Tag Archives: Scotland

The Butterfly & The Pig

9 June 2016 billpaterson1@me.com 4 Comments

In what now seems like another life, we actually used to work for a living. Much of it in Glasgow Royal Infirmary. In 1896 the Infirmary was the first in the world to have an operational X-Ray department and that was down to a chap called John Macintyre. He leapt on Röntgen’s invention, just a few days after it was announced, and put it to practical use for the benefit of the people of Glasgow. He even produced the world’s first X-Ray movie of a moving frog’s leg.

We mention this simply because he lived almost next door to where we are today at The Butterfly & The Pig Tearoom in Bath Street. As well as being a bit of a clever clogs Macintyre was a well known bon-viveur. Famously throwing soirées for the likes of Dame Nellie Melba, Paderewski, Thomas Edison, Joseph Conrad to name but a few. When you walk into The Butterfly & The Pig, you get the feeling that, if he were here today, he would feel instantly at home in it’s quiet, comfortable atmosphere.

Down to business

Recently we have been avoiding Glasgow because of the disruption caused by the electrification of the Edinburgh/Glasgow railway line. However, unable to throw off some of the doctors we used to do work for, we were in town for a little business. A scone seemed like an obvious optional extra. We loved this place! It has a large restaurant/bar downstairs, a drawing room upstairs. For our scone we were here in the tearoom on the ground floor.

We were made to feel very welcome by two girls who genuinely seemed to be happy at their work .. wonderful! There was a choice of, plain, fruit, apple and cinnamon, or berry scones. Pat opted for fruit and I for berry. While we waited, an afternoon tea was delivered to the next table and it looked fabulous.

They certainly don’t hang about with their portions here. It was very much on the generous side. Our tea and scones came nicely presented and the scones … also of generous proportions, were fab. Even the berry one was beautifully light and fresh. Little touches like the red currant berries with the cream, the mixed and matched china, the embroidered tablecloth, make all the difference. They combine to create a really nice experience. Great selection of home made cakes as well. Anyway it was good to be back in Glasgow and doubly good to find this place. May even come back for dinner sometime.

Brexit

We cannot quite make up our minds but watching the contortions both sides are going through in the run up to the EU referendum … is it sad or comical? We are sure most folk are completely befuddled. Scotland is well used to it, hence there is not nearly so much excitement up here as there is down south. We have seen all the antics and heard all the lies before … quite recently in fact. Of course, we had Macintyre to help us see through it all .. get it? Like most of Scotland we are probably ‘remainers’ though it is a knife edge decision. The very fact that Cameron, who just a few months ago, was threatening to take us out of the dastardly EU, is now telling us how calamitous that course of action would be, almost makes you want to vote ‘leave’.

According to the brexiteers, of course, we are supposed to vote ‘leave’ so that we can have our democracy back. Never mind all the Scottish Lib Dem MPs who were seen as unfit to be MPs by the voting public at the last general election and voted out of office. Now they sitting in the House of Lords, still ruling over us. If that is UK democracy then we may as well just have the crappy EU version. We think that David Cameron would like it here. By all accounts he has a fondness for pigs and judging by his flighty stance on the EU he may like butterflies as well. Whatever happens it won’t make a whole lot of difference. There is always this oasis of calm to retreat to for a topscone.

G2 4SQ tel: 0141 243 2459 The Butterfly & The Pig Tearooms

Scones, Top

The Pantry

14 April 2016 billpaterson1@me.com 3 Comments

Over the years, in all our travels around the UK, particularly around Scotland, we had completely missed the Black Isle. In spite of that evocative name. It is another one of these places that you have to make a conscious decision to go to. Although not an island as the name would suggest, it is a peninsula and in that sense a cul-de-sac. Particularly since the Nigg ferry ceased to operate last year. Obviously, it was high time this glaring omission was rectified but would we be disappointed? Not a bit of it .. it’s a lovely part of the world and one we will have to return to for further exploration.

As is the way with all cul-de-sacs, you eventually come to the end … but what an end! Cromarty is a wee gem, a lovely jumble of wonderful narrow streets and old fisherman’s cottages. Until 1890 the town was the capital of Cromartyshire. An entity we had never heard of until this visit … you live and learn. Living and learning was what Hugh Miller was all about. In 1802 he was born in one of these fisherman’s cottages and later trained as a stonemason. He had no academic qualifications but rose to become the leading geologist, thinker and social commentator of his time. He said ‘Life is itself a school and nature always a fresh study’. As you all know, sconology, rather than geology is our thing … but would we be able to further our studies in Cromarty?

