With Covid 19 still forcing travel restrictions during June, we planned an early summer break to the Scottish Highlands. After a little research, I decided that Fort William would be a good base…after all, it’s known as the Outdoor Capital of the UK.
This post shares my gluten free dining experiences whilst there and along the route.
As usual, there’s a Resources section at the end of this post with links and lists.
THE RESEARCH
I searched Google for gluten free restaurants for this trip.
TRAVELLING
Our route to Fort William required a pit stop for fuel as we approached Glasgow. A quick search on the interweb found a Morrisons supermarket on the outskirts of the city. We stopped here for fuel and decided to pop into the café in store for drinks. Entering Morrisons, there was a little café serving tea, coffee, etc with some cakes and cookies. I asked about the soup but was advised that this was served in the larger canteen area a bit further down the store.
I settled on a cup of tea and a gluten free brownie. The brownie was sealed so there was no risk of contamination.
Gluten Free Shopping in Fort William
There was a Tesco Metro on the High Street and a large Morrisons by the train station. Driving in and out of town, we also spotted an Aldi, a Lidl and an M&S Foodhall.
Restaurants in Fort William
We were in Fort William in late June and were advised to book restaurants in advance. It’s a small town with a small selection of pubs and restaturants. Unfortunately, the UEFA Euro 2020 (European Football Championship) was in progress so a lot of establishments had decided to suspend bookings and work on a first come first served basis.
Here are the restaurants I ate at. There are links to their websites in the Resources section below.
Tavern Inn
We ate here on our first night. They weren’t taking bookings and were full when we popped in. They had a small canopy put up outside with a few sets of tables and chairs and we were served drinks there whilst we waited for a table. Estimated time was 30 minutes however, we actually only had to wait about 15 minutes for a table.
Though gluten free items weren’t labelled on the menu, our server was knowledgeable about what was suitable. I had the Sticky Chicken with rice and salad. This was a chicken breast covered in a honey and barbecue sauce. Chips were available instead of rice but they are not cooked in their own fryer so I opted for rice to avoid contamination.
I had the Strawberry Meringue Sundae for dessert because I could!
Brown’s Restaurant, Ben Nevis Inn
This was the only place that I found still taking bookings during the football. We booked a table for 6:30pm and it started to fill up during our meal.
There were lots of options on the menu that could be made gluten free. After much contemplation, I decided on Pollo e Pancetta which consisted of gluten free spaghetti, roasted chicken, pancetta, tomatoes, garlic, cream and parmesan. It was an absolutely huge portion which I was not able to completely conquer. This was a real shame as there were gluten free items on the desserts menu too.
M&S cafe
This was the first time I’ve eaten in an M&S café. I popped in to grab a sandwich or salad and a hot drink.
After enquiring with the staff, I found out the two soups were both gluten free. I opted for the tomato and basil soup which was served with a gluten free roll (wrapped individually).
Café Mango
This was a Thai and Indian restaurant. I went in planning to have a Thai green curry but ended up going with a chicken Jalfrezi and boiled rice. The staff I spoke to didn’t seem too clear about gluten when I tried to explain that the food should not contain any flour. In the end, I based my choice on the knowledge that I’ve had a chicken jalfrezi many times and always been assured it’s free from gluten…most indian curries should be free of gluten…
Other Gluten Free Meals
Glentower Observatory Hotel, Fort William – Breakfast
We were staying in a lovely B&B called The Glentower Observatory. I had advised the hotel in advance that I would require gluten free options at breakfast. There were several hot breakfast options including a full Scottish. I was satisfied with my choice of smoked salmon and scrambled eggs which was a good portion and tasted amazing as it was freshly cooked. I realised my error when my toast arrived with my husbands in the same toast holder. The next day, I advised the waitress that my bread couldn’t be contaminated so she had it cooked separately in the Aga.
