Eager to explore, we walked along the River Ness, watching the ducks frolic and admiring the lush green scenery.
Before long, we came to a footbridge across the river. We assumed it was to access the opposite riverbank, but we were wrong.
It took us onto a beautiful island filled with flowers and huge trees. I wanted to know more about the island, so we stopped multiple people to ask about its history. I was amazed that everyone I talked to was from a different part of the world and was here, like us, to experience this beautiful part of the United Kingdom.
The island truly is a magical place with an ethereal feel. It’s a great place to relax and interact with nature and is just a five minutes walk from the hotel.
One immediately apparent thing was the absence of litter – this wasn’t only exclusive to the aforementioned island, it was also the same in the city centre. Inverness is undoubtedly the cleanest city Natasha and I have visited.
We spent an hour or so wandering around the centre, which was filled with many interesting shops, exploring the cobbled winding lanes while revelling in the friendly atmosphere. With the hunger pangs starting, it was time to head back to the hotel to sample Torrish’s à la carte menu.
After a wash and change, we headed down to the rather swish Torrish restaurant to take our place at a window-side table. There was a good selection of starters and main dishes on the menu, including langoustine, halibut and venison, which all used locally sourced ingredients. I decided to start with the Duck Leg Rillettes with watermelon, yoghurt, crispy skin and Nasturtium flowers. Natasha chose the hand-dived west coast scallops with a carrot puree, coconut foam, orange gel and coriander cress.
The plating of both of our starters was superb. Each dish resembled a mini work of art framed by a colour-matched Villeroy & Boch plate. Natasha’s scallops were a particular speciality of the kitchen; once you take a bite, you can understand why.
They were melt-in-the-mouth delicious. Although my duck was perfect and I was eager to share, Natasha seemed a little less enthusiastic, and the greatest pleasure I had from her dish was watching her devouring it!
Next, it was on to the main courses. I’d chosen the Roast North Atlantic Monkfish with baby shallots, potato fondant and celeriac discs. And once more, the dish’s plating and superb service were exemplary. I should mention that the prices being charged at the Torrish Restaurant far from “break the bank”, which was very refreshing when considering the excellent quality of the food and the service.
For her main course, Natasha chose the baked North Atlantic cod with asparagus, pea ragout, wood-smoked lardons and morel mushrooms. The food was so generous that neither of us felt the need for or had room for a dessert, something very rare on the male side of our relationship.
We were so pleased with the dining experience that we wanted to thank the masterminds behind it in person. After confirming it was okay, we were led into the hallowed realms of the kitchen. With the team busy working away, it was left to Executive Chef, Craig Douglas, to talk to us.
Craig was younger than I expected at 29, and when you discover his background, it becomes obvious that the Torrish will be a major force on the Scottish culinary scene. Before Ness Walk, he worked at One Devonshire Gardens and The Kitchin before heading to Australia to work with the award-winning Australian chef and restaurateur Matt Moran at Aria.
One of the first things I wanted to know was what he considered to be the signature dish at Ness Walk, and as I expected, he said: “One of the scallop dishes”. This was no surprise, given how much Natasha enjoyed hers. Craig told us that the langoustines and scallops come directly off the boat onto the plate the same day. He also told us he’s heavily involved with sourcing and quality-checking all the food and engaging with local fishermen, the vegetable farms, and markets.
The thing that stood out was Craig’s passion to make the Torrish one of Scotland’s best restaurants, and given what we’d experienced so far, we had no doubt that it would quickly become one of the go-to dining establishments in the Highlands.
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