A guide to
eating in Scotland.
Where in Scotland?
Choose a part of Scotland for its places to eat.
Leith’s harbour restaurants, and cafés and bakeries in every part of the city.
Finnieston, the West End and the Merchant City.
Loch Fyne oysters, and seafood straight off the boats in Oban.
The Three Chimneys, Loch Bay, and langoustines from the sea lochs.
Fish suppers in Anstruther, and crab and lobster in the East Neuk’s harbours.
Soft fruit in summer, and farm shops along the Tay.
The food, in two minutes.
Scotland’s larder is its coast and its hills: langoustines, scallops and oysters from the west, smoked fish from the east, beef and lamb from the glens, soft fruit from Perthshire and Angus, and venison from almost everywhere.
The cooking has caught up with the produce. There are starred restaurants in Edinburgh, Glasgow and the Highlands, seafood shacks on harbour walls, farm shops with a cafe at the back, and bakeries worth a detour. Fife, Skye and Argyll are where to go to eat well for a week.
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Where to start.
The places everyone asks about, each with what to know before going.
Oban Seafood Hut.
The green shack on Oban's CalMac pier, set up in 1990 by fisherman John Ogden, selling fresh local shellfish to eat at the tables outside.
Argyll and Bute
The Three Chimneys at Talisker.
The Three Chimneys' restaurant beside the Talisker distillery, on the edge of Loch Harport, cooking seafood to go with the whisky.
Isle of Skye
Anstruther Fish Bar.
A famous fish and chip shop and restaurant on the harbour front at Anstruther, run by fishing families, known for its light, crisp batter.
Fife
Loch Fyne Oyster Bar.
The oyster bar, restaurant and deli at the head of Loch Fyne where Loch Fyne Oysters began in 1978, selling oysters, smoked salmon and shellfish.
Argyll and Bute
The Oyster Shed.
A seafood shed up the hill from Carbost, shucking oysters to order over Loch Harport.
Isle of Skye
Café Fish.
A seafood restaurant on the upper floor of Tobermory's pier, fed daily by its own fishing boat, the Highlander.
Isle of Mull
Three things to know.
Book ahead.
The good places are small and the season is short. In summer, book dinner when the bed is booked.
Kitchens close early.
Outside the cities many kitchens take last orders by half past eight, and some close two days a week. Check before driving out.
Eat where it lands.
A shack on the pier or a van at the harbour often has the freshest plate in the place. Bring cash and a coat.
FifeArdross Farm Shop
EdinburghJeannie's Bakery
EdinburghArchipelago Bakery
FifeRoad Hole Restaurant
PerthshireComrie Croft Farm Shop
Isle of SkyeThe View Restaurant
PerthshireWild Hearth Bakery
Argyll and ButeBalliemore Farm Shop, KerreraWhere to go.
Places of ours, each with what to know before you go.
See more on Explore
Stockbridge to Leith, with lunch at Cardinal and Gulp Ramen
Morningside, a show at the King's and supper at Dulse
Crovie and lunch at Bumble and Brae in Gardenstown
The Three Sisters of Glencoe and lunch at the Clachaig Inn
Findlater Castle, Sandend and lunch in Portsoy
Strathy Bay and lunch at the Store in Bettyhill
A walk up Ben Hiant and supper in Kilchoan
Findlater Castle, Sunnyside Beach and lunch in CullenDays worked out.
Each with its stops in order, the drive between and somewhere to eat.
See every day out
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To readThe Food Truck Revolution
To readForaging for Wild Food
To readThe Rewilding of the Supper Club
To readSTIR at Johnnie Walker Princes Street: Michelin-Starred Food Meets Whisky Cocktails
To readA food guide to The Green in AberdeenFrom the magazine and the Journal.
The people and the stories.
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