The But’n’Ben

The But’n’Ben answers the fraught question of ‘what is a Scottish restaurant?’ by the simple virtue of existing. Housed in a whitewashed cottage & farmhouse kitchen in style, this small establishment in the tiny hamlet of Auchmithie, several miles north of Arbroath, has been family-run since the mid-1970s. The food is hearty & blissfully anti-fashion with starters including half a dozen oysters or smoked mackerel pate as well as melon with ginger wine, & mains comprising the likes of hot buttered Arbroath Smokie, a pile of steamed mussels, or iconic mince & tatties with skirlie (fried oatmeal with onion). Puddings remind every Scot over 40 of their mum & granny with lemon meringue pie, Border tart, or a clootie dumpling (Scottish suet pudding) so dense it bends light, among the options. A great place to go for a three course slap-up feed, generally for under £20.