I tried the new menu at Glasgow's only five-star hotel - and there's one big difference

Gaelic restaurant names seem to be all the rage around Scotland, and why not? It’s a language most of us don’t know, but harks back to our national identity and gives an overall Scottish feeling (even if most of us can’t pronounce it). One such restaurant is iasg, found in Glasgow’s only five-star hotel, the Kimpton Blythwood Square. Formerly Bo & Birdy, the main restaurant which opened with the hotel rebrand in 2019, it quickly became iasg, which means fish in Gaelic, in 2021. Eagle-eaged Succession fans may find it familiar as its sleek interior with bright scalloped tiled bar featured in the hit TV programme. Having offered up hotel guests and visitors an array of Scottish seafood and fish, the restaurant is ushering in a new menu under head chef Sean Currie - and there’s one big change.

iasg restaurant and bar at the Blythswood | contributed

I visited on an extremely rainy night back in March to try some of the new dishes. We started with a Harris gin and tonic (the restaurant also has the award-winning Hearach whisky from the Hebridean distillers in stock) before being served the Fruits of iasg starter platter which included fragrant Shetland mussels served with Thai green curry, aubergine and coconut; plump seared scallops with cauliflower and miso puree and sesame; grilled langoustines with wild garlic butter; marinated Heirloom tomato with yellow tomato compote, a creamy goats curd and linseed cracker and the best dish, Cumbrae oysters, which come grilled ‘al pastor ’ with seaweed hot sauce or natural. So far, an excellent selection of Scottish seafood as the restaurant’s name suggests.

Mains were more meat-focused, which is what sous chef Roberto Sanchez said they were focusing on - and the one big change I noticed about the menu, which had been very seafood-focused before. New main dishes include: grilled pork cutlet, belly, grelot onion, black pudding, apple and caper sauce and roasted duck breast, duck faggot, spring pea, asparagus, cumin jus. I went for the veggie pasta option of smoked garlic and ricotta agnolotti, served with aged parmesan and lemon breadcrumb. Wonderfully al dente with a rich oozing filling, the addition of the lemon crumb added texture and bite to these little parcels.

Dessert was a showstopping chocolate ganache, with chocolate soil, torched meringue (which was torched by hand by chef Roberto Sanchez at the table) and clotted cream ice-cream. Decadent, moreish and just the right portion - it’s what you want to end a lavish meal.

The Blythswood Hotel has gone through many guises in its history - from lady’s artists club to the Royal Scottish Automobile Club's premises - as has the restaurant in its somewhat shorter history. If they’re looking for a new name to match the new menu, iasg agus feòil seems appropriate (though I’ll need some help pronouncing that).