HEAVENLY
I,M ONE OF YOUR BIGGEST FANS AND I VISIT THE CAIRNDOW ESTATE THREE TIMES A YEAR AND VISIT YOUR RESTURANT MANY TIMES DURING MY VISIT !
I WOULD VISIT MORE BUT MY HUSBAND IS A
VEGETERIAN AND THERE ARE NOT ENOUGH CHOICES SO HE BECOMES BORED EATING THE SAME MEAL EVERY VISIT I WOULD BEG YOU TO INCREASE YOUR ALTERNATIVES TO ENSURE MORE BOOKINGS FROM US.    [24 Mar 2006 05:18:33]

Food:    Service:    Ambiance:    Overall: 
Recommended Dishes: OYSTERS ON ICE [TO DIE FOR]

     ­SUSAN THOMPSON, EAST YORKSHIRE   susanthompson100 at btinternet dot com

Poor Customer Service - Average Food
We decided to make a day trip from Glasgow to the Loch Fyne Oyster Bar for lunch - I had heard good things about this place so was really looking forward to the meal.

Had to wait an hour for a table - fair enough, we hadn't booked. But we were left standing at the front door for about 10 mins whilst staff member after staff member walked past us, completely ignoring us. Eventually, we had to ask the other customers waiting around us what the system was and then had to approach the person in charge (Fiona). She had walked past the growing crowd at the door numerous times, leaving the rest of her (obviously very busy) staff to deal with enquiries and growls from the increasingly frustrated crowd, which they had no authority to deal with, having to leave their post to go and ask her what to do.

When we got our food (30 mins later) it was ok. But at £15 for a bowl of Boullabaisse, I'd expect a little more than a bland tomato sauce that did nothing to enhance the quality of the seafood within. It's a shame to see such great quality produce let down. My partner's dish of salmon was nice, but after experiencing such bad customer service before we had even sat down, it did little to recompense.

Having worked in the restaurant business for a number of years, it's such a shame to see a place with such promise let down by a simple thing like just taking 2 seconds to make eye contact with customers. I'm sorry to say we won't be back.    [29 May 2007 05:44:07]

Food:    Service:    Ambiance:    Overall: 

     ­Anonymous   

Re Anonymous
To be perfectly frank, Mr or Mrs Anonymous must have exceedingly high expectations of what food they dine on.

To explain.

Loch Fyne Oyster Bar is quite simply one of the best restaurants to eat in Scotland.

The setting is fantastic on the shores of beautiful Loch Fyne, overlooking some wonderful Scottish mountains. Go at different times of the year, as the scenery changes with the seasons.

It is very easy to get to from Glasgow, and the drive takes you through some spectacular scenery. It's like embarking on a big adventure, with exquisite sea food as your reward at the end.

The staff are very friendly and accessible, making you feel very comfortable during your dining experience. You are never rushed to get the next course. The timing between courses is impeccable. This is because the staff are very attentive, and judge at what point their clients are likely to be in need of their next course. I have dined here on quite a few occasions with a dozen family members and the service has never failed us.

May I stress, though, that they don't smother you.

The restaurant has a healthy bustle sort of an atmosphere, but also feels laid back. I can always relax here. It's almost as though a part of Northern Brittany has been placed on a Scottish sea loch.

Eventually I've got to the food part! This is an oyster bar, so don't expect an abundance of non sea food dishes. Having said that, the locally sourced venison is delicious.

If fish tickles your taste buds, there are a variety of smoked salmon dishes, traditional poached haddock and kippers, as well as daily dishes, that can include local trout or a nice piece of sea bream, to name just a couple of examples.

They also do a lovely sea food platter. Highly recommended!

I can't see beyond the oysters, though. They have been recently plucked from the loch you are looking at through the restaurant window. To put it another way...fresh, fresh, fresh. They are fantastic. I will not explain the taste. I will leave that to you.

To finish, let's go back to Mr or Mrs Anonymous. They started off badly! Please do not go to Loch Fyne Oyster Bar, without booking a table, or you may be disappointed. It is very popular for a reason. The food is stunning, and the setting is incredible.

Enjoy your oysters.    [30 Jun 2007 06:33:19]

Food:    Service:    Ambiance:    Overall: 
Recommended Dishes: Oysters

     ­Mark Sweeney, Condorrat   lesharke at tiscali dot co dot uk

Disappointing Service
Food was overall pretty decent quality, but took hours to arrive. My crab salad was two undressed crabs on a piece of lettuce. There was no salad to speak of and no work had been done at all to the crabs.

Oysters were good, and tasty, I had the Spinach Grilled oysters and they were very nice, although they were not piping hot when they arrived. There was bread on arrival which was nice and fresh, just as well as the starters took over an hour to arrive.

We had booked lunch for four peple at 1.30pm on a Saturday afternoon (last week June 14th 2008). We thought we would be late by about 5 minutes (we weren't in the end), and we called to let them know on the phone.

We arrived on time and the despite having booked a table had to wait for 10 minutes in a queue at the door to be seated. We ordered a £40 bottle of wine, which was not poured, or offered to taste and was just placed on the table.

This was finished before we had even eaten anything as our starters (oysters mainly, 2 of them were cold platters) took over 1 hour to arrive.

When I complained about the wait for our starters I was advised that it was because everything was cooked fresh, two of our starters were oysters, and required little preparation aside from opening them and flashing them under a grill.

Our mains arrived, nobody checked us at all to see if our meal was okay, or if we needed anything else. I had to go and find staff to order more wine and water, and we were left with plates on our table, and not offered coffee and deserts, so we just asked for the bill.

This was a huge let down and it took 2 and a half hours to eat lunch. The service was poor and you were made to feel like the restaurant was doing you a favour by allowing you to eat there. I would not recommend or return. We were very disappointed as we had started our holiday here, and it was a real let down. This is the flagship restaurant on the shores of Loch Fyne and I really feel they are trading off the name and location and the quality is pretty bad.    [24 Jun 2008 05:01:42]

Food:    Service:    Ambiance:    Overall: 
Recommended Dishes: Oysters

     ­MelanieM, Edinburgh