Stravaigin, Glasgow - Homely Haggis

Haggis, Neeps & Tatties. Read on for the translation.

Glasgow is full of little restaurants and cosy cafes tucked away in it's endless maze of old streets. It would have been hard to choose a place to try without a little advice, so lucky for me I have a friend living in Glasgow who is knowledgeable when it comes to sniffing out a suitable spot to sample some Scottish delicacies. The constant start-stop rain showers gave us a good excuse to visit a bunch of great restaurants, and Stravaigin was one of them.

To sum up Stravaigin in a word, I would say 'homely', since the taste and style of the owner is very apparent as soon as you enter; with antiques carefully arranged on shelves, hand written chalk boards listing the home made cocktails on offer, and the uniform-less wait staff who just seemed happy to be there. It was a happy place to be, and the menu made my smile even bigger.

They had haggis. Finally, I would get to try this staple Scottish favourite, famous (or infamous?) world over. Disliked by many, liked by the Scottish. I had bumped into haggis before, outside of Scotland, but you dont go to Italy for the Chinese food, and for the same reason I had saved my first haggis tasting until I could enjoy it in a setting which would give me every chance to like the stuff. Apparently it came with 'mashed neeps and tatties' which my friend translated for me as meaning mashed turnips and potatoes. Sounded good to me.

I also ordered a St. Mungo Lager, which was brewed just a few suburbs from the restaurant. It was bitter, dry and certainly not the highlight of the meal. There are much better beers that come from that part of the world.

The haggis stole the spotlight as only a main course cooked in a sheep's stomach could. It was a dense, dark lump of meat and meal compacted together along with a LOT of herbs and spices. Every flavour was melded together so fiercely that no particular part of the dish seemed out of balance with the rest. It was like a super rich, lumpy sauce made from meat and spices. Salty and herbaceous, with a texture like the inside of a good pie or rice pudding. The mashed sides were like palate cleansers, designed to give the tastebuds a break from the overpowering richness of the haggis.

A fun fact, the haggis is removed from the stomach or sausage skin bag before being served. You aren't actually eating the stomach itself, but the dish does have a wonderful flavour that only comes from innards.

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I was happy with the serving size, and the whole dish turned out to be even more filling than expected, thanks to the haggis having the same density as a bucket of gravy and gravel.

From start to finish I was most impressed with the quality and service of stravaigin. It was great to finally try Scotland's most famous. Next time I find myself in Glasgow, I might just try and track down this place again.


The bill (for 1):
1 x Haggis - £9.95
1 x St. Mungo Beer - £3.90
TOTAL: £12.85 (Approx. US$19.50)

Restaurant address: 26-30 Gibson Street, Kelvinbridge, Glasgow, Scotland
Website: http://www.stravaigin.com/

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