Sea Scotland, Eat Scotland

So as mentioned on my Now page, I headed to Scotland about a month ago for a wedding and a cross-country road trip that sung to my soul. Taking a trip north of the border just makes me happy, and you can see why so much of the country’s culture is inspired by Caledonia.

But I’m not here to wax lyrical about that, oh no. Let’s focus on the food. My god. Seafood is ruined for me. I have eaten so much shellfish up there I may be slowly phased out and replaced by a big Hawaiian, after being jobbed out at an event where I had an expensive haircut on the company owner’s dime.¹ Here – for future reference (thanks Elliot) – are some of the best places I eat. This fat Welsh lad can recommend these places.

Eastfield, Dundee

As mentioned on my Lemmings Statue post, the first night I ate at Eastfield – a nice small restaurant that was rammed in Dundee. It’s one of those places where the food is made based on the fresh produce that arrives every day, so there’s no point sharing the menu, but it was the only place I didn’t take a picture of the food because we couldn’t wait to eat it, it was all so good.

Definitely recommended.

Port-na-Craig Inn & Restaurant, Pitlochry

We needed a bit to eat before we went to see Lear in the Pitlochry Theatre, and there is a restaurant opposite it. Port-na-Crag Inn overlooks a beautiful river. We had a ceasar salad with chicken and haggis bites. They were delicious.

Probably one of the few times I actually didn’t eat Seafood.

The Grandtully Hotel by Ballytaggart

This is very much our spot.

Last year we went for a night in The Grandtully Hotel as a preparation before driving back home, and we loved it so much we came for 2 days this year. This boutique hotel and restaurant just calms and soothes me. The food is excellent too. I remember an onion bhaji with some banana chutney that was just excellent and a gorgeous fish pie where me and my partner said to each other “Did we really go to a bit of a fancy restaurant and order a fish pie?”. Also, take me back to the terrace with a pint watching the Scottish world go by.

Blas Na Mara, Fort William

This was a discovery.

We headed to Fort William for a bit, to have a boat tour of the Seal Island on Loch Linnhe. It was a day trip between hotels, and we stopped for a bit of lunch in Blas Na Mara’s seafood shack, which was hidden away.

The food was delicious, perfect for a wet day in Scotland. Lobster rolls and chips warmed us right up before we went on a blustery tour. Location isn’t great, but the food? Incredible.

Pierhouse Restaurant, Port Appin

The rain cleared and we went to Port Appin after seeing Castle Aaargh from Monty Python. We had a few beers before a meal in The Pierhouse at Port Appin, a quiet, tranquil seaside village. Spending an hour just watching the boats go in and out with very little noise was good for the soul.

We then decamped inside for a meal, and what a meal, we had sea bream and a langoustine starter, and roasted potatoes that were melt in the mouth. A wonderful meal.

Loch Fyne Restaurant and Oyster Bar

Finally from the trip we went to the Loch Fyne Restaurant and Oyster Bar, located on the shore of Loch Fyne, outside Inverary. Obviously we had oysters, but we also had a scallop with black pudding which was fantastic. I had a crab burger as well, which was just what I fancied, and it was delicious.

So, apologies for the fairly self indulgent post, but if you’re ever in the area of any of those restaurants, go!

1. This is an obscure reference but my goodness it is hilarious if you get it. ↩︎