Nanakusa

Reliable Sauchiehall Street stalwart dishing up sushi and other standards with skill and little fuss.

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With its high ceiling covered in graceful cornicing, Nanakusa is Glaswegian up top, but Japanese down below, with huge fluorescent lights cycling through oranges, pinks, greens and blues, and hibachi tables where you can sizzle your mizzle (grill your meal). The noughties interior might make hipsters sniff, but that doesn’t seem to put off the relatively young crowd who frequent the place. Starters are mainly deep-fried morsels, like vegetable tempura and chicken gyozas, or the more exotic takoyaki (octopus snacks) or soft-shell crabs. However, there’s also plenty of good sushi and sashimi on offer. Try the Philadelphia for a Western take on a Japanese classic – the soft cheese, fresh salmon and cucumber make it refreshing and moreish. There are plenty of noodles and rice dishes available, too, such as amai udon – a pile of fat noodles swamped in a thick, slightly bitter-sweet sauce with prawns and the saving grace of gloriously golden, hot, molten chunks of tofu. For dessert, the banana tempura may well be a glorified fritter served with a mound of squirty cream, but goodness, it’s great.