This restaurant occupies upstairs space in the old Dumfries Mill building, which also houses the…read moreRobert Burns Centre. The service was slow but the food was fantastic. I started with a tomato, lentil, and sage soup; then I had a delicious calamari appetizer--seared, peppery squid pieces served over a rocket salad. My main dish was Moroccan kefta with hummus, cous cous, and minted tomatoes. What a feast, and all of it very good. I also drank a heather ale. Did you know that heather has been used in brewing for about four thousand years, and that only in the sixteenth century did Scottish brewers universally convert to hops to comply with English laws? Fascinating!

I came here for lunch on a weekday. It wasn't too busy, but it seemed like it might have been…read moreunderstaffed because no one could quite figure out who was supposed to serve our table. Finally, the lady behind the drink counter came and took care of us, but it seemed a bit confusing. Once we got the ordering squared away the food came out quickly and it was all delicious. I wanted a light lunch, so I ordered the stuffed potato with a side salad. The salad was crisp and perfectly dressed, while the potato was hot and filling. It was a little pricey for lunch, but the food was so good it balanced out.

Marvellous meal; local produce, warm welcome and ambience…read more Gary and his team were attentative and we had a great experienced chatting to them about their menu and the local area. We had the cullen skink, pork belly bao buns, haggis Bon Bon with a delightfully spiced pepercorn sauce and indulgent mashed potato and the onion rings are a must try also. Thank you team for our visit in January.

Great service, great food. The pork belly is fantastic and the fish and chips are made with catch…read moreoff the boat. Highly recommended. Truly a great spot off the beaten path.

We stayed here for five days while attending a wedding at the nearby Barony Castle, and I can't…read morepraise The Horseshoe Inn enough! The rooms at the inn were small but cozy, with comfortable beds and everything you need included. The free breakfasts at the attached pub were generous and delicious, as were all the meals. The fish and chips were heaven! The chicken and leek pie was amazing, with a flaky crust and creamy, tasty interior. The staff were friendly and helpful but not at all intrusive. And to top it off, the bus from central Edinburgh stops right outside the inn door. The setting is bucolic, the food beyond delicious, the rooms cozy - I really hope I have another chance some day to stay here!

WE SEEMED TO hit every traffic light from Newhaven to Sir Harry Lauder Road as we journeyed south…read moretowards The Horseshoe. I cannot stand others' lateness, particularly when it comes to eating arrangements, so I was slightly embarrassed to call ahead and advise of our unfortunate delay. This unassuming restaurant with rooms is situated 17 miles from Edinburgh city centre, just outside of Peebles (Eddleston to be exact). I knew very little about it, bar the odd comment that "it has a good reputation" and held two AA Rosettes. After a torrid hour-and-a-half trek I was in need of a glass of wine, never mind a three-course lunch. Let's hope that those earlier comments were accurate. A chat with the Maître d' ed to a glass of a rather special Albarino (2014) "Contrapulto" from Rias Baixas, Spain being ordered. It had a stunning colour and texture to it with fruity notes and a hint of lemon. Its richness meant that it was the perfect sipping wine and I reckoned it would pair very well with the seafood dishes I was about to tackle. My starter was an eye-pleasing bowl of smoked pancetta, clams, coco beans and chorizo. It had a wonderful aroma to it. I delved in to find a slight bite to the beans and a rather opulent sauce-come-soup in the bottom that had a welcome smack of salt and smoke from the pancetta. The clams were grit-free, thankfully, and melted in the mouth along with little morsels of squid that graced the plate with a hint of the sea. There was no chorizo as billed, but I didn't miss it; the pancetta flavour was more than enough. Sarah elected to try the pressed pork terrine with sour cherries, cashew nuts, chutney and chicory. Serving temperature can often be an issue with terrines but this one had been allowed to come to room temperature before leaving the kitchen. It was moist and properly set with crunch from the nuts speckled throughout. The apple chutney sliced through the fattiness while the chicory brought contrasting bitter notes, as well as texture. An earthy sweetness was chaperoned in by some courgette ribbons but the best thing about it was the cherries. They weren't overly sour but really harmonised with the other tones of flavour. I fancied the roast but for reviewing purposes had to go for the hake with a crispy fish cake, broccoli and mussels since Sarah won the toss. I say that like it was a chore - it wasn't at all. The fish was beautifully cooked, crisp skin and all. The tasty flakes of hake marvelled in the puddle of juices at the bottom of the bowl where it gleefully played around with some tender shallot rings cooked well enough to still bring bite to the dish. The lemon flavour from the fish cake was what really brought this dish to life; its prominence was admirable and even complemented the expertly executed broccoli stems. Sweet mussels were a little bonus on what was a very accomplished piece of cookery. It would have to be a spectacular roast to top that main course and it was as equally superb. The sirloin of borders beef yielded with little resistance. The Litmus test for a great roast is in the spuds for me, but this attempt was spot on - crisp exteriors and fluffy interiors all round. A crunchy homemade Yorkshire pudding hit the brief but it was the medley of autumnal vegetables that made this dish memorable. The assertive, slight bitterness of the chard was met with sweet carrots and roasted beetroot, but those delectable onion petals were the real star for me. The only quibble here was that Sarah felt the beetroot could have been slightly softer. All good things must come to an end and my lunch concluded with an old-school vanilla rice pudding with poached apricots and apricot sorbet. The key here was that the rice pudding wasn't too sweet and the rice still had a presence. It was creamy but with waves of vanilla tantalising the palette. I got a flavour of cola bottles from somewhere that I really liked and the cold sorbet weighed in with a contrast in temperatures. Cherry savarin with cherry sorbet, vanilla and fig was another pretty dish. The savarin was moist and the different textures on the plate were a deligt to eat. Fig was the dominating flavour rather than the expected cherry but the combinations of the smooth sorbet and the cake, coupled with the vanilla cream, were divine. This was one of the most enjoyable meals I've had this year. The consummate professionalism of the service, outstanding cooking and exemplary wine offerings coalesced to create a fine dining experience that not only ticked all the boxes but came at an extremely reasonable price to boot.

