you were in Paris or Milan.

The thing that connects the two opposing worlds together is the cuisine of Turkey, which amalgamates in Istanbul, the Kebabs of Adana and the seafood of Bodrum, the donnars of Anatolia with the fruit and nut Baklava of the Trabzonspor. They are all curated in the amazing restaurants of Istanbul, which was beautifully showcased by the great and late Anthony Bourdain.

This week the Foodwala jeeajunt sought out the newly opened Turkiye in the Merchant City.

We kicked off the proceedings with some hot mezze, The Lahmacun was delicious, thin-crust dough topped with seasoned ground lamb, the flavour was subtle yet noticeable.

The prawns in Halab sauce was equally good, fresh prawns were tossed in Halab sauce and sauteed with green peppers and mushrooms, the peppers were not too soft, just right and the sauce had a delicious ambiance about it, I would have happily eaten the prawns with some rice as the main course.

The Haloumi and pan-fried sojouk sausage was also a hit, the salty halloumi was cooked just right so it did not become rubbery while the spicy sojouk sausage countered the salty halloumi…yum

The Turkish Falafel was a little different from its Lebanese counterpart, apart from the sausage shape, the falafel mixture was more smooth, i preferred the Lebanese falafel with its crispy crust and the soft centre.

we loved the hot freshly baked balloon bread, i am sure it has a Turkish name but that is what we called it

The main event was next, The Adana Kebab, this is my favourite kebab the lamb mince was well proportioned with the white lamb fat so it was moist and juicy and also just enough spice as not to overpower the mince, unfortunately, they did not use tail fat in the mixture.

The Chicken cubes were lightly marinated and cooked over the mangal, the chicken could have been slightly more tender and moist, however, it could be just how the chicken fillet was cut.

The Salmon was delicious, it was firm yet flaky and was also lightly marinaded without overpowering and since it was cooked on the mangal it had a slight charcoal taste which was pleasant, the accompanying seafood jus was a nice touch and added another element to the Salmon

In Conclusion…

Turkiye was very pleasant and the food was fresh and well presented, the Adana kebab was well seasoned and cooked on a mangal which is absolutely mandatory.

we were looked after by Kamil and the service was excellent without being intrusive.

The food is authentic as the other two tables in the restaurant were Turkish, a definite sign of a good establishment.

October 8 2018

Nippon Kitchen, Glasgow

Food alfiefoodwala, business, chicken tikka masala, citycentre, emirates, glasgow, Japanese, Nippon Kitchen, sushi 0

Hey, Foodwala’s…Welcome to another tale of Alfie Foodwala.

I was reading the fascinating story of Mr. Ali of the Shish Mahal who invented the Chicken Tikka Masala by accident, Legend has it that Mr. Ali was nursing the most eponymous of ailments that afflict the entrapreneurwala’s… the stomach ulcer.

Mr. Ali was enjoying some Campbells Tomato soup when a disgruntled Glasgow bus driver sent back his chicken tikka saying it was too dry, the quick thinking Mr. Ali instructed the chef to put some tomato soup and seasoning with the Chicken Tikka and serve it.

The rest as we say is history.

I then wondered what other foods were made by accident, well it transpires that Artificial sweetener was invented by accident, when a German scientist was developing an Anti Ulcer drug and he could not get rid of the residue forming in the bottom of a Petrie dish, the sciencewala being a curious chap tasted the residue and found it really sweet and Eureka…Artificial sweetener was born.

Another fascinating urban legend is how Worcestershire Sauce was accidentally created, Lord Sumly returned from his stint as the Governor of India and missed the spicy food he left behind so he instructed to cooks, John Lea, and William Perrin to recreate a sauce that was spicy yet sweet, the boys went on to create a concoction but they could not get it right and out of frustration the whole endeavor was scrapped and a few bottles were left on the shelf to gather dust, a couple of years later they stumbled on the bottles and instead what any normal person would have done and filed it in the bin, they opened the bottle and tasted the content and it was perfectly spicy yet sweet and the Lea and Perrins Worcestershire Sauce was born.

The point of my story is that the Japanese Katsu Curry was created by an enterprising Japanese chap who listened to the moanings of Indian traders in Kobe who complained that the Japanese food was too dry, the chap put some spices in Miso Soup and voila Katsu curry was born.

To commemorate the Katsu curry the Foodwala family decided to visit the Nippon Kitchen.

