"It's completely different. Here, you can find Dubai in Glasgow."
Those are the words of Ali Masri, whose voice is full of excitement when I ask him how he would describe Aladdin's.
Located on Tradeston's Commerce Street, a stone's throw away from the Clyde, you may have driven by the eye-catching Aladdin's when driving from the south side of Glasgow to the city centre. With its bright neon lights and its memorable logo - a shopping trolley travelling on a magic carpet - it would be hard to miss it.
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Aladdin's first opened solely as a supermarket, Scotland's biggest world supermarket, at the start of the pandemic two years ago. Having been taken on a quick tour around the aisles, both at ground and first floors, it's hard to think of a world food you won't see on the packed shelves.
At the beginning of this year, Aladdin's expanded, with a beautiful, palatial-style sandwich bar, cake shop, shisha and kitchenwares store. As Ali describes: 'It's a combination of Middle East and West together and you'll find what you're looking for."
Ali is the man who, along with his business partner Samer Anezi, is responsible for introducing Aladdin's to Glasgow.
Hailing from Lebanon, Ali and Samer haven't just brought a taste of their country to the city, but they've managed to fit different parts of the world all under one roof.
And this echoed by the customers they attract from all corners of Glasgow, and beyond, who find Aladdin's 'a reminder of home'.
Ali said: "We get people from all nationalities, Greek, Spanish, Italian, Kurds, Turks, Persians, Arabs, Lebanese, Africans.
"All the shopping you need, you can get it from one place, for all nationalities.
"Our meat in the supermarket is all Scottish lamb, Scottish beef, all fresh with daily deliveries.
"We do fresh bread there too.
"My friend, originally from Nigeria, who has been here for 30 years, could have gone anywhere to get his meat, but he always gets his meats from us? Why? Because it's fresh. He travels around 25-30 minutes just to get the meat from here. People come here only to get their fresh naan, their fresh bread.
"They don't want pre-packed food, they want it from the tandoori. The smell as well makes people so hungry - they just want to try it."
But as of 2022, thanks to a new unit just a few doors down, Aladdin's is no longer just a grab-and-go supermarket. It's a cafe, it's a cake shop, a breakfast bar and a bakery.
It's a place completely removed from the city centre of Glasgow - it's a visually stunning space transporting anyone who steps inside straight to another land.
Ali said: "People wouldn't expect this place in Glasgow."
"We spent a lot of money on the ceiling to give it that kind of Moroccan-style. The combination of modern and traditional gives it that wow factor. With the colours, everything actually feels warm.
"It took us around six months to build this from being a shell, a warehouse.
"It's chic, unique and different, like Dubai.
"If you want to come out from the normal, traditional way of being in Glasgow, you'll find it here, a different atmosphere. If you want Turkey, Dubai, Lebanon, you'll find it here, those three famous places.
"When people come here you don't want them to feel bored."
Given everything on offer, it would be difficult for people to feel that way. Aladdin's is a feast for the senses, all stemming from Lebanese family values and the desire to be the best possible hosts when a guest visits their home.
Ali said: "We are feeders, that's for sure! Even if you don't like it, we're going to feed you! 'Take this, try this!'. It's part of our tradition, when people come to us, we just invite them in."
And I can certainly verify Ali, his family and his staff are very much feeders, having unexpectedly been presented with the best and most beautiful breakfasts I've had in recent memory in Glasgow.
"We'll let people try stuff on the house and we just really appreciate people's feedback. We're new, it's something different, but we still need people to tell us 'that went wrong, that is too expensive, that's too cheap'", Ali says.
I've not been the only one to give their full traditional Lebanese breakfast feast - which spanned the length of the table - the full five stars, in what must be considered an essential Glasgow dining experience.
But that's just for starters.
"We have a sandwich bar here too", Ali says. "We do hummus, authentic Lebanese-style, babaganoush, paninis, falafel wraps, air-fried - not deep fried! Fresh juices, milkshakes too, all sorts - our menu didn't even all fit on a flier!
"We have Turkish teas, Turkish coffees.
"People come to drink tea, they're sitting here with a different atmosphere and the music.
"You'll have any kind of cakes here - French cakes, gateaus, cakes specifically made for you.
"We make fresh cakes, fresh bread, fresh baklavas, made in house. We do import some, the kind of baklava we don't make ourselves that is hard to make in Scotland, but when we import them we use air cargo, as opposed to normal, traditional lorries, so we keep it fresh.
"Lebanon is well known for its cuisine, the Turks, Lebanese and Syrians for their baklavas and the cakes.
"I should be on a diet, but I'm not! Every time I pass that counter, I feel my hand reaching for the baklava!"
And so popular is the fresh bread being sold in Aladdin's supermarket, which you smell as soon as you approach the entrance, Ali and his team recently constructed the biggest naan bread oven in Glasgow, at the back of their new 'palace', just to keep up with the orders.
Ali explained: "From the supermarket we learned about the high demand for the fresh naan, people were coming in and takeaways, such as Mrs Falafel in the west end, were interested in buying our actual bread and making wraps with the bread. Everyone wants it!
"Now, we've got the biggest naan oven in Glasgow to make the best naan, it goes up to 300c, and we're first to do Persian bread too, it's a healthy bread, no salt, no sugar or anything, just wholemeal flour and water."
Of course, as you might be wondering by now, how did the supermarket and 'sweets and bakery palace', as Ali describes it, end up with such an iconic name?
Ali said: "We all know 'Aladdin', the movie, the character! Everyone is attracted to Aladdin, from kids to adults. And it's a bit close to my name too, which is a bit of a selfish thing!"
Finally, before I depart Glasgow's mini Dubai for the real world once more, with a belly full of Lebanese breakfast and Baklava, I ask Ali what he would tell Glaswegians who he and his family have yet to welcome into their home?
"Glasgow needs something like this. Come, try it and I know you will love it."
You can find Aladdin Supermarket at 45 Commerce Street, Glasgow and the Sweets and Bakery Palace at number 53, G5 8AD
For more info, including opening hours, you can visit them on Facebook here.
