I always eat out for special occasions; it beats giving a card any day of the week! For Mother’s Day I delivered said card and a bunch of flowers to my mum and informed her that we would take her out for a meal the following week. My logic: why go out on a really busy day, have to suffer set menus and no doubt countless disappointments when you can’t get booked/get a table and you’re stuck next to the drafty door? Why would you do that? Why?
SO. MANY. ISSUES.
I picked Browns as I’d been looking at their menu a few months ago when my work colleagues and I were due to go. For whatever reason I didn’t make it, and every time I’m in George Square I look in and wonder. I’ll start by saying: this is a great restaurant. There were just a few little niggles for me.
Cocktails
I love a cocktail, and I always make a habit of having (at least) one when I’m out for dinner. I started with the cocktail of the month.
Tropical Daiquiri – Passionfruit, Koko Kanu rum, lime, sugar.
This took a bit of getting used to – its very sharp! It’d wake you up on a Monday morning! After the first few sips I began to enjoy it; it’s a sweet and sour cocktail. The lime is the main taste followed by the Passionfruit.
Coconut Daiquiri – Koko Kanu rum, lime, sugar.
This was much milder than the previous daiquiri and far easier to drink. I love Malibu (I drink it like it’s going out of fashion. Even though it hasn’t been in fashion since the 80’s) and this isn’t as sweet/sickly. The coconut and lime make it a great tropical taste.
Berry & Pomegranate Martini – Finlandia Cranberry Vodka, Chambord Raspberry liqueur, blueberry, pomegranate and lime
This went down an absolute treat – like drinking cold summer fruit juice on a hot day! Lovely!
Rivoting Raspberri – Absolut Raspberri Vodka, Chambord, raspberries and lime topped with Champagne
The reason that I drink cocktails at dinner is simple: I hate all wine. Yes. ALL wine. I wish I could even tolerate it but I can’t without downing it while holding my nose like a child. This cocktail contains champagne but I nervously tried it to be a good sport. SO NICE. People who actually like champagne must love it!
Starters
Before I start, I’ll share my little gripe. We sat with our menus and decided what we wanted and were then told that some items were now unavailable. There were a fair few – the starter I wanted, they had run out of lamb chops and none of the burgers were available due to a technical fault in the kitchen with the fan. We’d seen several burgers and they look AMAZING, so to be told ‘no’ was totally gutting. It must be a devious ploy to bring me back…
But we ordered anyway, as the menu has many delicious options!
Crab & Avocado Stack
This was absolutely beautiful – very cold and refreshing. I felt less guilty about everything I’d already eaten/was about to eat because you could just tell its one of those delicious yet healthy dishes. The crab was in a creamy mustard dressing and stacked with a mildly spiced coriander & chilli salsa with an avocado & potato salad. Beautiful.
Salmon, Smoked Haddock & Lobster Croquettes
From the minute they were placed in front of me, I wasn’t much impressed. They seemed to just sit there on wilted spinach and nearby was the yoghurt & caper dressing. They were OK – a bit dry and citrusy… I just didn’t particularly enjoy them.
Roasted Goat’s Cheese
This was beautiful. A really interesting mix of flavours from the already interesting tasting cheese with its walnut crust, the ‘pico de gallo’ salsa and this was served upon discs of golden beetroot. Pomegranate and sweet molasses vinaigrette to finish off. It just tasted really fruity, creamy and tart.
Box Baked Camembert
It’s fair to say you can’t go wrong with melted cheese and bread. It’s also fair to say you can also do it REALLY well. This was just amazing – liquid gooey Camembert served with an apple & raisin chutney and lovely rosemary bread. Addictive and comforting are the two perfect words to describe it!
Main Courses
Garlic & Rosemary Lamb
Lovely tender lamb in a rich savoury jus. There were no lamb chops left but my mother in law was perfectly happy with her neck cut instead. A generous portion of meat served with a crispy Yorkshire pudding and vegetables.
Supreme of Baked Salmon
Lovely moist, flaky salmon served on a bed of chick peas, red peppers, tomato, onion and garlic, topped with a yoghurt & caper dressing. This was really nice – very rich and full of flavours. I’d describe it as being quite Moroccan so it had very deep tomatoey flavours with spicy and curried tones.
Sirloin Steaks
Two of us ordered steaks, both of which arrived cooked to our request. The issue I had, is that I think my medium steak was left sitting to cool (more than just resting) slightly before it was served. You can see the difference in the anchovy butter between the two from the photos, and my béarnaise sauce was tepid. We were treating our mum so I didn’t want to say to the waiter, but I was quite miffed. Everything flavour-wise was spot on – the sauce was absolutely decadent despite the temperature (and slight film). The sides are very generous – loads lovely chunky chips, roasted tomato and mushroom, and we ordered some honey roasted parsnips & carrots. Gorgeous.
And now…the pièce de résistance….
Fillet of Venison Rossini
Small medallions of juicy, rare venison sit on top of a brioche crouton coated in chicken liver pâté. The taste of those three components alone was absolutely mouthwatering. So rich and beautifully meaty. It’s served with a madeira jus and honey roast parsnips & carrots. Utterly fantastic and completely faultless.
Desserts
Chocolate ice cream with a home made chocolate cookie
Crème Brûlée (the best one I’ve ever had)
Dark Chocolate Brownie
White Chocolate & Raspberry Blondie
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Overall I had a really lovely time in Browns and I do want to recommend it. Their food is really good quality and I find it good value for money. I’d heard that items were unavailable from the menu on a friend’s visit, but I’m not sure if it’s a coincidence that the same happened to me. We were served quickly and by a very informative, friendly and welcoming staff member and the other staff we passed were all smiley and friendly – the place has a lovely relaxed atmosphere.
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Browns Bar & Brasserie Glasgow
1 George Square,
Glasgow,
G2 1DY,
(0141) 221 7828
http://www.browns-restaurants.co.uk
@BrownsGlasgow
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