Cross Keys Inn Ettrickbridge

Just outside the city centre you'll find this smart, understated shop conversion with seasonally changing décor and just six large tables. The cooking takes the form of a surprise menu, with a hand-drawn bookmark picturing some of the ingredients the only hint at what is to come. An interesting and individual streak runs through the cooking, with flavour combinations carefully thought through to enhance one another. The skill of the kitchen is most evident in dishes that extract wonderful flavours from seemingly basic ingredients, like kohlrabi with goat's curd.

Melrose is certainly one of the more attractive towns in the Scottish Borders and Provender, situated down a passageway just off the main street, has become a part of its fabric now. If you're celebrating, then be sure to kick off with some Cumbrae oysters, before choosing from the selection of straightforward dishes that put prime Scottish produce front and centre. Look out, in particular, for the great use of ingredients from the local estates and producers, be it fish from the North Sea or crab and scallops caught off the coast of Orkney.

This welcoming former inn represents a return home for its self-taught Chef-Owner, who grew up in this Scottish Borders village and even worked in this place as a youngster. After a stint in New York City, he and his partner are back to run The Hoebridge as a simple, stylish restaurant serving flavour-packed, internationally influenced dishes. Quality local ingredients form the basis of the dishes, which are carefully prepared with an ambitious touch. Ebullient service adds to the welcoming feel of it all.

This is the kind of restaurant where you can feel the love and enthusiasm poured into every part of the experience. Two brothers have taken over their dad’s former dairy farm and converted the old milking barn into a stylishly rustic dining space. Embrace the refectory-style communal tables and get to know your fellow diners as you enjoy thoughtfully composed dishes fed by terrific produce from the no-dig farm – such as pressed hogget shoulder with asparagus and radish. The charming service team are as passionate as the kitchen, believing wholeheartedly in their mission.

Inspired by the sticky clay used for making pottery, the naming of this hidden-away neighbourhood restaurant feels rather apt given the wonderful array of china, pottery and earthenware they use. It’s an intimate operation with modern, sometimes technically complex dishes that draw on global influences. Chef-owner Jack Montgomery serves many dishes himself, pouring passion and a personal touch into the experience.

Bakery

Fast food