My wife and I, being tourists to Glasgow from the NYC metro area, have always been a bit wary of Italian food since we get too much from the Italian-American lens. Lots of the same old red sauce joints. Sure, we have good proper Italian, but it's not as prevalent as we'd hoped. Plus since my wife has some medical issues with garlic and onions, it's tough working that into Italian anywhere. Qua came up as a place to check out on one of our last nights in Glasgow, and oh man, what an experience. It was booked up but we were able to get a non-reserved table out front, and even in the cool evening, it was lovely. Federico took amazing care of us; the drinks were wonderful, and the food was AMAZING. Don't miss the smoked salmon and melon; what a COMBO it is. Our pastas were of the caliber that those good and proper Italian places should hold up to - my penne amatriciana wasn't a sauce-slathered nightmare, but a perfectly done preparation. Glasgow's such a wonderful city with amazing global cuisine; Qua adds to it wonderfully. read more

Stopped in here for dinner. I have a mixed review. They have gluten free options which was amazing! They even have gluten free bread. I ordered the carbonara but wanted pesto. The pesto was not a traditional pesto and I didn't like the aftertaste if it. The staff were nice enough but it wasn't knock your socks off service, it was average. After my meal i waited about 30 minutes for my check which I did not enjoy since I was exhausted after a day of travel. Overall it was good but it wasn't what I was expecting. read more

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Colin and I spent about half an hour on Yelp tonight trying to decide on a place to try for dinner. We wanted to go somewhere we had never tried, but also somewhere we knew both of us would like; an Italian restaurant. We settled on Qua on Ingram Street. Upon entering, though it was relatively busy, we were seated instantly at a cosy table up the back. The entirely Italian staff were incredibly pleasant for the entire evening, I cannot fault their service in any way! We ordered drinks; a £16 bottle of rosé house wine, and before we'd ordered our food, we were brought glasses of water, our wine, and a fair sized basket of bread. See what I mean by great service?! I ordered the Gamberoni al Nuovo Mondo (King Prawn to you and me) to start with, and Cannelloni with ricotta cheese and spinach in a tomato and mozzarella sauce as my main. Colin ordered the Caprese to start and the Penne al Filetto as his main. My prawns were cooked to perfection in a gorgeous garlicky sauce, and Colin thoroughly enjoyed the Caprese. Unfortunately I had to send my main course back. It wasn't a kitchen error such as undercooked or wrongly cooked, I just didn't like it. The staff could not have been more apologetic and understanding, and told us we'd get a free alcoholic beverage at the end of our meal! Now that's the definition of good service. My main course was replace by Penne al Pollo, which was absolutely stunning and I finished every bite; a gorgeous dish of penne pasta and chunks of chicken in a well seasoned creamy peppered cheese sauce. Colin's Penne al Filetto, with strips of fillet steak, was gorgeous. We ordered a lemon sorbet and a cheesecake for dessert, both of which went down a treat! We then paid the bill, which came to a reasonable but slightly steep £65, and were then offered our free drink! I took a Bailey's and Colin took a Limoncello, which I ended up drinking as he was driving! Safe to say after two liqueurs and the majority of a bottle of house wine I was quite tipsy. I would definitely recommend here as a decent Italian to anyone who's looking for one! read more

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Sooo good! We're from Southern California, and stopped in for a late dinner. So yummy. My kids, husband and I were very pleased! read more

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An authentic Italian restaurant located only a few minutes walk from George Square - which is just as well as it was an extremely wet (read: torrential) evening when we visited last week. I had just had my (second) graduation (it rained during my first one too - cue a well-known Travis song) and my parents and I were marching through the puddles in search of a tasty meal. The cheerful red door and warm lighting of Qua called us in. It was just as inviting inside - a welcoming taste of Italy from the family who run it. The modern decor is matched with a modern menu which is much more varied than most Italians with a selection of pizza and pasta but also some tasty-looking dishes featuring shellfish, poultry, veal and steak. As we arrived around 5pm we were also given the option of the pre-theatre menu. Initially we thought it was two courses for £10.95 which still worked out slightly cheaper than choosing the same two from the a la carte menu but, in fact, it was three courses for £10.95 - what a great deal. It is of course a set menu but the choice is excellent - so much so that I couldn't quite decide what to get. I settled for mozarella fritta (yummy bread-crumbed mozarella fingers with a tasty dip), margherita pizza (oh-so-good) and tiramisu (the perfect end - I can't stress how delicious it was). If I'm craving an Italian from now on this is where I'm going. Really enjoyed it. read more

