Restaurant review: Six by Nico, Glasgow – casual fine dining at its very best

If you're anything like me, you like your home comforts. Things you know you like and are used to. If you're stepping out of your comfort zone, there needs to be some semblance of familiarity. That is, until I got into Masterchef and the likes.

Fine dining has always had me searching for the point. Very pretty, sure, but I was convinced there was no chance you weren't stopping for a kebab on the way home – I need more than a square inch of food.

That said, the food is beautiful and I have always been curious as to whether this seemingly random assortment of things I've never heard of could actually taste good. I wasn't about to step into a completely alien world of Michelin stars and ponce, but 'casual fine dining' is a term I've heard banded about a bit, and that sounds significantly closer to my comfort zone. There is a time and a place for getting glammed up and spending a fortune and I am rarely in it!

Six by Nico is all about casual fine dining. Casual in that you can go in jeans and not be scoffed at, and casual in that they won't take every last penny you have, but certainly not casual when it comes to the food.

So says everyone else, it would seem, as getting a table here is quite the challenge!

The point

The 'Six' in Six by Nico refers to the fact you will be served a six course tasting menu, the options being vegetarian or not – that's it. It also refers to the 6 week rotating menu.

There is always a theme – it's currently Chippie 2.0, and the theme changes every 6 weeks. This is awesome as you never feel like you've been there and done that. Other themes have been Childhood, Picnic, and New York, to name a few.

The place

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It's not massive and the open kitchen takes up a considerable amount of space, but it feels more exclusive that way. They're currently seating 24 diners at a time, so it never feels particularly busy. It's plush and comfortable and any notion of feeling out of place if you're not used to this sort of scene, is very quickly dispelled.

The decor loosely resembles industrial chic without being too cold. The previous menu themes are all displayed in laser cut steel, on the wall, and the coolest part (if you're an absolute nerd, like me) is the live 'pass cam'. This is a camera on the ceiling over the pass that captures the chefs plating the dishes and shows them on a screen in the dining area.

Don't tell me that's not cool!

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The staff are really welcoming and super knowledgeable. They know the food and drink inside out and will happily answer questions and chat.

The menu

I'm a vegetarian and my other half is not so, between us, we have experienced everything the Chippie 2.0 menu has to offer. I was also not driving on the day we went so decided to take them up on the offer of a paired glass of wine for each course – rude not to, really!

The Chippie menu is the one they open all their restaurants with, and it's the one everyone talks about so, to celebrate their reopening following the lockdown, they gave us another chance to get those posh chip shop goodies.

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Chips and Cheese

Non-veg option: Parmesan espuma and crisp with curry oil and beer batter bits, with a brandade croquette and brown sauce

Veg option: Goats cheese espuma with curry oil and beer batter bits with a salt and vinegar croquette and brown sauce

We agreed that the espuma with curry oil was possibly the nicest cheese based food we had ever had. Perhaps disgustingly, we would both happily have eaten a full bowl of it as soup, or bathed in it, or committed the rest of our days to it. It was delicious. The croquettes were unbelievably light and the house brown sauce gave it a really subtle but tasty tang.

Scampi / Cauliflower beignet

Non-veg option: Scrabster monkfish cheek with a dill emulsion, gribiche, peas, and a beurre blanc

Veg option: Cauliflower beignet with a dill emulsion, gribiche, peas, and a beurre blanc

Matching wine: Casa de Vila Nova, Vinho Verde, Portugal

Monkfish cheek was new to Stuart, as was gribiche... and dill emulsion! But he would gladly have them over and over again, the dish was well balanced and delicious. I fully agree and the cauliflower beignet delivered a really fresh, subtle flavour and a bit of bite.

