Firebird Glasgow

Firebird opened in October 1998 and was one of the early trailblazers of the bar-bistro model that Finnieston would eventually become famous for. The sourdough pizza has been its calling card from the start: organic flour, a 36-hour fermented starter, water and salt, pressed thin and fired at over 400 degrees Celsius for around ninety seconds. That commitment to the process shows in the result — blistered, charred and light — and it has given Firebird a reputation that outlasted every fashion cycle on the strip. The kitchen is near Kelvingrove Art Gallery and the Transport Museum, and the room is dog-friendly and genuinely neighbourhood in feel. One of those rare restaurants that improves with age rather than fading with it.