Restaurants in Highlands & Northern Islands
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Ferry Boat Inn
Known as the FBI, this inn is to Ullapool what the castle is to Edinburgh. The pub’s a little less traditional-looking these days with its bleached wood and nonstained carpet, but it’s still the place where locals and visitors mingle. Some dishes on the menu are a little bland, but a well-run dining room, quality ingredients and great presentation compensate.
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Café 1
Café 1 is a friendly and appealing little bistro with candlelit tables amid elegant blonde-wood and wrought-iron decor. There is an international menu based on quality Scottish produce, from succulent Aberdeen Angus steaks to crisp sea bass with chilli, lime and soy sauce. Lunch and early-bird menu (two courses for £9.50) is served noon to 6.45pm weekdays, and noon to 3pm Saturday.
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Café Arriba
Arriba is a funky little cafe, brightly decked out in primary colours and offering the best choice of vegetarian grub on the island, ranging from a veggie breakfast fry-up to Indian-spiced bean cakes with mint yoghurt, as well as carnivorous treats such as slow-cooked haunch of venison with red wine and beetroot gravy. Also serves excellent coffee.
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Frigate Café
This waterfront cafe is a popular venue for coffee, tea and ice cream; it also sells a very tasty local smoked cheese. But you can also sit down and graze the Italian-influenced menu of salads, pizzas and pastas, or just drop by for a glass of wine or a beer.
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Gallan Head Hotel
If you fancy dining or staying somewhere really unusual, head to the Gallan Head Hotel, possibly the most remote fine-dining restaurant in Europe. It’s housed in a converted, pine-clad military prefab that’s perched above a wild, cliff-bound Atlantic cove 3 miles north of Timsgarry. The food is superb – local seafood, lamb and venison expertly prepared – and the setting unique. Booking is recommended. If you want to stay the night, there are five beautifully refurbished double rooms (from £35 per person).
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Oystercatcher Restaurant
Seafood aficionados shouldn’t miss the bright and cheerful Oystercatcher Restaurant. There’s a bistro menu at lunchtime, where you can choose your serving size, and a classy brasserie evening menu with lots of lobster available, among other delights.
It also offers three cosy rooms (s/d £43/98). The rate includes what has to be the most amazing breakfast in Scotland, with numerous gourmet options – you can book it even if you’re not staying there overnight (£20).
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Bonaventure
Bonaventureis the most remote French restaurant in Europe. It’s housed in a converted, pine-clad military prefab that’s perched above a wild, cliff-bound Atlantic cove 3 miles north of Timsgarry. The food is superb – local seafood, lamb and venison prepared by the resident French chef/owner – and the setting unique. Booking is essential. If you want to stay the night, there are three comfy double rooms (from £25 per person).
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Morefield Motel
This sedate motel serves an outstanding medley of local seafood, including langoustine, salmon, swordfish and lobster, in its lounge bar. It has a deservedly fine reputation and is popular with locals and tourists alike. There’s not much atmosphere, so come for the food not the buzz. If you can’t decide from the extensive menu and specials board, choose the seafood sampler. The motel is off the A835, a mile north of the harbour (follow Mill St).
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Bar 16
This is Thurso trying to get tarted up. It attracts a mix of tourists and locals looking for something a bit classier than trawling the scruffy local pubs in town. A modern space with couches and comfy chairs possessing a hint of minimalism, it’s a bit sterile but there’s a little sun-filled courtyard perfect for an evening drink. Steer clear of the seafood salad but try the chicken fajitas or sirloin steak baguette for a winner.
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Digby Chick
A modern restaurant that dishes up bistro cuisine such as haddock and chips, sesame-glazed pork belly or garlic-roasted mushroom with duck-egg salad at lunchtime, the Digby Chick metamorphoses into a candlelit gourmet restaurant in the evening, serving dishes such as grilled langoustines, seared scallops, roast lamb and steak. You can get a two-course lunch for £10 (11.30am to 2pm), and a three-course dinner for £20 (5.30pm to 6.30pm only).
reviewed
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Holborn
A trendy, comfortable place decked out in light wood, the Holborn contrasts starkly with more traditional Thurso watering holes. Quality seafood – including delicious home-smoked salmon – is the mainstay of a short but solid menu at its Red Pepper restaurant, where desserts are excellent too.
Its bar, Bar 16, is a modern space with couches and comfy chairs where bar meals (£7 to £10) are uncomplicated but decent.
reviewed
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Cross
Housed in a converted water mill beside the Allt Mor burn, the Cross is one of the finest restaurants in the Highlands. The intimate, low-raftered dining room has an open fire and a patio overlooking the stream, and serves a daily-changing menu of fresh Scottish produce accompanied by a superb wine list. If you want to stay the night, there are eight stylish rooms (double or twin £100 to £140) to choose from.
