Isle of Eriska Hotel

At the mouth of Loch Creran, looking across to the green hills of Appin and the mountains of Morvern, The Isle of Eriska Hotel occupies a dreamy Victorian manse standing proud on its own 300-acre private island. The in-house restaurant offers diners a daily changing menu awash with produce from Scotland’s larder, from home-smoked West Coast fish to butter churned with Isle of Skye salt. Attractively presented dishes showcase precise technique and a celebration of locality, perhaps Highland venison tartare with shallot, nasturtium and radish or a rich cassoulet of smoked mussels, fluffy gnocchi and baby squid. For main course, we enjoyed a plate of aged, locally reared beef loin (perfectly pink and expertly seasoned) with broccoli purée and charred onion, while succulent roast duck breast was accompanied by braised leg and crispy tongues. The mighty farmhouse cheese trolley features around 40 British specimens including several local varieties, and the 40-page wine list provides extensive global options at all price points, with a decent selection by the glass. A relaxing island retreat celebrating the best of Scottish produce.