Qua Restaurant - Italian Near Me - Glasgow, GLG

If you are in Glasgow and don't have a dinner at Qua, you missed the highlight of your trip. The food is wonderful and True Italian and you will never find a staff more friendly or engaging. And, as with all truly good Italian restaurants, the wine.....Bella! Bella! Bella! read more

Booked a table for a family of 8 to celebrate a birthday on a Saturday evening and couldn't have asked for anything better. This was an awesome dining experience, the ambience was great and recommend trying it out. The service was exceptional from start to finish especially when considering the place was really busy. Food was really nice and of excellent quality, definitely has that home cooked feel to it. After dessert we were all offered a limoncello which was a pleasant surprise. My in-laws lived and worked in Italy for many years, near both Napoli and Roma and this place brought out some good stories from those days. Noticing one or two negative on-line reviews, suggest the dinners didn't get the ethos of this place. Doesn't look much from the outside. Highly recommend this restaurant if you are looking for a family run restaurant kind-of vibe and we will be returning. Cost about £23 a head for mains, desserts and drinks read more

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I must say that although this is my first 'official' review of a restaurant - in my head I do nothing but mark it and review it to my partner Martyn. As this is the first review I've done on here I felt as though I should be as detailed as I am and give you a little preview of what to expect in my reviews! I'm a waiter and barman in a high end Italian restaurant - "Andiamo" therefore I will more be reviewing the restaurant it's self and not the food!!! Anyways onwards we go! The visit to Qua in Glasgow's Merchant city was overall pretty darn good! The manager greeted us at the door upon entry and swiftly took us to a quiet table in the cornet of the restaurant away from the table of what was like a christmas night out...so far so good! After drink orders were taken we were offered free complimentary bread and oils and as myself and Martyn rush through the bed basket as though theres been a 80% off sale announced in Debenhams, our waiter came over and offered yet again more bread. Which by the way was simply delicious! Yummmm! The waiter who took our oder came across as being very confident in his role and he was just that indeed! He took our entire order in what was probably less than 20seconds, and within the five minutes, the starters had arrived! I had the Caprese Salad and Martyn had King Prawn's in a garlic butter. Pretty good for a starter! I felt the presentation of the Caprese was a bit 'choppy' but other than that, it's good! The mains. Well - I ordered the Penne al Filleto (Penne pasta in a tomato and garlic sauce with cuts of fillet steak). This was, quite possibly the most outstanding pasta dish I've had in a long long time! Absolutely amazing! Martyn had the cannelloni which looked more like a lasagne to me but ho-hum! Without offering, a different waiter came over and automatically spooned parmesan onto our meals. Granted i LOVE parmesan, but if I never - tough. It was on the meal. Martyn's meal was sent back to the kitchen five minutes after arrival due to the fact he just never liked it. These things happen so it's all good! The manager and all waiters, all four of them, were incredibly apologetic and speedily put through his new order of the 'Penne al Pollo' and he claims it was delicious and it also looked it!!! Deserts - I had the Lemon and Biscuit cheese cake, which was AMAZING!!!! Whilst Martyn devoured his all time favourite - Lemon Sorbet. Due to the issue with the main course the manager offered us a complimentary drink each, I had the lemon Cello, and Martyn a Bailey's on the rocks. Overall due to the kind gesture of the manager I should maybe give it a five star, However it was missing the intimacy of the Italian restaurant I prefer. Overall the bill came to a rather steep £65 which I personally feel was just a bit high for what we ordered! However that included a £15 bottle of wine, so taking that off the bill would have been quite appealing! read more

