island, Ordinary, Scones, self-service

Brodick Castle

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On the opposite side of Brodick Bay from our hotel stands the imposing Brodick Castle. We have been here before but having looked across the water at it for the past few days we thought another visit might be worthwhile. But first, so that you can get this scone in context, a little history.

King Hakon and all that

Some sort of fortification has been on this site since at least the fifth century. By the tenth century Norse influence had grown, and Arran was controlled by King Hakon of Norway. However, when some Scottish upstarts began to question his authority, he sent a large fighting fleet to sort things out. That resulted in the Battle of Largs in 1263 … which he lost. He retreated to Brodick and then to Orkney where he died the following yeBrodick Castle 03ar. The ensuing Treaty of Perth in 1266 ceded Arran and other islands to the Kingdom of Scotland. Oliver Cromwell occupied the castle for a while and then it fell to the Hamilton family who occupied it for several centuries. In 1957 it was gifted to the nation by the Duchess of Montrose to avoid death duties. The National Trust for Scotland eventually took it over.. and now we are here!

Scottish produce

The grounds are immaculately kept and there is a tearoom for visitors but of course today we’re sitting outside in the spring sunshine. Like most NTS places, it is self-service so we duBrodick Castle 05ly selected a mixture of cheese and fruit scones. Sometimes, if we are feeling particularly daring, we mix things up and have half each. Everything was fine though we can sometimes get a little irritated by the presence of the ubiquitous tubs of Rodda’s cornish cream. The Arran Creamery is just down the road, do we really have to bring it all the way from Cornwall? The jam was from Manchester … c’mon NTS! Do you know what the ‘S’ in your name stands for? What must tourists think?

Brodick Castle 07The scones were very nice but not quite nice enough for a topscone. We got plenty exercise chasing fly away napkins but, all in all, it was a lovely scone-break in a beautiful setting.

MacBraynes

We have probably traveled on a couple of dozen ferries over the past year or so and, as a consequence, have become quite familiar with Caledonian MacBrayne. It was once said that “God gave us the earth and MacBraynes the Western Isles”. A slight, inferring that the ferry company held the islands to ransom. There may have been an element of truth in that at one time but, with the introduction of RET (Road Equivalent Tariff), not any more. Our trip to Arran, involving four ferries, cost a grand total of just over £50 for a car and four passengers. Not too bad at all!

Building ships in Scotland again

So, we are delighted with the news that the Scottish government, in the face of all the EU regulations, have managed to award the ongoing £900m contract to publicly owned CalMac over privately owned Serco. And build their ships on the Clyde. Even King Hakon would have been proud.Brodick Castle 02

We had walked along the beach to Brodick Castle from our hotel but decided to get the bus back. Brodick Castle 08The bus stop on the main road opposite the castle entrance makes waiting for the bus a real pleasure. There were seals sunning themselves on a rock and an oystercatcher’s nest on the seaward side of the wall. You are almost annoyed when the bus comes.

Amongst other things, today we saw siskins, sedge warblers, guillemots and red-legged partridges. Alas, still no eagles.

KA27 8HY       tel: 0844 493 2152           Brodick

island, Scones, Top

Machrie Bay Tearoom

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We are still on our quest to see how many different species of bird we can see on Arran. Today we are in the SW of the island but the only place that seemed to be open in Blackwaterfoot was the Kinloch Hotel and we had already reviewed that last year. However, just a hop, skip and a jump along the coast we came to the Machrie Bay Tearoom. It was well and truly open!Machrie 03

Best buns on the beach

Apparently in the middle of nowhere, it is part of the Machrie Golf Club. It has tennis courts, play area for kiddies and everything else you could wish for. Including a good range of scones, all baked by Granny Rae. They obviously don’t take themselves too seriously when their advertising is “best buns on the beach” … would it have the best scones though, that was the burning question? It was scorchio once again so we sat out on their decked area looking towards the Mull of Kintyre surrounded by a party of Americans over here tracing their family roots.

