Bearsden doctor opens new seafood restaurant at the Cross

Dr Usman Qureshi – who will also continue to practise aesthetic medicine - will open The Scallop’s Tale at Bearsden Cross in April after an investment of more than £350,000. It will employ 14 people on a full and part-time basis.

The 28-seated venue over two floors, the restaurant will offer an “extensive” menu of locally sourced seafood dishes. Vegetarian and vegan dishes will also feature.

Dr Qureshi said: “Bearsden is a fantastic community with a strong restaurant and takeaway offering, but there is nothing quite like the Scallop’s Tale.”

One of the most hotly anticipated dishes is the ‘The Scallops High Tea for two’, which includes two ‘Posh Fish and Chips’, Sourdough Bread, and Tea with Cakes and Scones perfect for sharing and socialising.

The restaurant and takeaway menus have been devised by executive chef Stephen Pohler, who has built an impressive CV including spells at the Lisini Dalziel Park Hotel, the Hilton Garden Inn, Crowne Plaza and the Radisson Red, in Glasgow.

Dr Qureshi has spent upwards of £25,000 on a state-of-the-art air filtration system normally used in listed buildings to ensure noise and odours from the restaurant are minimised.

He says he has also installed a cutting-edge air conditioning system to keep the restaurant comfortable whatever the time of year, as well as a ‘scent diffusion’ system that will give The Scallop’s Tale a unique and alluring fragrance designed to make each visit more memorable.

Dr Qureshi added: “I have a lifelong love of seafood which stems from enjoying dishes in Scotland and overseas in places like Turkey, Thailand and Malaysia. I’ve always dreamed of having my own seafood restaurant and I can’t wait to open one in Bearsden.

"We want people in Bearsden to love us as their favourite local, and diners from Glasgow and farther afield to see us as their special treat.”

One of the most intriguing aspects of the new restaurant is the name – The Scallop’s Tale – which Dr Qureshi says was borne out of a desire to build a story about the scallop’s journey from the sea to the plate. He added that diners can find out the tale when they visit!