We have been to Qua twice before, but we recently visited for our anniversary. We had booked a table on a busy Saturday night but my wife struggled to find a parking space in the area. After 30 minutes of trying we gave up and I left the restaurant. Staff were very understanding about the situation. As we were about to drive away from the area a parking space appeared so we returned. As the restaurant had become a bit quieter we got a better seat, in a cooler part of the restaurant ( downstairs). The meal was delicious, staff were friendly, honest and helpful. The menu has a lot to offer and everything we have tried, so far, has been excellent. read more

I Love this wee place! I went here quite a few years back for dinner one night and before then i had never actually heard of it, so i rocked up for dinner and went inside and i was stunned, i know this is going to sound ridiculous but the guy inside was the one and only Federico from Big Brother i was awe struck, to me this was like a genuine celebrity at the time, i was gobsmacked haha. But onto a more now review, i popped in here about 3 weeks ago with my mum and aunt as we were out shopping in town and they fancied somewhere nice for lunch instead of wetherspoons, so i said why don't we head up to QUA. Firstly the lunch menu was tip top, 2 courses for only £7 hello Bargain. So we were outside reading the menu and the lovely guy comes out giving us the chat and it worked we were ushered in and sat a nice spacious table, this was only around 12ish and we were first in.. but that didn't hinder us in the slightest the waitress was over taking our drink order then back for our food order and she was so nice and friendly. I really liked the fact that the staff were italian, that is a very rare site in an Italian restaurant these days, usualy they are as glasweigan as they come but not this time!! So onto food, Garlic bread x 2 and a Bruschetta, the garlic bread was tasty not to oily or soggy and just the right amount of garlic on nice crusty bread, belissimo and the bruschetta was amazing!! the vinegarette was aww to die for i will definitely be ordering that next time i am in. Main course was Lasagne and Spaghetti bolognese. both were lovely, the bolognese was lovely, and just enough, the lasagne was also delish, not too runny and plenty meat and the pasta was perfectly cooked. I didn't have a desert but i had a cuppa tea and my mum n aunt had cake, tiramisu, they loved it, i was amazed that it was in a cake and not in a glass haha but the presentation was just the cutest. The tea was lovely too and i had a little biscuit on the side to my surprise it was a marzipan biscuit!!! i loveeeee marzipan, that it was it im sold!! loved it. good food, lovely staff, cosy little place, and prices are so goooood!! and obvs a celebrity thrown in there for good measure haha i shall be back. read more

I don't know why it is, but I never seem to be blown away by Italian restaurants and their offerings of pizzas, pastas, and salads. There have only been a few Italian restaurants (not in Italy) that make the cut, and the best Italian I've had was obviously on my trips to Italy, without a doubt. But for me, many Italian restaurants are just meh. Unfortunately for Qua, it fell into this category. Qua is situated along Ingram Street in the fashionable Merchant City. There you'll find a wide array of cuisines that could satisfy your hungry belly. Qua is a cheerful family-run Italian restaurant that serves up a variety of contemporary Italian dishes. It's a very airy space, packed with tables and leather chairs, and is normally bustling--great for people watching. The night of my visit, this place was heavin'. Full of as many different people as you could imagine. From young professionals, business people, families, and students... they were all here. I came with a couple mates before heading to Glasgow Green for some festivities. We took advantage of their 2-4-1 main course offer, which is only valid Sunday through Thursday from 11:45am to 10pm. The service was nice and friendly, and our food came out promptly. Our meals were decent enough, and were really only worthwhile because of the 2-4-1 offer. Overall, the flavours and quality were decent. It wasn't bad, but it wasn't orgasmic either. Bottom line: While they food is ok, and service pretty good, they offer a 2-course set lunch, as well as a pre-theatre set menu. However, I think the real bargain is the 2-4-1 mains, if you can take advantage of that. read more

