For a country of 5.5 million inhabitants — a little over half the population of London — Scotland has long punched above its weight culturally. Two of its finest exports — food and literature — come together every January 25 on Burns Night, the annual celebration of the national poet of Scotland and the finest Scottish ingredients.
Classic dishes include Cullen skink to start, a thick soup made from smoked haddock, potatoes and onions named after a town on the North Sea coast, and cranachan, a dessert of cream, oats and whisky traditionally eaten in June to celebrate the Scottish raspberry season in the days before polytunnels.
Pride of place goes to haggis with neeps (mashed swede) and tatties (mashed potato). The haggis itself is a mince of sheep’s heart, liver and lungs with onion, oatmeal, suet, spices and salt, traditionally steamed inside a sheep’s stomach. It sounds like hell for anyone who hates offal but the reality is more like a heavily spiced lamb mince. If it’s not love at first bite, a tot of Scotch poured over the meat should drown out the more savoury flavours.
A proper Burns Night involves the haggis brought in to the strains of a bagpiper and a reading of Burns’s poem “Address to a Haggis”. The full experience is on offer in several of the restaurants below, but there are also places attempting a more up-to-date interpretation with DJ sets instead of a ceilidh, plus chefs providing a creative take on Scottish cuisine. As they say north of the border: slàinte mhath! A toast that is somehow easier to pronounce after several glasses of whisky.
This list will be added to over the coming fortnight.
Bentley’s Oyster Bar & Grill
If you’re not quite ready to go the full Scottish, Irish chef Richard Corrigan is paying tribute to his fellow Celts with a three-course à la carte menu available from January 22 in the Oyster Bar of his Mayfair restaurant. Cullen skink with Fife Bannock (Scottish soda bread) and Arbroath smokie pâté (£15.95) or roast Orkney scallop with black pudding and the potato delicacy of rumbledethumps (£22.95) will be followed by Highland venison loin with haggis, neeps and tatties (£34.95) and a whisky-based “Tipsy Laird” trifle (£13.95) for pud. On Burns Night itself, the Address to the Haggis will be performed by piper, Maggie McNaulty, while whisky flights, of course, will be Scotch not Irish.
January 22-25. 11-15 Swallow Street, W1B 4DG, bentleys.org
The Duke of Cambridge
Back in Robbie Burns’s day, all farming would have been regenerative, but Britain’s first organic gastropub is harnessing the buzzword of the moment for this year’s Burns Night menu, with ingredients including Rhug Estate regeneratively farmed meat and Hodmedod sustainably produced British pulses and grains. Cullen skink will feature Cornish white fish smoked in house, the haggis, neeps and tatties will be served with whisky gravy while pudding is a choice between cranachan and clootie dumpling: steamed Scottish dumplings made with dried fruits and spices and served with spiced caramel. There’s an optional whisky pairing menu, too, while the haggis will be piped in by a Scotsman donned in full Highland attire.
Three courses, £45, January 25. 30 St Peters Street, N1 8JT, dukeorganic.co.uk
The Ham Yard
Soho's Ham Yard Hotel is giving Burns Night an elevated upgrade this January. Yes, the haggis, neaps and tatties will be in full force, but so will luxurious venison Wellington for mains and a Scottish Strathdon Blue following the puds. Thanks to Bruichladdich whiskey, the five-course (£100) feast is getting a Scotch shot in the arm with specially selected whiskey to pair throughout the menu. If the full five courses might seem a touch much, there's a classic three-course (£70) option in the main restaurant too.
Five courses with whiskey flight, £100, three courses with welcome cocktail and snacks, £70, Ham Yard, W1D 7DT, firmdalehotels.com
The Oyster Shed
This modern, airy Young's pub, with cracking views over the Thames to the Shard and Southwark Cathedral, has a four-course menu (£59) promising a modern interpretation of Scottish cuisine. There will be haggis prepared as a ravioli with a confit partridge leg and game gravy, whisky-cured salmon accompanied by a tonka bean purée and pickled cucumber, and a pudding of whisky crème brûlée; there’s a more interesting-than-usual vegan menu, too, offering oak-smoked potato terrine, confit leek and Marmite and wild mushroom vegan haggis. Guests will receive a glass of whisky on arrival, while live bagpipe music will include the piping in of the haggis, and there will be readings of Burns’s poetry, too.
