Dunfermline Press, 4th December, 2014

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Slow down for Dunkelds

welcoming Arms
l By Ally McRoberts
amcroberts@dunfermlinepress.co.uk

BEFORE our family visit to the Atholl Arms

Hotel, I hadnt stayed in Dunkeld since the
summer I left school when a pal persuaded me
to head north on a cycling holiday.
We didnt have bikes a slight drawback
but on borrowed wheels we eventually rolled
into the Perthshire town and inadvertently
pitched our tent in a graveyard.
Smoking cigars to try and fend off clouds
of midges didnt work and we retreated for a
fitless sleep on two benches outside the public
toilets in the square.
We were short on luxury. This was a much
nicer stay.
The Atholl Arms is the first building you
see as you drive or cycle over the bridge
into the town, a beautiful historic building that
dates from 1833 and stands looking out over
the rushing Tay.
Queen Victoria dined in the hotel as a princess on one of her many visits to Balmoral
and the suite bearing her name commands
views of Birnam Hill, famously mentioned in
Shakespeares Macbeth.
We didnt meet such grand visitors on our
stay but did happen upon a permanent guest
and talking point in the foyer, a large metal figure, a bit like the Tin Man from Wizard of Oz
but with bagpipes.
On a cold and wet day, relaxing on the comfy
sofas with the chance to have a cup of something warm, or glass of something cold, next
to a roaring fire in the lounge was a fine start.
And our two-year-old son dug through the toy
box to uncover two new companions, Victor
the train (one of Thomas the Tank Engines
friends) and a taxi, which accompanied us
pretty much everywhere.
Dont tell him but we did return them when
we left.
We had a room with a lovely view of the
river all 17 bedrooms are en-suite with free
wifi and settled in before dumping the bags

and heading out to explore.

This triangle of Perthshire, with Pitlochry
and Aberfeldy, is an area we really enjoy and
Dunkeld is a nice little town with what I can
only imagine is a cut-throat war for tea-andscone customers, given the plethora of pleasant
wee cafes.
The real treat at the hotel is the slow food
dinner on the first Thursday of every month in
their Riverside Restaurant.
I wasnt familiar with the concept, slow dining for me is probably a meal that lasts more
than 10 minutes, but I could certainly get used
to it.
The official version is that slow dining
is promoted as an alternative to fast food, it
strives to preserve traditional and regional cuisine and champions local produce.
It consisted of seven separate courses not
huge gargantuan portions but certainly enough
to appreciate an array of splendid dishes.
We started with a roasted squash soup so
good weve been talking about it since and trying and failing to recreate at home.
Next was Shetland crab ravioli, herb-crusted lamb shoulder, a red berry granita (I had to
look that word up) to cleanse the palate before
paupiette (dictionary again) of plaice, smoked
salmon mousse and wilted kale.

Dessert was a red wine and vanilla poached

pear my wife said it was amazing or a selection of Scottish cheeses which were great.
Coffee, tea and meringues in the lounge, and
pushing Victor and the taxi round the lounge
carpet a few times in a race, rounded off a fine
culinary experience and enjoyable day.
There was still time to pop into their Inn@
The Atholl, an adjoining bar, where with a pint
in hand I watched the TV as my favourite football team failed to win.
Other than that major mishap, which I suppose I cant level at the hotel, we enjoyed very
good service throughout and a very relaxing
stay, which we completed with an exemplary
breakfast the next morning.
And Ive learned a valuable lesson. If you
want to enjoy a stay in Dunkeld, book a nice
hotel like this one rather than smoke cigars in
a graveyard and sleep on a bench.
l The Atholl Arms was rated best in the region for informal dining in the 2014 Scottish
Hotel Awards.
The Slow Food Dinner costs 28 and is
served on the first Thursday of each month.
Go to http://www.athollarmshotel.com, call
01350 727 219 or email enquiries@athollarmshotel.com to find out more.

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