Red Onion — Restaurant in Scotland

Sub-par is a pretty generous description of this restaurant. Admittedly, I did go at lunchtime, but anyhow it was almost empty and the decor gave off a generally sort of weary, unstylish vibe. At one point I thought the windows were cracked. But then I realised that is actually a picture of the onion that you can see on the outside when you glance at it from the inside, but anyhow the overall vibe contributed to it seeming cracked.

Given the great reviews and decent looking menu. I decided to brave the slightly unpleasant interior to eat here.

I wished I hadn’t. My partner had been wanting to eat at Smashburger. But I told him I didn’t want to eat there and convinced him to come here telling him that the burger on the menu at this restaurant would be much nicer.

Unfortunately, it wasn’t. Jack’s burger was actually made up of two thin patties that looked bit overcooked. When I asked is how is yours? He said dry. The chips that it came with, although exceedingly numerous, Arrived somewhat tepid and were just kind of soggy and not nice. Worse than freezer oven chips.

Jack also had a scallop salad with overcooked scallops.

I started with the goats cheese salad. The goats cheese was like a sort of deep fried thing almost like a yosushi pumpkin korroke, or the deep fried cheese pieces you sometimes get in lidl freezer that always seem like they’re going to be really tasty but then never are. It kind of felt like bar food where you know that they just took that straight out of the freezer and into the deep fat fryer (which is not even so bad when you were quite drunk and are just glad to eat anything). The goats cheese salad also had way too much balsamic glaze on it. The radishes and beetroot pieces were actually fantastic though and very fresh and crunch.

I then had bang bang chicken salad. It was kind of like a anglicanised som tam, with crispy rice noodles on top, then also some chicken slices with peanut butter on them and toasted nuts. the chicken was very plain like an eastman chicken slice u might eat on a diet. I would have pan fried the chicken if I ever tried to make this. Anyhow, it wasn’t disgusting or anything and to be honest I still have half of it in my fridge. It was just the kind of meal that- you know if it was in a hospital shop or something youd think that’s actually a decent buy, but for a supposedly fine dining restaurant just seems really amateurish.

A waiter came twice to ask for a drinks order but we asked for more time as all of the cocktails didn’t look like what we wanted. Then he didn’t return- eventually I managed to attract his attention. I asked if he could make an off menu cocktail (porn star martini). I ended up feeling like this has been a really weird request. Maybe I’m just really out of touch and don’t know where I am. But I thought it was normal for restaurants with a bar to just make you any common cocktail. Anyway the guy just said 'I have no idea what is in that.' Which made me wonder why he couldn't just google it like the GP does. I'm not even saying it's bad that Red Onion can't make a random cocktail not on their menu. I just felt they could have been nicer about not making it. I just felt like the conversation was kind of awkward. Like I had done wrong for even asking.

Overall, it wasn’t actually a horrible meal it was just a shame that I spent £80 when I could’ve had a tastier...

Two very wise individuals once had a particularly pertinent conversation. Shrek: Layers. Onions have layers. Ogres have layers... You get it? We both have layers. Donkey : Oh, you both have LAYERS. Oh. You know, not everybody like onions. CAKE! Everybody loves cake! Cakes have layers! Shrek : I don't care what everyone likes!

In much the same way the Red Onion has layers. Initially you peruse the a la Carte menu and find all the favourite dishes you would ever want in a modern Scottish restaurant, Oban landed Monkfish sits alongside beef soaked in homemade ale, Ramsay's Black pudding and Ayrshire bacon. All a treat, but this is just peeling back the surface. There are also some slightly further traveled recipes, such as harissa spiced octopus or a French onion soup. The next layer sees a daily menu with a similar philosophy, but which allows for several of the dishes to be prepared slightly differently to accommodate vegetarians or vegans. Then at the Red Onions real heart, and unlike Shrek who doesn't care what everyone likes, is the dedicated menus. Because the Red Onion recognises that menu choice can be much more complex than simple likes, it can also be needs, so there is a dedicated dairy free menu, a dedicated gluten free menu as well as pure vegan and vegetarian menus. The Red Onion, when you peel it back, offers food choices to everyone, regardless of dietary need, and best of all it does it really rather well.

Service was excellent throughout the meal, the staff were friendly and knowledgeable, always a good combination! Orders were taken, food and drink delivered all in a relaxed time frame, but never quite getting to the point you start looking around thinking you've been forgotten.

Starters were marvellous with that mix I was talking about earlier, classics and twists, but all well prepared and decent sized potions. The vegan haggis bonbons and the bang bang chicken salad with crispy noodles were standouts. The Goat's cheese with a cheeky tomato chutney and tempura vegetables both close runner-ups!

Main courses were the same quality if not better. Monkfish Saltimbocca has always been a favourite at SFR-towers so it was no surprise that near enough half the table ordered it. The fish itself was tremendous, but it was the accompanying elements that pushed this on to almost legendary status when we discuss it. Calamari rings and spicy patatas bravas were excellent, whilst the smokey chorizo ragu pulled everything together and added oodles of flavour. Truly scrumptious. A wild mushroom risotto and a mixed vegetable korma were also of the highest quality with great flavours.

Not everyone could manage dessert, so we have a solitary photo of the chocolate brownie which I totally devoured and thought was a great use of calories!

That's that for the Red Onion. Great food, great service, and a modern laid back atmosphere in a prime Glasgow City centre location. Value for money isn't to be sniffed at, with a three course daily menu costing 17.95 at the other end of the scale our Saltimbocca cost nineteen quid for the one dish, so it's horses for courses. The menu is as inclusive for different size wallets as it is for different diets. A very enjoyable meal, the Red Onion is well...

Having been here a couple of years ago and thoroughly enjoyed I booked a table for a Saturday night for our most recent trip to Glasgow. We obviously wanted to like it again as much as the first time, sadly there were a few things that let it down.

We were offered a table by the door or the mezzanine, picking the mezzanine we found ourselves not at a booth but on one of the side tables along the walkway, feeling like the poor relations at a Christmas meal on the spare tables was not a good start. It was a squish for anyone to get past and by the time we were seated the table by the door had gone, so we decided to stay put.

We picked the Tempura vegetables and I think the cauliflower with crispy noodles. Both were just okay, nothing to write home about and the tempura batter was no better than we would do ourselves at home.

For mains I had the wild mushroom risotto with spring onions, rocket, peashoots and parmesan. NB on the menu I chose from it didn't mention peas. I would say the risotto was more pea than mushroom. The spring onion was over powering in flavour and I was hard pushed to find any wild mushroom either in flavour or sight, there was something (one slice) that looked like either a button or crimini but that was it. I left more than half the dish. I wasn't asked how the meal was or why I'd left a plateful, after paying I mentioned the reasons - it was lacking the rich earthy wild mushroom flavour I was expecting from a wild mushroom risotto and had too many peas which I didn't think were listed on the menu. The waitress confirmed lots of people had commented on the peas...

From what I recall the mac and cheese my husband had was fine, if unremarkable and the same for the fries.

We decided to pass on the desserts , finished our bottle of wine and left.

It was busy which is always good to see, but I can't help feel that the staff were feeling stretched, our waitress was up and down the stairs all night as well as serving a large majority of tables downstairs too.

We saw John on the way out, but felt the moment to pass on feedback had passed. He did wander around some of the downstairs tables but never ventured upstairs and who wants to give feedback in a busy restaurant on your way out with your coats on and after you've paid.

It's a shame but I don't think...