Delicious Australia - (10)October 2020

After rummaging through Starry Starry
Nights in Dowanside Lane – an oversized
dress-up box of furs, paste jewellery,
vintage day frocks, handbags and the odd
evening gown – we come across The Wee
Pub At The Chip in the cobblestoned
Ashton Lane. Along with a brindle
greyhound, a caramel Jack Russell and
their owners we are, for a while, the only
customers in the cosy whisky bar that
boasts 150 varieties. From Speyside to
the Highlands to the Lowlands, there are
single malts to review, ranging from
around $8 to $130, plus flights of three
or five for the undecided.
You’re in Scotland, so there’s haggis,
which is inseparable from ‘neep and
tatties’, mashed yellow turnip and mashed
potato. Haggis is most famously served on
January 25, Burns Night, in honour of the
poet Robert Burns who wrote ‘Address To
A Haggis’ in 1787. These days there’s a
vegetarian version on offer that replaces
the offal with seeds, beans, carrots,
turnips, mushrooms and lentils.
Ubiquitous
Chip, attached

to The Wee Pub, offers haggis training

wheels in the form of a venison haggis

entree – peppery, oaty, spicy, cloaked in

a turnip velouté and served with buttery

potato mashed to a silky quenelle. With its

glass roof, garden, pond and fairy lights,

this is a special-occasion outing (or, as one

local artist described it, “an expense

account restaurant”). Scotch Aberdeen

Angus beef is as big as a doorstop if you

want it to be, and the wine list is global

and massive, but the desserts carry the

day: poached rhubarb is dressed for the

ball with tarragon ice cream, burnt orange

syrup and nuggets of honeycomb.

Rogano, in the heart of the city, opened

its doors in 1935 when the Queen Mary

ocean liner was being built at John Brown’s

shipyards at Clydebank. Rumour has it that

some of the fine woodwork meant for the

ship ended up being used in the bar,

after it was exchanged for drinks. There’s

an a la carte and brasserie menu and great

bar food that includes soft-shell-crab

burgers, fish soup, steamed Shetland

mussels and Scottish

oysters from Loch Fyne

and Cumbrae, plus

traditional dishes such as potted ham

hock, venison stew, and Cumberland

sausage.

Indian, Greek and Chinese immigrants

changed the face of Glasgow dining in the

first half of the 20th century. Indeed,

Noor Mohammed’s Shish Mahal in Gibson

Street (now Park Road) claims to be the

birthplace of chicken tikka masala. Ranjit’s

Kitchen, with its large communal tables, is

a Southside stalwart, a vegetarian/vegan

restaurant that specialises in the Punjabi

food of owner Ranjit Kaur’s homeland.

Go for the slowly simmered dahl, sabji,

and handmade paneer tossed through

chickpeas and peppers. Finish with the

soft milk-based fudge, barfi or galub

jamun – fried balls of dough soaked

in hot syrup.

One of the city’s coolest enterprises,

tapping into Glasgow’s penchant for

social activism, is Civic House. Once a

printworks producing posters and

publications for unions, the building was

bought in 2016 with the support of the

Scottish Government’s Regeneration

Capital Grant Fund (RCGF). Since opening

in early 2019, Civic House has become

a communal hub. It’s a workspace, venue

and canteen that, thanks to the Prince’s

Trust, supports creative learning.

CLOCKWISE FROM

LEF T: The

Ubiquitous Chip

heroes local

produce;

cobblestone streets

and street art can be

found all around

Glasgow.

POSTCARD.