“You’re the one responsible for all this,” said Prince Charles before breaking into a broad smile.
It was a comment that put an equally big grin on the face of Ballater butcher, Barry Florence, because that remark signalled the start of a new era for the Royal Deeside village which saw more than 300 homes and 60 businesses devastated during Storm Frank on December 30, 2015.
The River Dee overflowed causing heartache and chaos – the third tragic event to hit Ballater that year. In February, the famous B-listed Darroch Learg Hotel was destroyed by a huge blaze while in May, Ballater’s historic Old Royal Station was destroyed in a fire.
In the aftermath of Storm Frank, when the streets of the picturesque village resembled a war zone and were littered with destroyed possessions, Prince Charles, who is known as the Duke of Rothesay in Scotland, visited and called into the butcher’s shop, HM Sheridan, which is run by Mr Florence and his business partner, John Sinclair.
The river water reached waist-height level in the shop, and everything was destroyed. “I couldn’t believe the damage to the village but what can you do but do your best and get on with things,” said Barry.
The Duke was accompanied on a post-flood visit by Camilla who unveiled a plaque on the Bridge Street butcher’s shop to mark the visit.
“I remember saying to him, why don’t you open a Highgrove Shop in Ballater? I’d been to the Highgrove Shop in England and seen for myself what sort of things it offered there and thought it would be great to have something like that in Ballater,” said Barry.
“Tourists were still coming in their droves to Balmoral Castle but because the Old Railway Station had been destroyed, along with one of the village’s top hotels, there was really no reason for them to stop and linger here.
“But I thought if there was a Highgrove Shop here that could be another pearl in Royal Deeside.”
As a direct result of that off-the-cuff comment, Ballater is now home to a splendid upmarket restaurant, The Rothesay Rooms and a Highgrove Shop, both of which have been visited by Charles, Camilla and the Queen.
They are now both open for business – and business is booming.
The restaurant is often fully booked at weekends and goodies are flying off the shop shelves, but more importantly, they represent the silver lining on that darkest of clouds, Storm Frank.
Robert Lovie, a Trustee of Dumfries House Trust, the charity which manages this project, has been at the sharp end of proceedings, overseeing the Rothesay Rooms development.
“It’s hard to believe that this was once a redundant Co-op supermarket because it is looking fantastic now,” said Robert. “But what is even more special is the story behind it and what the Duke did because of his love of the area and the people who live here.
“After the flood an appeal was created and spirited on by His Royal Highness under the auspices of The Great Steward of Scotland’s Drumfries House Trust, a charity celebrating its 10th anniversary this year and which has a great hospitality training centre for youngsters.
“The charity was keen to do outreach work and the flood provided the perfect opportunity for that to begin. The Ballater Flood Appeal was launched here and the first thing we did was look at the caravan park in the village which had been completely devastated.
“We knew we had to get it cleared up as soon as possible because that brings people into the village, and they then spend money. We spoke to the management, put funds and support in place and offered to help them to redesign the site. We knew we couldn’t do the whole park straight away but focused primarily on the touring side of the operation. It then re-opened on May 1st and basically sold out every weekend which was such a joy.”
Talks are still underway as to what will happen to the other side of the site which previously housed static caravans. “Phase one is a success so now we are looking at completing phase two,” said Robert.
“We then switched our attention to the idea of a restaurant. Because the Darroch Learg Hotel and the Old Railway Station had burned down and the village was missing a restaurant that could become a focal point in the area.
“We looked at several buildings in Ballater but the Co-op were very helpful, offering us its former supermarket on Netherley Place at a peppercorn rent. We worked with local architects, Halliday Fraser Munro and builder Gordon Mitchell, both of whom were very much in support of what we were trying to create in the village.”
While visiting last summer, to see for himself how the repair work to the village was progressing, the Duke was inspired by Barry Florence’s remarks to open a shop as well.
“It’s not a huge building but it had a storage area next door so that has now been transformed into the Highgrove Shop,” said Robert.
So successful has the transformation been that anyone seeing the building for the first time might think they are looking at a restaurant and village shop which has stood here since Queen Victoria’s time, rather than one which until recently housed a modern supermarket selling life’s everyday essentials.
The external woodwork is painted Highgrove Red, while the carriage lamp hanging above the front door is reminiscent of items which pop up on the Antiques Roadshow.
Step through the doors of the restaurant and visitors find themselves in a restaurant which has the look and air of a stylish old Highland country house, complete with dark green painted wood panelled walls, antique furniture and grandfather clock.
Rothesay tartan features on the chairs, while there’s enough silverware to make any member of the Royal family feel at home.
“People come to Royal Deeside for the Highland/tartan experience and will love this experience as it’s not over the top,” said Robert.
A large, modern open-plan kitchen is at the rear of the restaurant where Savoy-trained chef, Guy Fenton whips up mouth-watering culinary creations, while the Highgrove Shop is next door, but also accessible from the restaurant.
“The news that we were opening a shop was met with lots of excitement as there’s nothing else like it in the area. It was set to be a 12-week build but everyone involved did an amazing job and the work was completed within six weeks.
“There was a great deal of good spirit involved with everyone pulling out all the stops to make it a success.”
Both the shop and restaurant opened in November and have been an amazing success.
“Initially there was talk that they would just be a pop up (temporary) restaurant and shop but they are here to stay and will become a permanent fixture in Ballater,” said Robert, 47.
“We wanted to create a beautiful restaurant offering high quality dishes using locally sourced produce at not too expensive prices and good service to match.
“I can’t speak for His Royal Highness but I do think he is very proud of what has been achieved here.
“I also had the honour of giving the Queen a tour of the building and she was very much aware of where we were coming from and that our whole ethos is that the restaurant is here to support Ballater and that every penny raised will go to the charity.”
“Local reaction has been wonderful and everyone is very proud of what has been achieved, while in the future the Trust may be able to use the kitchen facilities as part of a skills training scheme for young people, in the same way it is offered at Dumfries House.
Some 14 months on and those storm clouds have brought something of a silver lining to the village which, as butcher Barry Florence pointed out, although it still hasn’t fully recovered, is rather like a brand new village as so many of its buildings have been upgraded.
It is, he suggests, a village full of good spirit and on the cusp of greatness once more…
“I am just delighted at the ways things have worked out and I’m glad I made that suggestion to Prince Charles to open a shop here,” said Barry.
Robert Lovie, who hails from Fraserburgh and is also manager/keeper at the National Trust for Scotland’s Fyvie Castle, also hailed the “incredible” effort of local builder, Gordon Mitchell for his effort.
“His attitude is typical of all those involved in the project who wanted to give something back to the village and involved a lot of work and effort from a huge team of people.
“But none of it would have been possible if His Royal Highness hadn’t had the spirit and motivation to get it off the ground and this demonstrates his care and love for communities. He has an amazingly big heart and he loves this area.
“The Royal family love this area and were all devastated by what happened here last year, but Prince Charles just wanted to do something to help.
“When you see what we have here today, what better help could he have given… he can get a free lunch here anytime he wants!
“And while what happened is terribly sad and some people and businesses aren’t back to normal yet, perhaps in some way, Ballater will become a better place as a result of Storm Frank.”