A Dining Adventure @ North Harbor Bistro
After arriving in Scalpay, getting checked in and settled at Hirta House, we asked the hosts for a recommendation for dinner and they suggested the North Harbor Bistro & Tearoom down the street. Without doing any research beforehand, we had minimal expectations. We were hoping a decent, hot meal to warm us up after a cold & rainy day.. Definitely a step up from our camping meals we were planning on having that evening.
We had no idea that we were about to experience one of the best meals of our lives.
We walked into the restaurant and it looked more like a store in the front so we were confused & thought we went into the wrong place at first. We found a waitress towards the back and asked if they had any openings for dinner. Initially she said they were fully booked for dinner service but then the chef came out and asked if we were ready to eat now. They had just started setting up for dinner for the evening, and didn’t have anyone seated yet so thankfully they were able to squeeze us in early.
They don’t serve alcohol but it’s BYOB. so if you go, make sure you bring a bottle of wine or some scotch to enjoy in this lovely restaurant.
There are only a few small tables and the menu is written on a chalkboard on the wall. Their menu is primarily local, seasonal fish dishes. The Isle of Scalpay is a small fishing village. You can literally watch the boats bringing in their catches while you sit at your table.
We opted for the seafood chowder & Halibut, King Prawn & Scallop.
The chowder came first. Our last seafood chowder was at Skerries Bistro in Orkney and we knew that was going to be a hard one to top. North Harbor Bistro was 100% up to that task.
The seafood chowder was the best soup I’ve ever had in my life.
I want to go back to this tiny fishing village just to have a bowl of this soup again. The broth is so light, creamy & flavorful and the fish was so unbelievably fresh, cooked to perfection & straight up delicious.
Our mains were also wonderful in taste and presentation. We were in shock when the plates came out. The plates were works of art and it felt like we were at a Michelin-star restaurant in a big city. It was one of the most magical travel moments for me. We never planned on coming to Scalpay or having a meal at North Harbor Bistro but sometimes surprises happen when you’re traveling and you just have to go with it.
This was a “go with it” moment, and we were so grateful that it happened. Truly one of the best dining experiences I’ve ever had.
Adventure Always.
Mary Kate
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