A Finnieston business has scooped a prestigious award for its floral displays.
Sister restaurants Meze Meze and usta are a riot of colour during the late spring and summer months.
And it’s all thanks to an array of hanging baskets on the outside of the premises which brighten up Argyle Street.
The hospitality business has been recognised at this year’s Incorporation of Gardeners of Glasgow ‘Let Glasgow Flourish’ awards, held at Glasgow’s Trades Hall.
The awards celebrate the wonderful floral and horticultural displays put on by businesses in the city, which provide a welcoming environment for residents and visitors alike.
Magnificent
The Finnieston-based restaurants scooped the top award, The Robertson Silver Spade, for their magnificent floral displays.
Other restaurant winners included Gloriosa, Elena’s, The Butchershop, Mharsanta and Amore. The Ben Nevis, Dram, The Steps Bar, The Maltman, Citation, The Corinthian Club and Piper Whisky Bar were among some of the prize-winning bars.
Hotels Radisson RED, Kimpton Blythswood Square, Malmaison and Argyll Hotel were also winners.
Other organisations, including solicitors, health centres, places of worship and coffee shops, achieved awards for their window boxes, planters, and floral displays.
Meze Meze & usta owner Hadi Seyed Tabatabaeyan said: “We're delighted to have won The Robertson Silver Spade at the Let Glasgow Flourish awards.
“We're really proud of our floral displays at Meze Meze and usta and aspire to play our part in making Glasgow a flourishing and welcoming place for local, national and international visitors."
We're really proud of our floral displays at Meze Meze and usta and aspire to play our part in making Glasgow a flourishing and welcoming place for local, national and international visitors.
Hadi Seyed Tabatabaeyan
This year’s judging extended to the south side, where a variety of local businesses received accolades.
Gold winners are: Gurdwara Guru Granth Sahib, Victoria Bar, HF Group and Queen’s Park Café. Social enterprise, ApparelXchange CIC and Hugs and Mugs café both won silver awards, while Brooklyn Café and The GRIND House took home bronze awards.
Janet Pierotti, Deacon of the Incorporation of Gardeners of Glasgow, said: "We're thrilled to present this year's Let Glasgow Flourish awards.
“Many congratulations to Meze Meze and usta on winning the Robertson Silver Spade and to all the gold, silver and bronze winners.
“The awards are now in their 41st year and this year’s event is our biggest in recent years.
“We were delighted that so many businesses and other organisations could come along.
“We’d like to extend a huge thanks to all of them for taking part and helping make our city a blooming and welcoming place for visitors and locals to enjoy.”
Members of the Incorporation’s Master Court roamed the streets of Glasgow during the first two weeks in August 2023, while the flowers were in full bloom, and awarded points for each display they found, culminating in a shortlist of finalists.
The awards ceremony was attended by representatives from the Incorporation of Gardeners and the wider Trades House crafts and associated organisations, along with 60 local businesses and organisations who won awards.
High standard
Awards were presented by Deacon of the Incorporation of Gardeners, Janet Pierotti, and Lord Provost of Glasgow, Jacqueline McLaren.
The overall prize is The Robertson Silver Spade, which the winner keeps for one year.
Bronze and silver winners received certificates and gold winners received certificates and trophies.
The awards were launched in 1983 by the Incorporation of Gardeners of Glasgow and the Robertson Silver Spade was first awarded in 1992.
Prizes are given at three different levels and presented to businesses and not-for-profit organisations in the city, which create and maintain an arboreal or floral display of a high standard.
The awards are available for projects from simple hanging baskets and window box displays, to larger impressive and ambitious plantings.
The Incorporation of Gardeners of Glasgow was founded around 1605 as a trade guild to protect the gardening and horticulture trade in the city.
It now operates solely as a charity, giving significant grants each year to not-for-profit gardening projects in the city, recently including support for projects at The Beatson, as well as The Children's Wood in the North Kelvinside area.
The Incorporation also provides study bursaries to gardening and horticultural students.
All the winners on the night
The full list of award winners is as follows:
BRONZE
- Brooklyn Café
- Florida Park
- Gildeas Solicitors
- Hampton Court Guest House
- Kimpton Blythswood Square
- Koolba
- Merchant Chippie
- Rab Ha’s
- Radisson RED
- The Arlington
- The Ben Nevis
- The Doublet
- The Drum and Monkey
- The Griffin
- The Grumpy Barista
- The McMillan
- The Robertson Trust
- The State Bar
- Westbourne Medical Studios
SILVER
- Mharsanta
- The Corinthian Club
- Holy Cross Parish Church
- Clockwork Bar and Restaurant
- Molly Malone’s
- The Horseshoe Bar
- aBode Hotel
- Kothel
- The Hengler’s Circus
- Woolgar Hunter
- La Vita Pizzeria
- Piper Whisky Bar
- Malmaison Hotel
- The Citizen
- Bread Meats Bread
- Connelly’s
- The Maltman
- Cairns Bar
- Café Andaluz
- Times Square
- The Crystal Palace
- The Steps Bar
- Sandyford Henderson Memorial Church
- The Islay Inn
- Murphy’s Pakora Bar
- Baitul Rahman Mosque
- The Butchershop
- Gloriosa
- Virgin Money
- The GRIND House
- St Ninian’s Episcopal Church
- Queen of the South Hair and Beauty
- ApparelXchange CIC
- Hugs & Mugs
- Citation
- St Andrews West Church and Renfield Centre
- Pavement
GOLD
- Argyll Hotel
- Elena’s
- Dram
- Browns
- Gurdwara Guru Granth Sahib
- Minnesota Fats Snooker Club
- The Ivy
- Queen’s Park Café
- Amore
- HF Group
- Victoria Bar
ROBERTSON SILVER SPADE
- Meze Meze
- usta
