Wee Lochan

After going to about 100 different eateries across Glasgow, I'd say Wee Lochan in easily top 5. Great food without being completely overpriced, pretentious or having too small portions. The menu is outstanding, short in length (which is ideal, sign of a good chef) with every item being an absolute hit. 100% recommend.

Came for an early lunch with some friends. We had reserved a table and had no trouble getting shown to our table and given both the set lunch menu for the day as well as the a la carte. The a la carte menu had plenty of delicious sounding options, but we all agreed to just go with the 2 course set lunch menu as all the dishes were the same anyway. Displayed around the walls of the restaurant lots of photos and artwork, some of which were available for sale. Most of the art looked like scenes from around Glasgow, so gives the restaurant an extra local feel. After giving our orders we were given 3 pieces of warmed mini rolls with butter. The warmed butter was nice and easy to spread onto the roll. I don't normally give much thought to the pre-meal, this roll was delicious! For starters, the group ordered a "Wee Lochan haggis, bashed neeps and tatties with beef carpaccio and Madiera sauce" and "Soup of the day", the latter being a fish soup. There was a vegetarian option for the soup of the day as well, but I chose to have a dessert instead for my 2 course main. Both the starters elicited high praise especially the way the haggis had been cooked with the crumbs giving it a crispy texture in contrast with the usually soft haggis. The presentation went down well too. For the mains we went with "Cauliflower tartlet with brie and crushed potatoes", "Roast chicken with black pudding and champ mash, kale". Again, all the dishes came out well presented, picture perfect even. My vegetarian dish looked like a work of art and tasted good. The dish came with a side salad, which was nice except for raw onions which I do not like and just too strong when it already had peppery rocket leaves. The tartlet tasted good, the various seeds mixed with the Brie giving it a pleasant aroma with each bite. So it turned out crushed potato was a different thing from mashed potato. The texture being like a mix of mashed and soft boiled potato. I was the only one who wanted dessert which was Tonka bean crème brûlée. At first I just wanted because it sounded like the whole Tonka bean concept was a new exotic ingredient fad and a little curiosity about what Tonka bean tasted like. Given that crème brûlée normally has vanilla in it anyway, I can't say it had much effect on the taste. Except that it had a slight hint of very fine chocolate and like something spiced, a bit like cinnamon, with a hint of aroma of almonds. Over, the options for starters, main courses and sweets, and service were all good.. For those with less restrictive diet, the food will go down well. For vegetarians, the options are limited, but it's only a small independent restaurant.

Consistently fantastic food and the serving staff are quick, friendly and knowledgeable. Booking is a must, as the place is quite rightly packed out every weekend. Not only is the food prepared to perfection, the presentation looks like something from the final of MasterChef and the portions are generous in size. One of the best places in Glasgow at the moment and only a short stroll away for lucky West-enders.