EAT MY WORDS: We tried Nairn Golf View Hotel’s new cheesy take on afternoon tea
As an Italian born and bred, I take cheese very seriously. I grew up in a family that enjoys and savours most of these dairy delights in all their forms and flavours, and I am partial to a mountain retreat for some professional research and local cheese tasting.
And as any Italian, moving abroad is often a bit of a cultural shock — gastronomically speaking, that is. The Scottish dairy landscape was a new world to explore to me when I first arrived, but one that I have enthusiastically embraced. So, now that I am accustomed to the cheese palette, the occasional craving for some serious dairy treat kicks in.
However, being the only one in the house who really thrives on cheese, sometimes I am left with no cheese in the fridge.
Luckily, unlike the famous Wallace & Gromit adventure, we are quite lucky that we don’t have to go to the moon to have a cheesy grand day out — as Nairn’s Golf View Hotel has launched its new Afternoon Cheese menu last month. So, we went to check out what it was all about.
Cheese by the sea
Despite the many times the Golf View Hotel has been positively mentioned to me in reviews and conversations, I had not had the chance to visit it yet, but it was definitely worth the wait.
With the golf course to the west and West Beach right in front, nothing blocks the view across the Moray Firth – a dreamy view for a leisurely day, especially on a glorious sunny day where the sea and coast explode in technicolour. The restaurant’s floor-to-ceiling windows make you feel like you're in a fancy glass greenhouse. I reckon it would be quite spectacular even on a stormy day.
The decor of the restaurant feels refined yet cosy, quietly blending wood and tartan details to more decadent prints and leather without overwhelming the eye. Although it’s still quite early for the crowds to come in for the afternoon offerings, the staff is warm and welcoming, making us feel at home and well attended to.
(Local) cheesework makes the dreamwork
So, what does an Afternoon Cheese look like? I was asking myself the same question when I first arrived. After ordering our wine-starter (a lovely floral and crisp Gavi) in front of us was laid a staircase of treats – savoury and sweet, warm and cold – most of which made using locally-sourced cheese from the nearby Connage Cheese.
The presentation is visually really fun and lets you play around with the different options on offer, depending on what you prefer. There is quite a range of flavour and texture here: from a fresh salmon and Crowdie soft cheese and cucumber wrap or a slide with smoked dunlop (hands down my favourite) cheddar and chutney, to a sharper red onion and bonnet goats cheese tartlet, which was the winner for me, despite not being big on goats cheese.
A really lovely detail on the menu is that you get a good explanation of the cheese selection’s flavour profile, which is fantastic if you also want to learn more about the product and have a more mindful eating experience.
But that wasn’t all – along the savoury bites we also got some tasty cheesy and buttery scones (what afternoon tea would that be without scones) as well as the first of the desserts, the signature cheesecake, which I had last because to me sweet flavours belong to the end of the meal, but to each on either own.
Swapping our white wine for a meaty and delicious Château du Rival Bordeaux, what followed was a selection of cheese – to be had neat or with chutneys, oatcakes and quince paste. The selection may vary but we had a good variety with a slice of bonnet, some blue murder and a slice of cromal.
That was rounded up by the cheesecake which was for me a true highlight of the meal, with its tartness mixing up with creamy and round flavours, and wonderfully closing with a decadent sip of Taylors port.
A game of fun and flavours
I think that there are a few words that come to mind when describing this experience: leisurely, fun and full of new flavours.
Sometimes tasting menus can become a bit too serious (if not, on some occasions, altogether boring and repetitive).
In the recent thriller movie starring Ralph Fiennes and Anya Taylor-Joy, The Menu, the main character argues with the mad, perfection-obsessed starred chef that he has “taken the joy out of eating”. And this is something which I find can be a problem sometimes with some tasting menus.
I have felt very much the opposite in this case: although there are still some lovely flavours and textures to be found in the various bites on this menu, it all felt like comfort food with an extra twist. It was enjoyable, funny and something that everyone can have a good amount of dairy products in one go can enjoy.
The Afternoon Cheese menu is available at the Golf View Hotel in Nairn for £35 per person — adding £16 for the wine pairing — served from 12.30pm until 4pm.