FOOD : Harbour Kitchen, the BEST RESTAURANT in Stornoway, Isle of Lewis
September was a busy month for me and I loved every minute of it. I was appointed Mystery Judge for the Highlands and Islands Food and Drink Awards 2022. This meant that I had the extremely gruelling job of travelling around the Highlands and Islands eating and drinking at the nine shortlisted Best Restaurants and Eateries. Such a tough job!
Mission one, which I accepted, was to find the best restaurant. I travelled around Moray and Cromarty, Loch Ness and some of Scotlands Isles to find the best one.
And I found the winner, the Best Restaurant in Stornoway is Harbour Kitchen!
THE BEST RESTAURANT IN THE HIGHLANDS AND ISLANDS
My criteria was :
Did they deliver exceptional service - was it timeous, friendly, unobtrusive but attentive and did the staff have a knowledge and understanding of the food they were serving
Was the food prepared well, well plated and tasted delicious
And the main criteria that I had to mark against was:
Did they use local and seasonal ingredients
It was a close competition as all the restaurants scored well in all the criteria so I really had to look at the closer details, and this is where the Harbour Kitchen excelled.
REVIEW OF THE BEST RESTAURANT STORNOWAY IN 2022 IS HARBOUR KITCHEN
Their menu although fairly small is perfectly formed and is predominantly seafood with one or two dishes catering to vegetarians and those that like meat. They also have a Specials Menu listing tantalizing dishes based on that days catch. We were exceptionally lucky to order the last half lobster.
We ordered a whole load of dishes, as I have found this is my preferred relaxed way of eating. I like to mix n match, nibble here, a spoonful there.
From the starters and sides we chose :
Heritage Tomato, peach, whipped ricotta and black olive crumb (£7.50)
Sauteed Asparagus with garlic and chickpeas (£3.80)
Homemade Chunky Chips (£4.00)
Crispy Potato Rosti, wild mushroom, onion and thyme broth (£7.00)
The tomato salad was well balanced with the big juicy sweetness of the tomatoes sitting well against the earthiness of the olive crumb and the whipped ricotta there to marry all the flavours together.
The asparagus and chunky chips went down a treat with lovely contrasting textures but it was the potato rosti that was the star of these few dishes. Although sitting centre a pool of hot tasty broth, the rosti didn’t loose its crunch and every bite was incredible.
We couldn’t resist having a seafood feast when all this incredible fresh seafood available. I mean who wouldn’t right?!
The Mussels with garlic, white wine and cream (half kilo £9.50 or 1 kilo £19.00) came in steaming hot pot with some of the fattest, freshest, juiciest, most scrumptious mussels I have eaten in a long time. The garlic wine cream sauce was a beautiful consistency, not watered down at all, and it lovingly caressed the mussels gathering in pools within the shells.
The Half Lobster (£29.00) was like a gorgeous ruby jewel loaded with sweet lobster meat including the claw! (note that not all restaurants give you the claw meat). I drizzled the hot garlic butter over the entire lobster and let it smother the delicate tender meat. Seriously well cooked!
With chunky chips, freshly baked bread and a potato rosti available for dunking, moping and slurping up all the sweet lobster garlic butter and the mussel cream, this became a very memorable meal.
The staff were tremendous, very friendly and when asked about availability, seasonality and locality of their ingredients, they passed with a 10/10. There’s also a light friendly banter that they have perfected that immediately puts you at ease and encourages a very relaxed ambience.
The Harbour Kitchen may be located in Stornoway, and it might be a wee bit of a trek to get there, but by golly gosh it’s worth the drive, and the ferry boat trip!
Congratulations Harbour Kitchen.
THINGS TO NOTE - THE BEST RESTAURANT IN STORNOWAY 2022 :
They are a predominantly seafood restaurant
They do cater for vegetarians and meat eaters but with a limited selection of dishes
The restaurant is accessible - its on street level with toilets on the same level. There are no steps or stairs. The main door should easily accommodate a wheelchair but I would inform them ahead of the time of your requirement so that they can seat you at an appropriate table
The Harbour Kitchen, 5 Cromwell Street , Stornoway, United Kingdom, HS1 2DB
My Spoon Award : Tartan Spoon 10/10