The restaurant is decorated in an unusual pseudo-Japanese / Scottish style, which is an acquired taste.

We kicked off the proceedings with some Miso soup which is a traditional Japanese soup consisting of a stock called “dashi” into which softened miso paste is mixed along with tofu and seasoning.

The Miso soup was light umami taste and was a great palette cleanser for the main event.

I am a great fan of Dim Sum so I opted for the Japanese version, the dumplings are wrapped in paper-thin flour sheets and then steamed and finished off on a teppan grill.

the Gyoza was soft, crispy and delicious, the fillings were moist and well seasoned.

The chili noodle hit the spot, The chili sauce had a hint of sweetness and the peppers, onions, and noodles were stir-fried together, the noodle sauce balance was just right as I struggled not to stain my Lora Piana t-shirt.

The Katsu curry was not what I expected, the panko chicken was light and crispy, yet the Katsu gravy tasted as it was the gravy from the local chippy, it was dense and gloppy and with a thick unsightly film on top.

In Conclusion, Nippon Kitchen was authentic Japanese as PF Changs is Chinese.

The food was tasty but was not amazing.

The service was functional without being friendly.

Overall it was a middle of the road effort.

July 30 2018

Absurd Bird, Glasgow

Food alfiefoodwala, BBQ, burger, burgers, chicken, citycentre, comfort food, country and western, deep south, fried chicken, glasgow, KFC, rustic, wraps 0

Absurd Bird
3 Nelson Mandela Place
Glasgow

Hey, Foodwala’s… A funny thing happened to me on the way to foodwala prospecting the other day, I was in the Fodwala mobile and I was listening to the William Prince song Breathless, its an amazing soulful country and western song and I actually had the most darndest out of body feeling.

When Mr Prince mournfully sang the lyrics

” And I find myself in memories…Still alive just behind my eyes…Seems the more I go leaving home looking for…What I need’s been buried in my soul”

I had the most vivid feeling that I was driving in a Jalopy along the great grassy plains in West Texas with this song on the radio, and the dark pregnant clouds promising rain in the distance

I have not been to Texas yet but the feeling was so vivid that it literally left me breathless.

When I told Mokee Foodwala of this he sagely remarked that possibly in my previous life I was a cowboy from Texas.

All this Halcyon Texan Melancholy left me wanting some low down southern fried chicken and I just happened to spot Absurd Bird just opened in Nelson Mandela Place.

As the Foodwala family walked in it felt we had walked into a Honky Tonk Roadhouse somewhere near San Antonio, Texas.

Johnny Cash was belting out the Boy named Sue in the background and the queen of country Dolly Parton was immortalised on the walls.

The menu was definitely an ode to all that’s great south of the Mason Dixon Line

We kicked off the proceedings with the BBQ platter of Buffalo flavour chicken wings and chicken tenders, the chicken was moist, tender, messy, flavoursome and any other adjective you can associate with delicious fried chicken.

The coleslaw was creamy and crunchy and the onion rings were oniony sweet and crispy.

Next up were nine fried Chicken tenders slathered in a tobasco BBQ sauce and accompanied with blue cheese dip, mustard mayo and my favourite lemon and parmesan.

The tenders were amazingly… well tender and the tobacco BBQ was the right balance of heat and tangy and when dipped into the cool cheesy dips it made the taste buds sing the Travis Tritt song Its great to be alive!!

I was looking forward to my main event of the evening… the fried chicken

The chicken was marinated in buttermilk for 24 hours before dipped in the breadcrumb and cooked twice, the fried chicken had a gloriously golden crust on it, which was perfect for picking it apart with your fingers and dipping in the BBQ gravy, the chicken itself was so tender but it was practically flash cooked by super hot steam in the batter and the breast meat was soft, silky and tender.

Tep Zepi Foodwala opted for the messy fried chicken burger, it was a layer of fried chicken and pulled chicken with hot cheese, sandwiched in a buttery brioche bun, It was the messiest burger ever but when Tep Zepi got down to business he remarked it was delicious while devouring the burger.

Moksters Foodwala continued the burger train of thought and hungrily went for the Nashville hot Burger, the fried chicken was smothered in the Absurd Xtreme hot sauce and tempered by the harissa mayo, gherkins and fried onions.

Mokee mumbled something about it being so good while the hot sauce and mayo dripped down his chin.