Machrie 01 We were not sufficiently famished to tackle the Machrie Bay afternoon tea but one arrived at the next table so we asked the two lovely Shiskine ladies who were sharing it if we could take a photograph. Turned out they had won it in a raffle! It looked very good, particularly the scones, but they didn’t offer to share any of them. We eventually had to resort to buying our own. There were fruit scones and cherry scones but we opted to try the cheese and the apple and cinnamon. Machrie 05They arrived on lovely heart shaped plates  with lots of jam and were soon followed by a large plate of whipping cream.  Whoever Granny Rae is, she certainly knows how to rustle up a scone. They were excellent, and definitely the best scones we have had so far on Arran … easy topscone. Well done Machrie Bay Tearoom!  Machrie 04a

After our recent quest to find a Scottish tea plantation it was great to get some fab Scottish coffee. Okay, okay it’s not exactly Scottish coffee but it is roasted in Scotland and on a day like today they could probably roast it on our table.

Palmyra and birdwatching

From where we were sitting in the tearoom it was only a thirty minute hike to the site of the famous Machrie Stones, which consist of numerous ancient standing stones mysteriously arranged in circles, sort of Arran’s answer to Palmyra. However, unless there was a golden eagle perched on top of each one, it simply was not going to happen. Instead we continued practising the, ‘shades on, face towards the sun‘, approach to birdwatching.

Poverty and ripped jeans

Actually we did think we had seen a golden eagle earlier in the day at Shannochie. On reflection however it was probably too far south so probably a buzzard. Or maybe a swallow! Still no eagles on our list. You can measure the level of poverty in the UK by the number of people, especially young women, whose jeans are all worn and ripped. The delightful young woman who served us was a particular example … badly torn at the knees. We left a healthy tip for her to put towards new ones.

KA27 8DZ       tel: 01770 840329      Machrie Bay Tearoom

island, Ordinary, Scones

Felicity’s at Eden Lodge

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Kings Cross Point looking towards Brodick and Goatfell, Holy Isle on the right
Kings Cross Point looking towards Brodick and Goatfell, Holy Isle on the right

We are at beautiful Kings Cross Point, just opposite the buddhist retreat of Holy Isle. After a morning spent bird watching and exploring Viking forts, we were well and truly in need of refreshment by the time we reached Felicity’s at Eden Lodge in Whiting Bay. We have decided that all tourists to Arran should have to go on a course. It would explain when things are open on the island. Some are closed on Mondays, some Tuesdays and others are closed on Wednesdays … confusing! Felicity's 01

Having tried some places that were closed we ended up here at Felicity’s at Eden Lodge. in a way, we were happy because this place was probably the nicest. The couple who run it have only had it a year and don’t have the hotel side of things operational yet but when they do it should be good. They did their training at Gleneagles. We were looked after by a young chap from Rockhampton in Northern Queensland. He had been on Arran for about three months but was struggling with the heat!!

We got ourselves a table beside the bowling green … and, away from the sea breeze, it was scorchio! A scone at Felicity's of Eden Lodge, Isle of ArranWhen our scones arrived, complete with jam and clotted cream, it was obvious we would have to scoff them pretty quickly before the cream melted. This we did, and they were very good, but once again not quite topscones. Would we ever get an Arran topscone before we had to leave the island? Worrying!

Pretend birdwatching

As dedicated bird watchers, we have discovered something. When you are sitting there, replete with scones and coffee, the gentle sound of waves on the shore, shades on, faces pointing to the sun,  you can pretend you are earnestly looking for golden eagles. Though snoring does tend to give the game away.

Dirty tricks

Cameron has also been caught out with his back-door dealings with big businesses, like Serco, to back his ‘Remain’ campaign. We are not backing ‘Leave’ or ‘Remain’ yet but we don’t like the tactics. Just as we didn’t like them in the Scottish referendum. Oh, and joy of joys, the world’s largest oil field has been discovered off Shetland. Did you know that? Barely a word about it in the press or on TV. On the basis that nothing remotely good for Scotland can be reported it is hardly surprising. It might make us more uppity than we already are. Anyway, besides all that, is that a golden eagle or a swallow?

