Teeming with cosy cafes, welcoming restaurants and lively pubs, whatever your tastebuds fancy, you’ll find it in the Park…
Love a hearty soup followed by a generous slab of cake? Roast with all the trimmings? Syrup-drenched pancakes with a large coffee to set you up for a day of highland air? Or splashing out on a fine dining experience complete with traditional tipples? Whatever your taste or the occasion, there’s something to satisfy all appetites!
In terms of cafe culture, the Cairngorms offers everything from your family-run, independent offering to your well-known global brand.
Many are ideally placed for a mid-bike-ride pit stop, like the Druie in Rothiemurchus, and others offer panoramic views, like the Cairngorm Cafe on Cairngorm Mountain.
And, there's no reason to shop until you drop, either, as some of the shops - like Tiso Aviemore - actually have cafes (and a soft play area!) within them.
For instance, venison from deer that have been freely roaming the estates, salmon and trout freshly caught from our lochs and rivers and strawberries newly picked from our grounds, to name just a few!
That said, if you're craving an Indian meal or pizza or gastro-pub style food, you can find that here, too. Scroll down to the listings below to find out more details.
Cairngorms food is very distinctive, high quality and well-renowned. It includes, for example, venison from deer that range across the hills, beef from Highland cattle and hardy rare breeds, salmon and trout from pristine rivers and lochs and whisky from age-old distilleries. Beyond those headliners are other delights: bread from a 400 year old mill, world leading gins, award winning beer and wild food for foraging.
Buying local and trying the traditional delicacies is part of the experience of being in the Cairngorms. Not only that, when you buy local you are helping support the local economy and reducing food miles and so it’s better for the environment. Buying local really helps farmers and managers keep caring for the Park, so please, whenever you can, look out for locally-produced food.
Yes! There are 60 estates in the Cairngorms National Park covering about 75% of the area. Many of them give the public the opportunity to buy their produce and, even, get involved in the process of catching it – whether that be grouse shooting, deer stalking or fishing. There’s is also a growing interest in foraging, and educating people about going out into the wild to pick their own food.
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