It might be a relatively new phenomenon but ‘brunch’ now seems omnipresent, with almost every cafe and restaurant offering some version of the meal. here’s our Scottish favourites.
1. Café Strange Brew, Shawlands
1082 Pollokshaws Road, Shawlands, Glasgow
Open Monday-Saturday, 9am- 5pm and Sunday, 9.30am- 4pm
0141 440 7290
Since opening in 2015, Café Strange Brew has made brunch its speciality, with queues out of the door a common sight at weekends. If you do find yourself faced with a queue then don’t be deterred: the food, service, and value for money all make the wait well worth it. The café also has a five-star rating among the users of trip advisor, and it was recorded as the site’s number one restaurant in Glasgow during a period in 2018.
2. Pacarma Dundee
302 Perth Road, Dundee
01382 527666
Open Monday-Friday, 8.30am-5pm, Saturday, 9.30am-5pm and Sunday, 9.30am-4pm
One of the most buzzed-about venues in Dundee, Pacarma has gained an impressive reputation for its pancake stacks, waffles, cooked breakfasts and healthy options. The poached eggs are a particular standout: they are the kind that collapse when they are cut into, oozing a perfectly yellow yolk. Their artisan coffee is also delicious, and, as an added bonus, you can buy their beans to take home with you.
3. Buckley’s Prestwick
59 Main St, Prestwick
01292 737787
Open Monday-Saturday, 8.30am- 5pm, Sunday 10am- 4pm (brunch served until 2pm)
www.buckleysprestwick.com
If its indulgence you want, look no further than the bubbly brunch at Buckley’s. It offers croissants with butter and jam, fresh orange juice, a half bottle of Prosecco and your choice of brunch dish: including eggs (benedict, royale or florentine); French toast; bacon and syrup; smoked salmon and scrambled egg on sourdough; and Mexican breakfast (huevos rancheros). Phew.
4. Smoke Stack, Edinburgh
53-55 Broughton Street, Edinburgh
0131 556 6032
Open 9am-10pm, every day (brunch served 9am-12 noon and until 4pm on weekends)
www.smokestack.org.uk
Brunch: great in theory, but harder in practice, especially when it involves dragging yourself out of the house early on a Saturday morning. Smoke Stack should have you covered, with their brunch menu available until 4pm on weekends and sizeable dishes like steak and eggs and a sausage, cheese and egg bap on offer. Their waffles also come highly recommended, with varieties including Canadian bacon, smoked salmon and chocolate banana.
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5. Rye and Soda, Aberdeen
unit 17, The Academy, Belmont Street, Aberdeen
01224 643338
Open Tuesday-Thursday, and Sunday, 10am-11pm, Friday and Saturday, 10am-1am (brunch served 10am- 3pm, Tuesday-Sunday)
www.ryeandsoda.com
Forget greasy breakfasts and their associated guilt. Rye and soda offer a lighter – but equally tasty – brunch menu: featuring dishes like avocado toast, eggs with sourdough toast and pancakes with berries and ice cream. But if you don’t want to be too sensible, you can add champagne to any brunch dish for an extra £5.
6. Bramble cafe, Giffnock
205 Fenwick Road, Giffnock, Glasgow
0141 620 0434
Open Monday, 9.30am- 4pm, Tuesday-Friday, 8.30am- 4.30pm, Saturday, 9am-6pm, Sunday, 10am-5pm
More than likely one of the smallest restaurants in Glasgow, this tiny venue was in several different hands before it became bramble – but it now seems to have settled on a winning formula. The limited tables have made the restaurant a sought-after venue for brunch, with a varied menu and inventive flavour combinations keeping their customers coming back. Presentation is a priority, not an afterthought, and the dishes are so well displayed that they look almost too good to eat. Almost.
7. The Boathouse, Glencaple
Quayside, Glencaple, Dumfries
01387 770673
Open Tuesday-Sunday, 10am- 4pm (brunch served all day)
www.theboathouseglencaple.com
Offering an extensive brunch menu that runs all day, the Boathouse is well worth the trip out to the small settlement of Glencaple. On the banks of the River Nith, the glass fronted building offers great views of the water, and a hearty brunch to boot. think gluten-free porridge, bacon butties, sausage sandwiches (with optional vegan sausage) and the very special ‘huevos barquero’.
