652 Argyle Street, Glasgow
0141 221 8188
Style: Laid-back and unpretentious
Food: Mainly fish and seafood
Price: Starter £5-£9, mains from £17
Wheelchair access: No
A miserable Monday evening in winter may not seem the wisest time to visit a fish restaurant - let alone one which is still unknown to certain Glasgow taxi drivers. But the minute we burst into Two Fat Ladies at the Buttery (a strong gust of wind ensuring our entrance is far from elegant), any fears we have of eating alone in an empty dining room are put to rest. The place, as they say in Finnieston, is hoaching. Not packed, but not filleted either. Phew.
It's immediately clear that the formality of the Buttery - which was built in 1860s, had its most recent heyday in the 1980s under Ken McCulloch and was bought from Ian Fleming last year by Ryan James's Two Fat Ladies group - has vanished. In its place is a less starchy vibe. The darkly imposing mahogany bar and original wood panelling are still there but the bar area has been reduced in size to accommodate more tables, and the welcome is a collegiate staff affair rather than a single "good evening" from a lone maitre d'.
We are allocated a lovely wooden booth, complete with dedicated lighting, which offers both privacy and a ringside view of proceedings. Unfortunately, I can see too much of the coffee machine which seems to dominate the main dining room. But a swiftly served glass of house red sorts me out: mine's a mellow Languedoc Cabernet Sauvignon at £4.50 while my companion's is a Chenin blanc. We choose a slice of parmesan and rosemary bread from a communal basket; it's tasty and unusual, but doesn't feel newly baked.
The menu is a simple A4 sheet - a nice touch that screams unpretentiousness. The Ullapool smoked salmon and the Stornoway black pudding starters are the only dishes to state their provenance, so we are left to assume that, for example, the breast of pigeon with warm mushroom, pancetta and herb salad (£5.95), the king prawns in Thai curry sauce (£7.95/£15.95), fillets of sea bass set on roast fennel (£16.95) and saddle of venison with braised red cabbage (£18) are all local. After all, the Scottish eating-out scene has happily reached the stage where it's now deemed unnecessary - if not rather passé - to emphasise one's impeccable sourcing.
Nevertheless, I feel compelled to ask who has supplied the wonderfully fat, just-done seared dived scallops that accompany my neat disc of black pudding in a gorgeous leek and coral cream. These, plus the delicately cooked special pan-fried cod fillet with mussels, prawns and a fennel sauce (£16.95), and the baked fillet of halibut with herb and smoked cheese crust in a tomato stew (£17.95) which is my companion's main course, are all supplied daily by Andy Bell of the Fish People.
We found all of these to be exquisitely fresh and cooked in that delicate, balanced way you expect from a seasoned fish chef (the Buttery is the third restaurant from the Two Fat Ladies stable). The seafood chowder special (£3.95) is rather less spectacular as it's a bit too potato-heavy and is an unappealing grey colour.
A dark and white chocolate cheesecake with orange confit and a scattering of brambles (all puddings are £4.95) is delicious and much lighter than it looks, despite a huge helping, while handmade petits fours (£2.50) - four brambles dipped in white chocolate - are nicely bitter-sweet but structurally a bit hit-and-miss.
Given the friendly atmosphere, attention to detail, freshness and reasonable pricing, I'd give the new-look Buttery a big er, pat on the back.
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