Macdonald Crutherland House and Spa, Glasgow – Breakfast
The hotel were able to provide gluten free bread with my breakfast. When I asked for it not to be toasted with regular bread, our server understood as she had dealt with this requirement before. I had a three egg omelette with ham and cheese.
The Cabin, Mallaig
Mallaig is a port on the west coast of the Highlands and it’s train station is the terminus of the West Highland railway line. We arrived here on the Jacobite steam train from Fort William and had some time to enjoy lunch before embarking on our return trip. The restaurants in Mallaig filled up quickly when everyone alighted from the train. Also they had limited places due to covid related social distancing.
The Cabin is a small restaurant with friendly and efficient service. I’d seen it listed on TripAdvisor with some ‘gluten free’ reviews so decided to try it out. We were offered an opportunity to wait for a table at The Cabin and didn’t have to wait too long. I had pan fried cod with a garlic butter sauce, served with a salad and chips (which are cooked in a separate fryer to everything else). It really was a good as it looks in the picture below!
Deli Ecosse, Callander
Our hosts at The Glentower Observatory had suggested Callander as a lovely place to stop for a break as we headed back south towards Glasgow. There is a decent sized car park off the main road which is next to clean public toilets.
We walked down the main road/high street in search of somewhere to have lunch. Due to restaurants and cafes limiting seating, we were struggling. Deli Ecosse came up on a quick online search for gluten free friendly cafes. It’s set back on a church square off the main street so I only just spotted it accidentally. They have a small number of tables but we were lucky that a table became available whilst we were ordering to takeaway.
I had a chunky vegetable soup which was served with two slices of buttered gluten free bread. This was followed by a gluten free sultana scone and a pot of earl grey tea.
Wee Gurkha, East Kilbride
We booked dinner at this Nepalese restaurant for our evening in East Kilbride. It doesn’t have a full frontage, only a sign above the doorway. The service was good, the waiter was able to advise about gluten free options. We ordered the Sherpa chicken curry and the Nepalese chicken curry with mushroom pilau rice. Both were delicious.
Other Restaurants
This is a section I’ve not included before but I thought it’s worth mentioning a few restaurants I didn’t try but could provide real alternatives.
Tinto Tapas, East Kilbride. This was next door to the Wee Gurkha. It had lots of tapas that were labelled gluten free on their menu.
The Geographer, Fort William. I had planned to eat here but they don’t take bookings and always had a queue outside.
Sammys Fish and Chips, Fort William. This was on my list just in case I couldn’t get into a suitable restaurant as they did takeaway gluten free fish and chips.
Resource List
June falls in midge season in the Highlands…biting midges! A good website to check out the risk of getting bitten is Smidge on https://www.smidgeup.com/midge-forecast/.
Our worst encounter with midges was at the Glenfinnan viaduct as we had climbed to the steam train viewing platform.
Website to research restaurants: https://www.findmeglutenfree.com
Gluten Free Holiday Checklist:
RESTAURANT LINKS
- Tavern http://www.thetavernrestaurant.co.uk/
- Brown’s https://nevisbankinn.co.uk/our-menu/
- The cabin https://m.facebook.com/people/The-Cabin-Restaurant-Take-Away/100057177831645/
- Deli ecosse https://deliecosse.co.uk/
- Wee Gurkha https://www.weegurkhacurryhouse.co.uk/
- Hotel https://www.glentower.com/
- Crutherland https://www.macdonaldhotels.co.uk/our-hotels/scotland/glasgow/macdonald-crutherland-house-and-spa
- Sammys https://www.sammysfishandchipshop.co.uk/
- Geographer https://www.geographerrestaurant.co.uk/
- Tinto tapas https://tintotapasbar.co.uk/
MY ESSENTIAL PACKING
- Schar Fibre Seeded loaf (as it’s got air in the packaging to stop it getting squashed).
- Packs of Snickers and Galaxy
- Granovito pate and M&S chicken pate for making sandwiches
- Seabrook crisps
- Various packs of nuts