Fingal
If you’re on the hunt for a unique experience in Edinburgh then you’re going to want to save this one for later. Fingal is Scotland’s first luxury, floating hotel. It’s permanently docked in Leith as well as being a hotel, you’ll also find The Lighthouse Restaurant & Bar on board.
Note: this post is going to be image heavy because there’s so much to show you!
Although they serve dinner at the restaurant, I visited at lunchtime and was there to try Fingal’s afternoon tea (they have been awarded 2-star AA Rosette for culinary experience so I had high expectations).
For afternoon tea on an elegant, glamorous and peaceful ship with a history dating back to 1963, this will set you back around £50. Not only do you get to enjoy the actual afternoon tea, but the staff will also be more than happy to take you around the ship and answer any questions you may have. If you’d prefer you can instead have a wander around on your own too! This alone, in my opinion, makes the experience truly unique and much more interesting than your usual afternoon tea.
After sitting down in the restaurant, which on its own feels super luxurious, you can choose from a mammoth menu of different teas. I couldn’t make my mind up so ended up ordering a hot chocolate with marshmallows on top which was bloody stunning as well as a pot of their ‘Scottish Summer Fruits Green Tea’.
Thankfully for me and my indecisiveness this day, the afternoon tea was a set menu.
We started with an amuse-bouche. Now it didn’t actually say on the menu what it was but it was a cup of warm soup that could have been carrot and parsnip flavoured…although don’t quote me on that. An enjoyable and warming way to start lunch no matter what the exact flavour was.
The rest of the food then came out in two parts. Unsurprisingly, we started with the savoury which featured:
- Fingal’s hot smoked salmon on a potato pancake
- Curried cauliflower pakora with a raita dressing
- BBQ beef brisket topped with a sweetcorn relish
- Beetroot mousse with caramelised onion tart
- Smoked salmon bagel with pickled cucumber
- Egg mayonnaise sandwiches on two different types of bread
- Coronation chicken baguette
Although it didn’t look it when it first was put on the table, there was a fair amount of eating in this and we were already pretty full after getting through it all. Each element had clearly been well thought out and carefully curated to make sure it would all work in unison. Special shoutout to the beetroot mouse and caramelised onion tart and the beef brisket! They managed to pack in heaps of flavour into each small bite that will leave your taste buds tingling…
Onto the sweet section. Another full-sized tiered stand made its way over to us with an array of beautifully presented sweet treats to finish off the meal. Scattered across the stand were:
- Buttermilk scones
- Strawberry jam from Perthshire Preserves
- Clotted cream
- Yuzu and rose macaron
- Coffee and caramel éclair
- Arran gold chocolate truffle
- Apple cheesecake
After munching a scone each and also a macaron, there was no way we were going to be able to finish everything. Thankfully the staff were kind enough to pop the remaining desserts into a takeaway box for us to cart home for later. So at least if you’re paying the money and don’t get through everything, it doesn’t need to go to waste and you can still get your money’s worth.
There was certainly plenty of choice throughout the whole afternoon tea that I’m sure even the pickiest of eaters (can’t relate!) would find something they love. The experience was just epic and one I wish everybody could get to try at least once.
An unforgettable meal.
- Fingal
- Alexandra Dock, Edinburgh EH6 7DX
- 0131 357 5000
- www.fingal.co.uk
- Reservation necessary
- £50pp (£65 with a glass of champagne)
Disclaimer: This visit was part of a previous TikTok collaboration with Forever Edinburgh.
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