I'll have what he's having

The wife can't be bothered cooking tonight so like a 1950s patriarch I generously offer to take her out to dinner at the greatest cheap restaurant in Glasgow, Asia Style, going dutch with a couple of friends; one of whom has written a blog entry on it before.

It's busy enough for a Thursday night be we get a table at 7.00 without booking. I've figuratively dined out on the thousand year egg in porridge I once manfully ate here but I'm still trying to work my way through the place's vast menu. Tonight I've been on a long train journey, so I go for something conservative.

The next table has a succulent-looking pile of cubed duck pieces with a pile of sticky white rice, so I order the ginger duck. For starters though, we share tasty salt and pepper ribs. When the mains arrive I'm slightly disappointed that the duck is smothered in a strong, dark sauce. It mixes nicely with the coconut rice to produce a sweet gravy, and slices of chilli give it a spicy edge. As my friend warned, I have to pick the bones individually from the pieces. I get dining envy for my friend's bowl of curried chicken broth, a swirling golden concoction full of deep flavours (Masterchef was talking about deep flavours a couple of weeks back). The wife gets her usual salt and pepper beancurd, a pile of beautiful fried chunks with stinging hot chillis, along with a side dish of garlic choi san. Cheapskates beware, the sides often cost more than the main dishes.

So, not my favourite visit to Asia style, but still worth it. Next time I'll be back on the tripe porridge, I reckon.