La Vida in Glasgow City

Poor to say the least, garlic bread starter is what most good italian restaurants serve free, ordered meatball macaroni , 5 pea sized meatballs hidden in a mound of bland macaroni and one meatball was burnt, sad I'm sorry to say, overrated under achieved

Having been here before I knew what to expect as I had a great fort experience in here with a party of 8 for a birthday. However, this time we went just as a couple and I have to say the male member of staff who was serving us had very little if any customer service skills atall. Didn't get his name but he is very recognisable should you require a description. He was rushing to do absolute everything including taking our order down wrong and then blaming us for the mistake. Don't get me wrong it was busy but not overly busy. The food when it came I cannot fault it was delicious. The drinks were wrong aswell and we had asked if the daiquiri came frozen and he said it was so this was ordered but it wasn't frozen when it arrived. It was still nice but the idea was a frozen daiquiri. Maybe a language barrier caused this who knows. We were also enjoying a drink after our meal when the same waiter told us we needed to leave within 5 minutes as another couple were coming in who had booked even though there were tables free and we had literally just received our drinks after waiting Atleast 10 minutes for these. Having had one good experience and this not so good experience I would maybe return once more to give the benefit of the doubt however in all honesty if this member of staff was serving us again we would most certainly get up and leave.

Both had pizzas, very simple, excellent crust, fresh toppings, attentive staff, can sit outside- beautiful weather today so we did. Very reasonably priced.

Went here for the first time on a sunday afternoon, food was superb with possibly the best burger my wife and i have ever tasted, staff couldn't do enough for us and we will be returning soon, a hidden gem.

Although we ( my husband and I) live nearby, this is the first time we have eaten in this little gem and we were certainly not disappointed. We had bought groupon deal some time back and decided to book for a midweek meal, not really expecting much! Although it was a Wednesday night and the bar and restaurant were fairly quiet we experienced a very warm welcome in both both. Laura, the waitress in the restaurant was a breath of fresh air, the correct ballance between friendly and efficient (rare qualities even in the best restaurants these days) nothing was to much bother to her. The conversation was both relaxed and interesting {but} when other diners needed her attention she politely excused herself immediately! The food we sampled (soup, lamb kofta's and steak) was also very tasty, served hot, and fresh. We also noticed that every Sunday night there was live entertainment. We will definitely be back to sample more of the hospitality, food (especially the tapas) and the live music. Can't recommend it enough. Well done to all who were working on Wednesday night and Compliments to the chef

Well went here for the first time with a woucher and this restaurant does not dissappoint it has now become quite a regular Saturday haunt, the food is great, the staff are brilliant and it doesn't empty your wallet. If you haven't been there yet get along there.

Fabulous evening attentive staff wonderful food, house wines were lovely could not fault & would most definitely come back ...a must try ..&.. I myself & family are very fussy ...lovely evening thank you xxxx

Visited last night with my daughter using a voucher for 2 spicy mussel starters & 2 steaks. We were given a choice form the menu at no extra cost but stuck to our deal and were both delighted by the result. Mussels were spicy but not too spicy for us, steak meal was delicious & more than adequate. The steaks were tender & tasty. We shared a Trio dessert but I think I would go for the Sticky Toffee pudding if choosing again. Drinks menu was reasonably priced. Our ebullient host or waiter, 'Ross The Boss', was attentive & entertaining greatly adding to our visit as the restaurant was not very busy. Recommend a visit although we were told that the menu was changing soon.

We went there through a voucher we had bought online for mussels and steak. The food itself was lovely. However, here are my main gripes with the place.........I don't like dirty glasses and cutlery. I don't like choices tableware and I don't like staff rolling their eyes when you ask for replacements.

Had a voucher for 2course and a glass of prossecco. No prossecco but offered a large glass of wine which was. Very nice. Food was lovely choice of starters and mains I had deep fried mushrooms and steak very good! I would go back!

we went here on a groupon deal at Halloween. Food was excellent - we all ordered the same : chilli prawns followed by steak with blue cheese sauce on the side with patatas bravas. Everything spot on except for the patatas bravas sauce - tasted a bit like the tomato sauce from the tinned spaghetti of my childhood. To be commended was the waiter too - nothing was too much of a problem, very personable and for us, there was no issue with slow service. We are likely to return.