There were several coffee shops, which all looked good, but we ended up here in The Pantry. It’s all homemaking and, according to it’s own publicity, has ‘the best meringues in the Highlands‘. With more than a little difficulty, we managed to resist the lure of the large meringues and decided to have their afternoon tea. Very reasonably priced at under £10 .. and featuring a scone and a small meringue. Two birds with one stone, so to speak. Everything was great and, being mergingue novices, for all we know it could have been the best meringue in the Highlands. It was certainly very good. The scone, however, was definitely the best we had tasted in quite a while and we had no problem awarding a topscone. Well done The Pantry.

Missed opportunities

The view is slightly incongruous when you look out from 18th century Cromarty towards the 21st century oil construction yard at Nigg. It stands like a monument to missed opportunities. Scotland being the only country in the world to have discovered over £300bn of oil and got food banks and three bits of dual-carriageway on the A9, in return. You can almost see Hugh Miller spinning.

Because of the negative effect on the Cromarty economy the demise of the Nigg ferry was much lamented by the lovely folk at the Pantry. There are rumours however that it may be reinstated … fingers crossed.

IV11 8XA tel: 01381 600455 The Pantry Cromarty

Ordinary, Scones

Anteaques Tearoom

10 February 2016 billpaterson1@me.com 6 Comments

On the south side of Edinburgh you can find Anteaques. You can see what they have done there, can’t you! It is that kind of place .. a bit quirky, not quite one thing or the other. A curious combination but one that works quite well. It’s a very small place. By the time they’ve put in four tables and chairs for the tea and scones there is not much room left for anything else.

Queen’s breakfast

Because of the space restrictions, the antiques side of things is relatively limited … but the tea house is another story. A vast array of over sixty fine loose teas. They even have tasting tables for sampling whatever takes your fancy. We like a good cup of tea as much as anyone but there is no way we could be described as connoisseurs. We sometimes experiment in places like this but can never remember which is which when next presented with a tea menu. This time we chose ‘Queens Breakfast’ a blend of Ceylon and Darjeeling black teas. Interestingly, according to the notes: the blending of teas specifically for breakfast originated in Edinburgh in the 19th century. A tea merchant by the name of Drysdale had a small shop in the Old Town and sold a tea simply called “breakfast”.

Our Queen’s Breakfast was very good. Like all good teas the service and presentation combine to create an ‘experience’. Different from what you would experience if the same tea was presented in, for example, a Lyle’s syrup tin with a wire handle. Many years ago, on my first day as a student labourer, I was directed to make the tea for about thirty men in the site hut. Since I found all the syrup tins half full of old tea leaves I decided to clean them all out .. what a disaster. Lucky to escape with my life. At Anteaques, however, it is all beautiful china ware, fantastic glass teapots and gleaming silver cutlery. Not a trace of a site hut or a syrup tin anywhere. The scones are home baked and really very good, as was the cream. Not scooshie, perish the thought.

Rose petal jam

The best thing, however, was the jam .. rose petal jam, especially imported from Grasse in the south of France .. fabulous! So fabulous we had to buy a jar to take home.

Trump and Cameron

The ambience in Anteaques Tearoom is one of genteel sophistication and we would have loved to have given it a topscone, if only for the jam, but the scones were just a whisker off the mark … pity.

When you sit in a place like this you could easily forget that the world outside is not as pleasant as it is in here. Trump and Sanders slugging it out in New Hampshire. Surely, even with it’s past record of electing complete plonkers, America could not elect Trump .. surely? Cameron slugging it out in Europe, frantically pretending he’s making some sort of difference. The logic of Cameron’s situation is that, if he gets his way (he is not asking for much) he will campaign to stay in. If not, presumably he will campaign to leave. No matter what happens everyone knows that he will never recommend leaving … so where is the logic?

Worth the effort

If you find it all a bit upsetting then get along to Anteaques for tea and scones. You will emerge in a much better state of mind. To add to the quirkiness of the place, it is only open three days a week. Friday, Saturday and Sunday .. and .. because it’s so small you really have to book a table in advance. Worth the effort though. Enjoy that rose petal jam.

EH8 9JH tel: 0131 667 8466 Anteaques

Ordinary, Scones

Howies Bistro

6 January 2016 billpaterson1@me.com 3 Comments

Our first venture out into the big bad world of 2016 was to the Fair City where we like to shop occasionally in McEwens of Perth department store.