Bakree and Rarri Foodwalee’s reluctantly chose the Chicken Ceaser wrap after their first choice of chicken sliders were not available, they felt the fillings were boring and heavy on the salad element and could have been better if the chicken was spicy to counter the sweetcorn Ceaser salad.

They were not impressed, unfortunately.

trio of crack pie, peanut butter cheesecake and ice cream biscuit sandwich

I decided to Mollify the Diva Foodwalee sisters with some sugar, we ordered the most amazing Crack Pie, it was the sweet pie with toffee and clotted cream, I now know where it got its name…so addictive!!!!

The other two desserts were not bad but nothing compared to the Crack Pie.

In conclusion, Absurd Bird did exactly what it said on the tin, the Deep south food was delicious, messy and flavoursome.

It best to visit Absurd with close friends or family because the food is very hand on and you don’t want to hold back out of politeness or protocol.

The service was efficient and friendly.

June 25 2018

Italian Kitchen, Glasgow

Food alfiefoodwala, business, citycentre, emirates, food, glasgow, glasgowestend, italianfood, kelvinbridge, merchantcity, rustic 0

Italian KItchen
64 Ingram Street
http://www.italian-kitchen.co.uk

Hey, Foodwala’s… Alfie Foodwala is back with a vengeance after the Ramadhan sabbatical and I have some amazing restaurants lined up in the coming month so stay tuned inshallah.

As you know your Alfie Foodwala has a number of passions other than restaurants and food, Alfie is also passionate about cars! especially vintage post-war European Marques and Restomods.

Alfie Foodwala decided to break bread with fellow petrolheads, Mokee and Goblee Foodwala’s and continue our conversation of whether the Singer Porsche 911 restomod (www.singervehicledesign.com) is better than the Porsche 911 restored by Tuthill Porsche (www.tuthillporsche.com)

As you can see the Singer Porsche is heart-achingly beautiful, the level of artisan craftsmanship is mind-blowing and can only be appreciated by someone with taste and sophistication whereas the Tuthill Porsche is aimed at the everymen.

We can liken the Singer Porsche with the sublime Osteria Francescana restaurant in Modena and voted the worlds best ( www.osteriafrancescana.it) and the Tuthill Porsche as the Locanda Locatelli (www.locandalocatelli.com), both are amazing Italian restaurants but the Osteria in the hands of the Maestro Massimo Bottura is in a different animal.

We arrived at the Italian KItchen on a beautifully sun-drenched Sunday morning and the Merchant City looked like downtown Milan.

We decided to kick off the proceedings with some Chilli and Olive Foccacia and Mozzarella Focaccia

The focaccias were both freshly baked in the wood-fired pizza oven and were light and pillowy soft, the olive oil was infused into the dough giving a delicious rustic flavour.

As you know from previous posts your Alfie Foodwala is a rice fanboy and in opted for the Seafood and Olive Risotto, as you know the Arborio rice is notoriously difficult to master and the moisture content has to be just right to achieve the chalky al dente texture, otherwise, the rice gets mushy and loses its integrity, my risotto was on the dry side and could have done with a wee bit more jus.

The Funghi Tagliatelle was delicious, the foraged mushrooms were suated in slivers of garlic and tossed into the creamy tagliatelle, the homemade tagliatelle was fresh and had a bite to it…just right.

Mokee Foodwala opted for the Spanish, roast pepper and ricotta Tagliatelle which was tossed in the house sugo al pamodoro (tomato sauce), In Italy, every mom and every chef have their own recipe for sugo and some recipes have been handed down over generations and are closely guarded secrets.

Due to Eid, we decided to treat ourselves to some desserts, we firstly opted for the Blueberry Cheesecake, the Blueberry soft cheese filling was delicious, it was creamy yet had a slight blueberry bitterness which gave a nice edge to the sweetness.

Next up was the eponymous Creme Brulee, it is the hardest simplest dessert to get wrong, the custard can me too lumpy or too runny, this one was good but not as good as the Crema Caravan in the Arches.

In Conclusion, The Italian KItchen was certainly competent, it had all the elements in the right place and the service was attentive, however, it lacked the Je ne ce quoi and charisma that an owner-operator provides, like in the La Lanterna in Kelvinbridge or Eusebis in the West end.

Alas the Chicken and Lamb are not Halal and white wine is used extensively however the dished are cooked fresh so the wine can be left out if requested.