La Lanterna, an Italian restaurant on Hope Street, has been a Glaswegian dining institution for nearly forty years. Run by the Martinolli family, the cavernous basement restaurant is simply decorated with a rustic jumble of tables and beamed ceilings, and the warm and cosy venue is a popular place for pre-theatre meals, parties and celebrations. The down-to-earth service and authentic menu at La Lanterna are enough to turn you off high-street pizzerias for life, and we love homemade dishes such as the beef carpaccio drizzled with lemon juice and olive oil garnished with Parmesan shavings; the Rigatoni Amatriciana in a tomato and onion sauce with smoked bacon and chilli; and the veal escalope pan-fried in breadcrumbs with a fried egg, capers and anchovies.