I recently had a guest post from noted steak expert, Darryl Morin, about the excellent food at Prime Steak and Seafood in Inverness. I’m pleased to present another report from Scotland, this from one of my morning coffee group, the noted economist and international bon vivant, Adrian Tschoegl (pronounced just as it’s spelled). Adrian and his better half, Naomi, were gadding about Scotland with Naomi’s brother-in-law, Anthony, and found themselves in the Abbotsford Bar & Restaurant in Edinburgh.
Adrian ordered haggis nachos.
Adrian’s report:
The nachos were OK, but lacked the spice and crispness that one gets at a Tex-Mex place where there’s a consistent high demand all evening long. The haggis nachos here aren’t a big seller, so they apparently sit around for a while and the chips get tired. The haggis was bland, as it usually is. The texture of the haggis bits was granular, crisp outside and oat pate inside.
I have to hand it to Adrian. This may be the most concise and comprehensible statement ever made by an economist. And the haggis nachos are a stunning if not fully successful example of culinary syncretism, which is a source of controversy in some quarters. I’m sure that for many hearing that the haggis tasted bland was a welcome surprise.
Lest we think that the Abbotsford, a handsome place, limits itself to haggis nachos and the like, Adrian later added that —
Upstairs is a restaurant with bar, with full meals possible from starter to dessert. No cullen skink, though. We ate upstairs and both Naomi and Anthony were well satisfied with their meals. The dessert was Cranachan, which I thoroughly enjoyed.
Cullen skink, by the way, is a fine Scottish soup that you can make at home with this recipe. Cranachan is a traditional Scottish dessert consisting of oats, raspberry, cream, and a wee dram of whisky. Speaking of which, Adrian speaks highly of Abbotsford’s wide selection of whiskies: they offer 80 malt whiskies. They also offer an impressive and ever-changing list of beers and ales from around Europe and the US.
This is our first review of haggis nachos, or any form of haggis, for that matter. I invite readers to send in additional haggis-related reports.
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