Thursday, March 24, 2011

Spittal Beach Berwickshire


A Lovely spring day at Spittal Beach near Berwick upon Tweed. Had a really super fish and chips from our Borders Star Smiths. Crispy light batter and big square chips, what good fish and chips is all about. When I peeled the batter off, moist tender cod, big flakes. Tasty mushy peas that complemented the fish.

Tuesday, March 22, 2011

The Pleasure of the Borders

In a world of earthquakes and nuclear disaster, with air strikes over Libya it was nice to wake up this morning (22 March 2011) and on Radio Borders the news was, two horses straying on the road by Etal would the owners find them, and a poor deer hit by a car, could a vet help please.
The weather has turned from winter to summer overnight and we are basking in warm sunny days and can finally get out into the garden and clear up the winter mess. Hurray.

Wednesday, March 16, 2011

Gullane Fish and Chips

A very nice clean fish and chips and quite good food. Not by any means as good as Berwick or Prestonpans but its a good meal and they are clean and friendly with a place to sit.

Pentlands Fry - Curry

This is my main upset with Fish and Chips. Here is this lovely looking fish and chips all bright and modern and the food is awful. Greasy nasty chips with no flavor (we threw them away), and yet nice staff and its so easy to get caught. One expects this from a back of town chippy all dirty. but this lovely state of the art place.

Friday, March 11, 2011

Best Meal in Jedburgh

Learmounth the butcher makes excellent and superior steak pies (Best puff pastry and nicest beef steak pieces in gravy) and fat juicy bridies (lamb mince with onions in pastry). Buy a couple to your choice, and go to the fish and chip shop and buy just chips, which are quite acceptable and generous portions(the rest of his food is not). Now you have a nice little lunch. There are plenty of car parks and benches to sit and look at the very lovely old ruined Abbey while you eat. There are even cheeky balckbirds to eat your left overs and squabble. Jedburgh has a good hardware store with a lot more variety than most, the best gents outfitters in the Borders and a good little antique store recently opened. Overall its one of the better Borders towns as just on the outskirts is a couple of touristy but good scottish woollen shops.

Very Mixed Weather - 11 March 2011

The last week has gone between 12 degrees and sunny to 1 degree, windy, with sleet and snow and thats all in one day! Talk about confusing. Wife and I did some gardening last week and now have not been able to go outside for a week. Snow yesterday and today although its not sticking. Right now at noon full sun but still cold and windy. Tomorrow due more snow according to the weatherman.

Friday, March 4, 2011

Bookstore hidden in Melrose

If you stand at the triangle in the centre of Melrose and look up the hill next to the library you will see a bookstore on the left half way up. Do try it, its a very good bookstore, the best for miles. The proprietor is knowledgable and interesting to talk to and has a good collection of sceond hand books well catalogued. This place is a real find and satys open until nearly 6pm unlike everywhere else in Melrose.

Selkirk revisited

Its a while since I wrote about this Borders town. My wife and I went there today and I remain unimpressed. Yes historically, Scott and Mungo Park two legendary figures. But the town has very little to offer. Poor stores, no bakery (there is one but they don't bake bread!), the lady in the store said "theres no call for bread anymore" yes right madam. The pavements are not well kept and there is a lack of stores of interest. There is a deli and they do sell bread but it seems they are really more of a cafe....in fact there seems to be a lot of stores that claim to one thing but are really another, there are two bookstores one in St Boswells and one in Kelso that are really cafes in disguise. We were surprised that this little place had 3 butchers and two pharmacy, how do they make a living, or is everyone sick because they eat too much meat? Baxters have a loively superstorte on the outskirts that is worth the drive, lots of nice gift items and the quality food. They also sell bread but unfortunately don't slice it.