A yummy haven on Woodlands Road

Glasgow is full of those anonymous cafes and restaurants that you pass a thousand times before you notice them, if you ever do notice them at all. And it’s too bad, because at times they can offer the best surprises.

Wednesday night my husband and I decided we didn’t want to cook, but we couldn’t decide where to eat. We wanted to go somewhere inexpensive, but we were tired of our usual takeaway haunts. It’s when I was walking home from work, along Woodlands Road, that I remembered MBK telling me she quite liked Café La Padella, just up the road from the Sainsbury’s petrol station. I had always assumed it was Italian, but MBK had informed me it was Turkish, and that, while not actually a vegetarian restaurant, they do specialise in vegetarian mezze.

The food was amazing. Well, the Turkish food was. We ordered hummus and borek (flaky pastry filled with cheese) for starters. The hummus was rich, with plenty of olive oil and came with freshly made fluffy pita. The borek was tasty too, although it looked more like a plate of spring rolls when it came out. I am used to borek being wee triangles.

The main dishes were enough to fill us up and satisfy (I had a vegetarian lasagne with potatoes instead of pasta separating the layers, my husband had fried cod) but they were a bit stodgy. I’d like to go back and just get Turkish food next time – perhaps share a mezze plate and bring a bottle of wine. I don’t know if they’re fully licensed, I didn’t see a wine menu, but they do let you bring your own bottle, with a very reasonable corkage fee that seems to vary, but stays around a couple of pounds.

The staff were very nice and friendly. MBK tells me the owner says hi to her on the street, even when she hasn’t been in for a while. It’s the kind of place that deserves to be busy every night of the week because it offers real value for money, and something alittle bit different from the typical anonymous café.