We went here last night, 4 of us, for the first time and it was amazing the food was lovely. I had breaded mushrooms then the ribeye steak and could fault nothing at all, all the other meals ordered were lovely to and not one of us could say a bad word about the food.We will definately go back.

i would highly recommend, ive now been twice ,one of which was a groupon, the service was excellent and food even better. The food was fresh and served quickly with good portion sizes.. staff are very attentive and nothing is any bother. cant wait to go back, excellent all round.

My partner and I visited La Vida on Saturday 19th October after purchasing a Groupon deal. The food was very good and the service excellent. The portion sizes were very generous. We were told we didn't have to stick to the mussels and steak so I changed my starter to chicken liver pate. It was delicious and very filling. The main course was very nice too. The young waiter and waitress were very attentive and nothing was too much trouble. It was refreshing to meet two such happy souls. The only negative was that we were told a large glass of wine cost £2.50 but when the bill came we were charged nearly £4. We didn't query it at the time as we didn't want to spoil an enjoyable evening. We would definitely return.

I bought a deal off of Groupon for this restaurant simply because it was a good deal, £19 for mussels and steak for two, but had never been before even though I had passed it many times. This will certainly be changing now that I've been, the food was more than excellent as was the service. My girlfriend is very fussy about how her steak is cooked and was pleasantly surprised when it was cooked to perfection. The atmosphere is very pleasant and the staff are bright and bubbly and always close by for anything that you need to enjoy your meal further, As for waiting times, I was surprised at how quick we were served our, especially as we had just finished work and were famished. Overall the night was an excellent experience, I have been to more 'upper class' restaurants before, such as La Bonne Auberge, and have to say I found the food and service even better here at La Vida.

We went along for dinner tonight as a last minute plan after being offered a voucher to use at La Vida this week. The waiter was very helpful with our picky taste in food and we were served some tasty tapas followed by a refreshing sorbet. If you are in this part of the southside I would certainly recommend popping by!

My husband and I dined at this restaurant last weekend. The food was really very nice and the staff most attentative and friendly. That was until we ordered our sweet, from then on it was as though we no longer existed. After about 25 min of waiting I asked the waitress where our desert was. She apologized, saying she had reminded the chef twice for it. Approx. 10 minutes later the deserts arrived. These were cold deserts, so I'm still trying to work out what the delay could have been! It's not as if the restaurant was packed! I'm also most surprised we weren't offered a coffee on the house, as an apology for the rather long wait!We would have left a larger tip and the reason we left a tip at all was until we ordered the sweet everything was great. If it wasn't for the lack of attention towards the end I would have rated this restaurant 5*We put the money for the meal and the small tip beside the bill and left. No one noticed our departure. It appears to me that as the adjoining pub got busy there was no real thought being given to the diners in the restaurant. For this reason, although the food was very nice, I would think twice about revisiting La Vida.

The meal was excellent....superb value , We were there for a groupon deal...The service from the young waiter Matthew Mooney was excellent, he could not have been more attentitive.... We wish him all the best in his career.. From the engaged couple going to Turkey.... We will definately be back . X

Went with a groupon voucher and after speaking to the manager we returned after a mix up with the booking. Unfortunately he wasn't working that night to see the stress the staff was under. They struggled to cope with demand and they accepted a few walkin's.I was really surprised to hear they did not have any rose wine at 6pm on a Saturday night. The bar next door didn't have any either. I had to ask for water and rolls and the sangria was a bit weak but my complaints stop here. The food we got was a 2 course with a glass of champagne.Starter was jalapeño peppers stuffed with cheese and deep fried superb. I had chicken strips with a sauce that was too hot for me.Main course we both had rump steak which was fantastic with a blue cheese sauce which was in a small jug. Husband enjoyed sticky toffee pudding with ice cream. Tried a small bit and I could have finished the lot. Overall staff needs a well done pat on the back including the chef. Look forward to going back.

