3 Luxury Scottish Food Experiences With a Traditional Approach

When it comes to finding luxury cuisine on an international level, Scotland might not strike you as a place of fine wine and comfortable hotels… but it should!Tourists travel to Scotland expecting wet weather and overcast clouds. They line up to sample whiskey, spot deer from the windows, and enjoy skiing on Ben Nevis or Glencoe in the winter. One thing you do not picture when you travel to the Highlands is to find a Michelin Star restaurant.

In fact, there are 10 Michelin Starred restaurants in this wild, cold land. The following are top picks offering opulence, elegance, and a traditional menu.Don’t let the international jokes about haggis put you off. Scotland has seasonal flavors, homemade produce, and plenty of arable land to rear wholesome cattle on. It has romantic views and castles you can hire for your stay. These three restaurants bring am opulent, luxurious approach to traditional dishes. 

#1 Loch Bay on the Isle of Skye

Combine the exceptional beauty of Skye with the taste of Scottish high seas in the Loch Bay restaurant. This exclusive restaurant has a Scottish seafood and seasonal produce focus against the backdrop of an island known for its outstanding beauty. This diamond of a find seats only 16 people. It is a French-Scots restaurant run by a husband and wife team of chefs. Recently awarded the Michelin Star, they take bookings of up to 6 and welcome children over 12 years old. 

Sharpening the best blade on the best whetstone, Michael and Laurence Smooth combine forces to produce interesting menus. Produce and local bounties appearing on this menu include Highland Wood Pigeon, fish caught fresh from the bay, locally hand dived scallops, sea weeds, Skye sea salt, and a myriad of other beautiful dishes.

#2 Gleneagles Estate, Perthshire

You cannot mention high class living in the UK without mentioning Gleneagles. Spend your days relaxing on the golf course or retire to your five-star hotel.  Andrew Fairlie, an internationally acclaimed chef in charge of a 2 Michelin Star restaurant. The difference between this restaurant and any other is that extra star. The whole atmosphere here has been designed for the upper echelons of society. The golf course comes with caddies and drinks on demand. The hotel has its own luxury spa. Gleneagles is for those who can afford it. 

The kitchen has its own walled garden filled with salads, vegetables, herbs, and edible flowers. Scottish lobster is on the menu, as is Borders roe deer, mussels, local apples, razor clams, and many other delicacies. Finish your night with a specially selected malt scotch whisky selection, chosen to match the menu by chef himself.

#3 The Peat Inn, St Andrews

Now, at first glance the Peat Inn projects an air of chic modern living. The dining room is bright and friendly, the staff are engaging and respectful, and the chef proprietor has a degree in history. Geoffrey Smeddle combines originality with seasonal produce to create a contemporary twist on reinspired traditional meals. The Peat Inn captures the traditions of those who came before us, using the seasons to plan the menu. Favorites here include red mullet, Baldinnie quail eggs, sea trout, Scottish scallops, and more. 

These are only three of the top luxury dining experiences in Scotland – imagine the options you still have to explore.