If you’re anything like us, then food makes up a big component of an overall trip experience. Join us as we take you through a week of food in Scotland!
Day 1:
Upon arriving into Edinburgh in the late morning and getting from the airport to our Airbnb, we were ready for some real food after a long day of traveling. We made our way over to Papii, a great little cafe to grab some lunch. We both got the meal deal, which is a stellar value at £6 for a sandwich, chips or fruit, and a drink.
PIGGS is a Spanish tapas restaurant with a couple locations within Edinburgh (We ate at the Canongate location). We set up a reservation ahead of time and would recommend doing so for most restaurants in Scotland. For the two of us, we ordered four different tapas dishes to split and found this to be the perfect amount. This included the patatas bravas, albondigas, fabada, and a type of crostini from the specials menu. If we had to recommend one must get dish, it is without a doubt the patatas bravas, but you really can’t go wrong with anything you choose.
Day 2:
If you are seeking a cafe with old world charm and delicious, reasonably priced food, then look no further than Castlegate Cafe. The atmosphere of this cafe with its stone walls and unique lighting and decor are hard to beat. We ordered the Full Scottish Breakfast and the Eggs Benedict. The standout was definitely the Full Scottish Breakfast, a must eat meal when in Scotland. This dish gives you the perfect opportunity to try Scottish classics that are less standard elsewhere in the world including haggis, tattie scones, and british baked beans.
In need of a place to sit after a lot of walking that morning, we stopped into The Wall Coffee & Design House. There Riley ordered himself a coffee that he thoroughly enjoyed, and we relished a nice place to sit amongst the lovely coffee shop atmosphere for a bit.
Mor Bakehouse is a local chain that can be found in multiple locations throughout Edinburgh. They offer an array of UK staples including pasties, sausage rolls, and pies. While you probably won’t find anything groundbreaking here, it makes for an easy lunch spot and is a good opportunity to try some British classics if you never have prior.
Another dinner that we made prior reservations for was at Makars Mash. If you like mashed potatoes whatsoever then you will enjoy this unique offering. The entire premise is that you select your protein and then choose your type of mash. They even offer vegan and gluten free options and grow their own lion’s mane mushrooms on site. Riley’s Royal Haggis was a favorite!
Day 3:
This hidden gem that seemed to be a hit with locals won’t offer much by the way of aesthetics, but it will offer reasonably priced, delicious breakfast sandwiches when you need something on the go. We would definitely recommend it for a quick bite.
As our journey into the Highlands had begun, we stopped for lunch in the small town of Tyndrum. We made our way to The Real Food Cafe and split some of their award-winning, sustainably sourced fish and chips. The portion was plenty for the both of us to share. In hindsight, I can’t really recommend getting something as heavy as fish and chips at lunchtime with a good conscience. But if you are ever in Tyndrum, know you can find a superbly well-done version here.
When thinking of dinner options, a bar may not be the place that comes to mind. But make no mistake as one of the best food offerings in Fort William is at Black Isle Bar. Their signature wood-fired pizzas are made fresh to order and use homegrown and locally sourced ingredients. If you are like us and don’t drink, they do offer non-alcoholic beverage options as well.
Day 4:
Breakfast the following morning was at the Muthu Fort William Hotel where we had stayed the night. Their breakfast spread tops any hotel breakfast I have ever had in the United States. They have everything from eggs, to fruit, toast, sausages, haggis, black pudding, baked beans, hashbrowns, pastries, and more, all to be enjoyed in an elegant dining room overlooking Loch Linnhe.
One of the ways that we save money on trips is by opting to find something for lunch from a local grocery store. In the UK, Co-op‘s abound and they offer a great lunch meal deal for just £4 for non-members (It’s an even better deal at £3.50 if you are a member). The deal includes a main (such as a sandwich or pasta), a side (bag of chips, fruit, or small pastry), and a drink.
Food options in Kyle of Lochalsh are a bit limited, especially depending on the day of the week. This night we opted for old reliable, fish and chips from Hector’s 2 Go. One portion was plenty for us both and we had no complaints. We enjoyed our meal at a picnic table near the shores of Loch Alsh.
Day 5:
Our favorite accommodation of the trip offered a breakfast just as lovely. With several meats, cheeses, fruits, and pastries to choose from you are sure to start your day from The Piper’s Lodge well satisfied. We cannot recommend staying here enough.
The Kyle Chinese Takeaway is open daily which is helpful went looking for food options in a small town such as Kyle. We had taken note of it as an option during our trip preparation, and it was also recommended by a local that we met the night before. Our meals ended up not quite being what we expected, but it fed us nonetheless. They offer a pretty extensive menu so perhaps we just ordered poorly.
SPAR is another grocery store that offers a lunch meal deal, which is what we opted for when we stopped in Spean Bridge.
For our last night in Scotland, we chose to make our way over to Edinburgh Street Food. And let me tell you, it beat all of our expectations. Edinburgh Street Food is a casual dining experience with a collection of food vendors from around the world. You find a seat anywhere and then use the QR code on the table to order and they bring your food straight to you, regardless of what vendor it was from. This is perfect if you enjoy trying multiple food items at a time. We ordered three items, the Pork Belly from The Peruvian, the Korean Braised Short Rib Bao from Bundits, and the Chicken Gyoza from Harajuku. Next time we would probably choose to get something more unique than the gyoza, but the other items were fantastic.
Day 7:
The Milkman is a rather popular spot on social media. It makes sense as both the exterior and interior are very aesthetically pleasing. Unfortunately, we found that it didn’t live up to the hype in our experience. We grabbed two pastries and a coffee, and were a bit underwhelmed.
Side note: The Milkman has two locations, both on Cockburn Street. We originally tried to go to the larger location at the bottom of the street, but they were not open despite their listed hours saying that they were. This led us to the smaller location at the top of the street, which has very little seating. The larger location may be a better choice if they are open.
Some other Edinburgh restaurants that stood out while researching and preparing for our trip that we didn’t get a chance to try are below:
Breakfast/Coffee Shops:
Quick and Affordable Lunch Bites:
Dinner Options:
We hope you enjoyed coming with us on a food tour of Scotland! We barely scratched the surface as great food options abound in Scotland, but we hope this guide was helpful to you in some way.
Check out our other Scotland-related posts below:
- How to Spend One Week in Scotland
- What to Pack for Shoulder Seasons in Scotland