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Kirkwall Hotel
This grand old hotel on the waterfront is one of Kirkwall’s best places to dine. The elegant bar and eating area packs out; it’s one of Kirkwall’s favourite spots for an evening out with the clan. There’s a fairly standard pub-food list that’s complemented by a seasonal menu featuring local seafood and meat – the lamb is delicious.
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Queen’s Hotel
The dining room in this slightly run-down hotel wins marks for its harbour views – book one of the window tables. While some of the roast-pork-with-fish combo platters are a bit strange, the seafood here is pretty good – the catch of the day is reliable, and the Queen’s stew is a feast of molluscs and crustaceans. Portions are generous, too.
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Reel
Part music shop and part cafe, Kirkwall’s best coffee-stop sits alongside St Magnus Cathedral, and bravely puts tables outside at the slightest threat of sunshine. It’s a relaxed spot that’s good for morning-after debriefing, as well as lunchtime panini and musically named sandwiches (along with their cheese one: Skara Brie). It’s a centre for local folk musicians, with regular evening sessions.
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Contrast Brasserie
Book early for what we think is the best restaurant in Inverness – a dining room that drips designer style, smiling professional staff, a jug of water brought to your table without asking, and truly delicious food. Try mussels with Thai red curry, wild mushroom risotto, or pork belly with glazed walnuts and watercress; 10 out of 10. And at £10 for a two-course lunch, the value is incredible.
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Hamnavoe Restaurant
Tucked away off the main street, this Stromness favourite specialises in excellent local seafood backed up by professional service. There’s always something good off the boats, and the chef prides himself on his lobster. Booking is a must. From November to March, it’s only open Saturday and Sunday for dinner; in summer it also opens for lobster lunches on Saturday.
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Arch Inn
There's plenty to like about this waterfront inn, from its cosy bar (with pool table) serving comfort food like bangers and mash, to its classy upstairs restaurant with glorious loch views and smart creations using Scottish produce with a regional French twist. The outdoor tables right beside the lapping water are a top spot for a pint.
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The Seaforth
Accolades for the seafood dishes at this place are growing, which include homemade fish pie, a platter of creel-caught langoustines and crayfish tails with apple salad. Eat in the bustling pub downstairs with its booth seating, or for more sedate dining venture upstairs to the bistro where a tastefully furnished room and another bar is a good setup for families or groups.
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Mustard Seed
This bright and bustling bistro brings a dash of big-city style to Inverness. The menu changes weekly, but focuses on Scottish and French cuisine with a modern twist. Grab a table on the upstairs balcony if you can – it’s the best outdoor lunch spot in Inverness, with a great view across the river. And a two-course lunch for £6 – yes, that’s right – is hard to beat.
reviewed
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Peerie Shop Cafe
If you’ve been craving proper espresso since leaving the mainland, head to this gem of a spot, with art exhibitions, wire-mounted halogens and industrial-gantry chic. Newspapers, scrumptious cakes and sandwiches, hot chocolate that you deserve after that blasting wind outside, and – more rarely – outdoor seating give everyone a reason to be here.
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The Mountain Coffee Company & Hillbillies Bookshop
The Mountain Coffee Company & Hillbillies Bookshop is a shrine to all things mountaineering and has a lazy, chilled-out vibe. It sells excellent hearty food for walkers, best consumed in the attached conservatory. Besides, how can you go past a place that sells a mars bar cappuccino, New York bagels and mountain scones?
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Pork, Cheese & Pie Shop
This deli sells a wide range of quality Scottish produce, but the main event as far as we’re concerned is the great selection of delicious gourmet pies (to take away) – choose from lamb and rosemary, game and blackberry or Cumberland sausage and tomato (and many others), and munch contentedly on a park bench beside the river.
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Ferry Inn
Near the ferry dock in Scrabster, this traditional stone pub has rather ugly extensions, but these house the busy restaurant. It specialises in steaks – pick your size – and local haddock; we reckon it’s a tad overpriced but the evening view over the harbour is great. Cheaper bar meals (£8 to £11) are downstairs, along with a pool table.
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Blasta
An unpretentious interior of polished wood, plain white walls and black leather chairs puts the focus on the food at this popular local bistro (the name is Gaelic for ‘tasty’). Local produce is showcased in dishes such as venison steak with sweet potato and ginger puree, and smoked salmon with egg mimosa and watercress dressing.
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