Piccolo Mondo
Tony and Giuliana Pierotti left Barga in Tuscany for Scotland in 1962 and opened the first Piccolo Mondo in 1974, and the Argyle Street room is the family's second run at the name, trading since June 2005.
Why go
Emilio Pierotti, Tony's son, runs the restaurant with Andrea Grasso, and head chef Iain Monaghan has cooked with the family for more than twenty years (venue). The Tuscan thread shows up on the carte as cacciucco, the Livorno seafood stew that most Scottish-Italian kitchens leave off in favor of pizza and carbonara. Between selling the original in 1989 and reopening here, the Pierottis ran La Fiorentina and La Riviera, so the cooking has been refined across three Glasgow rooms and fifty years. The address is the Anderston end of Argyle Street, which puts the SEC inside a fifteen-minute walk.
Order this / avoid
- Order: the cacciucco, which the Scotsman found
several notches better than solid, with huge chunks of perfectly cooked monkfish fighting for bowl space with calamari, mussels, langoustines and a gloriously intense fish soup
1. The carte runs a full veal section, unusual on a Glasgow menu now. Homemade apple pie with ice cream to close. Gluten free and vegan menus are printed separately and can be requested when booking. - Avoid: the 5.30pm to 7pm pre-theatre sitting Monday to Thursday if you want to linger, because the table is held for two hours.
What locals & experts say
- The Scotsman: on the cacciucco,
This alone was worth travelling here for.
1 - Scottish Italian Awards (2023): named Scotland's Best Restaurant in the West, and Highly Recommended in the Scotland's Best Restaurant Manager category.2
- Scottish Restaurant Awards (2023): Italian Restaurant of the Year, announced at the Glasgow Marriott on 3 July 2023.3
- Local rec: Jeff's own save, filed as the reliable Italian standby near the conference venue.
Good to know
- Timing: lunch and dinner service; pre-theatre runs 5.30pm to 7pm Monday to Thursday. The venue publishes no hours page, so check Maps before a late booking.
- Booking: recommended, on 0141 248 2481 or through the site, and the room takes larger tables comfortably.
- Hygiene: Food Hygiene Information Scheme Pass from Glasgow City Council, inspected 26 October 2022 (FHRSID 25152).6
- Where: 344 Argyle Street, G2 8LY. A second Piccolo Mondo trades in Renfrew, so book the Glasgow site by address.
Jeff's take (his words)
- The verdict: "Best Italian in Scotland award 2023. Reliable Italian standby for Scottish-Italian food. Near the conference venue."
Verdict
could-visit — A family restaurant with a 50-year name and a Tuscan dish most Scottish-Italian kitchens will not attempt, five minutes from the conference end of Argyle Street. The cacciucco is the reason to book, and the Scotsman rated it worth traveling for. What holds it at could-visit is the rest of the carte, which is competent Scottish-Italian rather than a standout axis, and hardware that is regional (Best Restaurant in the West) plus a trade-award category rather than critical hardware like a Michelin listing. For a conference dinner where a group needs to eat well without a project, it is the right call.