I first went to la vida as a birthday treat from my sister in may this year. She wanted to do something different and I was looking forward to my first experience of tapas. I absolutely loved it, the food is absolutely delicious and I really enjoyed the atmosphere too. The service is rather slow as others have said, I myself enjoy a slower pace when eating, i enjoy having the time to talk and enjoy the food without being rushed however if a slower pace doesn't suit you, you might find yourself a bit frustrated. We have been back several times since our first visit and enjoy sampling new things from the menu. I don't enjoy seafood so choose other options, but there is something to suit everyone. Would highly recommend. We normally go on a Thursday night as they do a fiesta night that's slightly cheaper and is normally not as busy as he weekend. Definitely worth a visit.

Having eaten more tapas in my time than I care to remember, the choice and value here was excellent. Staff were very friendly. Really enjoyed it and will be back

First time visit to this lovely restaurant. Couldn't really decide where to eat and plumped for this bar restaurant at lunchtime on 28 June 2013. Special offer 3 tapas with a glass of house wine £9.95. There is also an extended bar menu, with everything from fish and chips to tacos. Surroundings were comfortable, staff despite the fact that there were only to attending tables, were efficient, polite and the service was reasonably quick. Certainly would give it another visit, perhaps in the evening.

My husband for a voucher from Wowcher it was for 2 tapas, paella and a jug of sangria. I was dreading going as I have never had tapas and thought paella was all seafood (which I don't eat). We booked a table for 7.30pm on a Saturday night and when we arrived the waiter told us they were busy, not a problem we were not in a hurry. We were brought a basket of bread with oil and a jug of water and then kind of left, the service was slow but eventually they came and took our order, husband has mussels and I had beef with pepper sauce as the tapas and we ordered the chicken and beef paella and asked for our Sangria, it took them about 20 mins to bring the Sangria. When the food arrived I was really surprised and it was out of this world, my husband loves mussels and asked the waitress to give his compliments to the chef, my beef tapas was lovely also. The paella was massive and we could not finish it and as it was so good we asked if we could take it home and this was parceled up for us. All in all it was a good night and the good was great, I think they need to improve a bit on the service though

First Visit to La Vida, went along for lunch. Had an ITISON voucher for 6 tapas and 2 large glasses of wine. Food and service were very good. Wine was 250ml unusual in a deal usually 175ml. Very nice red and rose. We bought another 2 glasses and 250ml was under £4.It was quiet and waitress was very attentive. Spoke with the Manager who was very informative about future offers.

I recently bought 2 vouchers from wowcher for la vida tapas. I was really looking forward to it because of the reviews. We got 4 tapas and 2 paellas. The tapas were lovely but the paella was terrible. I took one bite and left the rest. My parents and my boyfriend tried to eat it as they didn't want it to go to waste but it was really horrible tasting. The paellas were a horrible green colour not the lovely golden orange you normally get. The seafood was not fresh. The langoustines were soft and crumbly. They obviously put loads of vegetable stock over it and the rice was all mushy. I would never go back it was a total waste of money. We ended up getting takeaways. I'm guessing the previous reviews were left by friends of the restaurant!!

Just had a meal package booked through Wowcher for La Vida Restaurant in Shawlands. I was so disappointed by the meal and service. I booked this for a treat for my boyfriends birthday, and unfortunately the service was incredibly slow with only one waitress for a busyish restaurant. We waited a long time for our drinks despite ordering them before other tables and waited again along time for the waitress to take our order or provide us with cutlery. Our deal involved a big platter of paella to share; which was very dry and tasteless. We both struggles to eat more than a fifth of the dish. The deal also came with 4 tapas dishes which was the real pull for me wanting to take the deal. However again the standard was surprisingly poor; the squid we ordered was dry and rubbery not moist as it should be. The Aubergine tapas didn't have any flavor at all! However, the king prawn tapas was lovely and the pepper stuffed with cheese was average I would say. We did enjoy the Sangria and the beer though! Unfortunately this is not enough to say we had a delightful or less than disappointing meal. When we were asked if we enjoyed our meal, we were honest with the waitress as we had felt the whole experience was really below, below, average. This did not however encourage the manager to even speak to us or apologize that we didn't enjoy the meal.This is not the way a Manager should deal with customers and if I were thinking of booking here I would stay away if you don't want to end up having as bad an experience as we did! I have never been to this restaurant before, but would never go back. Just because you book something on a deal like we did, does not excuse poor quality food or service. I hope the manager looks into this for people deserve good quality meals and service for the money they are spending!

