Catering in Scotland Excellence Award for Sustainable Business 2016, this fabulous seafood restaurant in the renovated old Scabster Ice House and salmon bothy right by the pier has certainly put Scrabster on the map. Scrabster Harbour is the most common launch point for the Orkney Isles:  where fishing boats still land their catch and Northlink ferries depart for Stromness so do plan your trip to allow time for a meal at the Captain’s Galley

An exponent of Slow Food Principles, Jim and his wife Mary have brought great food to these most northern shores. Whenever possible they source their fresh produce within a 50-mile radius of the restaurant. Jim Cowie is without doubt Scotland’s Seafood Expert and at the forefront of championing fish conservation, sustainability and seasonality.

He visits the fish market to select the best sustainable seafood and goes to great lengths to be as environmental as possible, and inspires others to do so too.

I opted for the Grilled Fillet of Hake with authentic paella, with a starter of  velvety partan bree. Desserts of lemon drizzle cake and rhubarb crumble completed our splendid meal.

In 2017 Jim and Mary Cowie opened a wonderful Seafood Bar adjacent to their Captain’s Galley serving a mouth watering range of informal seafood dishes – bouillibaise and fishcakes; bowls of steaming mussels and Nordic salt cod.

Be sure to book as they are on the North Coast 500 and it is a very popular spot.