KA27 8QH           tel: 01770 700357               Felicity’s 

island, Ordinary, Scones

The Douglas Hotel

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We arrived a day early for our Scottish Wildlife Trust outing on Arran and stayed the first night at one of our favourite places, the Kilmichael Country House in Glen Cloy. There were peacocks all over the place. We thought that they would give us a sneaky head start over everyone else with our bird list. They are a pernickety lot however in the SWT. We were left in no doubt that peacocks were not allowed on the list .. verboten! The rest of our stay was to be here at the Douglas in Brodick, just a stone’s throw from the ferry terminal. It’s built from locally quarried red sandstone. In 1782 it spent some time as the doctor’s house until eventually becoming a hotel in 1852.

the MacNab
the MacNab

A couple of years ago it underwent complete modernisation and now terms itself ’boutique’. If ’boutique’ means having vast beds then it definitely qualifies for that sobriquet. If there’s anyone in bed with you, you certainly had to go searching in order to find them! Not sure why they have a large portrait of ‘The MacNab’ in reception. Maybe he liked the beds as well. He never married but had 35 illegitimate children.

Anyway, there was no way we were going to be able to stay here for the best part of a week without sampling their scones. We thought we might as well get it over and done with. Douglas 01We decided to sit out on the patio area overlooking Brodick Bay while a young cheery chap from Kilmarnock buzzed to and fro bringing us tea, coffee, scones etc. The scones were good, full of fruit but hot, almost too hot to handle. Pat had a cheese scone but it had to be left to cool down as well. Not topscones but who cares when you get great service and all you have to do is sit and watch the ferries coming and going. If there is one in you wonder when it will leave. If there isn’t one in you wonder when one will arrive .. exciting!

View from our table
View from our table
Election results

The dust has now settled on the elections and, in Scotland, the media have hailed the results in rather peculiar ways. They have made much of Labour’s continuing failure to recognise that Scotland has changed. They have also trumpeted the Tory’s supposed rejuvenation?? When the Scottish Tory vote collapsed to 24% in 1987 under the much hated Margaret Thatcher, who would have thought that a trifling 30 years later it would have rebounded to 22%. What are they on about?

One thing the media has not made much of is the SNP success. Their achievement – increasing seats and votes after almost 10 years in power is truly astounding yet gets only grudging acknowledgment. If it gets any at all. Anyway, who cares when all you have to do is sit in the sunshine eating scones, watching ferries come and go. Oh, and the red breasted mergansers swimming in the bay. Lots of them, and they’re allowed!

KA27 8AW     tel: 01770 302968      Douglas Hotel

Ordinary, Scones

Out of the Blue Bistro

It’s not often we find ourselves in Strachur, and we had no intention of being here today either! We were taking the scenic four ferry route to Arran for a few days with the Scottish Wildlife Trust. Wemyss Bay to Rothesay, Rhubodach to Colintraive, Portavadie to Tarbert, Cloanaig to Lochranza. When we got to Portavadie, however, we found that the Tarbert ferry  had broken down. You can plainly see Tarbert from Portavadie. It’s just over there across the water. However, there was no alternative but to drive the 90 mile detour round Loch Fyne … arrrggh!

Not far from Strachur - looking down the Kyles of Bute
Not far from Strachur – looking down the Kyles of Bute

 

 

 

 

 

Diversions

By way of compensation of course it meant driving through some wonderful countryside but, nice as it was, one cannot live on scenery alone. Strachur  was as far as we got before we had to stop for sustenance. As we drove round the corner, out of the blue, we came on the Out Of The Blue Bistro .. brill!

Looking from the bistro to the shop
Looking from the bistro to the shop

 

No idea why it has that name Out of the Blue Bistro except that you do come on it quite suddenly. As well as a bistro it serves as the local Post Office and shop. In other words, it is the beating heart of Strachur. Although it was quiet when we were there it is a popular place with locals and, by all accounts, has a good reputation for delicious food. We were just here for a scone of course and before long the attentive staff had us all sorted. Out of the Blue 04Unfortunately the scones, although quite acceptable, were not top notch. There was a suspicion that they might have been microwaved and that sometimes makes them a bit flabby. Loads of jam and whipped cream though so ten out of ten for effort and hospitality.