Tried La Vida for the first time recently, what a great place. From the point of arrival the service was first class, very attentive and helpful. The food was delicious and all tasted very fresh. We went on a Saturday night and there was live music in th erestaurant which was also lovely.There is an adjoining bar which you can go to following your meal, with a great selection of drinks. Will definitely be going back - it's one of the best tapas restaurants in Glasgow in my opinion.

LOVE this place! Its brilliant, best tapas in Glasgow by far! And they have great value offers on all the time! A Southside Gem!!

I visited La Vida with some friends on a voucher deal. We had a great night! The food was of an excellent quality and there was plenty of choice- something for everyone. All of the tapas we had were tasty & the portion sizes were good - plenty to go round. The service was good and the staff were attentive without being over-bearing. I would recommend a visit to La Vida and will definitely be going again.

I'm a big fan of tapas, and until La Vida opened we had a favourite tapas bar in the southside. After a few visits my husband and I have decided La Vida is definately better! The portions are generous, you get some bread to nibble when you arrive rather than paying £2.50 for a few slices, and the food is very fresh. They do a great deal during weeknights aswell, 3 tapas and a glass of wine for around £8 I think.

Mr D and I are huge fans of La Vida, and also tapas - we have tried many tapas joints but the food here is exceptional! We visited here on Sunday 24th March on a voucher deal. We had 3 tapas each, Mr D had a seafood dish which had squid, mussells, the only thing missing was Davy Jones' Locker! It's fair to say an abundance of food. I love the garlic & chillie infused oil with warm bread they give you to start your taste buds tingling. The food is good value and the wines fairly priced. My only gripe is the toilets are freezing. We will be back very soon guys - thanks.

We visited la vida again at the weekend (very busy saturday night). We brought our family along to try it, as its definatley our favourite tapas restuarant in town without a doubt. The restuarant was very busy with only one table free and yet the servive and food were second to none. The atmosphere was fantastic and thoroughly enjoyed the spanish music in the background. The staff were so welcoming, friendly and made us feel so comfortable. We ordered 3 tapas each, which was a total of 18 dishes, we were pleasantly surprised with the time in which it arrived, only 35minutes, each dish was tasteful and mouth watering, one which we all thoroughly enjoyed and can highly recommend is the red pepper, goats cheese with a delicous caramelised red onion.....yum!!! Believe you me, the inlaws are incredibly hard to please and thanks to yet another fantastic night in lavida we all came away full and extremely happy with the quality of food, high level of customer service and such a lovely atmosphere. if i could rate higher i would... thanks lavida, see you same time next week ;-)

Was in la Vida again over the weekend and as always was amazed at the quality of the food and service. I also noticed that they are now doing home delivery which I will def be using. If your going out in the southside I would highly recommend go try here! Thanks to Ross and the staff.

Every year as a family, we go somewhere for lunch on this day. We have been to 1901 before and always enjoyed it so as under new ownership we thought we'd try it again. We are all fans of Spanish food so were pleased to see that the place had a good tapas menu as well as bar food. The tapas was excellent, as was the paella and the few that had burgers loved theirs too. We ended up having sweets and coffees which was added to with some lovely complimentary mince pies and chocolates. A lovely touch. Drinks are extremely reasonably priced and the overall price was good for what we had. Another point is the heating. In days gone by 1901 was a cold restaurant but not today. It was very comfortable and the new decor provided a touch of Spain. All in all the day was lovely, the food delicious, the service excellent. We will go again soon.

Local restaurant, lovely staff, good food and great value.If you like tapas, etc., try here!Not too expensive for drinks, either

Food was lovely. When we sat down the waitress immediately brought a jug of water and fresh bread with chili oil and garlic oil to the table. We ordered 3 tapas each and they were all delicious, especially the chorizo in red wine. We also ordered desert which was amazing. The wine and other drinks available are also reasonably priced.

We've eaten in this little gem many times and have never been disappointed. Although we have a good tapas eaterie just along the road we get in the car and travel to this one the food is so lovely. Portion sizes are great, even when we ate there on a voucher deal, the food was exactly the same.Can't recommend it enough, well done to that chef!

