If you are up for a relaxing weekend, whether that’s taking a stroll amongst the beauty of nature or if your heart just craves some good quality food in a warm atmosphere away from the outside chill, you should definitely check these five places out.
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Harvest Mouse
Bog Well Car Park is in the middle of Ceres (right outside Harvest Mouse Tearoom!) and is the perfect base for several local walks. From here you can take in the beauty of Ceres (it has been named “most attractive village in Scotland”!) or take a stroll over the muir and into Cupar. Just up the road is the beautiful woods of Craighall Den or if you fancy a slightly longer walk you can venture over to the Hill of Tarvit and visit the Mansion/Gardens. And of course, the Fife Pilgrims Way leads straight past the tearoom over the historic Bishops Bridge!
Harvest Mouse Tearoom is a cosy family run business based within Fife Folk Museum that has been nominated for Best Cafe 2022 by Scotlands Business Awards in the Fife Retail Sector.
Although the museum operates between April and October, Harvest Mouse is open all year round. The tearoom was opened in December 2020 by a mother and daughter team with a passion for people and good old fashioned home baking! It offers a delicious range of fresh and locally sourced produce for breakfast or lunch and, of course, a selection of homemade cakes! Gluten free and vegan options are always available. There is plenty of indoor and outdoor seating, as well as the option to takeaway. Dogs, muddy boots and prams are most welcome.
Check out the Harvest Mouse Tearoom on Facebook ahead of your visit.
The Glenisla Hotel
Kirkton of Glenisla provides many fabulous walks for all levels of experience with munroes on the doorstep of it and other beautiful treks including the Cateran Trail Circuit. The Backwater Reservoir Circuit is a very pleasant walk providing nice views to really experience the great outdoors. One of the more popular walks is from Kirkton of Glenisla to Loch Shandra. This walk visits Loch Shandra in Blairgowrie, Angus. You can follow a section of the epic Cateran Trail along the western side of the loch.
The remote and picturesque loch is surrounded by some lovely scenery with woodland and hills to admire. The loch is located just to the north of the village of Kirkton Glenisla making the Glenisla Hotel the perfect starting and finishing point.
Enjoy excellent home cooked food from a wide and varied menu to suit all preferences and dietary requirements. There is always a warm welcome in the bar, the cosy snug and in the light and airy restaurant, with the option of the beer garden on warmer days. Its menu has all the favourites including lasagne, mac cheese and house favourite, steak pie. The plan in March is to have a bar menu including soup of the days and delicious homemade sandwiches.
No journey through Glenisla is complete without a visit to this lovely hotel.
Pine Cone Cafe
There are loads of great walks in and around Dundee. Heading north you will be right next to Templeton Woods, Camperdown Country Park, Dronley Woods and Clatto Country reserve. If you are looking to go a little further, then we highly recommend the Sidlaw Paths Network, especially the old railway path.
The Pine Cone Café in this area is a perfect base for getting out and about, and with such a wide range of walks there is a route to suit everyone, from families to the experienced walker.
Situated to the north of Dundee in the Angus countryside, surrounded by views of a Christmas tree farm and the Sidlaws, the Pine Cone Café is always very popular with locals and visitors.
The Pine Cone Cafe is ideally located close to many picturesque walks and trails. The cafe offers hot food and drinks and a range of delicious cakes – just what is needed after a long walk. The café is also “Taste Our Best Visit Scotland” quality assured.
Also, at The Pine Cone cafe there is a gift shop that sells a full range of seasonal stock, especially lots Christmas favourites!
And it even has a separate dog friendly eating area, meaning you can bring along your furry friends! Check its Facebook page here for all the info.
The Craft Diner
Birnam Hill – famed through Shakespeare’s Macbeth which immortalised the oak woods of the lower slopes – is a beautiful smaller hill. It offers magnificent views over Dunkeld, Birnam and Strath Tay.
This superb circular walk climbs up over the beautifully wooded Birnam Hill. It offers great views over the surrounding countryside on the ascent, and then over Dunkeld from a crag on the way down. The ascent up is reasonably well graded, but the descent is steep in parts.
The circuit itself takes about three hours and is roughly four miles, offering a thoroughly enjoyable walk.
Where to refuel after? The Craft Diner, run by Orkun Cevik, former executive chef at the Dunkeld House Hotel, has been serving up burgers using his “secret recipe” for a while now. And they have become increasingly popular with customers.
The idea came when Orkun lost his job at the local hotel as a result of the pandemic, and he longed for a new venture that would allow him to continue his passion of cooking good-quality food.
Orkun’s burgers aren’t all that feature on the menu, however. The Craft Diner has many other options you should check out.
Cambo Gardens
Cambo’s 2.5 acre walled garden dates from the 1800’s and visitors keep describing it as ‘stunning’! Cambo endeavour to create areas of year-round interest and the garden is constantly changing, developing and innovating through the passions of its horticulture team. From early interest in the winter gardens (highlighting the Plant Heritage national collection of snowdrops) through to the late season naturalistic plantings and prairie garden (unique in Scotland!), there is always a reason to visit Cambo for a lovely serene and gentle walk.
Entry to the gardens is £6.50 for adults and free for carers and under 16’s.
Cambo Gardens café serves takeaway vegetarian and vegan-friendly food. All seating is outdoor in the courtyard areas with a large covered area in the rear courtyard in case of bad weather. There is no need to book.
It offers creative cooking from scratch every day, and is open daily from 10am. The cafe is also dog friendly, with treats and belly rubs for good behaviour!
The cafe is run by Gillian Veal (of Parlour cafe in Dundee and The Parlour Cafe cookbook fame). The menu changes daily but centers on a choice of soups, tortillas, filled focaccias, a range of mezze salads and homemade flatbreads and treats.
Have a look at what’s on offer from Cambo Gardens cafe.
