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Looking for Restaurant Recommendations for Scotland

Looking for Restaurant Recommendations for Scotland

Old Jan 31st, 2023, 06:16 AM
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Looking for Restaurant Recommendations for Scotland

Hello,
We will be visiting Scotland from May 29 to June 15, and we would love some restaurant recommendations. We love to try local foods, and other ethnic foods as well. We don't need high-end restaurants, although a few might be nice. Just want good quality food where the locals eat.

Our destinations are as follows:
Edinburgh
Anstruther on the Fife Coast - willing to drive to other fishing villages for meals
Nairn
Isle of Skye (staying in Portree) - willing to drive to nearby towns as well
Glen Coe
Will probably have dinner our last night at the Dakota Edinburgh - I've read their restaurant is excellent.

Are advance reservations necessary?

Also, is it necessary/advisable to make advance reservations for some of the castles we want to visit? For example, Edinburgh, Stirling, Urquhart?

Thank you!


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Old Jan 31st, 2023, 06:44 AM
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Nairn: Cawdor Tavern for ornate wooden atmosphere with fireplace and often very good food. Also: Mosset Tavern in Forres; not fully as knicky-knack classic but great food and ales, and still a fireplace. If you're as far as Elgin before or after whisky tasting the Cadora Chip Shop right on the main drag is a fun place in an old-school city diner sort of way.
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Old Jan 31st, 2023, 06:49 AM
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dfourh, thank you so much for your recommendations. And, yes, I plan on visiting Elgin Cathedral and doing a whisky tasting in the area, so the Cadora Chip Shop sounds great!
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Old Jan 31st, 2023, 07:10 AM
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Most of my restaurant reservations/plans got cancelled due to my contracting COVID, but I did get in two restaurants in Edinburgh that I loved!

If you like Indian food you must go to Dishoom. They don't take reservations for parties smaller than 6, so you have to queue and wait, but the food is worth it! I think I joined the line sometime around 6 or 7pm. They told us it would be a 45 minute wait, and that was accurate.

I also really liked The Ivy on St. Andrew's Square, just down the street from Dishoom. It's a gorgeous restaurant and the food was very good too.

For a snack/dessert, stop by Mary's Milk Bar. I ate ice cream there and also picked up some of their specialty chocolate bars. The chocolate was pricey (not outrageously so), but the flavors were so unique. I got something like lemon geranium and blood orange Szechuan pepper, and they were both great.

I'm sure others will have many more recommendations.
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Old Jan 31st, 2023, 07:46 AM
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Originally Posted by KarenWoo
Hello,
We will be visiting Scotland from May 29 to June 15, and we would love some restaurant recommendations. We love to try local foods, and other ethnic foods as well. We don't need high-end restaurants, although a few might be nice. Just want good quality food where the locals eat.

Our destinations are as follows:
Edinburgh
Anstruther on the Fife Coast - willing to drive to other fishing villages for meals
Nairn
Isle of Skye (staying in Portree) - willing to drive to nearby towns as well
Glen Coe
Will probably have dinner our last night at the Dakota Edinburgh - I've read their restaurant is excellent.

Are advance reservations necessary?

Also, is it necessary/advisable to make advance reservations for some of the castles we want to visit? For example, Edinburgh, Stirling, Urquhart?

Thank you!

Edinburgh -- there are soooooooo many options in Edinburgh that it is hard to make recommendations without budget? Type(s) of food? Posh (like Michelin stars) or casual?

Anstruther: The Anstruther Fish Bar - expect to queue unless you visit between traditional meal times - like after 2PM and before 5PM. The Peat Inn (in . . . Peat Inn -- the actual name of the village) for posh setting and amazing food - expensive but a fraction the cost of the same quality in London. World Famous. Currently only dinner is served.

Glencoe: The Clachaig inn. Good hearty food.

Skye: "Isle of Skye (staying in Portree) - willing to drive to nearby towns as well". you are in for a surprise -- ain't no 'nearby' towns. Portree is really the only 'town' on the island. Several options in the town - tend to fill up. At Sligachan in sort of the center of the isle - the Sligachan Hotel. Good variety, hearty food served all day. https://www.sligachan.co.uk. There are some posh 'destination' type restaurants scattered around the island the Three Chimneys and the Coruisk House are terrific but expensive.

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Old Jan 31st, 2023, 07:51 AM
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ps: Some - like the Anstruther Fish Bar don't take reservations. For anyplace other than casual cafes/pubs in Edinburgh you will definitely want to pre-book. At most posh places in Edinburgh, or Peat Inn/Three Chimneys/Coruisk, etc -- early reservations are just about mandatory.
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Old Jan 31st, 2023, 08:31 AM
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Janisj and Memejs, thank you so much for your recommendations!

When we travel, we always like to eat the local food. So we definitely want Scottish food. Sometimes for variety, we might want to try other ethnic foods, and we like Indian food, so Dishoom sounds like a good choice. We prefer more casual places but wouldn't mind trying a few posh places, especially since this is a 16-night trip. The Peat Inn sounds like a good choice, and we don't mind occasionally spending more money if the food is worth it (and the setting)!

Janisj, I think you recommended The Clachaig Inn for accommodations, too. We are staying at The Glencoe Inn. I think their cancellation policy is better so that's why I chose that instead. But will definitely have dinner one night at The Clachaig. Good hearty food is right up our alley. And when you say "early reservations are just about mandatory" for posh places, how early do you mean? The day before? A week before?

