A Glasgow restaurant that won the coveted grand prize money on Come Dine With Me: The Professionals, has praised the family dynamics that the episode centred around.
John and Rosie Quigley, the father and daughter duo behind Red Onion restaurant in Glasgow’s city centre came out on top whilst taking part in the well-known TV contest – which normally pits home cooks against each other to win a cash prize.
READ MORE - Glasgow businesses wanted for new BBC series Scotland's Greatest Escape
In The Professionals version of the programme, the Glaswegian chef patron, aged 58, and his daughter, 22, competed with fellow city restaurants Saffron and Calabash to win £1,000 and the coveted Come Dine With Me trophy.
Open seven days per week, Red Onion is a local neighbourhood bistro, offering new interpretations of classic Scottish cookery in a modern and comfortable environment.
It was founded by John Quigley and his wife Gillian in 2005, following Chef John’s time launching and working in established restaurants in London.
Glasgow Live had the pleasure of chatting with both John and Rosie about their time on the show, and really enjoyed the family dynamics which surrounded the show.
Sign up to Glasgow Live newsletters for more headlines straight to your inbox.
John said: "It really was like a group of lively, fun parents embarrassing their children and I think we all succeeded at that, didn't we?"
Rosie agreed, stating: "I had a lot of fun filming the show, it's brought out a new interest that I didn't know I had - definitely something I'll look for in the future."
Both John and Rosie agreed that it was a hard-going process applying for the show, after they initially weren't going to. Rosie said: "We were tagged loads of times in the Facebook post that stated they wanted Glaswegian restaurants to take part. But we ignored the messages at first, as we thought it would take up way too much time, it might be a bit cringey and what not.
"But, all in all, I am really glad we took the dive to join in on the show, as we both really enjoyed it. It was a gruelling application process, with form after form and a couple of Zoom calls, but it was all worth it in the end!"
John agreed, explaining: "We also had to take four days off of work, which is unheard of in this industry! We also had to close the restaurant on the day of filming in the Red Onion, but again it was worth it.
"We met a really interesting group of people, found a new restaurant that we would've never have tried before in Calabash, and put a huge effort into winning it overall."
Rosie also added: "It also forced you to take criticism, and take it well, because as much as it was a lot of fun, it's still a competition! So yeah, we took the comments and constructive feedback well, which was something we maybe weren't expecting."
When asked about what was going to be done with the £1,000 prize, both John and Rosie laughed, and John said: "Aye, that'll be the wife Gillian, she's snapped it right up!"
Rosie went on to explain: "Well, we are all going on a family holiday soon and we were going to use the money to take everyone out to a fancy meal, but we decided against it. It'll get put into savings, until we figure out what to do with it."
John added: "Aye, maybe you'll get a new bag or something with it Rosie!"
Come Dine With Me: The Professionals will return to Glasgow on Friday, July 22 to visit three, brand new restaurants in Bloc, Amore d'Italia and Maki and Ramen. Watch the episode on Channel 4 at 5pm.
READ NEXT -
- Glasgow TV presenter Storm Huntley announces birth of first child
- Amazon Prime Day: Scots issued with warning before purchasing items online
- Heatwave warning for drivers with dogs who face unlimited fine and even jail
- Italy's Sorrento bikini ban could land holidaymakers with £425 fine for breaking the rules
- ScotRail union members accept pay deal with temporary timetable expected to end
