Inverness Information

Dining Out

There’s a wide choice of restaurants in Inverness and these are some of our favourites in the city centre.

Rocpool – consistently excellent food, and situated next to the River Ness, by the Young Street Bridge.
The River House – fine contemporary Scottish cooking (with the focus on fish/seafood)  in an intimate setting.
Rocpool Reserve – an upmarket restaurant at Rocpool Reserve hotel.
The Castle Tavern – a cosy traditional pub with a great selection of single malts and real ales, and tasty, good value pub fare.
Aspendos – serving Turkish cuisine, with plenty of vegetarian options.
Cafe 1 – an attractive bistro serving an eclectic mix, including an “early bird” menu for those wanting to dine early.
The Black Isle Bar – a great pub in Church Street serving a wide variety of craft ales and delicious wood-fired pizza.
The Mustard Seed – a very popular restaurant in a converted church on Bank Street.
Spice Tandoori – an Indian restaurant overlooking the river.
Kitchen Brasserie – serving a varied menu, and situated in a wonderful contemporary building with great river views.
Hootananny – a winner of Inverness Pub of the Year and Best Live Music Venue in Scotland, Hoots serves food until 8.30 pm (except on Sundays), with live traditional music in the Ceilidh Bar every night of the week from 9.30 pm.
MacGregors Bar – a very popular bar, beer garden and restaurant with great live music. Winner of both Best Bar in Scotland and Best Live Music Bar in Scotland.

For lunch or light meals try Velocity for delicious and wholesome food, near the Eastgate on St Stephens Brae, or the River Cafe on Bank Street, for both light bites or more substantial meals.

Closer to By The Brae B&B are:

Saffron India (1.3 miles) – a small, friendly, family run restaurant serving great Indian cuisine in a cosy setting. Unlicensed but you can bring your own alcohol (a good choice available at the Co-op next door).  We can highly recommend!
Culloden House Hotel (2 miles) – for fine cuisine in gracious surroundings.
The Snow Goose (2 and a half miles) – cosy and welcoming pub serving traditional pub grub.
The Glasshouse at Simpsons Garden Centre (1 and a half miles) – open daily from 9 am until 5.30 pm and serving tasty freshly prepared food.

The Cawdor Tavern is a particular favourite of ours – a traditional and cosy pub serving great food and situated in the picturesque conservation village of Cawdor. Located 10 miles away, or 15 minutes drive.  It’s worth giving yourself enough time to take a stroll around this very charming village.

Shopping

Local ceramics and artwork can be found at:

Castle Gallery – promoting the work of established artists and emerging talent, and our favourite Highland gallery, located on Castle Street.

Riverside Gallery – located on Bank Street.

Celtic jewellery, quaichs, local pottery, Caithness glass and silverware can be found at several gift shops located in Church Street and in the Victorian Market, (Queensgate & Union Street) an attractive restored 19th Century market, home to a wide array of small shops, including a herbalist, needlework and crafts, jewellers, model toys, health foods, fancy dress outfitter, chocolate maker, and others.

Leakey’s Books is a fascinating, treasure-filled antiquarian bookshop located in an old church (also in Church Street) and is the largest of its kind in Scotland; we highly recommend any book lovers to pay a visit.

Waterstones bookstore in the Eastgate Centre has a wide selection of fiction and non fiction, with a good Scottish section, as well as cards and gifts.

The Scottish Kiltmaker at Highland House of Fraser (Huntly Street and Bridge Street) has the largest kiltmaking workshop in Scotland and the helpful staff are happy to advise.

The Eastgate Centre is home to many well-known high street brands, including Marks & Spencer, Boots, Debenhams, Topshop, Next, H&M, Phase Eight, Schuh, Lakeland, Thorntons Chocolates, and many others.

Local transport links are good, with bus services and coach tours available to most parts of the Highlands, and rail links to many destinations. The local Tourist Information Centre (located in Castle Wynd) has timetables for the various operating companies and can, in some cases, book tickets for coach and boat tours.

Useful Travel Resources

Stagecoach Inverness local buses route map.
Scotrail – rail information.
Inverness Taxis
Inverness Airport
Flybe
Easyjet
KLM
Aer Lingus
British Airways

Other Useful Resources for Inverness and the Highlands

Scottish Talespinner– for guiding and true tales with Hugh Allison.
Inverness Tours – offering organised and personalised tours througnout the Highlands.
Inverness Bed And Breakfast – Inverness Guest House Association.
WOW Tours – an award winning fun and independent company which specialises in providing fully customised private tours from Inverness and Invergordon as well as fantastic group tours.
Inverness Bike Hire
Happy Tours – Inverness walking tours, bike hire, and electric bikes.
Secret Scotland – for holiday routes and comprehensive guidance to special places off the beaten track.
Jacobite Tours – for cruises on Loch Ness.
Newborn Photography Aberdeenshire – Kingshill Studios provide newborn and family photography located in Aberdeen.
Self Catering Cottage Hebrides  Luxury self catering holiday cottage Outer Hebrides.

Perthshire Self Catering – Aberfeldy Cottages in Aberfeldy, Perthshire provide a choice of pet friendly self catering cottages in Perthshire Scotland.

Riverbank Solar IT Support Glasgow – Keep your business running smoothly with IT Support provided by Riverbank Solar.

Diana Gabaldon Outlander Tours – By The Brae is located very near some of the places featured in Diana Gabaldon’s Outlander books. A list of local tour guides offering Diana Gabaldon tours has been compiled by Diana herself on her website.
Outlander Past Lives Tours – Regular Scheduled Tours, as well as Private Tours on dates to suit you. Visit the Outlander book and filming locations, and take a journey back in time to explore your own past lives too.
Highland Personal Development Photography Tours – Create your dream Highland Personal Development holiday. Combine top-class personal development, relationship mentoring, with digital photography whilst touring the Scottish Highlands.