Nick Nairn pulls the plug on Aberdeen pizza business

Scottish chef Nick Nairn has announced the closure of his pizza restaurant business in Aberdeen. The celebrity chef says the decision has been taken with regret, saying it is no longer commercially viable. Nick’s Pizza Bar, which launched in Aberdeen in December 2016, will close with immediate effect, as it has been placed into voluntary…

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Month-long cocktail festival launches in Leith

A new festival is launching this summer, transforming the Leith area of Edinburgh into a cocktail community. Taking place from 2 August to 2 September, Leith Chill Fest will see the area’s 18 best bars offer an array of cocktails for £5 each. From Sofi’s ‘Tropical Leith’ to Malmaison’s ‘Leith’s A Peach’, there’s a colourful…

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Third restaurant is definitely top of the Chops

All of a sudden, Edinburgh’s Bruntsfield is the place to be. Tom Kitchin is soon to open there, and it appears that the curly-haired impressario is being followed by Uncle Tom Cobley and all his foodie mates. However, Michael Spink and Mark Fraser have beaten them all to it with the third – and biggest…

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There’s far more than meats the eye at Fazenda

Fazenda ‘Would sir like some more meat with your mountain of meat? Or perhaps I could instead interest you in a tsunami of steak?’ Except for a steakhouse in New Zealand’s art deco capital, Napier, where I unwisely took on their gut-buster challenge back in 1990 and ate a pizza-sized 90oz steak (I was ill…

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Breathing new life into the good old spud

Makars Gourmet Mash Bar When it comes to the ultimate comfort food nothing can compete with good old mashed potato, at least in my opinion. So you can imagine my delight when I walked down Shandwick Place the other day and did a double take when I spied a new Makars Gourmet Mash Bar, which…

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Enjoy a wee dram with a special Easter twist

Easter’s just a few days away, and with the bank holiday, it’s the perfect time to sit back and enjoy a wee drink. Tullibardine single malt has created an Easter cocktail in partnership with The Devil’s Advocate whisky bar in Edinburgh. Enjoy!

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Baba offers good value and fantastic flavours

Baba Any restaurant which is the brainchild of the team behind Glasgow’s stunning Ox and Finch was always going to have me rushing to sample it. Throw in the fact that the Middle Eastern-inspired Baba describes itself as a ‘mezze, charcoal grill and cocktail bar’ and I’m all in. Taking up the whole ground floor…

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When the steaks are high head to Gaucho

Gaucho Love and marriage, a horse and a carriage, steak and Malbec – the latter doesn’t have quite the same ring, but it’s still a match made in heaven. And Gaucho is Nirvana for fans of this particular pairing. With impressively high-end décor, the restaurant lies beneath a small bar area and is resplendent with…

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When good things come in small packages

The Fat Pony This addition to David Ramsden’s culinary menagerie is a wine bar serving small plates of loveliness. Chef, Rose Gregory creates these wee gems in a kitchen so tiny that it barely exists. There’s a choice of charcuterie and cheese boards and a selection of tapas-style plates on the menu. We found it…

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Find your own fairytale castle at Wedderlie House

Knight Frank has brought to the market Wedderlie House, an attractive small nine bedroom country estate. The selling agent is inviting offers over £1,195,000 for Westruther, in Gordon, the Scottish Borders. Although ruined by the later part of the 19th century, Wedderlie House has been restored to create a truly remarkable family house which, over…

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