Eurovision

Unfortunately, or fortunately depending on which side you are on, Ukraine has just won the Eurovision song contest, sparking major unrest in Russia who, along with almost everyone else, thought they should have won. It didn’t help that the Ukrainian song, ‘1944’, was about the year that Stalin deported all the Tatars from their native Crimea … ouch! Hope it does not come to it but who would have thought that Eurovision had the potential to start a war. The important thing to remember is that Australia came second, otherwise it would be difficult to take the European song contest seriously.

We will be in holiday mode for the next week or so. That generally means more scones than usual, so prepare yourselves for a veritable avalanche of posts. We have also started a bird list of all the different species we see during the trip. If anyone wants to guess the final score you can put it in the comments. We will reveal the final tally when we get back … exciting!

PA27 8DD      tel: 01369 860221     Out of the Blue Bistro & Shop FB

Ordinary, Scones

The Butterfly Inn

This is just one of the restaurants servicing what is probably the biggest and busiest furniture store in the country. Sterling Furniture warehouse in Tillicoultry was set up in 2001 in what was originally a woollen mill, one of many lining the southern edge of the Ochil hills. In 1921 Samuel Jones Ltd converted it to a paper mill which specialised in coated papers. They marketed these under their Butterfly trade mark. Butterfly 06They used the image to promote the idea that they could print more than one colour onto a single sheet of paper. Ludicrous nowadays but, at the time, it was obviously a bit special.

The butterfly in question was the Camberwell Beauty a rare visitor to the UK from Scandinavia and first seen in the London burgh in 1748. Anyway this is simply a long winded way of saying how this place gets its name. Although the restaurant itself does not make it obvious. We think they should.

Medication

There is soooooo much furniture around in Sterling. Unless you are careful, ‘furniture blindness’ can set in, a common complaint in these parts, especially amongst men. Butterfly 03The symptoms (everything starts to look the same) can only be relieved by a cup of tea and a scone. It was almost closing time when we arrived at the Butterfly Inn. At least one of us was in fairly desperate need of medication.  Just closing and probably could have seen us far enough but we were made very welcome. Butterfly 04The scones were okay but a tad on the firm side and jam was charged as an extra which always makes the overall deal expensive .. and there was no cream. All in all, not a great experience.

Views on Europe

‘Butterfly’ could be used to describe Cameron’s stance on Europe. One minute he is threatening to pull us out unless he gets his way on renegotiation; next minute, after a few totally inconsequential adjustments, he says leaving the EU would be an unmitigated disaster! Not so much a rare Camberwell Beauty as a common Westminster Plonker.

FK13 6NS        tel: 01259 751596           Butterfly Inn

Ordinary, Scones

Café Circa Abernyte

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It’s quite a while since we have been here.  The lovely hamlet of Abernyte lies in the Sidlaw Hills just west of Dundee. According to its own historical society, Abernyte has never been visited by anyone famous and nothing of interest has ever happened here … quite an achievement for a village that’s been around for at least 800 years! Just along the road however there is Dunsinane Hill made famous by Shakespeare; “Macbeth shall never vanquished be, until Great Birnam wood to high Dunsinane hill shall come against him.” At a tad over 1000ft many might think that the bard was prone to a bit of exaggeration but it does mean that Dunsinane Hill qualifies as a Marilyn (hill over 150m). You probably are more aware of the hills over 3000 feet which are called Munros. See the connection?

Something is happening

Anyway some things happen in Abernyte, the Scottish Antique & Arts Centre was established a few years back on the outskirts of the village and 2016 sees the opening of Abernyte Brewery .. so, actually  it’s all happening here. Abernyte 03We used to be regular visitors to this SAAC and it’s sister establishment in Doune. Whilst we still like  rummaging around amongst antiques, other things have taken up our time lately. Rummaging time has been sorely limited … but not today. We never know what we are looking for but when we see it we will want it and it will probably be something we absolutely don’t need. That’s how these places work.

