Nick Nairn, one of six top British chefs, revealed Elie and the East Neuk of Fife to be one of the best gastro getaways for sampling local produce, browsing farmers’ markets and dining in style. The East Neuk of Fife is a long time favourite of Nick’s.
“The fishing villages ringing the coast from Leven to St Andrews are a little piece of heaven, especially Elie, which is a Scottish version of Rock: impeccably upmarket, with a gorgeous beach and an epic pub, the Ship. I always have the fish and chips there — the best in Scotland. Get a table upstairs, for the beach view.”
“The Ship does B&B, too — but for a treat, you should stay at the Peat Inn, an iconic restaurant-with-rooms started by my hero, David Wilson, the godfather of Scottish cooking. Geoffrey Smeddle has it now and he’s doing some seriously good things with Fife-grown lamb and beef. It’s an old, whitewashed pub on a hilltop, with smoking fires and low ceilings, and the suites have just been revamped — very smart.
I’ve walked all of the Fife Coastal Path, and my favourite stretch is between Lower Largo and Elie — that beach is a stunner, two straight miles of untouched sand, a bit off the beaten track. We often ramble down there across the Lundin Links golf course after a family lunch at Blacketyside Farm shop. They grow the best raspberries I’ve ever tasted, and the cafe does simple food straight off the farm — mince and tatties, that sort of thing.
The road east of Elie is studded with picturesque shellfishing villages, great for a lazy drive. The fish market at Pittenweem is worth a peek, but for buying fish you won’t beat G&J Wilson, in St Monans — it sells straight from its packing shed. There’s a little smokery round the back, doing hot-smoked salmon and haddock.
Also in St Monans is the Seafood Restaurant, my all-time top place to eat in Fife. The building feels hollowed into the cliffs — it’s so redolent of smugglers and moonlight trysts. I’ve loads of good memories of feasting on oysters there, then strolling outdoors with a glass of grog to gaze over the ocean and listen for the sound of muffled oars.”