Cottier's

This review appears in the The List's Eating & Drinking Guide 2008 – in the shops now or buy online.

Nestled in the eaves of one wing of an old church that also houses a theatre and bar is Cottier's restaurant. Decorated in gold and blue and lit with fairy lights, the dining room can feel like one of Glasgow's more romantic settings. The food is largely Mexican or Mexican-influenced. The seafood soup is a hearty starter, a thick tomato base bulked up with mussels, salmon and squid. The sweet potato cannelloni in a creamy mascarpone sauce, gently flavoured with cardamom, is an unusual treat. A tapas platter includes empañadas, a kind of Mexican Cornish pasty stuffed with rich feta and tangy tomato. They are accompanied by some very spicy prawns and a succulent cube of pork belly. There is plenty of seafood on the menu, and the dishes are refreshingly different from the typical Tex-Mex fare (though there are fajitas, half price every day between 5–7pm). Cottier's scores further points with a comprehensive wine list and its downstairs pub, which attracts a steady stream of West Enders with its homely local feel, not to mention the ever-popular beer garden where food is also served in the summer.

• High point: Unusual dishes
• Low point: Epic flight of stairs