After some serious rummaging though you are slowly but surely drawn towards Cafe Circa, the restaurant at the centre of the Centre .. the smell of coffee becomes overpowering. The restaurant is a French/Scottish concern and has a reputation for good food. When we arrived however Abernyte 07it was late in the day and there didn’t seem to be any staff around. I ended up having to go to the counter to find someone. After that we were looked after very well. Their head baker, Michelle Stewart, won an award last year for her efforts but  would her scones survive critical examination? No problem, nicely presented and excellent texture. The only slight blot on their copy book was the fact that we were not offered cream … like some other people who came after us .. boo! These scones were teetering on the brink of a topscone award but eventually just fell short .. shame.

restaurant set up for the next day
restaurant set up for the next day
Anaesthetic for the masses

If nothing has ever happened in Abernyte it would appear that nothing happens anywhere else either, at least according to the Auntie Beeb. With huge anti-austerity marches, taking place across Europe and now the Nuit Debout (Up All Night) movement coming to the UK, you wonder why there is no mention from our public broadcaster. Maybe no time left after endless reporting of Wills and Kate’s jollies in former colonies. Maybe it does not suit the government’s Remain stance on the EU. The BBC is akin to an anaesthetic for the masses. Don’t be surprised if you get a fifteen minute news bulletin informing you that nothing has happened in Abernyte. They probably have a correspondent there just in case something does happen!

PH14 9SJ              tel: 01828 686044           Cafe Circa

Useful link: things to do in Dundee

Scones, Top

Bill’s at Hammersmith

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This place is bound to be good .. isn’t it! We had passed it many times  getting off the tube at Hammersmith Underground but, in spite of the name, had never ventured inside. It was always the wrong time of day. However, on this occasion, it was bang on scone-o’clock.

He played this all day .. unfortunately only one tune
He played this all day .. unfortunately only one tune

 

Hammersmith is a bustling commercial centre sandwiched between Putney and Chiswick. It is home to a large Polish community but also hosts a myriad of other nationalities .. a great place for people watching. Bill’s is located directly opposite the Lyric Theatre and just round the corner from the Hammersmith Apollo.

Apparently it all started many years ago when Bill Collison opened a tiny greengrocery in Lewes, Sussex selling his own homegrown fruit and veg. Bills 04He eventually converted it into a café. The rest, as they say, is history … cafés and restaurants all over the country, even in Glasgow. Their mission statement is ‘to serve really good food, to make sure every customer has a good time, and go that bit further to make sure Bill’s is always somewhere people want to come back to’. Well, we would see, wouldn’t we!Bills 06

The young lady who looked after us was wonderful and although English was obviously not her first language she soon had us all sorted with our order. She sat us outside basking in the April sunshine, people watching … good start! The scones come as a brace with lots of clotted cream and a selection of Bill’s own jams .. in full sized jam jars! I had the damson and Pat had strawberry but there was marmalade on offer too. At a tad under £5 we thought this was good value. They were excellent, light and fluffy with a slightly crunchy exterior, a very easy topscone award. What with their shop (online as well) full of delightful own brand goodies,

Bill’s was a bit of a revelation, and it probably provides a model template for all such places. Hence it’s success. They certainly seem to understand perfectly what they are doing. We definitely enjoyed ourselves and definitely want to go back. Mission accomplished.Bills 05

Dangerous doctors

If only the same level of understanding could be applied to Jeremy Hunt. Does he  understand anything except dogma? Or is it simply the level of understanding you would expect from a cousin of both the Queen and Oswald Mosely? The government is now so far to the right that it now views junior doctors as dangerous radicals. Thank goodness for an oasis of sanity like Bill’s. With a name like that, of course, what else would you expect?

W8 7AP          tel: 020 87411898         Bill’s Restaurant

Ordinary, Scones

Findlays

Back in at home after our all too brief sojourn up north. The weather has come out in sympathy with our mood, it’s a bleak kind of day. After attending to some business in the town centre we ended up here at Findlays, hoping to have our spirits raised. The rather impressive old Victorian building was built in 1893 as Falkirk’s main Post Office but since then it has undergone a variety of uses leading up to it’s current incarnation as the Falkirk Business Hub, a place which provides a home to over 30 businesses and employs around 150 people. Findlays 03Findlays is the café for the FBH but is open to everyone.

