By Rob McLaren

THE WORLD’S first Arbroath smokie sausage is being served at a Montrose restaurant.

The local delicacy has been used in ice cream, on pizza and to flavour vodka in the past, but never in a sausage.

Paraic Faherty, chef and owner of the B-Lo restaurant in Market Street, has started serving the exotic dish to mark National Sausage Week.

He said, “There are recipes out there for fish sausages, which are mostly eaten by the French. I thought why not try it with the Arbroath smokie.

“The smokie is mixed with a cheese sauce into a mousse and encased in a sausage skin. It is then served with savoy cabbage and new season potatoes.”

The creation was served for the first time at the restaurant last night, and beforehand John had a few doubts about how popular the dish would be.

“We change the menu at the restaurant every week, so we’ll have the dish on for the week and maybe also put it on the lunch menu if it’s popular,” he said.

“I’m not sure how many people will go for the option. It’s something a bit more unusual for people who are brave and prepared to try something new.”

Smokie vodka was introduced by Jean Stewart, proprietor of The Old Brewhouse in Arbroath.

The drink was made by crumbling smokies into a vodka bottle, shaking and allowing it to settle.

Then Marcos on the Shore fish and chip shop started selling smokie ice cream. Both proved to be a big success with tourists.