There’s a special moment which is hard to find and must be cherished – the one where the world around you fades away, you stop thinking about anything else, and you enjoy a singular experience. I found that at 1610 by Fraser Cameron somewhere around the third course and I enjoyed every minute of the experience.
Sitting in the restaurant on a Friday evening, with Burns’ ghost presumably lurking somewhere upstairs, and a very good glass of wine in my hand, it was easy to understand why people make the drive over the border to Dumfries specifically for this.
The inn on Dumfries’ High Street has been welcoming guests since 1610, and famously served as a favoured haunt of Robert Burns. The poet’s presence is still felt here but it is the restaurant – Michelin-listed and crowned Scotland’s Best Eating Experience by VisitScotland – that gives this place its contemporary edge.
Head chef Fraser Cameron and head of cuisine Jonathan Brett both came up through Andrew Fairlie’s two Michelin-starred kitchen. It shows, with cooking that knows exactly what it is doing without having to announce it.
We were warmly welcomed by restaurant manager Chitra Chaudhary, and the seven-course tasting menu with wine pairing is the way to go when you’ve made a special trip. The menu changes regularly and it did not disappoint on our visit.
An amuse-bouche of tomato gazpacho and horseradish foam was swiftly followed by a wonderful fish course of coley, broccoli, herb emulsion and bouillabaisse. The treats for the tastebuds and eyes kept coming – with dong po pork belly and beetroot and pommes rosti followed by the centrepiece Galloway beef with artichoke and mushroom served with a port, red wine and cherry sauce and a mushroom tart.
Desserts included grapefruit with kampot black pepper and blood orange, and a coconut and pineapple mille-feuille with banana and rum. We finished things off with a magnificent cheeseboard.
The wine pairings were chosen sensibly and complemented each dish brilliantly – from an Azahara Chardonnay/Pinot Noir with the canapés to a Casal Caiero Albarino with the fish course, a Neprico Primitivo Tormaresca with the beef, and a delightful Sauternes with dessert. Each was introduced with just enough context to add to the occasion without being overwhelming.
The service was quietly confident throughout the evening – present when you needed it and sensibly absent when you didn’t. We left later than planned, which is always the sign of a good evening.
The following afternoon we visited Annandale Distillery at Annan, which offers something entirely different but no less special.
The meticulously restored Victorian-era site was brought back to life in 2014 after nearly a century of silence, and today it carries that rare quality of feeling both cared for and completely unforced.
The guided tour was excellent – informed, enthusiastic and structured around up to five single-cask single malt tastings that build an understanding of how the distillery’s two expressions – Man O’Words and Man O’Sword – find their character.
Our guide, Joe, was particularly helpful in explaining the subtle variances of the range, and the peated and unpeated cask types. The whole experience was enlightening and I enjoyed it so much I took a bottle of the peated Man O’Sword STR home to enjoy as I reflected on the experience.
Following the tour, we headed into the Maltings Coffee Shop for an afternoon tea which would hold its own anywhere. Finger sandwiches, freshly baked scones, miniature pastries and homemade cakes arrived on dedicated stands for sweet and savoury, with everything featured made on-site.
This is the kind of afternoon tea that earns its billing rather than coasting on the setting. That said, the setting – a beautifully converted maltings building in the distillery grounds – is worth plenty of praise too.
What made this overnight trip particularly rewarding was that both experiences shared a common thread. They are both rooted in place, in craft, and in the particular character of Dumfries and Galloway. Neither is trying to be anything other than what it is, and both are better for it. Whether you come for the tasting menu, the whisky, or simply to slow down for a weekend in the south of Scotland, this corner of the country deserves your attention.
1610 by Fraser Cameron, 56 High Street, Dumfries, DG1 2JA, www.globeinndumfries.co.uk
Annandale Distillery Northfield, Annan, DG12 5LL, www.annandaledistillery.com
