What to do with fussy, pernickety guests? Guests with pre-conceived ideas about my city. Guests whose mother tell them to be ‘very, very careful’ when venturing out in treacherous Glasgow. Guests from Edinburgh*.
I opt for Left Bank in the West End – edgy enough without being uncomfortable, and cool without being pretentious.
And of course there’s the menu. This is the kind of place where food is not only eclectic, but excellent – you will love whatever you get. Inevitably you will also find yourself looking longingly at other people’s food, and rightly so. Everything is really that good. You can’t go wrong.
Welcoming, attentive staff
The left bank burger with handmade chips (7.95) or fish seafood curry (11.95) and baked chocolate pecan and raspberry brownie (4.95) are all heavenly. And the wide selection of beer and cocktails top everything off nicely.
Sharing the same name as the area in the southern bank of the Seine in Paris, Left Bank has all the whimsy without the attitude. And unlike Paris, your waiter or waitress doesn’t actually mind you being there and will come back to ask if everything’s ok and whether you need anything else… like say another drink!
Charming waiter to the rescue
But of course even in an ideal setting with lush food, Pernickety finds something. Having finished the most wonderful meal, and dusted off a few desserts and drinks in the process, it’s time to move onto coffee. And here it comes – the death of a perfect evening. The decaf’s (gasp) instant! Apparently detectable by the scent alone.
I cringe as Pernickety complains to our waiter about the coffee – but there’s no uncomfortable stand off. There’s only laughter; our charming waiter instantly restores harmony to our table with his honest and rather funny admission ‘I know, we ran out of decaf so it’s instant and it’s crap, right. Not to worry, I’ll get you something else.’ And voila, everything is perfect again.
Left Bank – where the atmosphere and food are always extraordinary and the service is with a sly smile. Well worth checking out! In fact I’m already thinking of when I can get back to have what the guy at the table next to me was eating.
* Don’t get me wrong – I love Edinburghers, these pernickety ones in particular, – but all Capital dwellers should venture to good old Glasgow for a bit of fun. In fact, like my friends, they’ll find they don’t need those stab proof vests, they’ll eat well and have a damn good time.
-T
About a City 