Steak / Root vegetable pie

Non-veg option: Speyside beef shin with burnt onion ketchup, mushroom duxelle and a meaty salsa

Veg option: Root vegetable pie with burnt onion ketchup and mushroom duxelle

Matching wine: El Porvenir de Cafayate, Amauta Malbec, Argentina

These were labeled 'pies' but there was no pastry! That said, this is where the criticism ends. Beef shin is not something Stuart would have ordered, given the choice, but this ended up being his favourite dish of the meal. The beef was so tender and full of flavour and was accompanied perfectly by the garnish.

The root vegetable pie was like an amazing quenelle of absolute comfort. Imagine the best vegetable soup you've ever had, condensed, and you're approaching how good this was. The burnt onion ketchup had a brand new but somehow familiar flavour that we would both gladly eat with everything and, although neither of us normally eat mushrooms, they worked really well here.

Fish supper / Halloumi

Non-veg option: Shetland cod with pickled mussels, confit fennel, samphire, and a beer emulsion

Veg option: Battered halloumi with confit fennel, samphire, house sauce, and beer scraps

Disclaimer: I may be the only person in existence who doesn't like halloumi but they knew that so I had soy marinated tofu instead!

Matching wine: Boutinot, La Fleur Solitaire, Cotes du Rhone Blanc, France

I couldn't believe how accommodating the guys at Six by Nico were. We booked online and there was a section to tell them if there was anything on the menu you didn't fancy. Normally, they would switch it out for the veg option but, since I was having the veg menu, they made a dish specially. And it was absolutely delicious. Forget what you've heard about tofu, if you think it's bland, you're doing it wrong because this was bursting with flavour.

Stuart really doesn't like mussels and, admits, he probably won't have them again, but they really balanced this dish and he did enjoy it all together. We agreed that the confit fennel was subtle enough not to overpower anything and that the beer touches gave it a welcome tangy note.

Smoked sausage / Cannelloni

Non-veg option: Trio of pork with apple, black pudding, salt baked celeriac, and choucroute

Veg option: Sweet potato, feta, and spinach cannelloni with Granny Smith apple, and salt baked celeriac

Matching wine: Hanewald-Schwerdt, Spatburgunder (Pinot noir), Germany

Pork and apple is a proven combination that you're not going to go wrong with. That said, Stuart had never had them together but he suddenly understands what the fuss is about! The pork was beautifully tender with the fat rendered perfectly and the apple brought a nice tart freshness.

The sweet potato, spinach, and feta cannelloni was surprisingly crispy. This was my favourite dish of the meal, everything balanced perfectly and it contained three of my favourite flavours. I would gladly have had six of this course!

Deep fried Mars Bar

Non-veg option: Chocolate pave with blood orange sorbet and cocoa nibs

Veg option: Chocolate cremeux with blood orange sorbet and cocoa nibs

Dessert wine: Araldica, Palazzina, Moscato Passito, Italy

This is, most certainly, a nod to chef Nico's Glaswegian background, home of the deep fried... everything! A total cliche but if all cliches tasted this good, they wouldn't elicit such strenuous eye rolls.

The pave was silky smooth with a delicious crisp praline at the base. The cremeux was decadently rich and melted in the mouth and, coupled with the caramel really did give you that Mars Bar taste. The sorbet lifted the dish and gave it freshness while still being sweet enough to not lose the message.

We both loved Six by Nico. As you might have gathered, we are both quite fussy about some things but we decided the best thing to do was leap into this and try everything, regardless. And there wasn't a thing we didn't like.

The service was outstanding, I'd have happily eaten the halloumi if there was no alternative, but it felt like there was real effort to make sure I enjoyed the meal and I really appreciated that. Definitely above and beyond.

The waiting staff introduced each dish, describing the flavour profiles and and why the matching wine had been chosen for that dish. They were really friendly but professional and helped to give the place a more laid back vibe.

The value for money was absolutely astonishing. We would not have been at all put out if we had been asked to pay double what we did. I'm not sure how they deliver what they do for the price, but i'm grateful for it! A semi-posh treat that won't break the bank.

The place is divine, if you can get a table, do.

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