This particular week was very interesting because Scotland finally got some PROPER snow! Most of my friends and I were loving all the snow around and indeed we managed to even go and play in it for a bit. However, the snow also brought the country to a standstill for about 2 days. Transport stopped running. Shops, restaurant and cafes closed up, or those that remained open were running limited services. Shops ran out of bread, milk, vegetables… And we can still see the impact of the weather a few days later – I’m writing this on Monday and shops still don’t have bread, milk or veg, running out of meat and other groceries. But slowly, things are getting back to normal, so I thought I should share what I managed to eat out during our Snow Week!
My post starts with a quick breakfast at newly opened Comet Pieces and continued with dinner at Glasgow’s newest Korean joint Bibimbap, attending the opening weekend of Platform! – Glasgow’s newest indoor street food market, and finally trying Tim Hortons’ doughnuts. Here are the highlights.
Thursday – breakfast @ Comet Pieces
As I was working from home on Thursday I was able to get an early start fuelled by coffee and breakfast at the newly opened coffee shop Comet Pieces on Queen Margaret Drive. I’ve only tried their coffee before (bonus – it’s from Papercup!) and I’ve so far enjoyed my brief visits to the spot. For breakfast I had the roll of the week, which was served on a sourdough bread as they had ran out of rolls (Beast from the East and all) and my friend had the Veggie Breakfast. The food was tasty and I quite like their menu – they offer classic options but with a twist. For example, my roll came with Ramsay smoked bacon, poached egg, spring onions and hollandaise sauce. The veggie breakfast came with add sweet potatoes, mushrooms, spiced beans and poached eggs.
Overall, Comet Pieces is a cosy cafe, with only a few tables, which offers good food and coffee, and great service. It’s certainly a welcome addition to the Queen Margaret Drive coffee scene (which is just fantastic, might I add).
Price: £15 for two breakfasts and coffees – very reasonable. | Where: Queen Margaret Drive, West End | Will I go back: Yes.
Friday – dinner @ Bibimbap
Bibimbap opened only a couple of weeks ago on West Nile Street, where the Riverhill cafe restaurant used to be. I was pretty sad when Riverhill closed (though you can still find the cafe bar around the corner!) but I’m quite happy with the new addition to Glasgow’s food scene. Korean food has slowly been making its way into Glasgow and I feel that with this new addition, it might finally take off properly.
Three of us headed there on Friday and ordered a main course each a few sides. We had a medium portion of the Korean Fried Chicken which was delicious and there was plenty of chicken for the three of us. We also had a side of Bulgogi Gimbap – a Korean beef rice roll which was also really good. As mains, I ordered the Kimchi bokk-eumbap (kimchi fried rice with pork), my other half had the Janchigugsu which though not in the Soup section, was actually pretty much a Korean soup with noodles in a clam sauce. Finally, my friend had the Kimchijjigae (a Kimchi pork stew). Though the menu indicated that our choices were spicy we all felt that the food wasn’t spicy at all. The Janchigugsu was most disappointing of all as it was quite bland. However, the Kimchi bokk-eumbap and the Kimchijjigae were both tasty and the delicious Korean fried chicken made up for it all!
With a very eye-catching interior, good choice of Korean inspired cocktails on the menu and a modern vibe, the restaurant is one to try in Glasgow. Hopefully we will see a bit more spice in their dishes in future and I would say that the menu can do with being a bit clearer – however, as with any new restaurants there is always an adjustment period in the beginning and I’m sure Bibimbap can only get better with a bit of time!
Price: £25 pp including drinks, main and sides – good value for money. | Where: West Nile Street, Glasgow City Centre. | Will I be back? Yes.
Saturday – street food @ Platform
Platform’s opening was highly anticipated by Glasgow foodies for a number of weeks. The latest addition to the Glasgow Street Food scene resides in The Arches and I love what they’ve done with what used to be my favourite Glasgow club. Ambient lights, colourfull signs, good music and tasty street food is what you can expect from Platform. With a smaller number of traders than the Big Feed, but with more space for people to sit around, a fully stocked bar and really friendly staff. It’s also warm inside! Like Bibimbap above, I reckon that Platform is one to watch. The traders will change every few weeks so you can also expect to find a good variety of food.
On our visit, we tried Mimi’s Takoyaki Shop (somewhat not surprisingly, we had the Takoyaki); Ginger & Chilli‘s pork Thai curry; Shrimpwreck’s popular cajun squid; and Sunshine Tea Lounge’s handmade dumplings (we went for the pork filling). All in all, we paid around £20 for our food but the portions were big enough to share between the two of us. The food was delicious and I was really pleased to try Mimi’s Takoyaki Shop and Sunshine Tea Lounge for the first time. The takoyaki was one of my favourite dishes, while Shrimpwreck’s squid is proving to be delicious every time I try it. Ginge & Chilli’s Thai pork curry packed in a lot of flavour, while the homemade dumplings from Sunshine Tea Lounge were massive and well worth their price!
Price: ~£6 per dish, but you’ll probably need a couple – good value for money, but it depends from trader to trader | Where: Argyle Street, Glasgow City Centre. | Will I be back? Yes.
Saturday – doughnuts @ Tim Hortons
Tim Hortons opened in Glasgow last year and everyone was really excited. Personally, I had never heard of the Canadian chain before so I didn’t know what the fuss is about. I’ve intended to try it for a while now and now that I have… I still don’t know what the fuss is about. Their doughnuts were mediocre and certainly nothing to make a special trip for. The Tim Bits (little doughnut balls) were nicer and I liked the choice of flavour. Don’t think I will be rushing back, especially considering Glasgow’s other doughnut shops which offer much more interesting choices.
Price: ~£1.20 for a doughnut, ~£0.40 for a Tim bit. Good value. | Where: Argyle Street, Glasgow City Centre | Will I be back? Probably not.
Once again, I hope this post has given you a couple of ideas of where to eat around in Glasgow!
Food Notes 