TAYCHREGGAN INN, ARGYLL
care enough to bother asking. There were two butters, one of which was flavoured with paprika and looked for all the world like a slice of salami. Partner tried the blue-cheese bread and liked it, but I refused to eat any. Despite this, the bread remained on our table throughout dessert and right up until the bitter end. A baked leek-and-potato soup arrived in a
piping-hot teacup and you had to knock the dense, dry pastry over the top pretty smartly to break in – and the effort, I regret to say, was hardly worth it. This was more gloop than soup. Once it cooled a bit the flavour was lovely, the leek shining through, but the texture was too glutinous to be solely the result of potato. By contrast, the starter of fried duck egg
with local pheasant was almost cold and the mixture of flavours and textures was completely bewildering. The beautifully cooked egg lay on a bed of celeriac remoulade, which I normally love. But here, with its inexplicable team-mate, it just tasted strange. As did the three or four tiny slivers of pheasant – tasty and gamey as they were – when sampled with vinegary gherkins, peppered kale and a cranberry purée. By this stage, I was convinced head chef
Ondrej Kasan was away and that his deputy had no clue what he was doing. Either that, or chef had had his head turned by the vogue for Scandinavian cuisine, didn’t have the where- withal to execute it, and had ended up with a menu of confusion, rather than fusion, food. If harmony is the holy grail of the modern menu, I’m afraid all I could hear was a car crash. Take the main course of pan-fried cod, for
FIELD FACTS
PRICE Set menu dinner for two, without wine: £90. Dinner, B&B: £165. RATING
Taychreggan Hotel, Kilchrennan, by Taynuilt, near Oban, Argyll PA35 1HQ Tel: 01866 833211 www.taychreggan
hotel.co.uk
Cate Devine is food writer at The Herald
example. This was on the small side, but had properly crispy skin and beautifully flaky flesh. A single scallop sliced into three and pan-fried was also nicely done. But why on earth pair these seafood stalwarts with a piece of pork rib in a sweet-sour sauce so overbearing as to drown out the earthiness of the beetroot purée, basil gel and delicate white wine froth? Despite my rib yielding only the tiniest offering of meat, its sauce killed the dish stone dead. I was so incredulous that it was only later that I wondered what the beetroot was doing there in the first place. And so to pudding. A square of warm date
cake, a smear of spiced prune purée, a scoop of caramel ice-cream on a bed of coffee/chocolate ‘soil’ at least had a consistency of theme, but it just felt bitty and the parts of this dish did not get anywhere near consensus. I didn’t bother with my distinctly ripe square
of Ayrshire Griffel with oatcakes and chutney, but partner loved it and scoffed both helpings. Coffee was weak and warm and a tiffin petit- four much too heavy. It was just as well we had our lovely room to
escape to.
EDITOR’SCHOICE Remote restaurants worth travelling for
RODEL HOTEL, ISLE OF HARRIS As if Harris isn’t remote enough, Rodel is right up a track on the southern tip of the island. The food is contemporary Scottish and heavily-weighted towards
seafood, although venison and grouse in season also feature. Don’t expect it to be cheap though. 01859 520210;
www.rodelhotel.co.uk
CAMPBELL’S, PORTPATRICK, GALLOWAY This unprepossessing little restaurant on the harbourfront looks like a bungalow but chef Robert Campbell uses flapping fresh seafood to conjure up
some great dishes, while wife Diane runs the front of house with relaxed yet military precision. 01776 810314;
www.campbellsrestaurant.co.uk
OLD PINES, SPEAN BRIDGE This restaurant near the Commando Monument is beloved of our fishing columnist and veteran foodie Jon Gibb, and no wonder: it’s relaxed and
has a wonderfully well-balanced menu that showcases all that’s best about Lochaber. 01397 712324;
www.oldpines.co.uk
CADDY MANN, MOUNTHOOLY, BORDERS Hearty, traditional fare in informal and unpretentious surroundings have earned Lynne and Ross Horrocks’ Caddy Mann an award in the Scottish Borders
Best Taste competitions in each of the last 13 years. 01835 850787;
www.caddymann.com
CORROUR STATION RESTAURANT, Sited at Britain’s most remote mainline station, Corrour is in the middle of Rannoch Moor and ten miles from the nearest road. Young chef Ollie Bennett’s
venison-dominated food is rustic, perfect for the harsh conditions and good value. 01397 732236;
www.corrour-station-house-restaurant.co.uk
HARBOUR RESTAURANT, GARDENS- TOWN, NEAR BANFF, ABERDEENSHIRE The scary slope is worth braving for this remarkable 12-cover restaurant run by local farmers Roger and Jane. Open Fri-Sun only (plus Thursday in season),
the choice is between 14oz fillet steak or fish of the day, the top ingredients matched only by the cooking and value (£22 set menu). 01261 851663
YOURSAY
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