Hidden Scotland
Sign in
The dining room at Ar Bòrd in Dervaig, a table laid for dinner on a herringbone rug, with a pine dresser, a bookcase and windows looking out on green fields.
Isle of Mull

Ar Bòrd

A small restaurant in its owners' home above Dervaig on Mull, with a seasonal set menu of island produce and no licence, so you bring your own bottle.

Visit websiteCall
Welcome

There's something lovely about being cooked for in somebody's home, and Ar Bòrd, Gaelic for "our table", does it beautifully.

Iain Hetherington and Joyce Kayes started it as a supper club, and now run a small restaurant in their house just up the hill from Dervaig, on the road to Tobermory. Dinner is a set menu with a choice at every course, beginning with homemade sourdough and finishing with petit fours. The cooking follows the island and the seasons: shellfish from the creels landed at Croig, wild venison smoked in the house, meat from neighbouring farms, and herbs and mushrooms the two of them forage nearby. In 2026 the Good Food Guide named it Scotland's best local restaurant, and third in all of Britain. There's no licence, so bring your own bottle, picked up at the village shop or the Bellachroy on the way. It's open on Wednesday to Saturday evenings from spring into the autumn, and booking is essential.

The Daily

Arrives at 5am every day.

A free morning email to see what’s on this week, catch up on what’s happening in Scotland and find somewhere new to go.

The Daily for 30 October, from Scotland with love. Aerial view of a teal-coloured lochan cupped in a forested hollow, a scree slope rising on one side and autumn-tinged pines ringing the shore.
Not farTobermory distilleryOne of the oldest working distilleries in Scotland, founded in 1798 at Ledaig in Tobermory, with tours, tastings and a shop.5 milesSee itTobermory distillery
Before you go

Open on summer evenings from Wednesday to Saturday, with booking essential.

Closed for the winter of 2026; it reopens on 31 March 2027, taking bookings from the end of January.

Where
Up the hill as you leave Dervaig towards Tobermory on the B8073, just before the cemetery, PA75 6QN.
Open
From 6.30pm, Wednesday to Saturday, from the end of March into the autumn, with a few nights in November.
The menu
A £55 set menu: sourdough, an amuse-bouche, three courses with three or four choices each, and petit fours. There is always a vegetarian choice.
Drinks
Unlicensed, so bring your own; a small choice of non-alcoholic drinks.
Booking
Essential, by email to dervaigrestaurant@outlook.com or by phone before 5pm.
Children
Not under 12.
Dogs
No pets, because of the open kitchen.
Parking
Accessible parking at the front door, and more in the car park behind, joined to the front by a path.
Phone
01688 400647

Eaten here? Tell others what to order and when to go, and the best go on this page with your name.

Add your tip
Where it is

Up the hill from Dervaig on the B8073 towards Tobermory, in the north of Mull, PA75 6QN.

Close byDervaig and the north of Mull.
  1. Loch Torr Wildlife HideLoch Torr Wildlife HideAn unstaffed Forestry and Land Scotland hide above Loch Torr between Dervaig and Tobermory, for eagles, buzzards and otters.1 mile as the crow flies
  2. Calgary BayCalgary BayThe largest and most accessible beach in north Mull, a long sweep of white shell sand backed by flowering machair, west of Dervaig.4 miles as the crow flies
  3. Calgary Art in NatureCalgary Art in NatureA free woodland sculpture walk through the beech woods above Calgary Bay, begun in 1999, with a café beside the start.4 miles as the crow flies
  4. Dùn Ara's crag across a green field, the sea and hills beyond under a blue sky.Dùn AraA ruined medieval castle of the MacKinnons on a rocky crag on Mull's north coast, reached on foot across the pastures from Glengorm.4 miles as the crow flies
  5. TobermoryTobermoryMull's main town, a planned fishing port of 1788 whose painted houses curve round a sheltered bay on the Sound of Mull.5 miles as the crow flies
  6. A main course at An Cala Ciùin in Tobermory, with asparagus, a potato, a small tart topped with wild garlic flowers and a dark sauce on a grey stone plate.An Cala CiùinA fine dining restaurant on the first floor of the Mishnish Hotel in Tobermory, with tasting menus built on Mull's own produce.5 miles as the crow flies
  7. Eas Fors WaterfallEas Fors WaterfallThree waterfalls by the road north of Ulva Ferry, the last plunging a hundred feet over a cliff into the sea.6 miles as the crow flies
Directions
Inside Am Birlinn: tables under a high timber ceiling, big windows onto the trees.RestaurantsAm Birlinn1.7 miles
Inside the Glass Barn: tables under a glass roof covered in a green vine, the fields beyond the windows.CafeThe Glass Barn3.1 miles
Soup, bread and a daffodil on a table by the window at the café at Calgary.CafeCalgary Bay Co3.5 miles
The whitewashed front of the Tobermory Distillery visitor centre, painted with the year 1798 and bottles.ToursTobermory distillery4.7 miles
The green 'Tobermory Stores' sign over the shop window, a painted mural below.ShoppingTobermory Stores4.7 miles
The pale timber building of Croft 3 on the croft, the sea and hills behind.RestaurantsCroft 34.8 miles
Inside The Galleon: white walls, a high ceiling with a round window, tables and a staircase.RestaurantsThe Galleon4.8 miles
A man serving a customer at the hatch of the Fisherman's Pier trailer, the chalkboard menu beside it.AttractionsFisherman’s Pier Fish and Chips4.9 miles
The blue front of the Hebridean Whale Centre on Tobermory's Main Street.AttractionsHebridean Whale Centre4.9 miles

Recommend to a friend

Stay nearby

Places to stay near the restaurant, and when each is next free.

The house's gabled wing with a decked terrace and two chairs, solar panels along the roof, seen across a grassy slope.Borradill House
  • Sleeps 6
  • In Glenborrodale
  • 13 miles from Ar Bòrd
Free 15–18 NovBorradill Cottage, ArdnamurchanBorradill Cottage
  • Sleeps 4
  • In Glenborrodale
  • 13 miles from Ar Bòrd
Free 29 Nov – 2 DecPlaces to stayEvery stay on MullAll our places to stay nearby, to search by date and by who is coming.See them all
Hidden Scotland, the magazine

Scotland, in print.

We want to show you the best that Scotland has to offer. The makers and the creatives, the enduring experiences, the evocative tales, the concealed corners. The roads less travelled that take you to places that matter. The adventures that gather you up and sweep you away. The blend of the wild and the artistic that makes Scotland what it is. We’d love for you to join us.

Get Issue 13Read it here
Find out more

For further reading, before you go. The details on this page were checked on .