One of Scotland’s most diverse neighbourhoods might have food from all over the world, but there’s a focus on one thing around here: affordability. For Punjabi-style desi cooking on coals, from kebabs to curries, Kebabish Grill is an absolute stalwart. The paratha wrap at Pakistani Street Food delivers bags of flavour at bargain prices while an alternative budget option is the samosa and veg curry at Vegan & Veg Café. For more samosa, as well as sweets such as gulab jamun, try Delicious Corners or Glasgow Sweet House. Victoria Road, Govanhill’s main street, offers everything from pasta and pizza at Cibo to Spanish-inspired small plates and wine at Café Buena Vida, where you can watch DJs broadcast live on a community radio station as you eat and sup. Patricia’s and its sit-in sister café Short Long Black do dependably great coffee, with the former focusing on cakes and pastries, while the latter adds focaccia sandwiches, cookies and intricate viennoiserie to the mix. Newbie on the block Pistachio specialises in Turkish treats such as borek, as well as macarons. Another recent arrival, Qasba, serves up delightful North African dishes, from tajines to merguez pitta, washed down with arabic coffee or Algerian lemonade. At the tail-end of Vicky Road lies Vini, an Italian wine bar and restaurant that does hearty plates of pasta and bittersweet cocktails. If you’re looking to treat yourself, two doors down is Big Counter (sister spot of Errol’s Hot Pizza) which unapologetically cooks up the sort of generous, meat-heavy fare the chefs would like to eat themselves, from steak diane to pork chops and alpine sausages. There is reliably one green thing on the menu though: a salad hidden almost entirely under a mountain of parmesan. If you’re feeling less spenny, next door is Glasgow’s take on New Orleans, Nola Soul, serving up chicken burgers, fried wings and bowls of rich gumbo. 

This TipList is taken from Eat & Drink 365 Glasgow, our sister mag recommending the best in restaurants, bars, cafés and more. Want a copy? It’s available online or across all good stockists in Glasgow.