We were definitely having a better afternoon than our pal from Finland – in my humble opinion.
Keen to see more of Scotland during his stay here, he’d asked us to drop him off in Pitlochry. We planned to break our journey between Inverness and Glasgow by stopping there for a bite to eat.
He didn’t join us for lunch as he wanted to climb Ben Vrackie, the big hill overlooking the picturesque Highland Perthshire town, instead.
To sustain him on his hike, he’d brought along a pound of cold, pre-cooked mince and a couple of thick slices of brown bread.
Yup, we thought it a strange choice too…
Throughout the town, pretty daffodils provided a cheery reminder that spring had sprung, although it hadn’t reached the top of Ben Vrackie where, we later learned, the snow was knee deep.
As an experienced hillwalker, and someone used to being outside in temperatures which regularly dip to minus 25, our Finnish chum was perfectly at home.
To be honest, I was happy not to be joining him on this hike as what I really wanted to do was to sit in a cosy pub or restaurant, eat some good food and chill out – not be chilled to the bone.
I found exactly what we were looking for in the Fern Cottage Restaurant on Pitlochry’s Ferry Road which, although just off the main street, is a bit of a hidden gem.
Overlooking the Victorian town’s memorial gardens and close to the bridge carrying the main railway line between the Highlands and the south, it looks rather like a traditional family home in the Scottish vernacular from the outside. But inside, it has been transformed into a lovely big, open-plan restaurant.
With exposed stone walls, sturdy wooden flooring, big wood-burning stoves at either end of the room, soft lighting, classical music playing gently in the background and a nice selection of modern art work by contemporary artist Andy Thomas, the whole place was warm and inviting.
Our waiter could not have been more welcoming and cheerfully showed us to a nice window table. He told us a little history of the restaurant which, at one point, had a home offering B&B, and kindly recommended places like the new visitor centre at the famous dam for us to visit.
Head chef and co-owner Rifat Aycan offers a number of different menus here, and many have a Mediterranean feel. This includes set-price lunches, pre-theatre dinners and a la carte dining.
We opted for the lunch menu priced at £13.95 a head where diners can have a main course and a choice of starter or sweet, or for £16.95, can have all three.
From a nice, but small, selection of starters, I chose the fresh mussels – I can’t resist these when I see them on a menu – while my partner selected a dish of tzatziki and olives with fresh bread.
I struck gold. The mussels were available cooked in either the more traditional white wine and cream sauce, or a tomato, ginger and chilli sauce. I chose the latter and what a refreshing change it was.
I tucked into a big bowl of large, plump mussels swimming in a deliciously tangy tomato sauce with slivers of fresh ginger and chilli providing a real spicy kick. Served with thick, warm, crusty bread, this was a fabulous starter and I would have happily licked my plate clean had I been at home.
My partner’s starter also got the thumbs up. Served with the same thick, crusty bread, the tzatziki had the right balance of creaminess, garlic, salt, cucumber and herbs to give it a really fresh taste of pure sunshine. Served with a mixture of juicy black and green olives, this was another flavour-packed starter.
For mains he ordered the pan-fried fillet of salmon on a bed of risotto finished with white wine and cream. Sitting on top of a bed of lightly golden-coloured rice, the fillet of salmon was nicely done, with a good crisp skin. The risotto was thick and creamy while the rice had just the right amount of bite.
I’d taken the sunny route for my mains, opting for chicken in a Mediterranean tomato sauce served on a crushed potato cake with seasonal vegetables.
This dish comprised several pieces of chicken breast cooked in a rich, delicious and perfectly seasoned tomato and courgette sauce. I’m not quite sure what a potato “cake” is meant to be, but the big pile of smashed, fresh boiled tatties sitting below the chicken was spot on.
This was accompanied by a generous portion of fresh cauliflower, broccoli and carrots, all cooked al dente and again, with a really fresh taste.
It was with some sense of reluctance that we finally left the warmth and comfort of this cosy, friendly restaurant before tackling the A9 once more. As for our Finnish pal? He loved his walk up the Ben – and mince sandwiches – and like us, can’t wait to visit Pitlochry once more.
Fern Cottage Restaurant, Ferry Road, Pitlochry. Tel: 01796 473840.
RECEIPT
TWO-COURSE LUNCH X 2 £27.90
ORKNEY DARK ISLAND BEER £4.95
SODA WATER AND LIME £2
TOTAL: £34.85
FOOD: 5/5
ATMOSPHERE: 4/5
SERVICE: 5/5
