Foodies turn out to Gadie’s for Dining Club

More than 60 guests joined in a celebration of locally produced Scottish fare at the latest Grampian Food Forum Dining Club, which was held at Gadie’s Restaurant in Oyne, on Monday, 26th September.

Gadies, located in Oyne, Aberdeenshire, is passionate about using only the freshest and most local ingredients, and its evening menu changes weekly to reflect the best meat and produce available. Guests at the dining club were treated to a menu of Garlic Crouton-Crusted Shetland Salmon and Balquhain Farm Loin of Pork from nearby producers.

Guest speaker for the evening was Douglas Ritchie of Experiencing Scotland, an initiative aiming to bring tourism operators and food producers closer together to offer visitors locally sourced, quality Scottish food. Gadie’s has been selected as the only restaurant in the North-east to participate in the exclusive Experiencing Scotland programme.

Mr Ritchie told diners: “Food is a very important element of the visitor experience and events like the Grampian Food Forum Dining Club are a great way to spread the message about the business opportunities that tourism offers producers and ways in which the tourism and food sectors can collaborate.”

Robin Baird of Gadie’s Restaurant said: “We were thrilled to be chosen to host this prestigious event. We at Gadie’s are proud to show off the wonderful native Scottish products at our disposal and hope the night inspired people to eat more local food.”

A number of local producers were on-hand to showcase products, including Sutherland’s of Portsoy, Ola Oils, Lynn Saunders, Mrs Smith’s Cakes, Balquhain Farm, Ardmore Distillery, Tap O'Noth Fudge and Simpson’s of Buckie. Many of these products are also sold at Gadie’s.

Elizabeth Mathie, co-ordinator of the Grampian Food Forum, said: “Gadie’s Restaurant is passionate about using Scottish and local ingredients to ensure freshness and seasonality and has received a four-star rating from Visit Scotland for its Scottish fare; therefore, it was an excellent choice of venue for the Dining Club.”

Gadie’s is open daily for lunches and coffee, and is open late for fine dining evening meals Thursday through Saturday evenings.