The Flying Stag

An integral part of the Fife Arms hotel, the Flying Stag is a 'true village institution' and a pub with a difference. Hurtling out above the bar is the creature itself, a composite beast fitted with ptarmigan's wings, while diverting character portraits of local figures hang on the walls. Live Scottish folk music twice a week draws in the crowds, making the place feel like a 'social hub'. The kitchen knows its constituency well, overseeing a menu of hearty Scottish food and pub favourites, from haggis with neeps, and Orkney scallops with Café de Paris butter to black pudding and sausages with mash and onion gravy. Sticky toffee pudding with banana ice cream and the like ensure that few will pass on afters. Separate bars devoted to cocktails and whiskies might have you wandering off, but there is good drinking to be had in the Stag – and 'warm hospitality', too. There isn't much competition in the area, but this is the kind of place you would be glad to come across anywhere.

Images: Dave Watts