My Pizza Hell

I heard from a friend yesterday that yet another Scottish-themed restaurant in our wee corner of East Renfrewshire has been sold and is reopening as an Italian restaurant. I'm not sure exactly how many Italian places there are here, let alone how many we need, but I do know there's been a rash of bog-standard 'Italian' restaurants opening up, not to mention at least 4 pizza delivery places - and I am not a fan.

Let's start with what they offer. If you're part of the waiting staff, I'm the person holding things up while I wonder which is less deadly to my gut: pasta or pizza - and those seem to be mostly what's on offer. Neither is friendly to IBS or any other gut problem: full of gluten, high in carbs and low in protein. Notably lacking in veg. The local cafe in the Avenue at Mearns Cross offers an Italian side salad so revolting no one could eat it. I ordered it once: strips of soggy iceberg lettuce covered in balsamic vinegar. When I complained I was told that this was an authentic Italian salad. Not in any place I've ever eaten in Italy.

What's the attraction of opening an 'Italian' restaurant? I suspect it's the absence of fresh ingredients. Everything can be prepared in advance and re-heated (in a microwave maybe?). I've seen tubs of pre-cooked pasta behind the counter in a couple of places. What does it take to offer freshly made pasta, for heavenssake? Twenty minutes - and a serious commitment to fresh food? I've also been in some places where I suspect there was a Brake's van permanently parked at the back door, since no serious chef could produce lasagne or risotto as bad as that.

I've only eaten in one decent Italian place in Glasgow and that was Carluccio's. Top notch ingredients well prepared. The antipasti and mushroom risotto were both excellent. Yes, I've eaten in Jamie's - over-rated, in my opinion.

But I really want us to support places like the White Cart, a local pub in Busby, where I had lunch yesterday with friends. We had the 2 courses for 12 quid menu: the starter was a poached egg on a slice of black pudding on a slice of bacon - with a wee bit white sauce over the top. Wonderful. Followed by fish and chips and peas - too many chips but you can leave them - we did. Some protein, some veg and hardly any carbs. All praise to the chef, whom I've just lauded on Tripadvisor.