Qua is a wonderful, warm, friendly and bustling Italian restaurant. It is always busy bit in a nice cosy way. The food is about as genuine as I think you'll find outside of Italy and the head chef is called Leonardo (like the teenage mutant ninja turtle) and he spent 30 years training in Rome: you don't get much more authentic than that. On my visit to Qua I had one of the restaurants signature dishes, battered sole on asparagus in a cream, white wine and pine nut sauce and it was divine! They do serve all the usual pizza and pasta dishes you would expect to see but I recommend trying something new as it is in the Roman and Tuscan inspired dishes that Qua really shines. You can expect to pay between £12 and £20 for one of these kinds of dishes but if that is out of your budget (and if I'm perfectly honest it was waaay out of mine on the night I went, wooops) then don't worry because the pre theatre set menu of 3 courses for £10.95 has some great looking dishes to choose from also. read more

Been here for a mass- catered do, which for a group of 40 was surprisingly good. Went back with the other half and did enjoy what we had on the pre-theatre menu. Service was swift yet friendly and the choice for a pre theatre menu was pretty good. Only gripe was paying over £15 for a bottle of echo falls. read more

I wanted to like this more. I really, really did, since I went out of my way to eat here on recommendation and passed what in the end was probably a better choice. But. That said. It wasn't great. I did the pre-theatre dinner, 3 courses for 10.95. Maybe I chose poorly, but the appetizer was clearly just reheated frozen food, and the pasta was overcooked and disappointing. Maybe I'm just expecting too much from Glasgow, though I did have a decent enough meal at other places. It was subpar enough that I didn't get dessert, and dessert was included in the price (as the waiter pointed out, "it's free"). There are a lot of other Italian places around. One of them has to be better than this, right? read more

Have meant to write a review of this lovely place for a while. This is the third time I have eat here, and the food has always been excellent. I had the salmon dello chef; salmon sautéed in white whine, lemon juice, baby spinach and peeled tiger prawns, served with a side of seasonal veg. The salmon was moist (perfect to my taste), and the white wine sauce complimented the veg and salmon wonderfully. I think I may have had the lemon sorbet (I've had it there at least once), which was served in a lemon shell, which was a nice as appealing. The staff were, as always, friendly, chatty and very attentive. They also have seem to have mastered not asking if everything is alright while diners are presently chewing. They have Peroni on draught as well, which is always great! I think if you enjoy Italian food, this is somewhere you should visit in Glasgow. read more

I had been to Qua before and thought the food was good so I had no hesitation to return a couple of weeks ago. There are great lunch deals available including £5.95 for a two course lunch with given the quality of the food is a steal. There are a few choices on offer - soup, pate, bruschetta for starters and mains included risotto, pasta and pizza. Gluten free pasta is also available. On a freezing cold day, the puy lentil soup was a winner. The lentils hadn't disintegrated so the soup wasn't really thick but it was really tasty. My seafood pasta was lovely, with huge mussels in a tasty, lightly spiced tomato sauce. My friend really enjoyed his risotto. The GF pasta was cooked properly which is something many restaurants get wrong. Service was friendly and professional and we weren't disappointed by the recommendations staff made for us. I'm not in Glasgow for lunch that often these days, but if I was, I wouldn't hesitate to head to Qua :-) read more

"All good." Food Good, Service Good, Price Good, so all's good with me. Ideal for informal, no nonsense top class pizza and pasta. Capisco? Visited November 2013 4 of 5 stars Value 4 of 5 stars Atmosphere 4 of 5 stars Service 4 of 5 stars Food read more

Excellent antipasti. Frugal on the pasta, nor cooked to order ( Al denti, etc.)The prawns were hardly prawns. They were medium size shrimp. Great flavor and great service. Not giving 5 stars because of the foregoing issues. I was on the edge of giving two stars, but for the service. I don't want to punish the wait staff for the failure of the chefs and management. read more

