On Miller Street in the heart of Glasgow’s city centre, the team behind West End stalwarts Ox and Finch and Ka Pao have turned their hand to converting a B-Listed site – formerly a fancy shop and gallery – into their biggest opening yet. On 28th October, the doors opened to a new 140-cover restaurant Margo, with a separate basement bar and food offering downstairs called Sebb’s.
Upstairs, Margo has been kitted out with Danish-influenced furniture while light wood finishes are offset against the raw sandstone, concrete and steel skeleton of the original building. Clever lighting softens hard finishes. The building is tardis-like, comprising a long open kitchen, counter seating, wall benches and a mezzanine, each of which will influence your style of dining.
On 28th October, the doors opened to a new 140-cover restaurant Margo, with a separate basement bar and food offering downstairs called Sebb’s.
We visited during the soft launch, as the team were bedding in with an offer of 50% off the bill. The place was packed with a varied crowd drawn in by anticipation of a popular restaurateur’s new venture and a good deal. For such early days, things were largely running smoothly: informal and enthusiastic staff were chatty and engaging if obviously still learning some of the finer points of the menu, while the kitchen team, recognising that their very visibility makes them part of the experience, put on a polished and professional performance.
The menu shares the small plates territory occupied by Ox and Finch, although there’s the addition of more substantial sharing dishes here too – perhaps half a duck or a 600g sirloin on the bone. We found ordering in batches best serviced our preferred pace and appetite. First, a couple of more-ish smoky and spicy ham hock croquettes, aged beef tartare with crispy string potatoes, and a simple crab tart with bitter leaves matched perfect pastry with sweet crab. Pasta is made in-house and while the prawn and fennel agnolotti shone with delicate flavours and textural balance, the beetroot, goats cheese and cocoa tortelloni was a little lumpen and heavy. A simple but striking grilled celeriac with a caper studded remoulade proved a surprising standout.
Middle-sized offerings included a superb lamb faggot with spicy polenta and salsa verde and a riotous skate wing served vibrantly on a creamy sauce with kumquat kosho, studded with orange trout roe and green peppercorns - a bold dish that on our table found both fans and critics but was a good example of Margo’s willingness to bounce unashamedly around different culinary influences. For dessert, a brown butter almond tart with darkly poached quince and crème fraiche to add balanced acidity was a joy.
Cocktails look to be the beverage du jour but there’s also a pleasingly imaginative wine list which offers value through seeking smaller producers from less well-known areas including some very affordable gems. There are enough natural wines to please new wave preferences without annoying the classicists and a good range of options by the glass moved the wine element beyond the predictable, though we’d appreciate a dose of advice and opinions from key staff rather than simply delivering bottles.
When full, the hum of Margo’s contented customers provides plenty of buzz, although we found the addition of loud music bouncing off the sleek surfaces made for a frenetic, noisy experience. As the ebbs and flows of different customers become clearer over coming weeks and months, there’s a balance to strike between a music-driven atmosphere and the ability to converse normally. Margo might feel more like a place to stop off and graze with friends en route elsewhere rather than a destination to sit and savour a full food-led experience. But we’ll be back soon to find out.
WHERE Margo, 68 Miller Street, Glasgow, G1 1DT
WHEN Opened 28th October 2024
FOLLOW @margo.restaurant
BOOK margo.restaurant
The Good Food Guide allows three to six months before anonymously inspecting a new restaurant. Look out for a full review coming soon.