I visited this restaurant with my sister and 3 children and we were made to feel welcome as soon as we stepped in. The Irish waiter and the Spanish waitress were incredibly nice and chatty and nothing appeared to be a bother for them. We were using a promotional voucher which gave us a total of 16 tapas for our table and we all also bought a meal from the kids menu. Unbelievably, each tapas was superb! No duds amongst the selection at all and I have to say they were the nicest tapas I have ever had. Even the garnishs were great with the dressings on the salad really tasty. The fish and chips kids meal was fantastic and as an adult, I would have been happy to have this put down to me for my main meal! The restaurant was quiet so we weren't rushed at all and as the restaurant is quite spacious, you get a nice sense of privacy at your tables and with children present, you don't feel you are encroaching upon anyone else's evening either.I have been raving about the meal since the visit and will definitely be back. Really worth a visit if you are into tapas as there is an extensive menu and as I stated, everything we had was fantastic as was the service.

The food is really tasty (especially the goats cheese in red pepper, chorizo in red wine and the lamb meatballs) and great portion sizes, definitely enough to fill you up. Our waiter was really nice and friendly and there was a good mix of unknown and popular music with a Spanish vibe. Decent decor and spacious. Good offer of three dishes with a glass of wine 5-7pm Sun-thu for less than a tenner. Will definitely be coming again.

We used to eat out atleast twice a week but now once every two weeks so it's important to us to enjoy our experience.We decided to visit La Vida on a Tuesday night without a reservation and it certainly wasn't needed as the restaurant was empty when we arrived and left! We had that first gut feeling that we may have possibly made the wrong decision in coming here until the young waiter warmly invited us in, shown us to our seats and provided bread with dips with a description of the dips.we had a light chat with the waiter and he certainly made us feel wanted and cared for.upon asking us if we have had tapas before he explained the size of portions before I ordered like 6 so he certainly had our satisfaction in mind.if I had ordered that many and couldn't eat it id be disappointed so I thank him for that.we ordered 3 tapas as starters and then chose a paella for main to share between 2.The food was amazing. We expected it to be fairly quick and warm as we were the only customers there but the flavours and quality were fantastic.well done to the chef.after our starters the waiter brought us bread unanaounced to soak up some of the sauce left in the dishes.a fantastic touch.this waiter certainly cares about his customers and their experience a lot.We enjoyed another chat with the waiter when he brought the bill.he also presented us with a promotional voucher explaining different events throughout the week and also about 1901 next door.We had an excellent Tuesday night.we were very much entertained with great food and excellent service.we will be telling all friends and family of this exquisite tapas restaurant in the south side and will most certainly be back again.

We don`t live in this area but take a trip down to 1901 every couple of months and sometimes have something to eat. We tried to book on a Sunday but they said that it was fully booked. We were in the bar which was very quiet on leaving I stuck my head in the door and there were 5 people in total. I was forced to book for a midweek night as I was advised that this was what the manager wanted no more vouchers on weekend. When we went we were shown to our table but had to request a table move as they had left the door open. Ok I know its summer but it was 11 degrees outside. Even when we moved I had to keep my jacket on. The wine which was served was really nice. We ordered our food on the voucher plus a couple of extra tapas. Out of 6 tapas only one of them was properly heated which was the gambas pil pil. The rest of them were lukewarm at best when served. This was a shame as all the food was delicious. At no time did the waitress serving us com back to find out if the food was ok. We felt as if we had to wolf it down before was stone cold, not ideal. When I advised at the end of the meal about the cold food the waitress just advised would tell the kitchen. Had we been able to book when we liked, not had to sit in the cold and then served cold food then I could have maybe given a 5 rating. I have watched this restaurant change faces over the years and if they are serious about surviving in an out of town eatery then you really have to get the basics right. If not then I look forward to see what type of food you will be serving in a few months time!

After seeing an advert for a new tapas bar opening at 1901 I decided to give it a go and all I can say is amazing. Went on Thursday night and to our surprise they had a fiesta night on which involved Spanish guitar and Spanish dancers. If you are into tapas you will defiantly love this place!!!