The best restaurants in Lowlands

We where very disappointed, my wife ordered the scallops which where okay, nothing special at all. Also had the steak which was very tough and hard to cut, it also had to much fat on it, once again very disappointed. On a plus side the service was good and ambiance was nice. We will not rush back with Melrose offering so many other options. Very disappointed as we looked forward to eating here while on holiday from overseas.

It's a great shame that this place will be closing shortly because the food and the staff are so lovely! Super according to a coeliac and went above + beyond in everything. Best of luck to Mr Pooks and all those involved in this little gem.

Lovely little cafe on the upper floor of the old building. There are photos in the stairwell showing how the building was converted to its current use. Friendly staff serve a wide range of teas and decent coffees and a load of different pastries and lunches. Masses of parking opposite.

My partner and I were visiting Hawick for a little break and my parents came to surprise me. The 4 of us enjoyed all our mains, we had all together, the haddock and chips, lasagne, steak and ale pie. Portion sizes were great, everything was fresh and tasted great. I had haggis bon bons to start along with my dad and we both thought the haggis was bland and the mystery sauce in which they are served on top of was very unexpected and I’d definitely swap that out with a sweet chilli chutney or something. I’d have a different starter next time but that aside I very much enjoyed the rest of the food and so did everyone else. Service was fantastic, the restaurant itself is very homely, rustic/country esq. I felt very comfortable and it was a great dining experience. Sticky toffee pudding was great too.

As it’s a small popular place booking in advance is probably recommended. We were looking for a table on a Saturday night during the Spring Fling event in the region so left a message with the restaurant whilst traveling to Kirkcudbright. The owner returned the call and fortunately, thanks to a cancellation, was able to arrange our reservation for dinner the following night - a promising start. On the evening of our visit the bistro was busy however there was still a relaxed ambiance about the place. The sole waitress taking orders and attending to the tables was pleasant and seemed knowledgeable about the menu and the only other member of staff appeared to be the owner/chef. He popped out and chatted with us towards the end of service to allow the waitress to get home as a few diners like us were finishing off drinks and still to receive their desserts and settle their bills. He seemed sociable and relaxed and clearly hadn’t adopted the Gordon Ramsay approach to the restaurant business. Being a small place we were not surprised at the outset that the menu was limited to about half a dozen items per course including specials however it gave a decent choice in our view. We both ordered a “special” for starters - Tempura Battered Prawns (£7.95). As was the case throughout the evening, the dish was served up to the table in good time. Six king prawns each with a sweet chilli sauce with a salad garnish and balsamic. It was a tasty start. For mains my wife ordered the Seabass, served with king prawns, a white wine & tomato sauce and fresh vegetables (£21.00). I had Duck a L’Orange (£21.95) which was another item from the specials board. Neither of the mains dishes would be winning prizes for presentation however most importantly they both tasted good. The fish was nicely cooked and my wife enjoyed the other parts of the dish. The duck was also good albeit the chef was later surprised I’d left the fat on the plate. I queried if people normally ate the fat and he commented that they often do and that he rendered it to make it more appealing. Thankfully this was not an overly fatty duck breast in any case but I was quite happy to leave the small amount I did on the plate. For dessert my wife had Sticky Toffee Pudding with ice cream and I had a Citrus Tart served with a small selection of fresh berries and cream. The puddings were £6.50 each and both enjoyable. Overall we liked our experience at the bistro and with our three course meal for two costing just under £72 we thought it was reasonable value for money. We had added a bottle of NZ Yealands Sauvignon Blanc wine for £25 only just keeping the bill under £100. A walk to the harbour to watch the sunset as we headed back to our accommodation rounded off the evening well.

every time i ordered my stomach hurts

The haddock was lovely and the service was great. Our 3yr old had his Peppa Pig playing on my wife's phone and nobody bothered with it. Excellent.....

I had read good reviews online about this restaurant and it did not disappoint. I had the soup of the day (butternut and sweet potato) to start (delicious), baked hand made pasta tubes with the most delicious filling, topped with a creamy tomato sauce and for dessert a coconut panacotta with chocolate soil served with gooseberries and smooth vanilla ice cream! My husband had the baked handmade pizza dough, filled with cheese and topped with a tomato sauce followed by a venison and beef ragu with tagliatelle. He had coffee then envied my dessert but was too full to order one! This was the best restaurant meal we had on our break. The staff were lovely including Morag who owns the restaurant with Andre, her husband and chef.

One of our favourite places to eat in Castle Douglas, if not our outright one. Proper authentic Italian food of really high quality, and they know how to entertain our 4 year old every time he's in. The fact they remember him is even better. Cannot recommend more highly.

Richard the Manager starts your experience at the Stables with a warm Scottish greeting and it gets even better from there. Emily's skills in the kitchen are unrivaled and the meals are divine. With a delightful atmosphere and quality food the Stables is a perfect choice for a fine meal accompanied by a nice draft from their good selection.

Excellent choice of gins and good selection of beers with friendly service

Had the most amazing Afternoon Tea today from booking the whole experience was fantastic, the selection and amount of food was brilliant and great quality, there was so much foe 2 people that we didn’t even attempt the sweet treats and brought a tray home for later. The staff were lovely and very friendly. Would definitely recommend.

A fantastic place, absolute shame it's closed now. Best wishes to the team in their new endeavours.

Fantastic food and coffee. Highly recommend

Beautiful location for a lovely community building serving an excellent range of food and drink. Very handy shop, too, for both essentials and gifts.