Restaurants, Italian, Budget

Relatively hidden down a side street between Kelvingrove Park and Sauchiehall Street, this friendly family owned outlet offers home cooked Italian food in a café setting. With its focus on a daytime and early evening clientele, Arcaffe attracts mainly…

There is a standard of service and meal in Café Antipasti that is reassuringly consistent if hardly exciting, although this reflects its location at the busy and less-than-intimate end of Sauchiehall Street. The waiting staff are invariably polite…

Despite holding residency in Alexandra Parade since 1982, Celino's has only just entered its fourth year of seated dining. Over the past three decades, it has, arguably, established itself as Glasgow's chief Italian delicatessen, meaning the transition…

Owing more to Uncle Sam than the Old Country, Di Maggio’s can be relied on for hearty American-Italian fare. The Theatreland branch, well located for the Concert Hall, Pavilion and the cinema, does a fine line in pre-theatre offers with two courses for…

The informal atmosphere at these cosy Italian restaurants is a welcome refuge for weary shoppers and commuters seeking comfort in carbohydrates. The family-run feel is evident with homely chequered tablecloths and friendly staff, happy to advise and…

It can seem a bit lonely sitting in the plush but slightly soulless Merchant Square, but Fanelli’s has a very warm welcome. On offer here are Italian staples with a Scottish influence creeping in. This is evident in pizza combinations such as haggis and…

The interior here is reassuringly familiar. There’s no designer brick, glass and leather – it is faux Italian trattoria of a dying breed. There’s a market for it though as this place has a loyal following. The chef’s special recipe fish cakes to start…

While the origin of the name may have been lost in the mists of time, the team at Firebird are certainly taking the ‘fire’ part seriously. A wood-fired oven bakes the signature sourdough pizzas to a pleasing crunch, while a blazing stove keeps the…

Stockbridge is lucky: it has it all. Good bars, interesting restaurants and plenty of well-heeled folk to fill them. The Italian Kitchen is a long-serving member of this community, where staff seem to know everyone – and if they don’t then they’ll treat…

Carrying more of a café vibe than that of a restaurant, Little Italy is a pleasant place to sit and watch the world go by. The pizzas are the highpoint of the dining experience, not just for their taste and freshness, but also for the novelty of the…

Pulcinella radiates tradition – checked table cloths, walls crammed with souvenirs – which you’ll either find charming or a bit tired, but the friendly staff chattering away in Italian certainly add to the ambience. The menu offers a range of familiar…

Having opened in early March, Riccardo's is one of the latest additions to Finniestion's burgeoning dining scene. Loosely defined as a 'relaxed cafe bar', there's a strong sense that it perhaps undersells itself with a level of cooking that stands on…

There are many restaurants serving Italian food for the masses, what singles Tony’s out is the service.. It’s polished and on a par with more expensive establishments. The food is not bad either and ribs dish to start is a substantially meaty choice.

Prior to Tony Macaroni’s arrival, successive operations have failed to find the correct formula for a tricky spot at the bottom of Byres Road. Affordable dining, coupled with the quality concurrent in its five other restaurants across Scotland, has…

With over 100 restaurants in the UK, Zizzi is a growing chain, but changing specials and quirky touches such as the staff photograph on the menu make for a distinct dining experience. Situated on the top terrace in Princes Square, Zizzi takes full…

This restaurant has little in common with its better known older sibling Di Maggios. The décor is contemporary and stylish featuring leather booths for intimate dining as well as a larger space for bigger parties. The menu includes Italian classics with…

With its large, brightly lit dining area, long serving hatch at the back and the bar running along the side, Carluccio’s gives the impression of a bustling up-market canteen. Inside the door high shelves are packed with squid ink spaghetti, finest…

Delivino, an elegant, tasteful café, deli and restaurant full of light and families sharing good food and wine over convivial conversation, may feel metropolitan and Mediterranean – but it’s in the heart of Crieff. The deli, which sells continental…

The status of Nico Simeone, head-chef and proprietor at La Famiglia, is such that the restaurant’s entrance on Cleveden Road bears his name. Add to this the fact Nico’s 2009 award for Young Seafood Chef of the Year sits proudly within the restaurant’s…

The Glass House is a Salvation Army church hall that has been transformed into an airy, contemporary open eating space, mostly using glass: on the facade from the roof down through a glass-fringed mezzanine, along with modern glass installations and…

Although the menu is a touch conservative, classics are well executed with the kitchen showing care and keen attention to detail. Air-cured bresaola is taken to room temperature before serving and sharpened by generous shavings of parmesan. A special of…

Massimo's popularity seems as much to do with its location, opposite King's Theatre, as the typically Italian fare served up in this basement venue. Modern stylings such as wooden floors and glass partitions give the space a surprisingly light and airy…

Operetta is a smart, large restaurant and café, which by day bustles with office workers grabbing soups, sandwiches or a quick pasta. In the evening the restaurant suffers a little atmospherically from its daytime existence – the large self-service…

Italian tapas is the order of the day in this large airy restaurant. Given it’s part of a chain, it doesn’t feel like the cooking is terribly bespoke. It’s a busy place, though, with many in for a drink and just a couple of dishes rather than a full…