The story behind Glasgow Southside favourite Cafe Salmagundi

It’s a charming word that gives one of the most exciting food spots in the city its name while also perfectly summing up its founding ethos.

Nestled into a street corner in Mount Florida, Café Salmagundi might look like your average coffee shop at first glance, but a menu full of eclectic dishes ranging from classic sourdough toasties to specials like confit duck and potato hash is sure to catch you off guard.

Pictured: Joe and Ailsa at their Southside cafe

Joe Davey, the man behind the business says that it’s this adventurous culinary spirit that has helped them grow into the vibrant eatery that they are today.

He said: “I found the word for the name of the café in the dictionary one day and thought it fit what we were about really well.

“I didn’t want to stick with one particular type of cuisine because that’s not the way I like to cook myself.

“I’ve never been a chef, but I’ve always loved to throw things together and see what you can make out of it.

“I suppose people might call our menu fusion but I’ve never been too keen on that word, I think Salmagundi describes what we do a lot better.”

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Avid home cooks and no strangers to the hospitality scene, Joe and his partner Ailsa had always hoped to open their own place someday.

While moving back to Glasgow from Manchester with their young family gave them the perfect opportunity to do exactly that in 2019, the duo could never have predicted the tumultuous years in store for the entire food and drink industry caused by the effects of Covid 19.

Joe said: “It’s definitely been a strange time to have opened our first business, but if we were to look at the positives, I think it gave us that space to step back and look at what we’ve done so far and what we would like to do better.

“That first year of having your own place is a bit of trial and error, so having to shut gave us the opportunity to take stock and think about what we wanted.

“There was also this really nice feeling of people starting to appreciate what was available to them locally because they were working from home or not able to travel.

“We had people who were coming in to check on us and wanting to support the café in any way they could which meant a lot to us.

“It’s definitely not all been bad.”

Neighbourly spirit aside, it’s easy to see that it is the food that keeps people coming back to this bustling Southside spot.

Whether it’s buttery homemade potato scones served with fresh Scottish Haddock or a globally inspired Pork Chintan ramen with a soy-infused egg, there truly is something for every taste at the cosy café.

Now, after a month of testing recipes as special dishes, the talented chefs at Salmagundi are preparing to roll out a new menu in early January which promises more creativity than ever.

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Joe said: “For us, it’s all about finding like-minded people who care about what they do, want to make food from scratch and work with what they can find locally.

“We always wanted to gather a team who were passionate about good food done right and I think by doing that we’ve grown a lot since we started.

“Sustainability and seasonality are what we’re looking at focusing on moving forward but we also always want to make sure that our food is accessible.

“Although we like to keep things interesting we want to fit into our local area and make food that people will actually want to eat.

“I think that our specials are a great way for people to try something new that they might never have heard of before.

“Now we’re getting to be known for that and I think we’ve built up a sense of trust where our customers are happy to give anything a go.”

“Even in the time since we’ve opened in Mount Florida there have been so many changes, it’s really evolved.

As the team at Salmagundi gear up to serve their new menu, Joe is eager to see what the future has in store.

But, for now at least, he is more than happy to step back and appreciate the unique and energetic place that they have built together.

He said: “We’ve always loved to keep things fresh and change the menu up because it's exciting for us as people who love to cook and love food.

“Even our front of house staff are really actively involved in menu tasting, it's a team effort which is what we’re all about.

“I do think that Salmagundi could work in other areas of Glasgow, and that’s something we’ve thought about but what’s great about the Southside is that there’s a really good scene for independent businesses, whether that’s food, retail or anything else.

“There’s such a huge community spirit and sense of support which we feel really lucky to be a part of.

“We just want to be the best we possibly can because there’s so much potential in this place.”

For more information on Cafe Salmagundi click here.