Food is a common language that crosses national borders and transcends cultures.
But what happens when people from outside of the north-east of Scotland are introduced to a buttery for the first time?
That’s the question Me and My Buttery put to Peyton Baylous, an American from Virginia who visited Aberdeen a few years ago.
Peyton was introduced to butteries by a friend. But what did she make of the traditional north-east delight?
Read on to find out.
Peyton, hi. Welcome to Me and My Buttery. What were you doing in Aberdeen?
I was visiting a close friend from high school in the US who lives in Aberdeen now. I’d been living in France, so before going home to the US for a bit I stopped by.
Do you remember first hearing about butteries?
My friend told me about them right before coming to Scotland. I asked about fun, traditional foods and things to do and she told me I had to try butteries.
We laughed because they look really similar to American biscuits [like buttermilk or drop biscuits] but they aren’t exactly the same so us trying to figure out the difference over text when I hadn’t tried butteries and she didn’t remember much about American biscuits – it was pretty funny.
How did you eat it? With butter? Jam?
We ate them plain, then with jam and then with cream. I think at one point I actually tried one dipped in hummus for fun!
What did it taste like?
It was slightly salty, savory, and a bit dry like American biscuits, whereas something like a croissant would be more buttery and slightly sweet.
But something about the texture was similar to pastries like a croissant or Danish, without the sweetness.
Was it a pleasant experience?
I liked them a lot! I’m pretty big on pastries/carbs in the morning and the size of them was nice as they weren’t too big.
Did it feel like an authentic Aberdeen experience?
I’d say so. Anytime I get to try food from other cultures and countries in the physical context of the country it feels like a really fun and rich experience, even if it’s just sharing some butteries in my friend’s apartment on a Saturday morning.
Did you tell people about it back home?
Yep! I tried a bunch of UK/Scotland-specific foods while in Aberdeen (high tea, haggis, butteries, beans on toast) and I sent pictures to my family group chat since apart from tea we either don’t have these or don’t normally eat them in the US.
Would you eat one again?
Absolutely! Unfortunately, I’ve never seen them outside Aberdeen.
