Tag Archives: Priti Patel

Arnotdale House & Café

21 November 2020 billpaterson1@me.com 3 Comments

If you were to hear someone talking about the “Grand Old Man Of The Pacific”, the town of Falkirk, here in Scotland, might not immediately spring to mind. However, Robert Dollar, was the said “Grand Old Man”, and he was Falkirk born and bred. A high school drop out, he starting off as an errand boy and ended up with a shipping empire that commanded trade all across the Pacific. His home in California was called “Falkirk” and his home in Falkirk was called Arnotdale. He didn’t actually live at Arnotdale, he just bought it in 1920 and bequeathed it to the people of the town. As you do if you are one of the richest men in the world. Now it’s called Arnotdale House & Café and it’s run by the Cyrenians, a charity that helps take care of homeless people.

No, we’re not homeless, that’s not why we’re here. Rather it was an invitation from friends to take afternoon tea with them.. What could be nicer? After all, the only thing nicer than afternoon tea is afternoon tea with good friends.

Secret of success

The extensive gardens now form Dollar Park, a wonderful leisure area appropriately named in memory of the town’s benefactor. Actually, I have a personal connection to Robert Dollar albeit a wee bit tenuous … okay, a big bit! In 1874, while deep in debt, Robert married a Miss Proudfoot to whom he attributed his entire success. Almost eighty years later, I was taught to play tennis in Dollar Park by none other than Miss Proudfoot … not the same one obviously though at the time, I do remember thinking she was quite old. Mind you, at that time I regarded anyone over fifteen years of age as quite old! Under Miss Proudfoot’s tutelage, I went on to became a very mediocre tennis player. So I can probably attribute my level of success to Miss Proudfoot as well. Told you it was tenuous!

Anyway enough of all that, what about the scones? We were fortunate to be seated in a large bay window with views over the beautiful gardens. Within minutes two three teir stands of goodies were placed on our table. There was quite a selection. Various quiches, sausage rolls and sandwiches on the bottom and cakes and chocolate dipped strawberries on the top. The scones, together with little pots of jam and cream, rightfully occupied a tier of their own in the middle. It was all rather splendid.

Readers will be aware that we don’t like large scones with our afternoon tea but, if anything, these ones might have been a tad on the small side. They were delicious though and considering everything else we had to eat the size of the scones turned out to be a blessing. We couldn’t finish everything. The lovely Cyrenian folks kindly boxed up everything we hadn’t eaten so that we could take it home. What’s not to like? Well done Arnotdale House & Café, topscone and many thanks to our friends for inviting us.

Lady leaders

The disaster that is the USofA just goes on and on. People dying left right and centre and seemingly no one in charge … unbelievable.

Statue of the Prodigal Son in Dollar Park — Statue in the park of the Prodigal Son

And the Donald sits fuming about the election with his finger on the nuclear button … scary! Mind you the UK is equally rudderless. We have a new Prime Minister but we just don’t know who it is yet. Now that Cummings and Cain have gone many think it’s Carrie Symonds, Boris’s live in lover. No bad thing perhaps. On recent performances there’s an argument to be made that all countries and political parties should have female leaders. Just not Margaret Thatcher … or Theresa May. And definitely not Priti Patel!

In spite of awarding coronavirus contracts worth £billions to their pals in government they are now spending another £40b in arms contracts. To developing technology to fight wars in space. This is in spite of most major security problems being pretty low tech. Mostly guys in flipflops blowing themselves up or running amok with a knife? There has to be a better way to spend that amount of money … puttin the Cyrenians out of business perhaps?

FK1 5SQ tel: 01324 323331 Arnotdale House

///tribal.regret.showcases

island, Scones, Top

Machrie Bay Tearoom – Again

13 April 2020 billpaterson1@me.com 1 Comment

As Boris recovers at Chequers we wonder if he will ever be held to account for his and government’s deplorable part in the current crisis? Will the media, including the BBC, simply continue to put sticking plasters over everything? Rumour has it that the next government spokesperson will be Hannibal Lecter … apparently he has more compassion and empathy than Priti Patel.

