The Boat House - South Queensferry

Whilst on holiday in Scotland we just had to meet up with some good friends of ours.

Staying at a lodge about an hour from where they live, we decided to meet more or less halfway and go for a meal out to The Boathouse in South Queensferry.

The Boathouse consists of a formal restaurant, a cocktail bar and a more informal bistro, both restaurant & bistro overlooking the Firth of Forth (although being this late in the season it was dark when we got there, but I can see how it would be lovely to sit outside on the terrace on a bright summer’s day).

The staff were friendly & welcoming and we were shown to a table near the window. We had not seen our friends for some time so there was a lot to catch up on and it took us a while to even start to look at the menu to make our choices, but at no point did we feel rushed.

We all decided to go for the haggis nuggets with sweet chilli dip for starters. A great beginning, 3 pieces of haggis in an extremely light & crispy batter with the sweet chilli dip, giving it a bit of a kick. A light side salad to counterbalance the strong flavours of haggis & chilli finished it off just nicely.

For mains the choices were a bit more varied with two of our party going for the "Saute chicken and chorizo sausage in a spicy tomato and pepper sauce with tripoline pasta." I was reliable informed that this was a great pasta dish with the warming spice of the chorizo really coming through. Then there was the "Buccleuch beef burger 8oz - Pure beef char-grilled served on a toasted bun with Iceberg lettuce, red onion, tomato and onion rings with fries." This could be served plain or with a good choice of toppings. A generous portion that also went down well.

I opted for the "West coast scallops pan-fried on a seasonal leaf salad with sauté potatoes and drizzled with white truffle scented olive oil"….a beautiful combination and lovely to see the scallops served with the roe. Personally I love the roe and I always think it is a bit of a shame when it gets discarded. This was light and very more-ish.

As none of the dishes we had were stingy portions, we decided just to have a coffee after. This rounded off the meal nicely.

Go to the Boat house Bistro if you fancy a relaxed, no rush meal. No haut cuisine here, but a nice comforting meal at a reasonable price. Being so near the coast there is an ample selection of fish dishes, but meat eaters have a good choice too.

Do however give yourself plenty of time to get there. It is easy enough to find, but parking spaces in the area are limited so you might have to park it a bit further up and walk down to the bistro.