The Best Places to Eat Near Newhall Mains, by the Record
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Rank 1. Rocpool
Modern British
A brasserie on the banks of the River Ness, bright and colourful in a way that feels cheerful rather than trying too hard. The menu runs wide, leaning on Scottish produce while pulling in influences from further afield, so the kitchen might pair Shetland monkfish with a Milanese risotto without losing the thread. A natural stop on the North Coast 500, and the kind of room that handles a full house without the seams showing.
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The floor-to-ceiling windows frame the Speyside valley on one side; a whisky wall does the same on the other. This fine dining restaurant sits above The Macallan's distillery, with a menu shaped by the Roca brothers of El Celler de Can Roca, so Catalan technique turns up alongside Scottish ingredients in ways you didn't expect. The whisky pairing is, perhaps unsurprisingly, the move here.
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Rank 3. The Dipping Lugger
Modern British
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Rank 4. Station Road
Modern British
The bread comes from grains milled on-site, which tells you something about how seriously this hotel dining room takes its Scottish larder. Housed inside a country house at the edge of Loch Ness, the room is done in greens and browns that lean into the setting rather than fight it. The kitchen leans on garden vegetables, foraged mushrooms, and Highland lamb, while the wine list quietly champions English bottles over the usual suspects.