The Skye's the Limit

People have been traveling to Scotland for centuries — but never for the food. While Scottish beef, game, salmon and shellfish are prized by top chefs the world over, you are more likely to enjoy the best stuff in Madrid than in Edinburgh, because the lucrative export market consumes the best produce. The nation's cooking has long been a source of dismay to food-loving visitors and locals alike. But now a new generation of culinary bravehearts is transforming Scotland's gastronomic landscape. The notoriously sniffy Michelin guide awarded a star to two new restaurants in 2002, bringing the total number of Scottish recipients to 10.

The public face of new Scottish cooking, thanks to his award-winning BBC programs and best-selling books, is Nick Nairn, the youngest Scot ever to have won a Michelin star. Nairn's latest venture is a cooking school on the Lake of Menteith, in the gateway to the Highlands. "Ten years ago nobody would have dreamed of opening a cookery school in Scotland," he says. Now his courses are booked months in advance.

Nairn is only one of the chefs updating the image of Scottish cookery. In a converted crofter's cottage on the Isle of Skye — a ruggedly beautiful island just off Scotland's west coast — a chef named Shirley Spear is turning out food that takes full advantage of the area's extraordinary produce. Spear's restaurant-with-rooms, The Three Chimneys, was acclaimed as one of the world's 50 best restaurants earlier this year by Restaurant magazine. It could certainly qualify as one of the 50 most-difficult-to-reach restaurants. On the northwestern tip of the island, it is a six-hour drive from Edinburgh; for the last leg of the journey, gastronomic pilgrims must navigate an undulating single-lane road across a spongy peat bog.

It's well worth the trip. Spear's cooking, which draws foodies from across Britain, is deceptively simple, starting with appetizers like langoustine salad and partan bree (crab soup), both made from meltingly sweet local shellfish. Entrées include flash-sautéed Skye scallops, citrus-roast halibut and Highland lamb served with pearl-barley risotto. Cranachan, a mixture of oatmeal, cream, honey and whisky, is a classic dessert. The influence of the Gulf Stream makes Skye fertile ground for soft fruits, so local raspberries accompany the cranachan, while sharp, green gooseberries are puréed and mixed with cream to make a traditional "fool." Spear sums up her approach as "best-quality produce, simply cooked." Her success has made her a spokeswoman for the industry — and has helped put Scottish cooking firmly on the map after all these years.