It is a long established shop and this poster made us think that it might be interesting (just to get the brain cells operating after all the indulgences of the festive season) to see how many of you can convert these prices into modern day currency, e.g how much is a pure silk tie? Answers please in the comments box but beware, you may be giving your age away! Today we had breakfast in their Upstairs restaurant and discovered that they actually have another restaurant that we were totally unaware of. It’s that kind of shop, you discover another part of it every time you go. We did visit this new discovery later on in the afternoon but since the same bakery serves both restaurants and we had already reviewed Upstairs, we decided, in the interests of variety and sconology to brave the elements and find somewhere new.

Voila .. Howies Bistro, a mere stone’s throw from McEwens, just outside St John’s Kirk. This is a nice wee cozy restaurant which seems to do everything and be very popular with the locals. Most folk were having lunch but, as ever, we just wanted to try the scones with a coffee. We ensconced ourselves in a nice area with big comfy sofas, set aside for just that.

Good management

Our fruit scones were great, served with plenty jam and cream, but there was a problem with the coffee .. it looked strong but tasted weak. It was such that we thought we should at least mention it to the management. Probably Mr Howie himself who was buzzing about making sure everything was in order. He responded initially by offering another coffee, which of course we did not want. Later, however, he came and thanked us. He had tested the coffee and realised that the machine needed to be recalibrated and was mortified to find that he had, unknowingly, been serving such inferior coffee. In fact, he was so grateful that he refused to take any money at all from us. This is good management; taking on feedback and acting on it immediately!

The nearby St John’s Kirk is dedicated to John the Baptist and dates back to 1126. Perth was the capital of Scotland for over 600 years and as a result King Alexander III’s heart was buried here after his premature death (fell off a cliff) in 1286. An event which left Scotland without a king and propelled it into two long Wars of Independence with England. Although Scotland prevailed in both wars it threw it all away in 1707 with the Union of the Crowns. Most Scots of sound mind were against it at the time and goodness sake, 308 years later nothing has changed!

Lost deposit

For those with a footballing interest and who have wondered why Perth’s local football team (currently 4th in the Scottish Premiership) is called St Johnstone. It’s because of this church. It became so important that for much of the 16th century Perth was called ‘St Johnstoun’ .. might be a good trivia question. Another trivia question. When was the last date that an Irn Bru bottle could be returned for a deposit .. Dec 31st 2015. End of an era. What is not in question is Howies Bistro. Definitely worth a visit, if only to retest the coffee.

PH1 5SZ tel: 01738 440777 Howies Bistro

Useful link: things to do in Perth

Scones, self-service

St Mungo Museum

18 October 2015 billpaterson1@me.com 1 Comment

This place, St Mungoi Museum of Religious Life, is very familiar. We both used to work in the adjacent Glasgow Royal Infirmary which you can see in the background on the left.

cafe area at the Museum of Religious L:ife, Glasgow — cafe area

We would sometimes come here for lunch if we wanted a change of scene. Also to look at Salvador Dali’s, Christ of St John of the Cross, bought by Glasgow in the 50s and now estimated to be worth in excess of £60m. Apparently Dali wanted £12,000 but Glasgow made him an offer he couldn’t refuse – £8,200 .. we dread to think. Didn’t see it this time though as it has been moved to the city’s Kelvingrove Gallery. The museum itself is interesting. It was built in 1989 and designed to reflect the architecture of the Bishops’ Castle which stood on this site in the 17th century. It aims to bring together differing faith systems and promote greater understanding.

Zen

It has Britain’s first zen garden and a Clooty Tree, which we always thought was a solely Tibetan tradition. Apparently, though, it is also Scottish, dating back to pre-Christian times. We don’t know of anywhere else where you can see so many works of art and other artefacts brought together from the six big religions: Islam, Hinduism, Judaism, Christianity, Buddhism and Sikhism. All sitting side by side, displaying the huge diversity of belief systems. Also the extraordinary lengths believers go to in creating these amazing artefacts. Each and every one designed to appeal to hearts and minds.

Nicola Sturgeon, a well known sconey, was after hearts and minds yesterday as she delivered her keynote speech to the SNP conference. A speech that the leaders of other parties must have wished they could have delivered. One of strength and unity. Since this place is all about understanding we wonder at the lack of understanding from Westminster for Scotland’s desire to simply stand on it’s own two feet. It’s not such a big ask, surely? Okay, okay, what about the scones?

Well the café area is pleasant enough and in keeping with the architecture of the rest of the building. Their scones, however,(bought in) are best described as ‘ordinary’. Don’t let that put you off visiting the museum.

