Eating out

Chilled afternoon tea and Christmas shopping at National Galleries of Scotland

It’s worth remembering that there’s an oasis of tranquility on Princes Street in Edinburgh. Hard to believe in the run up to Christmas but the National Galleries of Scotland is a calm retreat from the demented streets of the city centre.  Forget the bunfight in the retail hell elsewhere; instead enjoy Christmas shopping in both of the National Galleries’ stores. There’s the shop near the Princes Street entrance which has

Manna House Bakery opened in South Queensferry

The excellent Manna House Bakery has opened a second branch in South Queensferry – although baking for two cafes means even less sleep for the owner and baker, Drew Massey. The pastry may be flaky but bakers are anything but – daily 3am rises are not for the faint-hearted, and, in Massey’s case, he’s baking for his original Edinburgh Easter Road branch as well as the new shop.  One consolation

Juniper restaurant, Old Churches House Hotel, Dunblane

A selfie with Andy Murray’s gold post box might be reason enough for his fans to pay Dunblane a visit. For everyone else, the place itself is worth the trip. It has all the hallmarks of a small, quaint town; there’s a river running through the centre, an attractive stone bridge and a winding, narrow high street. For the first time visitor, however, the surprise is the sheer scale of

Handi, new Indian restaurant for Glenrothes

If you’ve been a fan of the Khushis chain you might recognise the modest, quietly spoken man, Dhaneshwar Prasad, who has branched out and opened his own restaurant, Handi, a new Indian restaurant in Glenrothes. With 27 years industry experience, including the launch of seven restaurants while he was with Khushis, Prasad has a clear vision for Handi, named after the special pot which is traditionally used to cook curries.

The Cheesy Toast Shack, Kingsbarns beach, nr St Andrews

It’s a long way to go to sell a toastie but the Cheesy Toast Shack, which is usually pitched on Kingsbarns Beach, near St Andrews, is off to Glastonbury.  The shack will be on the beach for a week beginning 10 June before joining Stormzy and Radiohead at Pilton. In the meantime they’ve been at Montrose Festival, DUSA Street party in Dundee and the open day at Leuchars. Appearing at

MHOR Festival 26-28 May 2017

Less than an hour’s drive from Fife is the MHOR Festival which runs this weekend from Friday 26 May to 28 May. Hosted by the very affable Tom Lewis on the land next to one of his two hotels, Monachyle Mhor, the Festival is a mix of very good food, live music, and theatre. The Friday night feast is five courses by five chefs including Chef of the Year, Lorna

Heaven Scent Cafe at Dunfermline Carnegie Library Galleries

Here’s a sneak preview of the cakes on offer at the new Dunfermline Carnegie Library & Galleries which opens to the public today, 18 May. The brioche buns (pictured below) are delicious and there’s a good selection of vegan and gluten free cakes. Heaven Scent, who already have a successful cafe in Milnathort and run the catering at Knockhill, won the tender to provide the cafe in the new award-winning

Antioch: new Turkish restaurant for Dunfermline

If you’ve had to shorten the sleeves on a jacket or put braid on a blazer and you live near Dunfermline, then chances are you’ll recognise Nihat Oymak, the owner of the new Turkish restaurant. For the past 10 years he has been running the tailors, Ace Alterations – currently based in Eastport.  Swapping bobbins for Turkish beer and wine, Nihat is also keen to ensure the food cooked on

COMPETITION: Win a meal for four at Ciao Italia, Dunfermline!

Ciao Italia, Dunfermline’s Italian Restaurant ‘Per I  Buongustai’ (for the gourmet) has launched a new Thursday night steak night, and a new set lunch menu. We have two tables of four to give away to Avocado Sweet readers, one for the steak night and one for the set lunch menu, served Monday to Friday and offering dishes such as risotto, sea bass and tagliatelle with salmon. The steak night is

Ciao Italia Wine and Pasta Party, Dunfermline

  Dunfermline Italian restaurant Ciao Italia is celebrating Italy’s pasta heritage throughout March, with the launch of its ‘pasta festa’ or ‘pasta party’. The first pasta party is tonight (Friday 3 March) between 5 and 6.30pm. There will be a choice of eight different pasta dishes, of which diners will choose four to enjoy. Each dish will be introduced to them by Ciao Italia’s Sommelier Michele Cassano, whom together with