Dirleton Restaurant Guide

2022 Review: “A very classy experience with little or no fault to find”, say fans of the Roux-branded operation at this well-known Lutyens-designed golfing hotel, which looks towards the Firth of Forth, although it again attracted only a limited volume of feedback. Also acclaimed: “a lovely country-house ambience for a perfect afternoon tea, with spot-on service”. (Albert Roux, who passed away in early 2021, had been in charge of managing the cuisine here, but now it’s handled by his son, Michel Roux Jr).

An ivy-clad outpost in golfing country from Edinburgh-based Tom & Michaela Kitchin offers “excellent food and rooms – and a great breakfast”. It’s quality bistro fare, but despite its heritage not super-fancy: eg. French Onion soup, Haggis, neeps & tatties, Lemon mousse.

2022 Review: Overlooking the Firth of Forth, this clifftop coffeehouse overlooking Canty Bay recently took on a new head chef, Lewis Lane, ‘to take the venue in a smarter direction’. In June 2021, Gaby Soutar in The Scotsman, hailed some “impossibly gorgeous-looking” dishes here and a good selection all-round.

The food is still of a high standard – “Italian dishes but far removed from the usual Italian restaurant fare” at this local fixture. Run by chef Daniele di Marco, wife Daniela, father Angelo and brother Stefano, service is “always efficient and friendly” and it won a number of very approving reports this year (perhaps helped by a boost from The Times’s Chitra Ramaswamy in March 2024 who “love[d] Osteria‘s resolute conventionality. It‘s been too long since I‘ve encountered butter curls in a restaurant. How retro, and delightful”).

“It’s just a shack on the port but the lobster or fish ’n’ chips are spectacular” at this venue perched on North Berwick Harbour, which is open seasonally from April to October. Their suppliers are accredited by Marine Scotland, and if you fancy a change from the national dish opt for crab tacos or chowder.