It’s pleasant enough. If it was just providing canteen facilities to the FBH, it would be doing a great job. However it has ambitions and promotes itself as ‘the home of great food and coffee’  .. but it just isn’t. It looks and feels like part of the Hub and lacks that coffee shop vibe. These days we expect wifi everywhere we go. Here the password is helpfully provided on the menu .. but it doesn’t work. The correct password (the one with the capital letter at the start) is on a wall blackboard … annoying. Doubly annoying to have people cleaning windows and going around with feather dusters while you are trying to eat your scone!  Findlays 02So far, so not so good … the mood was not lifting!

Here you might hope that the scones would ride to the rescue with a glowing report and everyone would live happily ever after … but no. It was a case of style over substance. Presentation is a wonderful thing, it delights the eye and heightens expectations. These expectations however have to be fulfilled and sadly this was not the case here. They were disappointingly pasty and heavy. Could the mood get any blacker? Well, yes, just look at the news.

Advice on Brexit

It turns out that Scottish Labour’s PFI scandal has taken a turn for the worse. Not only are our schools and hospitals crumbling, we don’t even know who owns them. The ownership of many being held in overseas tax havens. No one seems too sure who owns British Home Stores either as it descends into receivership. This is the super-duper modern business world we live in! Good though, that Barak Obama managed to stop by to wish the Queen a happy birthday and offer his advice on Brexit. Having advised on the Scottish referendum, he presumable felt he had to do the same for the EU one. Findlays 04Obama is probably the best US President there has been for a long long time. We need not kid ourselves, however, that it is all being done with some sort of ‘special relationship’ benevolence. The US only cares about one thing .. the US!

Looking to the multinationals

Findlays is not doing anything particularly wrong but, based on our visit, it is not doing anything particularly right either. The website is a waste of time. Once again it is a case of taking a long hard look at the multinationals like Costa and Café Nero and figuring out how they always get it so right. We wish them luck. Let’s hope we will be in a better mood by the next post.

FK1 1LL            tel: 01324 614062               Findlays Business Hub

Ordinary, Scones

Café Aroma

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The A9, between Perth and Inverness, is a Marmite kind of road … you either love or hate it. Most people hate it and we are with them. Having only short stretches of dual-carriageway it can be extremely frustrating when you can only go as fast as the slowest thing on the road. On our way north, the road was so busy we barely got above 45mph for most of the way … arrrgghh! On the way south however, because we had to do a drop-off at Inverness airport, we decided to carry on to Nairn then down the A939. It takes you through Granton-on-Spey, Aviemore and Newtonmore.

Slumdog Millionaire

Our scone-stop this time was the Aroma Café in Kingussie. In gaelic, the name ‘Kingussie’, means ‘head of the pine forest’ and its main claims to fame are a) the ruins of the nearby infantry barracks at Ruthven which was destroyed by Bonnie Prince Charlie’s forces in 1746, after Culloden b) Guinness Book of Record’s claim that the Kingussie shinty team is the most successful sKingussie 02aporting team of all time c) the town’s part in the film Slumdog Millionaire. The question was, would the Aroma Café add to this list by getting a much coveted topscone award? Inside, it is a wee bit tired looking and initially we had problems getting any of the staff to notice that we had come in but, once they did, we were looked after very well. Kingussie 04

The scones, when they came, had been warmed to within an inch of their lives … quite hot. Maybe no bad thing in itself, however, too much fruit and a heavy base  meant only one thing. No award ceremonies going on here any time soon. On the plus side they did have a wide range of jams (all pre-packaged) and there was also a tub of clotted cream .. from Cornwall?? It’s difficult to say how the A9 has affected places like the Aroma Café.

We can remember when all traffic came thundering through the High Street. Now it’s much quieter … hardly any cars. On the other hand, hardly any of that thundering traffic ever stopped here. Maybe it doesn’t make that much difference. Whatever, the Aroma will have to up its game if it wants us to stop off here in future. Kingussie 01

Towel throwing?

Now that we are heading south again we are beginning to see election posters for parties other than the SNP. Further north it was glaringly obvious that the lampposts etc only carried SNP posters. We went coast to coast and never saw a single poster for any other party. Very strange, have they thrown in the towel already?

PH21 1HZ    tel: 01540 661020    Cafe Aroma FB

by Bill and Pat Paterson and is about finding good scones throughout the world, with a little bit of politics