Eating fish and chips in Stonehaven and smokies in Arbroath are among the world’s top food experiences, according to a new guide by travel gurus Lonely Planet.
A follow-up to Lonely Planet’s Ultimate Travelist, its Ultimate Eatlist celebrates and ranks the world’s top 500 food experiences.
At number 31 on the list, Stonehaven fish and chips washed down with Irn Bru is the UK’s top entry.
Guzzling a smokie – “a Scottish national treasure – is the fourth best Scottish foodie experience and 163rd in the world.
Of Stonehaven, the guide gushes: “Sailing boats bob in the harbour; rockpools teem with crabs and sea stars; gulls ride on the breeze; and in the distance, the leaden horizon of the North Sea.
“Completing the scene, halfway along the beach is The Bay Fish & Chips, whose fish is wild-caught from Marine Stewardship Council-certified stocks.
“Considering the setting, the sustainability and the beautifully cooked fish, is it the best fish and chip shop in the world? The constant queue suggests so.
“Its ‘default order’? Battered cod, large chips, Irn-Bru.”
The guide is equally enthusiastic in its praise of Arbroath smokies.
It says: ”Haggis gets the headlines but for a less well known taste of Scotland – but one that has been protected by European Union law in the same way as champagne or prosciutto – you need to go to Arbroath on Scotland’s east coast.
“Smokies are haddock (with their backbones intact) that have been traditionally cured in woodsmoke in a kiln until their skins turn bronze.
“The smoke and steam gives the flesh a luxurious, savoury flavour best experienced picked from the bones in the fresh air.
“More typically they’re eaten for breakfast as the local and artisanal alternative to a kipper.
“However you enjoy them, they’re a Scottish national treasure.
“Spink & Sons has smoked haddock for five generations. In Arbroath, the Old Boatyard and the Old Brewhouse serve smokies.”
Scotland top food experiences, according to Lonely Planet, are:
1 (31 worldwide) Fish and chip on the beach at Stonehaven
2 (39) Hebridean Smokehouse
3 (162) Haggis
4 (163) Arbroath smokie
5 (221) The Arch Inn Restaurant, Ullapool-
6 (450) Chicken tikka masala in Glasgow
England and Wales:
1 (59) Sunday pub roast
2 (80) Crab sandwiches in Norfolk
3 (100) Cream tea in an English country garden
4 Taste the sunniest season with summer pudding (#107, England) 5) Scotch egg at Fortnum & Mason (#132, London, England) 6) Khichari at The Wolseley – a taste of the Raj at London’s smartest breakfast venue
The top 10 ranked experiences are:
1) Pintxos in San Sebasti~n, Spain
2) Curry laksa in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
3) Sushi in Tokyo, Japan
4) Beef brisket in Texas, USA
5) Som tum in Bangkok, Thailand
6) Smorrebrod in Copenhagen, Denmark
7) Crayfish in Kaikoura, New Zealand
8) Bibimbap in Seoul, South Korea
9) Pizza margherita in Naples, Italy
10) Dim sum in Hong Kong
