Best Scottish foods to eat

One of the very best aspects of any holiday is taking the opportunity to enjoy some of the local delicacies during your trip! Wherever you go in the world, there’s a wide array of brand new tastes available for you to try out on your travels - and the UK is no different. 

If you’re heading up to bonny Scotland this summer, you’ll certainly want to sample some of the local favourites during your trip - but where should you start?

Here are some of our top picks for Scottish delicacies that you just need to try out for yourself during your stay!

Scotland has a booming fishing industry, with a wide array of both oceanic and freshwater fish from Scottish waters to sample - everything from salmon, haddock and trout to delicious mussels and oysters. 

Mirroring this, there are plenty of incredible seafood restaurants and traditional fish and chip shops in the country where you can taste them for yourself! If you do find yourself in one of Scotland’s traditional chippys during your stay, be sure to pick up another local delicacy for dessert - the deep-fried Mars Bar, first served in The Carron Fish Bar, Stonehaven, in 1995!

Scotland is famous for its shortbread biscuits - they originated in the country and are still thought to be the very best shortbread biscuits in the world. These melt-in-the-mouth biscuits are the perfect complement to a cup of tea in a quaint Scottish cafe, whatever part of the country you happen to be visiting. 

Don’t forget to pick up a tin of Scottish shortbreads on your way home, too. It makes a great gift for family and friends once you return - if you’re willing to share them, that is!

A traditional Scottish soup, most often made using smoked haddock (preferably Finnan haddie, a cold-smoked haddock found in Aberdeenshire), potatoes and leeks. It’s warming, comforting and makes the perfect lunch on a cold winter’s day - though it’s still just as delicious all year round! 

Okay, so it’s not strictly a food, but what would a trip to Scotland be without sampling a classic Scotch whiskey? Scotland is famous for its whiskey distilleries, with around 130 distilleries around the country - some hundreds of years old. Many distilleries offer tours, too, which makes a great idea for a day out if you’re travelling the country without any little ones. 

We don’t know about you, but we can’t imagine a better way to spend an afternoon in Scotland than taking a trip around one of its famous whiskey distilleries before sampling the goods for yourself!

Of course, haggis had to be on this list! Perhaps the most famous Scottish delicacy and the one which many non-Scots are the most dubious about trying for themselves, haggis is made from the offal of a sheep. Traditional Scottish haggis tends to be made by mixing minced heart, liver and lungs with onions, suet, oatmeal, seasoning and spices, using the sheep’s stomach as a casing for this mix. 

The dish has been a staple in the country for hundreds of years, originating as a way for hunters to ensure that no part of an animal goes to waste, since being perfected over time and becoming the definitive Scottish delicacy. If you find yourself with the opportunity, be sure to give this dish a try - served best with neeps (mashed turnips), tatties (mashed potatoes) and washed down with a glass of Scotch!

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