After a four hour drive from Forfar through some very dense traffic, our arrival at Mother India in Glasgow’s West End came not a moment too soon. We were, however, rather late for our reservation with half our party nibbling at pakora and holding station. Joining them at a large table in the downstairs dining area, we could then proceed with addressing our collective hunger.

The full party comprised Amy, Ingrid and Susan from the University of Glasgow, Alison and Richard from Deakin University in Melbourne, and regular guest questers Graham and Tim. We were quite the jolly bunch.

I’d visited the Mother India in Edinburgh and been completely underwhelmed but I had high hopes that the Glasgow restaurant would deliver dishes to a much higher standard. And so it proved.

To open I had their signature spiced haddock, then followed with smoked lamb served with broccoli. We added the usual too much naan and rice for the table, with the considerable leftovers eventually bagged up and taken home.

I’d had the haddock dish in Edinburgh and it had been woefully overcooked. This was a completely different experience as beautiful prepared fish, cooked to order, was served with warmly spiced topping in a foil parcel. It was very good indeed.

The main course was similarly accomplished with huge chunks of lamb served with tender stem broccoli and a few slightly incongruous bits of gnocchi. The smoking was very subtle, but this was no bad thing. I liked the dish a lot.

The only real mis-step was with the naan where the garlic was rather bitter and burnt. The bread was nicely made but didn’t have a chance to stand up to the overpowering garlic.

We rounded things out with passable espresso and were left to reflect upon a rather good feed.

So overall, the difference in quality between the Edinburgh and Glasgow branches of Mother India is like night and day. The Glasgow version oozed charm and class, and offered really pleasing dishes. I’d be happy to visit again and would recommend it to you.

Scores
Blythe scores Mother India
4/5 for food
3.5/5 for presentation
3.5/5 for setting
4/5 for service
giving an overall 15/20

Today’s questers were: Amy, Alison, Ingrid, Susan, Graham, Richard, Tim, Blythe

I ate: spiced haddock, smoked lamb and broccoli, naan

I drank: red wine, espresso, water

I wore: blue and white

Total bill: kindly picked up by the folks at University of Glasgow