With a long, sandy coast, glittering deposits of mica, and the third largest population in Scotland, Aberdeen is more than just a beautiful city. It is a city that mixes local, Scottish tradition with modern globalization in architecture, attitude, and,especially, in food. From Chinese restaurants, to Indian restaurants you'll find them all in Aberdeen as exotic complements to the hearty, traditional food of Scotland.

Scottish Specialties

The Scottish have very distinctive dishes well known in the culinary world for being rich and filling. The Aberdeen Angus breed of cattle for beef is famous and provides amazing,juicy steaks worldwide. In Aberdeen and other Scottish cities it is still prepared in the traditional way and used in a variety of dishes. Hotch Potch, a common dish, is made by boiling beef, bone marrow, or chicken, along with a mix of vegetables. The Arbroath Smokie, another popular meal, is haddock smoked to perfection in local family smokehouses. Black Bun, a heavy fruit cake with currants, raisins,brown sugar, almonds, cinnamon, and ginger, and Colcannon, boiled cabbage cooked with carrots, turnips, and potatoes, are also Scottish specialties.

As Aberdeen is located on the coast, smoked salmon, lobster, mussels, scallops, crab, and shrimp are often used in its local cuisine. Cheeses made in the area, venison, porridge, and haggis.

Aberdeen Restaurants  

For strictly Scottish food The Albyn and the Fennel Restaurant are excellent choices. Most ingredients are locally produced and very fresh. Prices vary, both restaurants can be expensive, but if you choose a less extravagant meal, the prices are more reasonable, and you'll still get an authentic taste of Scotland. Bakery items are cheap and tasty, check out Baker's Oven or Pat's Pantry. Being in Scotland, you obviously have to try the whiskey. You can have a drink of local whiskeys at basically any bar in town. Haddews and the Dutch Mill have both your choice of drinks and cheap, tasty pub grub.

Foreign food is abundant as well; Indian and Chinese restaurants are especially popular with the locals, as are restaurants featuring food from Italy, Spain, France, and Japan. Worldwide fast food chains such as McDonald's and Pizza Hut have filtered into Aberdeen as well due to the globalization, while other sit down restaurant chains such as TGI Friday's from the United States have also made their way into Aberdeen. Some recommended foreign restaurants include Blue Moon, featuring spicy Indian food, Curry Tonight, La Tasca, boasting excellent spanish cuisine and tapas, and Yatai.