Despite the hard-to-place name, once you're in the door, Qua is most definitely Italian, with a relaxing, comfortable ambience and friendly staff who are actually Italian. The furniture is wooden, with high backed chairs that are pretty comfortable. We took a table for four in the centre of the restaurant at lunchtime on a Friday. Fortunately it wasn't very busy for a pay day, and our drinks order was taken within a few minutes. We ordered food when the waiter returned with the drinks, with the other three choosing something from the main menu and me choosing from the two course lunchtime menu. I had the soup of the day and the cannelloni to go with my pint of Peroni. Both the soup and the main were absolutely superb, as was the service. My fellow diners had either pasta or salad and gave the thumbs up to their dishes, too. In short, I was pleasantly surprised by how enjoyable the experience was at Qua, and I'll definitely be going back. read more

We came in here on our last day in Glasgow, just before coming home, it was at the finish of lunch service and we just wanted a quick coffee as we only had half an hour and so and wanted to spend it saying goodbye to good friends. The restaurant staff were not at all snotty about us just wanting a coffee and gave us as much of a welcome as if we were about to have a meal. great service, tantalising good food smells , great coffee and the menu looked fantastic I only wish I had wandered in earlier on our visit but I will certainly give this a go next time I am in Glasgow. read more

As Italians go, I usually know my stuff. It's my favourite food so I like to think that I can sieve the wheat from the chaff when it comes to a good pasta dish or a bad fish course. Qua was a little harder to work out for me. For starters, I hate the name. It's clumsy, difficult to know how exactly to pronounce it, and its immediately forgettable. We arrived on a busy Friday evening, having booked through 5pm.com, and it was super busy. The interior of the restaurant is really very nice, with traditional mural paintings, and a LOT of wood. I liked it, but there was something missing that I couldn't put my finger on, something which just didn't make it feel homely enough for me. The staff were all very lovely, sweet and courteous, with a nice sense of humour that kept us entertained. We dined from the pre-theatre menu, three courses for £10.95, which was outstanding value. For starter, I had mozzarella frita, which were deep fried mozzarella fingers, the sort you get anywhere. I would love to find somewhere that did the usual deep fried mozzarella in a different way. It was served with a tomato sauce and salad. Very nice, but not wow. The main I decided to have was something I have never seen on an Italian menu before. Pollo Fritto al Pepe Verde, an almost tempura like chicken in a peppercorn sauce with rice. It was very Chinese like to me, and the pepper sauce, whilst very nice, just seemed a little out of place atop chicken rather than beef. This might be because in Italian restaurants I only go for pasta or fish, but all the same, it was nice, very good portion for a pre-theatre and tasty. The puddings were reeled off to us by a rather matronly waitress, and I opted for the tiramisu of course. Cut in a cake like slice, it was rich, creamy, but just not enough alcohol in there for me! Overall, a nice meal, but with the fantastic Italian Kitchen just across the road, I doubt I will be back in a hurry. read more

Booked a 5pm deal for a work dinner and we had been a few times before because they accept Amex payments. On this I assign I was disappointed with the food, bruschetta was extremely plain and looked like it was made by someone who had never seen a bruschetta. The pizza was also extremely plain, crust was nice but hardly any toppings and only 5/6 slices of pepperoni although the menu said it was spicy italian sausage which didn't sound like small slices of pepperoni. The reason I am giving it three stars is for the service, they are always friendly, welcoming and attentive. The decor is lovely too, cozy and a great natural wood theme. Would book here again for a work thing, will look for another place that accepts Amex. read more

Another wonderful Italian, just opposite the Italian kitchen. Delicious dishes and with low pricing, is a very good option for Italian kitchen lovers! read more

Great food and atmoshphere. Very good value for money. The service is excellent and the surroundings are very funky. I had veal which was really nice and my friend had steak. She said the house wine was really good value, so had to have another glass. Definately worth a trip. read more

My family and I went here on Saturday evening for a birthday celebration and were once again delighted with the service and the food, this is our second visit. There are a good number of menu choices for all courses, you are simply spoilt for choice. The portions are very generous and the price is reasonable, great value for money especially when you get such great service along with it. If you enjoy Italian food and great customer service please give Qua a try as I am absolutely sure you will not be disappointed. read more