Anyway, this is the third in our random “island scone” reposts and this one is from the Isle of Arran. It’s from May 2016 when we were on yet another of our birdwatching expeditions with the Falkirk branch of the Scottish Wildlife Trust.

In our last post from the gorgeous Café 54, we said that we had to make our own scones because coronavirus meant there was nowhere to buy them. At the end of this post, we provide you with an opportunity to buy ‘virtual’ scones. Don’t say we’re not good to you!

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!

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.

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. They 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!

After our recent quest to find a Scottish tea plantation near Amulree 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

ps: Our fantastic Aussie Bathurst correspondents sent us news of an opportunity to buy virtual scones online.

With no Sydney Royal Easter Show this year because of COVID-19, the Country Women’s Association (CWA) tearoom will not be providing the usual tea and scones. The CWA have taken their fundraising efforts and baked treats online. They help communities and individuals still feeling the impact of drought, those left reeling after the bushfires and now coronavirus. They acknowledge that a virtual scone isn’t the same as visiting their tearoom and enjoying the treats in person but they must continue to fundraise. A plate of “virtual scones” is $5, a Devonshire Tea is $10, a dozen plain ‘virtual scones’ is $20 and a whole batch of cyber delicacies is $50. In return for the donation, they will receive the CWA’s “famous” scone recipe. To purchase a ‘virtual’ sweet treat and scone recipe, visit the CWA shop.

WARNING: In order to lend a bit of support to a worthy cause we purchased a virtual Devonshire Tea. However, their ordering system gives no other options than “Australia”. We had to enter that and “New South Wales” for our whereabouts. Does this mean that we will not receive any scones?? We will let you know about the “famous” recipe though.

ARRAN SHED OF THE DAY

A shed at Dougrie on the Isle of Arran — A shed at Dougarie just around the coast a bit from the Machrie Tearoom.

Ordinary, Scones, self-service

Balcony Café

1 March 2020 billpaterson1@me.com 5 Comments

What with wall to wall coverage of the coronavirus and its possible development into a pandemic, we get the feeling that we should not really be travelling anywhere. In fact, we get the feeling that we should maybe go into self-quarantine behind boarded-up doors and windows. Given that ordinary flu kills thousands in the UK each year we can’t help feeling that the current hysteria is becoming a tad overhyped. However, after careful consideration we thought the short hop from Falkirk to Edinburgh would not breach any major international guidelines or regulations. We are so glad that we don’t have any coughs of sniffles at the moment, otherwise, I’m sure we would get an entire carriage to ourselves on the train. Anyway, happily, we made it to Edinburgh, the National Museum of Scotland and eventually to the Balcony Café.

All sorts

We have been here before on several occasions but it’s always full of surprises. Just when you think you have seen it all you turn a corner there is another cavernous hall packed with everything from elephants, totem poles, tyrannosaurs and lighthouses. But you’ve all been to museums like this before. What you really want to know about is the scone exhibits … right?

There are three restaurants that we know of here, there may be more. The Balcony Café is on the 3rd floor and the seating area is strung out along the length of the balcony in the grand hall. In common with lots of places like this, it’s self-service.

A gallery at the Nation Museum of Scotland — Another hall crammed with animals of every kind.

We got a couple of sandwiches and a scone to share. It was great to see that everything here, the butter, the jam, the cream were all from Scotland, See, it’s not difficult! We can never understand why big public institutions like the National Trust for Scotland don’t sell any Scottish stuff in their cafés. It’s always disappointing for visitors who come from far and wide to this wonderful country only to be served Irish, English, French or American products. Nothing wrong with the products per se … just not here where we have lots of our own top quality scone accompaniments.

We liked all the Scottish stuff but when we looked at the scone we had doubts. It appeared quite solid and slightly strange in colour. Once again, however, we had to eat our words as well as the scone. It was delicious! A little bit unusual in texture and with maybe a slight hint of ginger but none the worse for it. Had it not been for the rather surly self-service, this may well have been another topscone.

