Hello All-
I will be traveling to the Isle of Skye in mid-May over a weekend. I'll be with a couple friends, but even with a small group it is my understanding that it can be difficult to find open/available places to eat lunch or dinner. Does anyone have suggestions of places we should go? We're fine with casual or elegant and we will have a car. We are staying in Greshornish so places in the north or northwestern part of the island would be best.
Thanks!
We had three fine dinners in Portree, which is a good half hour from your lodging.
Scorrybreac was one of the best dinners we have had anywhere. Only open for dinner.
Less formal but wonderful was Sea Breezes on the waterfront. Lunch and dinner but only open 1200-1400 for lunch.
Dulce and Brose in the Bosville hotel also very good, lunch and dinner, again limited hours.
It is important to make reservations, especially for dinner. Many people there when we were in September were left waiting for a long time or simply being turned away as places were booked. We reserved Scorrybreac a month in advance.
Loved Skye. A magical place but dining out is a bit of a sprint. Just like the previous poster I also would recommend Scorrybreac. Awesome meal there and agree to book ahead. Fish and Chips at Sea Breeze were also really good. Another one that we really liked although not in Rick's book was Number 1 Bosville Terrace. It is right next door to Scorrybreac. They have a few tables up stairs that look out onto the Portree harbor. Both my husband and I really liked our meals there.
The previous poster wasn't kidding about dining in Portree. People start lining up at about 5pm for tables. If you show up at 7ish without a reservation you will not be eating. It was nuts. We went in June and I tried to make other reservations but was told that due to peak season we couldn't. The only one we snagged was the Scorrybreac table which I was really happy for and made over a month in advance. We had a 7pm reservation and anyone that popped in was told that they were full. We did not have one bad meal the entire time we were in Scotland. Enjoy!
I too had the best meal while in Scotland at Scorrybreac but I also agree I never had a bad meal in three weeks touring Scotland. Do make reservations in advance.
Enjoy,
Kathleen
Why is it you need reservations in advance? are there so few restaurants? or is that the only way they do business?
Thanks everyone! Clearly the restaurant in Portree is a favorite. Unfortunately, according to their website, they are not open Sunday or Monday- our two principle nights on the island. Saturday is a possibility but we might be arriving late and need to get to our B&B. I will save it for our next trip!
Diane, I ran into similar difficulties in Cornwall in 2017, though it sounds as if Skye is even tougher. I think it's basically supply and demand. It's evident that tourist numbers have increased greatly at some European destinations (I give you Barcelona and Krakow and L'viv.) just in the last five years. The infrastructure on the most popular Scottish islands hasn't caught up, and I'm not sure it ever will. I'm guessing that finding equilibrium is more difficult in short-season places like Scotland, where people may be somewhat reluctant to build and open a new restaurant or hotel, knowing that it will not have a great deal of business (at least mid-week) for much of the year.
