Your guide to the best of Aberdeenshire + Moray
Where to eat & drink, stay and do in the North East of Scotland
I feel like the North East is forgotten a little bit when it comes to weekend staycations from the Central Belt. I’ll admit it — usually I’m wooed by the rolling hills of Highland Perthshire or the Fife coast when it comes to planning a trip, mainly due to convenience and proximity. It’s only really been in recent years I’ve spent time in the area and even in that time I’ve started to see a lot of very me-coded businesses popping up, kickstarted by Hauser + Wirth’s Fife Arms Hotel in Braemar (which, if you’re a paying sub, you’ll know from my first brain download of the Scottish hotels I can’t stop thinking about).
It’s a beautiful and diverse area from the Scots Pine forests of Royal Deeside to the craggy coastlines on the Moray Firth, and is a dream if you’re a whisky lover (I’ll be honest, I still haven’t touched a drop of whisky since I overdid it at a fireside marshmallows and cigars event with Tomitoul during last year’s Spirit of Speyside). Here are my recs for the area:
Eat + Drink
The newest spot from Artfarm, the team behind the Fife Arms and the (hopefully) soon to be opened Invercauld Arms in Braemar. We had a delicious little lunch here the last time we were in the area — the crab crumpet bites are a must.
Highlanders Bakehouse, Crathie
A great spot for a Sunday when nearby Tàrmachan is closed (and on other days of the week too of course!). Make sure you get one of their butteries — an Aberdonian croissant, essentially — to smother in jam.
Part architecture firm part cool coffee shop. Their lunches and baked goods are great too. The best coffee in the area for sure.