G4 0RH tel: 0141 276 1625 Museum of Religious Life & Art

island, Ordinary, Scones

Cafe Zavaroni

13 October 2015 billpaterson1@me.com 3 Comments

Opportunity Knocks

Many, of a certain age, will remember the child singing sensation, Lena Zavaroni, who made her name on Hughie Green’s, Opportunity Knocks, way back in 1974. Her biggest hit was “Ma! He’s Making Eyes at Me”.

Apparently she still holds the record for the youngest person ever to have had an album in the Top 10 … at ten years of age. In spite of, or perhaps because of, her fame she led a rather tragic life dominated by anorexia and depression. As a result she sadly died in 1999, aged 35. Her grandfather had been an Italian immigrant and she grew up here in Rothesay, on the Isle of Bute, where her dad had a chip shop. The family name is still writ large above several establishments along the town’s seafront, including the chip shop and, of course, at Cafe Zavaroni.

Bucking the trend

Like many towns on the Clyde, Rothesay has many very grand Victorian buildings. A reminder of its illustrious past as the destination of choice for thousands of Glasgow working folk on their holidays. Lately, west coast islands, especially the ones that have become community owned, have experienced a healthy increase in population but unfortunately the Isle of Bute is bucking the trend. Probably not helped by the fact that the Marquess of Bute’s family own most of it but, of course, none of them live here. More rantings on land reform in the next post, bet you can’t wait! Nowadays, everyone flies off to Benidorm and the good times for Rothesay are but a distant memory.

Scrape it off

Cafe Zavaroni belongs to Lena’s cousin Margaret who is also a singer but it’s pictures of Lena that adorn the walls. A typical seaside establishment it offers ice cream and all the other tasty bites associated with seaside cafes. Margaret is charming, keen to introduce herself and give you a very warm welcome … nice, but maybe slightly OTT? When our scones arrived the jam and cream had already been added “to save you the bother”. We must have looked slightly askance because it was quickly followed by “you can scrape it off if you want!” This presentation was undoubtedly done with the best of intentions and Margaret would be sore affronted if she knew we were being critical, so don’t tell her! However, you sconeys know how we feel and this particular example was again … a bit OTT. The scones themselves were actually not too bad. Had they not been smothered in ‘stuff’, the story might have been different. Unfortunately Cafe Zavaroni has not made it into our Top 10.

Britnats

The news beyond Bute’s shores is interesting as much for what is out as what is in. In, is the EU referendum. Now those of you with keen memories will remember that before the Scottish referendum the word ‘ScotNat’ became a dirty word with almost traitorous connotations. Spat from the trembling lips of disapproving broadcasters. Now, somewhat oddly for those of us in Scotland, the folks arguing to leave the EU are arguing for … guess what? More control over their own affairs. Exactly the same as those pesky ScotsNats .. but, don’t call BritNats, BritNats – as it upsets them! Shall we just call them ‘separatists’?

Out of the news, certainly out of BBC Scotland’s news where it has not even been given a mention is the fact that the former LibDem Secretary of State for Scotland is in Court for lying during the General Election. Had it been an SNP MP it would have been given minute by minute coverage.

Jailed bankers

Also out of the news is Iceland, the country (basket case) with which Scotland was threatened with ending up like if it became independent. It has just paid off all its obligations to the IMF much earlier than expected. Mind you, most of its bankers are in jail. The ones who escaped are working .. guess where .. London. Slightly different approach maybe but well done the beautiful isle of Iceland.

Back on the beautiful Isle of Bute where none of this seemingly matters, we wish Margaret and Cafe Zavaroni well. It’s nice to get such an effusive welcome and it’s good to see Lena’s memory being maintained in this tiny, if slightly forgotten, corner of the UK.

PA20 0AU tel: 01700 502928 Café Zavaroni TA

Ordinary, Scones, weird

Stuart’s of Buckhaven Café

8 October 2015 billpaterson1@me.com 6 Comments

Buckhaven, on the East Neuk of Fife, is a town that has had a hard life .. and it shows. It was involved with the weaving industry but then, in the 19th century, became Scotland’s second biggest fishing port. It had about 200 boats operating from the harbour. The demise of the fishing industry was hastened by the advent of coal mining but now that too has gone. Because of this, the town looks a bit dilapidated. We were here because we were trying to find a Polynesian princess … ‘eh?’, I hear you say.