Four courses, £59, January 25. 1 Angel Lane, EC4R 3AB, oystershed.co.uk
Boisdale
It’s not Burns Night but Burns Week at Boisdale, the pair of tartan-clad restaurants in Belgravia and Canary Wharf owned by bon viveur Ranald Macdonald, the heir apparent to the chief of Clan Macdonald of Clanranald. The four-course menu (£59/£79) includes the finest Scottish produce: Dunkeld smoked salmon, Cullen skink, Dumfriesshire Blackface haggis and steamed clootie dumpling with Drambuie custard. Each evening will include a Highland piper, piping and addressing the haggis as well as live swing music.
Four courses, £59 (Canary Wharf), £79 (Belgravia), January 22-27. 15 Eccleston Street, SW1W 9LX and Cabot Square, E14 4QT, boisdale.co.uk
The Cadogan Arms
Chelsea's Cadogan Arms is to host a gorgeous little Burns Night menu with a haggis and venison Wellington, whisky-smoked salmon and a traditional cranachan all featuring on a deeply Scottish menu. The three courses (£75) are supported by three Aberfeldy whiskies, two taking cocktail form and one 12-year-old served straight up with dessert for a toast to Robert Burns.
Three courses with whisky pairing, £75, 298 King's Road, SW3 5UG, thecadoganarms.london
Sussex
Each of the Gladwin brothers’ five sustainably minded London restaurants (including Rabbit, The Shed, The Fat Badger and The Black Lamb) will be offering a three-course Burns supper (£58) on the 25th, but only Sussex in Soho is accompanying the feasting with the strains (in every sense) of a live bagpiper. Star billing goes to house-made haggis with potato and turnip hash and whisky jus; there’s also Scottish smoked salmon with creme fraiche, chives and rye-malted bread to start, and cranachan with heather honey and raspberries for pud. Wash it all down with cocktails from a trio of Islay distilleries.
Three courses, £58, January 25. 63-64 Frith Street, W1D 3JW, sussex-restaurant.com
The Ivy
London staple The Ivy will host a Glenlivet-fuelled feast to honour Burns, with a three-course (£99) menu paired with two new Scotches. Expect classic Scottish fare and seriously high-end booze in the plush surrounds of the original (and still the best) Ivy.
Three courses with canapes and whisky cocktails, £99, West Street, WC2H 9NQ, the-ivy.co.uk
Sam’s Riverside
Perfect for the haggis-averse or anyone who wants a little more choice to their Burns Supper, Sam Harrison’s Thames-side brasserie is offering four options per course. In addition to the holy trinity of Cullen skink, sheep offal and cranachan, there will be ham hock terrine or a black pudding Scotch egg, trout or venison fillet, whisky and honey parfait or Scottish cheese. Veggie options include cheese and leek quiche and vegan haggis, while on-theme music will come courtesy of The Piping Experience.
Three courses, £65, January 25. 1 Crisp Road, W6 9DN, samsriverside.co.uk
The Walmer Castle
New Notting Hill hangout the Walmer Castle is laying on a special selection of Scottish dishes to mark January 25 itself. Classic Cullen skink will be served alongside Fife Bannock soda bread (£12.50), mains of traditional haggis, neaps and tatties, and in-season venison with a juniper jus (£30), with Cranachan trifle (£10) to finish. One for Burns purists.
58 Ledbury Road, London W11 2AJ, walmercastle-nottinghill.co.uk
The Audley Public House
Mayfair’s Mount Street boozer, the Audley, will be offering a few seasonal Scotch specials for snacking on during Burns week. The haggis scotch egg (£7.50) looks particularly good, while the sweet-toothed among should sample the famed Scottish delicacy of a deep-fried Mars Bar, served here with vanilla ice cream (£6). At 5pm on the big day, the pub will host a traditional bagpiper to ceremoniously pipe in the haggis scotch eggs, a number of which will be handed out for free to punters.From January 25 - Feb 1, 41-43 Mount Street, W1K 2RX, theaudleypublichouse.com
