Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

Do food and drink places ‘close too early’ in Nairn? Locals have their say on town’s hospitality scene

Locals were open and honest with me when I asked for their thoughts on the Nairn food and drink scene.

Food and Drink owners in Nairn
Nicola Mackinlay, left, and Megan Mclean of Makes by Megs. Image: Jason Hedges/DC Thomson

Restricted opening hours was a common theme when I asked members of a Nairn social media group to share their thoughts on the town’s food and drink scene last week.

“[They] need to be open more,” said one respondent who, like the others, was referring to the restaurants, bars and takeaways in the area.

“Holidaymakers and locals struggle with some of the opening hours, but I realise times are hard just now.”

Tourists include those visiting the Nairn Lochloy Holiday Park. Image: Sandy McCook/DC Thomson

Another person’s comment, which was among a total of 83 on the post in Nairn — Our Town — Our Views (boasting 6.7,000 members) read something very similar.

“[The] only poor thing about the town are the closing times of carryouts,” they added.

“When holidaymakers ask where to get food after the pubs close, they look aghast that they cant get anything.”

So, are there plenty of takeaways open ’til late for food and drink in Nairn?

I quickly realised that this was a stirring topic among the Nairn community.

Upon further research — relying on information found on Google — I made some discoveries on several local takeaways.

Nairn Tandoori is open from 4.30pm to 10pm while Lorenzo (a pizza shop) is open from 4pm to 11.30pm Sunday to Monday and 4pm to 12.30am on Fridays and Saturdays.

A group of people sharing a pizza
Some Nairn locals are unhappy about the opening hours at local takeaways. Image: Shutterstock

Lucky House Chinese Takeaway is open from 4.30pm to 11pm Tuesday to Sunday. The same goes for Thai Cottage, however it is closed on Tuesdays rather than Mondays.

It seemed as though there was plenty of variety for foodies in the area well into the evening.

However, another respondent said: “Even if they were to stay open until 10.30pm [implying that they don’t], it would be a benefit.

A scallops and pork belly dish from The Sun Dancer, a food and drink place in Nairn
The Sun Dancer is a well-known restaurant in Nairn. Pictured is a scallops and pork belly dish. Image: Jason Hedges/DC Thomson

“But I tried last week to get something delivered at 9.30pm to work and nothing was open.”

This has been an issue among care staff too, with another local writing: “Care home staff in Nairn finish their shifts at 8pm.

“[There’s] no chance of getting a takeaway most times.”

The issue of cafes closing too early (4pm specifically) was also raised.

Opening hours aside, the variety on offer — for breakfast, lunch and dinner — is hailed as ‘remarkable’

Nevertheless, plenty of respondents praised the variety of food and drink in Nairn, with some referring to it as “fantastic”, “excellent” and “remarkable.”

The Classroom Bistro, James’s at the Putting Green, One One Two on the Brae, Café Nairn and The Sun Dancer received special mentions.

Four local business owners who spoke up failed to see fault in the area’s hospitality scene as well.

A fantastic sign.

Megan Mclean of Makes by Megs in Nairn
Megan Mclean of Makes by Megs. Image: Jason Hedges/DC Thomson

Nicola Mackinlay, 45, and 26-year-old Megan Mclean — partners at Makes by Megs and MNM’s Café, which boasts one branch in Nairn and another in Elgin — said: “We honestly can’t think of what Nairn is lacking.

“There is really good variety for a town of its size and has a little bit of something for everyone.”

With more than 120k followers on their social media platforms combined, the largest being TikTok, it’s safe to say that the business partners know a thing or two about what foodies want.

Their Nairn café serves around 500 customers per week, while local social enterprise and zero-waste shop The Highland Weigh welcomes as many as 1,000.

“The variety of choice in the town provides options for both locals and visitors,” says founder and managing director Amanda MacArthur.

“In our experience, businesses are supportive of each other — both as customers and in providing encouragement and support.”

A call for more vegan, gluten-free and dairy-free food

The Highland Weigh, which opened in November last year, also boasts its own vegetarian café.

Amanda went on to say: “Our café uses wholefoods from the ingredients in the store to make healthy soups, dahls and granola.

“Our sourdough comes from The Bakery in Inverness and our vegetables are delivered from Swansons Food Wholesalers.

Amanda MacArthur outside The Highland Weigh, a food and drink business in Nairn
Amanda MacArthur. Image: Sandy McCook/DC Thomson

“As a business, we are passionate about delivering high quality meals and sourcing ingredients as locally as possible.”

The vegetarian dishes available in Nairn were praised by several people on my group post.

The gluten-free, dairy-free and vegan options were to an extent, with some saying they could be improved.

Profiteroles from One One Two on the Brae
Profiteroles from One One Two on the Brae. Image: Sandy McCook/DC Thomson

“I wish more places did gluten and dairy-free, [it’s] hard to get [and] limited in all shops,” and “most places have good vegetarian options, not so plentiful with vegan options,” were among the comments.

In contrast, another respondent wrote: “Food quality and variety is excellent and surprised at gluten-free and alternative choices available.”

Katrina Ashford, of Rose Cottage Country Kitchen, also emphasised that variety is not lacking in the area.

Katrina Ashford of Rose Cottage Country Kitchen, a food and drink business in nairn
Katrina Ashford of Rose Cottage Country Kitchen. Image: Sandy McCook/DC Thomson

“I love that we live in an area where fantastic food and drink is all around us,” says the 59-year-old, from Moss-side.

“Although Nairn has grown considerably in the last few years, there is still a community spirit.”

Conversation