Sinakalula

We had been reading a short story by R. B. Cunninghame Graham called ‘The Princess’. A story written c1920 and based around a granite slab set into a church wall overlooking the harbour in Buckhaven. On it was carved “Here lies Sinakalula, Princess of Raratonga, the beloved wife of Andrew Brodie, Mariner.”

Graham’s story continues; “What were the circumstances of their meeting the stone did not declare, only that the deceased had been a princess in her native land, and had died in this obscure east-country haven, and had been “beloved.” Nothing — but all — at least all that life has to give”.

Graham said that the slab was badly weathered. We thought it would be good to find the church and photograph the slab for posterity. There was no sign of it on any internet searches. Oh, if only we had known! We scoured Buckhaven in the rain and could not even find the harbour. How can you not find a harbour in a wee town like this?

In need of sustenance we dropped into what appeared to be the only café in town, Stuart’s of Buckhaven. Guess what, no scones .. talk about a bad day! In a previous post we reported on scones becoming extinct in Galashiels and here within a few days is another town with no scones. What’s happening?

Apple pie

We know that you would worry about us in such dire circumstance, so to ease your troubled minds we are showing you a picture of my apple tart, which was very good, as was Pat’s meringue.

However, they were definitely not scones. Stuart’s of Buckhaven has been around since 1857 and must have witnessed a lot of changes. It’s a baker and butcher combined and all the produce looked excellent but the café area was pretty soulless. Could do better, and could certainly do some scones .. you’re a bakery for goodness sake!

Entire town demolished

We asked a passerby if they could point us in the direction of the harbour .. “there’s nae harbour here son” . However, they did tell us where it used to be. How can a town just lose a harbour? What we found was just a large patch of grass with a vestige of harbour wall running down one side. Turns out, it had been filled in in the 1960s. Worst of all, the entire old town had been demolished and used as infill .. church and all. Perhaps, as we gazed around at the council houses, we were standing on top of our princess’s granite headstone .. lost forever!

the harbour as Sinakalula would have known it

Elysian fields

This was a miserable wet day in Buckhaven and it made you wonder what a young polynesian woman would have made of it. The story goes: “dressed in a coloured and diaphanous sacque, a wreath of red hibiscus round her head, her jet black hair loose on her shoulders, bare arms and feet, and redolent of oil of cocoa-nut, she must have seemed a being from another world to the rough mariner.” in 1857, was she disappointed by the lack of scones in Stuart’s of Buckhaven?

The story speculates that ” the mariner brought home his island bride, perhaps to droop in the cold north, and he laid her in the drear churchyard to wait the time when they should be united again in some Elysian field, not unlike Polynesia, with the Tree of Life for palms, the self same opal-tinted sea, angels for tropic birds, and the same air of calm pervading all the air”. Let’s hope they are together again, just like that!

KY15 4BY tel: 01592 260831 Stuart’s of Buckhaven FB

foreign, Ordinary, self-service

The Duke Restaurante

1 October 2015 billpaterson1@me.com

Now here’s a wee change; no it’s not Portobello, or Bournemouth, it’s the view from the Duke restaurant in Palmanova, Majorca. Not that we have been there, mind you. Friends of ours were, however, and they decided to keep us up to date with the Spanish scone situation. According to them it’s nothing to write home about but they thought they would anyway! The scone was okay, the cream was not up to much but just eating a scone in 35 degrees of heat was something of a heroic feat in itself. They did it for us and the enlightenment of our readers .. such sacrifice!

All peace and tranquility here, lying on the beach quaffing beer. In the far north of the country, however, the Catalan people have recently been trying to persuade the Madrid government that they should have some say in running their own affairs. Can you think of any similarities closer to home? They have been subjected to exactly the same extreme propaganda war that Scotland suffered during the 2014 referendum. However, no sooner had Catalan president Artur Mas guided his nationalist coalition to victory at Catalonia’s elections last Sunday night than a court in Madrid announced that Mas would face formal charges relating to civil disobedience and the ‘usurpation’ of Spanish constitutional powers.

Exotic

It’s not just the UK government that’s a bit slow on the uptake! Anyway many thanks to C&D for making this post more exotic than usual. Looking forward to the next holiday scone report!