8. Buttercup Café, Doune
7 Main Street, Doune, Stirling
01786 842511
Open Monday-Friday, 9am- 4pm, Saturday, 9am-5pm, Sunday, 10am-4pm (brunch served 9am-11.30am Monday - Saturday and 10am -11.30am on Sunday)
www.buttercupcafe.co.uk
The village of Doune might feel a world away from the new Mexican city of Santa Fe, but there is an excellent ‘Santa Fe’ bagel on the menu for brunch at the Buttercup Café. The toasted bagel – filled with an omelette, grated cheese, sour cream and salsa – is delicious, but there are plenty of alternative options that should keep you coming back. And, if you need perked up, their coffee is excellent too.
9. Singl-end Café and Bakehouse, Glasgow
263 Renfrew Street, Garnethill, Glasgow
0141 353 1277
Open Monday-Sunday, 9am-5pm
www.thesingl-end.co.uk
It might be hidden away from Sauchiehall Street and the bustle of Glasgow’s shopping precinct, but missing Singl-End would mean missing out on a pretty spectacular brunch. They make their own bread (including three vegan varieties) that can be added to your choice of egg dishes, and there are three different types of ‘big breakfast’ to choose from: meaty, veggie and vegan.
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10. Montpeliers, Edinburgh
159-161, Bruntsfield Place, Edinburgh
0131 229 3115
Open Monday-Sunday, 9am to 1am (brunch served from 9am-5pm)
www.montpeliersedinburgh.co.uk
With plenty of cafes in Edinburgh offering trendy brunch options, Montpeliers has put in a great deal of effort to ensure it stands out from the crowd. Its breakfast and brunch menus are expansive: with Mexican tortillas and potato stacks on offer alongside more traditional options like pancakes and porridge. The centrepiece is the ‘full monty’, a humongous cooked breakfast that includes chargrilled chicken, pork & herb sausages, bacon, eggs, potato scone, minute steak, haggis, black pudding, tomato, mushrooms and baked beans. The diet starts tomorrow…
11. Toast, Stirling
Forthside Way, Stirling
01786 471887
Open Monday-Friday, 8am-4pm, Saturday, 9.30am-4pm and Sunday, 9.30am-4pm
What it is lacking in floor space toast more than makes up for in portion sizes, with hearty, filling brunch options that will suit a wide range of taste buds. Their eggs are cooked to perfection, their fruit is fresh, and their coffee is piping hot. What more could you want?
12. The Sanddollar Café, Aberdeen
2 Beach Esplanade, Aberdeen
01224 572288
Open Monday-Friday, 8.30am-5pm and Saturday-Sunday, 7.30am-5pm
www.sanddollarcafe.com
If you have vowed to make 2019 a year of health and clean living, then eating at Sanddollar should ensure you stay firmly on the bandwagon. The café offers an array of super-healthy breakfasts including porridge, overnight oats and yoghurts (with a choice of compotes and toppings); coming complete with a glass of apple or orange juice to ensure that you start the day right. bagels, breakfast rolls, croissants and cooked breakfasts are also on offer for the less healthy among us.
13. Café Artysans, Inverness
7 Strothers Lane, Inverness
01463 729793
Open Monday-Saturday, 8.30am-4pm
A café with a conscience, Artysans is part of the Highland-based Calman Trust: which offers young people support in housing, training, and employment to help them to live independently. As well as supporting a good cause, the brunch in the café is of a very high standard, with their scrambled eggs and smoked salmon (which can be traced back to lochs on the west coast) a particular standout.
14. Hinterland Perth
10 St. Johns Place, Perth
Open Monday-Friday, 9.15am-4pm, saturday, 9am-5pm and Sunday, 10.30am-4pm
www.hinterlandcoffee.co.uk
Hinterland is a fiercely independent café that places a real focus on the quality of its coffee (and, of course, food). Its brunch menu takes note of the trends for health-focused food, with avocado, luxury granola and porridge bowls just some of the nutritious dishes on offer.
15. Finnegans Falkirk
45 Vicar Street, Falkirk
01324 614050
Open Monday-Friday, 8am-4.30pm, Saturday, 9am-4.30pm
Simple sometimes is better, and Finnegans offer a brunch that is free from fuss but full of flavour. the small café has only been open since September 2018, but it has quickly made a name for itself with a range of cooked breakfasts, open toast, porridge, pancakes and special ‘kids brunch’ options. Those with intolerances are also well looked after, with a mercifully well-signposted menu that clearly explains the potential allergens in each dish.
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