The Steayban is a lovely local family run restaurant with an excellent quality & a high standard of…read morefood you might not expect in a small rural location. Stephen the manager is a fantastic chef great menu options from traditional to multicultural dishes-all that never disappoint. The staff are lovely, down to earth and friendly. I'll definitely be back it's been too long!!:)

We visited this amazing restaurant that was listed in the Michelin guide. We have been all over the…read moreworld to dozens of Michelin stars places and this belongs amongst them. The staff was amazing and the food was incredible. The venison dish there is among the three best dishes we have had in our life. Highly recommend it! The wild mushroom appetizer was incredible as well. We LOVED our experience here!

A real favourite! Under new ownership since summer 2015, this stylish, friendly restaurant is a…read moremust visit. A great bar area with a huge range of gins and great selection of cocktails. The menu changes monthly and is always innovative and the decor feels very light and almost Scandinavian- it's decorated beautifully for Christmas. Have never had a disappointing meal!

This was by far the best dinner we have had all trip. Don't let the entrance to the restaurant…read morescare you away. Climb the stairs and and go to the nice intimate restaurant on the second floor. The night we ate here was very light with customers so we had time to talk to the waitress. We started with a bottle of south Australian Cabernet that was just excellent. Then we dove into the main course. For me it was the smoked haggis stuffed chicken with vegetables. My wife had the Cajun chicken dish. It took about 20 minutes because the Scottish chef had to make them from scratch. Both of our dishes were excellent. Even my wife told me to rate hers as a five and she rarely says that. We finished by sharing a dish with three types of ice creams, all made specifically for this restaurant. One was Scotch whisky flavored and that one was truly unique. I'm not sure we can do better than this dinner on the rest of the trip.

Food was really good...when it finally arrived, the service is slow. Waited about 20 minutes after…read moregetting the dessert menu before we were able to place an order. I'm all it took 2 hours for dinner. Seems like there are multiple people taking orders ( and talking to each other at the service desk - where they have no view of the dining room) but only one person delivering orders (the general manager helping out). I spoke with the general manager and this is the normal operating procedure (many order takers, 3 chefs and one food delivery person) although they were a little disorganized tonight due to some scheduling issues...at this point I had rated this 4 stars Breakfast update No waffles, no vegetarian sausage for the vegetarian cooked breakfast, no smoked salmon and no muffins for the eggs Benedict. Not sure how a hotel that is "fully booked" from months ago can't get their ordering accurate for breakfast Wanted to love this place as the setting of the hotel is great but the restaurant is a bit of a let down.

Having stayed in one of the well booked riverside cottages for two nights, I ate in the restaurant…read morefor two meals: breakfast and dinner. The Scottish breakfast was delicious with eggs, sausage, tomato, mushrooms, baked beans and extra haggis rather than black pudding. At dinner we sampled whisky before and after from the extensive offerings and accompanied our meal with an excellent French red. Starter was bread with salmon cannelloni (which resembled more sashimi and was farmed unfortunately), and mains were beef and haggis pie (rich wine gravy with tender meat and no usual haggis evident), and duck, both accompanied by delicious local veg. The desserts were fabulous and we opted for several varieties of in house made ice creams. I definitely would revisit the site when in Scotland.

Off shoot of the Glasgow restaurant in Troon . Beautifully appointed dining area within the Marine…read moreHotel . Staff were extremely courteous , and helpful . A small menu but food arrived promptly and extremely well presented . The ginger fish cake came as a starter , and was flavoursome and fresh . For mains I had the pumpkin ravioli in a cream sauce which was delicious . My friend had the sea bream with barley which was well cooked and attractive . The dining room was busy for a mid week lunch , but had a peaceful atmosphere the most beautiful view of the sea and The Royal golf course . Would certainly recommend it for nice food and ambience

Classy contemporary annexe to the traditional Black Bull Inn, The Kailyard Restaurant has something…read moreof a wow factor decor-wise. The food is accomplished gastropub in style and the staff are a friendly welcoming bunch. We ate from the special lunchtime/early bird menu which was well balanced and reasonably priced, especially when considering the effort that goes into preparing the delectable twice baked cauliflower souffle on beetroot puree with crisp shredded potato. It's small size (big appetites might choose a heartier starter) meant I had room to try all three courses, a rarity for me! The vegetarian option on the set menu was vegetable penne pasta which is a staple in our household. I look forward to trying their other vegetarian offerings. One small issue was that the beef in the casserole still had some of the yucky stuff attached (technical term that!) which required some deft removal with a knife. It was a wee bit offputting but not the end of the world. The beef casserole had been perfectly lean on a previous visit. Our small group positively drooled over dessert. The sticky toffee pudding was a delight as was the creme brulee. We followed with teas and coffees which came with mini homebaked shortbreads. But we weren't finished with eating yet! The bill was accompanied by yet another home-made confection. Black Bull, you really know the way to our hearts. Compliments to the chef! (Special set menu: 2 courses £11.50, 3 courses £14.50)