07181 Palmanova tel: 971108205 The Duke Restaurante TA

Ordinary, Scones

Deacon’s House Café

30 September 2015 billpaterson1@me.com 1 Comment

Deacon Brodie was an Edinburgh cabinet maker in the mid 18th century and was by all accounts an interesting character. Respectable tradesman and City councillor by day and burglar by night. The Deacon’s House Café is situated in what was once his workshop. It has plenty of olde worlde charm to satisfy the legions of tourists who must pass through here. After all they have trudged up the Royal Mile with its plethora of cashmere and souvenier shops, seeking some sustenance .. maybe even a scone. On offer were plain and fruit as well as apple and cinnamon scones which they advertise as ‘fresh baked’,. However, we found them very disappointing .. too big, too hard and too tasteless. Unfortunately there were a number of things that made this place feel slightly unwelcoming:

• no credit cards of any kind taken in spite of it being in one of Scotland’s busiest tourist areas • orders have to be placed and paid for at the counter before they bring it to your table; if it’s busy this entails a long wait • toilets are on the other side of the close and an access code is required • no wifi that we could find • service could best be described as ‘adequate’.

Overall you got the feeling that, because there was a constant stream of tourists coming through the door, they did not have to try too hard. Unfortunately it showed.

Brodie’s double life eventually caught up with him and although he ran away to the continent he was caught in Holland and returned. He was hanged in 1788 before a crowd of 40,000 in the High Street. That must have been a good day out.

Crowdfunding

Parallels can be drawn between Brodie and Scotland’s only Lib Dem MP, Alistair Carmichael. He, you will remember, covertly released a memo which besmirched the First Minister by accusing her of being a David Hameron supporter. Only after the General Election did he own up. By that time, of course, he had narrowly held on to his seat in Shetland. Four of his own constituents thought that he would not have won had the electorate known he was a liar and decided to take him to court. Of course they could not afford the immense costs. Hallelujah, all the costs were met by crowdfunding. See the connection to Brodie?

#CarmichaelMustGo

Perhaps 40,000 people all contributing a couple of quid in order to get justice .. a modern day hanging. The case was not expected to succeed because according to the LibDems “all MPs lie”. However, the court has decided that there is a case to answer and Carmichael will probably have to testify. Today, Carmichael must feel a bit like Deacon Brodie. #CarmichaelMustGo.

EH1 2PS tel: 0131 226 1894 Deacon’s House Café

Ordinary, Scones, self-service

The Sands Café/Bistro

10 August 2015 billpaterson1@me.com 1 Comment

It was an absolutely glorious day when we arrived at the Silver Sands beach at Aberdour. There were eight of us in total and having done the required paddling with the kids it was not long before hunger pangs were setting in. We headed en-mass towards the Sands Café/Bistro a little further along the beach.

With the weather being so wonderful it was very busy but the service we received was second to none. Nothing was too much trouble. One of the staff kindly extended the awning to protect us and the kids from the sun. We sampled everything from burgers to ice cream but of course the rather large scones were very tempting too. We chose the cherry ones though there were also plain and fruit available. All home baked and very good. No cream, so not quite topscone but pretty close and definitely head of our self service category.

Failures promoted to Lords

With the sun beating down, looking out over the beach towards Edinburgh, Arthur’s Seat and Berwick Law it seems like a different world. A sort of dream world. In the actual world however there are sinister goings on. Two senior politicians who lost their seats in the General Election are to be made knights of the realm!! They lost their seats because the people did not want them but now are to sit in the Upper House, against the wishes of the people. They will legislate on behalf of the people who unelected them in the first place?? Did I just make that up? I wish I had. In this day and age it seems unbelievable that such things can happen in the name of democracy! We desperately need a new system where unelected lackeys and party donors are not allowed to lord over us.

Meanwhile in Aberdour, no such troublesome thoughts are disturbing those intent on building sand castles, digging holes and swimming in the sea … nor should it!

View from the Sands Café in Aberdour looking towards Edinburgh — Looking towards Edinburgh, Arthur’s Seat and Salisbury Crags

KY3 0RQ tel:01383 861473 Silver Sands

Scones, history and a dollop of politics

Tag Archives: Scotland

The Butterfly & The Pig

Down to business

Brexit

The Pantry

Missed opportunities

Anteaques Tearoom

Queen’s breakfast

Rose petal jam

Trump and Cameron

Worth the effort

Howies Bistro

Good management

Lost deposit

St Mungo Museum

Zen

Cafe Zavaroni

Opportunity Knocks

Bucking the trend

Scrape it off

Britnats

Jailed bankers

Stuart’s of Buckhaven Café

Sinakalula

Apple pie

Entire town demolished

Elysian fields

The Duke Restaurante

Exotic

Deacon’s House Café

Crowdfunding

#CarmichaelMustGo

The Sands Café/Bistro

Failures promoted to Lords

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