Globalisation

Visiting places like this museum does heighten your awareness of what a rich and varied world we live in. The rapid spread of the coronavirus outbreak also makes you aware of how small it is. Without the ease of travel, we have all come to enjoy over the past fifty or so years, the spread of viruses like this would be much easier to control. Greta Thunberg, leading a school strike in Brighton the other day, also makes you very aware of how delicate our tiny world is. When Pat and I were at school, large parts of the world were still unexplored. Now if someone sneezes in China we may all expect to be sneezing within days … that’s globalisation.

Assuming, for a moment that the world does survive, it’s still debatable if the UK is going to survive Brexit far less Megxit. On top of that, we now have the unprecedented exit of the previously unknown, Sir Philip Rutnam as boss of the Home Office to further complicate things. It was always on the cards when the odious Priti Patel was made Home Secretary, that this would happen. When we look around for someone to blame, of course, we need to look no further than ourselves … the voters. Not us, of course, we always vote correctly. Given the current state of play in the UK, moving around the museum gazing at all the past sophisticated, complex civilisations that have become extinct, it’s not exactly encouraging. Maybe if we buy a face mask everything will be fine?

EH1 1JF tel: 0131 247 4084 NMS

///ankle,drama.dine

Scones, Top

The Elephant House

24 February 2020 billpaterson1@me.com 1 Comment

Welcome to the Elephant House, “The Birthplace of Harry Potter”. As far as Pat and I are concerned, we are aware of Harry Potter but that’s about it. Our knowledge and enthusiasm do not extend much beyond that.

picture of an elephant — One of the many elephant pictures at the Elephant House. This one eyeing up our scones

At the moment, however, we have two mini people living with us and for them, it is a different story entirely. They worship the very ground Harry walks on. And they are not the only ones. Legions of similarly minded people descend on this place simply because JK Rowling wrote some of the books in the backroom of this café. To be fair, other authors used it as well. Ian Rankin of Rebus fame and Alexander McCall-Smith who wrote the No1 Ladies Detective Agency to name but two.

The Harry Potter phenomena

But it’s the Harry Potter fame that has done for this place. It’s a veritable Mecca for Potter fans who make pilgrimages from all over the world, China in particular. The menu is printed in English and Chinese and there’s a mountain of memorabilia for sale. It’s quite a big café but we still had to wait about twenty minutes to be seated. The days of it being a hang out for aspiring authors have long gone. Even if they could get in, the atmosphere is pretty frenetic and hardly conducive to creative thinking. Having said that, it’s not difficult to imagine Rowling sitting here, gazing out the window at Edinburgh Castle and coming up with Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. She eventually gave rise to the most successful book series of all time. Apparently it’s worth £4bn to the UK economy. Amazing!

That’s all very well but would Harry have waved his magic wand over the scones? Well, he may well have done, they were very good. Someone commented, “the service is so slow in here, anyone could write a book.” However, we found that, although the staff seemed to be run off their feet, they remained remarkably cheerful amidst the general busyness. The scones came with prepacked jam and a nice little bowl of clotted cream. Normally we like a bit of crunchiness to our scones but these were none the worse for being soft throughout. Our mini people gave the final verdict, thumbs up and a chorus of “we love scones” … topscone!

Graffiti in the toilets of the Elephant House — The owners have given up repainting the toilets. Potter fans scrawl their messages everywhere

This is certainly not the cheapest café in town but if there is a constant queue of people wanting to get in you can probably charge whatever you like.

The Harry Potter stories are about the gentle polite underdog eventually triumphing over evil. At the moment we desperately need Harry to go up against the current UK government and their draconian immigration policies. Unbelievable considering every one of them are either immigrants or the offspring of immigrants. The demented Prime Minister, Boris Johnson was born in the USA of Turkish descent; the Hindu Chancellor, Rishi Sunak’s parents were from Punjab; the loathsome Home Secretary, Priti Patel’s parents were Ugandan Indian and the deranged First Secretary of State, Dominic Raab’s were from Czechoslovakia. Their families have been welcomed into Britain in the past but now they are pulling up the ladder! If they get their way the Elephant House, along with every other restaurant in Edinburgh, won’t have any staff. Harry will have to work extra hard on his magical anti-fascist spells.

EH1 1EN tel: 0131 220 5355 Elephant House

///spike.hurry.thank

Scones, history and a dollop of politics