The team behind an Italian deli known for serving ‘some of the best sandwiches in the city’ has today opened the doors to their second Glasgow location.
John Traynor is the owner of both La Pastina on Byres Road and a brand-new Great Western Road café that has taken over the space formerly occupied by Five March's Morning Glory.
The two sites may be just a short walk away from each other, but the chef is eager to point out that a shared neighbourhood is where the similarities end.
“It’s handy to have the two units around the corner from each other and they both follow an ethos of making sure everything is homemade with high-quality ingredients.
“But aside from that they’re completely different.
“La Pastina has always been Italian whereas Serendipity has no set theme.
“Byres Road has the hustle and bustle of the subway station and the uni, whereas Great Western Road is not as hectic and has evolved to have some really interesting food businesses in the past few years.”
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Until opening day, the menu at Serendipity had been kept a closely guarded secret with just a few social media posts hinting at the brunch and lunch plates to come.
Even though the full list of sizzling skillets, smoked salmon topped sourdough and brioche rolls has now been shared, a huge part of the café’s appeal is the knowledge that with each passing week, their dishes will continue to evolve.
“The dishes range from a breakfast muffin with sausage, egg and kimchi ketchup to French toast that’s topped with banana, pecans and Dulce de Leche," Traynor said of the eclectic offering.
"But our main focus is on prioritising seasonality and sourcing really nice, fresh produce.
“All of the menus are printed in-house which gives us the freedom to keep things fluid based on what’s available from our suppliers.
“Today for example peaches were too expensive so tweaked the dish.
“We have a strong kitchen team, and when you enjoy getting creative with your food it’s a fun way of working.”
A passion for food came early for Mr Traynor, who grew up in the Garthamlock area of Glasgow, and led him to his first role in a professional kitchen at the age of just 16.
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He went on to work as executive chef at Porter and Rye and The Finnieston, explore the world of product development, and spend time as a personal chef for former Celtic player Osdonne Edourd all before opening La Pastina in 2021.
While the deli first made its name for selling fresh pasta, sauces and pantry items, the team soon realised that a buzz of Byres Road called for fresh sandwiches, salads and cannolis which could be grabbed on the go.
“La Pastina has been the biggest learning curve of my life," he said, “but we survived because we were willing to understand what our customers wanted and make the changes.”
Asked how he knew the time was right to take on a new challenge with Serendipity, he said: “We actually got very close to opening at a unit elsewhere but ended up having to walk away from it at the last minute.
“The next day, after we had decided that we would spend the rest of the year focusing on the Deli and getting Christmas out of the way, the Morning Glory unit was listed.
“It wasn’t planned but the whole experience felt like a blessing in disguise.
"That’s how we decided on our name.
“It seemed that everything had fallen in line exactly when it was supposed to.
“At Serendipity, it’s all about the food and we’re really excited to get into the kitchen.”
Serendipity is located at 657 Great Western Road in Glasgow.
For more information find them on social media here.
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