What you should know...: Scotland

Showing posts with label Scotland. Show all posts

20 July, 2009

Callander Meadows, Callander, Scotland

10:58 |

Posted by W |

Edit Post

Our trip to Scotland was lovely; we climbed a few mountains, went on a boat tour, and ate a few meals along the way. Our first night we spent in Callander, Scotland at the Drednought...Not my favorite. Somewhat reminiscent of an elderly person's home, and I mean that as no offense to elderly homes. Oli warned me this might be the case, but it was McNabb!! Haha, so after we got there off we went to wonder around and find dinner.

At the very, I'm going to say, western end of town, we stumbled on a pink building with gates leading back into a meadow and a group of other pink buildings with a sign reading 'Roman Camp'. Oliver and myself hypothecized on what that could mean for a bit, Romany? Gypsies? Romans? Italian camp? We ventured forth. The first thing we saw was mini horses.. Then more pink buildings, a river, then a larger pink building. The place was goregous, and like most of the places in Callander was a hotel and restaurant. Oli ventured in to look at the menu for veggie options while I had a wonder around..

This is the main building of the Roman Camp. Oliver resurfaced from the building with a funny smile and a ton of stories about a huge fireplace, a really tall seating host, and a huge fancy non vegetarian menu. If you're staying in Callander, I suggest you stay here.

On our way we went, still on a quest for food. We stopped at Callander Meadows, greeted by a man from Minnesota we took a look at the menu and found out there was an hour wait, but we put in our name and in less than an hour we were finally eating..

Here's the good stuff..

I ordered the Polenta with ratatouille, wilted chard, truffle oil, and parmesan crisp. Indeed, with truffle on top. Now let me explain that I have always wanted to eat a truffle and be reassured that I sectioned that thing out so that I had a tiny bit with each bite. "what did it taste like?" Mushrooms.

Oli ordered the courgette (zucchini) and pine nut ravioli with grilled fennel. "It was absolutely gorgeous."-Oli

And finally for dessert! We got the 'Wave' dessert, which was a sample of all of the desserts for two. Starting from the back left working our way clockwise; Berry Creme Brule, Sorbet Trio with meringue cookie, Apple Crumble with cream, Ginger Ice-cream, and Bailey's Cheescake. Oli and I both decided that the creme brule was the best, seconded in my opinion by the ginger ice-cream and in Oli's opinion by the sorbet.

My only criticism was that everything was a little melted by the time we got it.. Lame.

All in all lovely meal, and it was nice to finally eat!

I did eventually find vegetarian Haggis in northern Scotland, which was lovely.

websites:

Roman Camp

Callander Meadows

Labels: eating out, Scotland |

0 comments

22 June, 2009

Once upon a time in Scotland..

00:50 |

Posted by W |

Edit Post

Oli and I went off for a wander around Edinburgh this last weekend. I say wander when really I mean we were on a quite specific mission to find and acquire "authentic Scottish tartans" to be mailed back to the U.S. in time for the annual McNabb family reunion. From Oundle the drive is about 5 hours, which is not bad for a girl from Texas, but to an English person it's clearly a feat, so Oli and I set off early that morning and arrived at about lunch time.

Whenever I venture to a new big city I look on HappyCow's Returaunt Guide to find a suitable and often off the beaten path place to eat. As usual HappyCow did not disappoint and we were able to grab a bite at the EngineShed restaurant, a vegetarian cafe/bakery/tofu processor housed in a converted train station. The daily menu was presented on a blackboard but the salad bar was to say the least imaginative; I love the idea of trying something completely new and the EngineShed presented me with plenty of options. I had the butternut squash soup and salad plate and Oli had the lemon and mushroom pasta (though I still regret not venturing for the savory nut pies).

After having grabbed our lunch and a package of fresh tofu we set off shopping, which was exhausting but fruitful. Once we loaded all of our goods in the car I quickly fell asleep after assigning Oli the task of finding a place to eat (as it was now 5pm) before heading back. As I woke up I was pleasantly surprised to see the coast ahead of me and a small village of North Queensferry to my right. We parked the car and set out for a bite and stumbled across the Ferrybridge Hotel, where we were greeted by a lovely bartender/waitress and a group of locals sitting in the corner. Service was quick and friendly and the food was top notch!

Above is a very blurry picture of my grilled mushrooms and blue cheese which was superb; I love English Stilton.

Oli had the haggis in filo dough with a beetroot chutney and liked it very much, I, of course, did not try it as it's quite clearly not vegetarian, but I did have Oli google haggis when we got home.. needless to say he was taken aback.