A CITY centre restaurant will be on TV screens across the country this week on a popular Channel 4 series.
Bloc+, which is based on Bath Street, will be one of three local restaurants that will appear on Come Dine With Me – The Professionals on Friday.
Head chef Andy Neilson and hostess Pixie Brady will feature on the episode after the producers approached the restaurant to star in the new spin-off of the long-running TV show when they were recommended by one of the show’s commissioners.
Andy, who took over as head chef in July last year, promises that viewers will get the "full Bloc+ experience".
He said: "What I decided to do was, Bloc+ is obviously well known for being vegan based as well, we’ve got a 50/50 menu in here, so what I decided to do was a purely plant-based starter.
"The main course was one of my unique, wacky ideas and the dessert I chose is notorious.
"So it shows the plant-based side, the unique unusual side then the big filthy Glaswegian twist side that we are known for doing in here.
"I did that and it seemed to go down alright, the other competitors seemed to like it anyway, just need to wait to see what the final outcome is."
READ MORE: Glasgow restaurant Amore d'Italia set to feature on popular TV series
He continued: "People know Bloc+ as being a weird venue.
"We are weird, we are wacky, there’s countless stories about this place.
"Come Dine With Me is just going to showcase what I can do as a chef and what we can do as a menu."
While Andy says the experience of filming the show was "stressful" he also says it was "really fun".
He said: "It was the longest four days of my life.
"The six hours we had for prep was extremely stressful, and I was saying to myself 'why have I got myself into this', but once that got done and I got the kitchen set up how I wanted it was a great experience.
"It was actually the first time I had a chance to sit in the restaurant and eat my own food which was nice.
"It’s definitely a life-changing experience to say the least."
READ MORE: Come Dine With Me: Glasgow restaurants set to appear on TV show
Pixie agreed about the experience, although she said she’s “dreading” seeing the episode.
She added: “It was really fun because I’ve always been a pure fan of the show and I always find it so funny so it was amazing to be a part of it, but it was quite weird to see how it’s done, it’s not really what you think it would be like, but it was still an amazing experience.”
For those wanting to find out more about filming the show, Bloc+ will be hosting a screening event on Sunday with a Q&A.
Andy said: "We’re going to show the episode again and we’ve got a ticketed version for £30 a head where you come in and get a three-course meal and a cocktail and either a lager or house wine.
"We’re going to be showing the full episode, you get your dinner, me and Pixie will be doing a Q&A event if anyone wants to ask any questions, and then we’ll be playing some songs after it.
"It’s going to be a really fun event."
There will also be a raffle with prizes on the night including a customised voicemail message from Dave Lamb who provides the voiceover on Come Dine with Me.
Bloc+ will be featured on Friday’s episode of Come Dine With Me – The Professionals on Channel 4 at 5pm, alongside Amore D’Italia in Dennistoun and Maki and Ramen, who are based in Bath Street.
You can find out more about Bloc+’s Come Dine With Me screening event HERE.
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