Glasgow restaurant invites you to think global & eat local

At Stravaigin it’s about the food, the service and the people. And the company ethos is simply - think global and eat local. Their culinary approach is to take incredible fresh ingredients from Scotland’s stunning larder and cook them with a global twist.

Although they stress this is not to be confused with fusion food, it is cooking without boundaries. They take pride in turning out tasty, colourful and flavoursome dishes but won’t be pigeon holed to one thing or another. This is not only Glasgow on a plate, this is the whole world.

This dynamic approach to the space in which they entertain their customers keeps the experience fresh for staff and customers alike with regular refurbishments over the years. Another factor in these successive regenerations is the constant search for more space, and optimum layout for a combination of laid-back drinking and slick food service, driven always by increase upon increase in trade as our reputation and word of mouth bring more and more customers through their doors. Their clientele has been built up over years and comprises people from all walks of life and is growing all the time.

Although established for nearly a decade Stravaigin restaurant and bar, based in Glasgow’s Gibson Street’s certainly hasn’t stood still and that means that they don’t get complacent and their food, wine and service also moves with the times. They have received a host of accolades and were recently highly commended by Hardens for 2009 and have just launched a fresh new company website stravaigin.com

Equally when it comes to the their staff they are a well travelled bunch including owners Colin Clydesdale and Carol Wright and they certainly think global with a large percentage of Stravaigin’s staff coming to them from overseas and staying with them over the years. Their intrepid and incredibly hard working kitchen brigade is only half of Stravaigin’s success story. Back of house brilliance is nothing without a fantastic front of house to present and explain their hard work. Stravaigin’s highly motivated ‘informal & informative’ Front of House team are moulded through regular tastings (both food & wine), and training from coffee making to cocktails to hygiene certificate and regular appraisals by the management team.

Stravaigin’s Head Chef Daniel Blencowe hails from Adelaide, Australia and like many of his countrymen is very comfortable working with Pacific Rim flavours sparkling fresh sushi to aromatic Thai. In stark contrast to his earlier influences Dan has learnt a thing of two about traditional Scottish fare, scooping Hall’s Best Haggis 2004, beating 300 other entrants to the accolade. To this day he cites this above all as one of his greatest achievements.

The restaurant may be based in Scotland but that doesn’t stop them having Thali nights (four curries, pickles, dips and fresh baked naan) and traditional Rijstaffel nights in a part of Glasgow that was once famous dubbed Curry Alley for its profusion of Indian eateries. The public reaction has been phenomenal, nearly filling the premises on their third night.

It’s almost a prerequisite of employment in Stravaigin that if you haven’t travelled to India you at least have to have an unreasonable love of curry and it has always had a place in the menu, always authentic, always innovative. Stravaigin’s Thai Green Curry was one of the first staples on the menu and now has a roving dish wandering the spice route, there may now be Indonesian, Malaysian or Sub-Continental curry on the frequently changing menu.

Diners can eat the same food menu in the restaurant and in the bar which is a nice touch and one they find works well. There is an extensive drinks list with 17 wines by the glass, cask-conditioned ale, spirits as diverse as cachaca, pisco, mescal, five gin varieties, premium vodkas, hand pressed fruit juices and their own in-house and seasonal cocktail lists all prepared and served by their attentive staff.

Changing trends are something they thrive on and accommodate from the smoking ban to gaining a children’s certificate which has diversified their clientele further and owners Colin and Carole understand this as they have a son, Ruareidh, seven year of age. Now children as young as two days old can sit next to their parents creating a much more continental atmosphere.

Stravaigin is located on Gibson Street, and Stravaigin 2 is at 8 Ruthven Lane, Glasgow.

For more information, log on to Stravaigin.com.