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The low brick café at Ettrick Bay on a sunny day, with blue pillars and doors, benches and parasols along the front.
Argyll and Bute

Ettrick Bay Café

A beach café at the back of Ettrick Bay on Bute's west coast, for home baking, breakfast and lunch looking out to Arran.

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Welcome

Ettrick Bay is a mile of golden sand on the west coast of Bute, and its beach café sits right at the back of it, looking out over the water to the hills of Arran.

For years it was known as the Ettrick Bay Tearoom, and it's still the place to warm up after a walk along the shore.

Inside there are comfy booths and a counter full of home baking, from cakes to brownies and doughnuts, and the kitchen does breakfasts, rolls and lunches, with specials on the board. Dogs are welcome, and there are tables outside for a sunny day. It's open every day from 11am to 4pm, and from 10am to 5pm on Saturdays, with free parking beside the café. Rothesay is about ten minutes away by car, so it's an easy one to pair with a morning in town.

A short drive awayKettledrum CaféA family-run café and bistro on East Princes Street in Rothesay, for fish and chips, pies and early dinners.10 min by roadSee itThe Kettledrum café on its corner in Rothesay, a red shopfront with CAFE in white letters above the door.
Before you go

Open every day, 11am to 4pm, and 10am to 5pm on Saturdays (Google).

Dogs are welcome, and there is free parking beside the café.

Hours
Daily 11am to 4pm; Saturday 10am to 5pm.
Phone
07534 417775
Dogs
Welcome.
Parking
Free, beside the café.
Access
Step-free entrance, seating and toilet.

Opening hours

Monday
11am–4pm
Tuesday
11am–4pm
Wednesday
11am–4pm
Thursday
11am–4pm
Friday
11am–4pm
Saturday
10am–5pm
Sunday
11am–4pm
Where it is

At the back of the beach at Ettrick Bay, on the west coast of the Isle of Bute, PA20 0QX.

Close byAround Bute.
  1. The wide sands of Ettrick Bay at low tide.Ettrick BayA mile of golden sand on the north-west coast of Bute, looking across to Arran.Under a mile1 min by road
  2. Display cases of birds and finds in Bute Museum's hall.Bute MuseumThe island's own museum on Stuart Street in Rothesay, by the castle, with the archaeology, history and wildlife of Bute.5 miles10 min by road
  3. The castle walls reflected in the moat.Rothesay CastleThe round, moated castle of the Stewarts in the middle of Rothesay, with Scotland's only circular curtain wall.5 miles10 min by road
  4. Mount Stuart's red sandstone front across the lawns.Mount StuartThe red sandstone Gothic mansion of the Marquesses of Bute, with a marble hall and chapel and 300 acres of gardens.9 miles19 min by road
  5. Scalpsie Bay's sand and the green fields behind, from above.Scalpsie BayA quiet red-sand bay on Bute's west coast, with a seal colony on its rocks and Arran across the water.9 miles12 min by road
Directions
Rothesay Castle's round walls behind its moat.AttractionsIsle of Bute2.4 miles over the water
The white shopfront of Musicker on Rothesay's High Street, its name on a green sign above the windows.CafeMusicker4.9 miles
The Kettledrum café on its corner in Rothesay, a red shopfront with CAFE in white letters above the door.CafeKettledrum Café5.0 miles
Rothesay's seafront terraces rising above the bay.AttractionsRothesay Town5.1 miles
The front of Ambience on Victoria Street, Rothesay, under its blue awning.RestaurantsAmbience Café5.1 miles
The roofless gable of St Mary's Chapel among the graves.AttractionsSt Mary’s Chapel5.5 miles
A bus on the shore road round the wide sandy bay, the village beyond.AttractionsKilchattan Bay14 miles
The ruins of St Blane's under a blue sky.AttractionsSt Blane's Chapel15 miles
Stay nearby

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

The Hollies, Argyll and ButeThe Hollies
  • Sleeps 18
  • In Argyll and Bute
  • 5 miles from Ettrick Bay Café
Check datesA white harled house with crow-stepped gables catches the sunset glow above a loch, yellow flowering shrubs in the foreground.Glenstriven House
  • To stay
  • In Argyll and Bute
  • 7 miles from Ettrick Bay Café
Free 25–27 OctPlaces to stayEvery stay in Argyll and ButeAll our places to stay nearby, to search by date and by who is coming.See them all
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