Memejs, thanks for the tip about Mary's Milk Bar. I usually buy specialty chocolate bars for our daughters and a few close friends for gifts so sounds like a good place to shop!
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Old Jan 31st, 2023, 09:56 AM
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We are regular visitors to Edinburgh and our two favourite places to eat are --

The Dome. Wow factor building and good food. Always feel special. Need to book well in advance.
THE DOME | BAR & RESTAURANT EDINBURGH | HOME (thedomeedinburgh.com)

Angels with bagpipes - great food often locally sourced, and lovely cocktails.
Story — Angels with Bagpipes

I've been to the Witchery a few times but it doesn't quite do it for me. Beautiful building but overpriced and sometimes disappointing food.

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Old Jan 31st, 2023, 10:02 AM
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For Edinburgh, some very "old school" but gorgeous pubs, all within walking/staggering distance from each other (2 with the same ownership) for good food including the likes of haggis neeps and tatties, but with many other options too. And don't forget, beer is food. Vegan, to boot.

Start at the Guildford Arms on W. Register Street (half a block north of Princes Street.) The Guildford Arms ,



Then walk around the corner and up a short lane to the Cafe Royal, probably the Oyster Bar (featured in Chariots of Fire.) Cafe Royal, West Register Street, Edinburgh (caferoyaledinburgh.com)



Then it's a 10-minute walk (more or less, depending on blood alcohol) to the Abbotsford in Rose Street. The Abbotsford Bar & Restaurant .



There are, of course, many, many more, but these three I can attest to as having good food as well as marvelous surroundings.

"Walking" map - https://goo.gl/maps/e6aCNgGreeiyEsF57

Last edited by Gardyloo; Jan 31st, 2023 at 10:06 AM.
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Old Jan 31st, 2023, 02:01 PM
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Originally Posted by Morgana
We are regular visitors to Edinburgh and our two favourite places to eat are --

The Dome. Wow factor building and good food. Always feel special. Need to book well in advance.
THE DOME | BAR & RESTAURANT EDINBURGH | HOME (thedomeedinburgh.com)

Angels with bagpipes - great food often locally sourced, and lovely cocktails.
Story — Angels with Bagpipes

I've been to the Witchery a few times but it doesn't quite do it for me. Beautiful building but overpriced and sometimes disappointing food.
Thanks for your recommendations! And for the warning about The Witchery. We don't want to risk paying a lot of money and being disappointed in our meals.
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Old Jan 31st, 2023, 02:09 PM
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Thank you for your recommendations! And for posting the photos and links! Much appreciated!
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Old Jan 31st, 2023, 03:44 PM
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I've heard really good things about the Dome -- and was planning on eating there in May (but decided to head south to Kent/Sissinghurst instead of Edinburgh -- still second guessing myself on that). Also The Kitchin (yes - the correct spelling. Tom Kitchin's terrific place in Leith about half a mile from the Royal Yacht)

But really, Edinburgh probably has more good restaurants per capita then London
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Old Jan 31st, 2023, 04:38 PM
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Originally Posted by janisj
The Kitchin (yes - the correct spelling. Tom Kitchin's terrific place in Leith about half a mile from the Royal Yacht)...
Karen, my wife and I dined at The Kitchin just before the pandemic. It was memorable, and certainly ticks the boxes for locally-sourced ingredients. Pricey, yes, but I would happily do it again.

https://thekitchin.com
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Old Jan 31st, 2023, 06:25 PM
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Gardyloo, I just realized I didn’t specify my post #11 is directed to you. To thank you for the info, photos, and links on those gorgeous pubs!
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Old Feb 1st, 2023, 06:36 AM
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Originally Posted by Gardyloo
Then walk around the corner and up a short lane to the Cafe Royal, probably the Oyster Bar (featured in Chariots of Fire.) Cafe Royal, West Register Street, Edinburgh (caferoyaledinburgh.com)
Here's another vote for the Cafe Royal - I had a wonderful meal there when I was last in Edinburgh in October 2019. Come to think of it, I might have gotten the recommendation here on Fodors lol.
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Old Feb 2nd, 2023, 04:49 AM
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Chepar, thank you for another vote for Cafe Royal!
Dunvegansky, thanks for the recommendations for Dunvegan. It sounds wonderful!
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Old Feb 2nd, 2023, 11:37 AM
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In May 2022 we returned to l'Escargot Bleu (56 Broughton Street) in Edinburgh. Terrific French food, lovely ambiance and a très friendly staff. It also serves the best steak tartare I have ever eaten (and that's a lot) in my life. I get it with a heat level of 7 and although in my little review from 2017 I said next time I might try an 8, I decided not to mess with perfection last year. Wonderful spot for dinner. We also enjoyed Angels with Bagpipes.

https://travelswithmaitaitom.com/les...urgh-scotland/








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Old Feb 2nd, 2023, 12:57 PM
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Tom, thank you for your recommendations and for the beautiful photos. The Sticky Toffee Pudding looks scrumptious!

Someone else recommended Angels with Bagpipes, too, so it's nice to have another vote for Angels!
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Old Feb 3rd, 2023, 11:17 AM
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Since the sad demise of Chowhound, Hungryonion.org is good site for restaurant recs. Also eater.com usually has good (skewed to young and hip) suggestions for big cities.
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Old Feb 6th, 2023, 09:40 AM
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To Gardyloo, do you know if the 3 pubs you mention require advance reservations? I know that janisj mentioned we would not need advance reservations for casual pubs, but the 3 gorgeous pubs you mention seem quite fancy to me. (The Cafe Royal, Abbotsford Bar and Restaurant, and the Guildford Arms.)
Thank you!
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