■ BEEF, LAMB & OTHER MEAT
CHEF’S CHOICE
Mon–Fri 8am–5pm; Sat 8am–1pm. Web/mail order.
CHRISTOPHER TROTTER ON FALKLAND BEEF
A well respected and highly praised family-run butcher, Macbeth’s rear their own grass-fed, native-breed beef. They also source local lamb, rare-breed pork from free-range pigs, wild venison from the Highlands and free-range chicken, ensuring that their meat is fully traceable. With the option to buy online as well as through the shop in Forres, Macbeth’s quality products, which include home-made sausages and burgers as well as award-winning black pudding and haggis, are available across the UK.
There has been a history of beef on the estate at Falkland in Fife for centuries, including the eponymous Falkland cow. While this has not been bred since the nineteenth century, there are cattle grazing its fields again. Last year’s were Limousin cross breeds and I roasted them on the spit at the Big Tent festival. The meat was loose grained and full of flavour, and made excellent eating. This year Estate Manager Amelia Stevenson bought some Belted Galloways from their heartland in Dumfries and Galloway and these were ready for the festival – I roasting them again on the spit but also used the lesser bits to make burgers. The whole process of production from ‘field to spit’ took place within a 25-mile radius. ■ Christopher Trotter is a Fife-based chef, writer and consultant. He organises the One Planet Food Village at the Big Tent Festival. His book The Whole Hog is published in September 2010.
the quality and popularity of Grant’s Butchers. An important part of the community since 1875, Grant’s supplies many local businesses as well as a steady flow of regulars. With locally sourced beef, pork and lamb, it projects a sense of pride in the produce on offer – reflected in its various awards. Popular sellers are the range of enticingly flavoured burgers and the Balmoral chicken – fillets stuffed with haggis. Many other products can be enjoyed, from pots of soup to apple and rhubarb tarts made fresh daily.
■ Scott Brothers Butcher • 32 Nethergate, Dundee, Angus 01382 201342 Mon–Sat 8am–5.30pm. Closed Sun. • 206 Strathmartine Road, Dundee, Angus 01382 819417 Mon–Sat 8am–5.30pm. Closed Sun.
Established in 1935, these popular butchers are now in the hands of the third generation of the family. The ethos remains traditional: stock is bought live from within a 30-mile radius, then butchered, hung, matured and prepared on-site. Specialising in pork, lamb and beef, each outlet also sells a range of freshly made ready meals, cooked meats and other deli items, as well as barbecue and party platters.
■ HM Sheridan Butcher, Game, Haggis/Sausages 11 Bridge Street, Ballater 01339 755218 www.hmsheridan.co.uk Mon–Sat 7am–5.15pm. Closed Sun.
Thriving under the guidance of John Sinclair and Barry Florence, former employees who were bequeathed the business by founder Mike Sheridan a few years ago, this Deeside butcher sources its beef, lamb and outdoorreared pork from farms in the local area, along with venison and game birds from nearby estates. In addition, a large range of products are made within the shop, including traditional puddings, haggis and over 20 varieties of sausage.
■ D&A Kennedy
■ The Store
Butcher, Beef 12 Castle Street, Forfar, Angus 01307 462118
Farm Shop, Butcher Foveran, Newburgh, Ellon, Aberdeenshire 01358 788083 www.thestorecompany.co.uk Mon–Sun 10am–5pm. Café, Web/mail order.
See main entry in Central Scotland & Fife listings.
■ Macbeth’s
Butcher, Game, Haggis/Sausages 11 Tolbooth Street, Forres, Moray 01309 672254, www.macbeths.com
A prominent and active local farm shop for the last decade, the Store is
located on the Booth family farm where grass-fed lamb and Aberdeen Angus beef are reared in small numbers. The well-stocked meat counter includes sausages and freshly made shepherd’s pie, curry and lasagne, and various cuts and joints for the traditional Sunday roast – all prepared in the on-site butchery and kitchen. In addition, there’s a range of locally sourced foods including vegetables and cheeses, while a new coffee shop offers a smart sit-in option to enjoy the sweet and savoury food on offer.
■ Wark Farm Beef, Lamb, Pork, Charcuterie Wark Farm, Cushnie, Alford 01975 581149 www.warkfarm.co.uk 10am–4.30pm on monthly Open Days. Web/mail order.
This family-owned business is run by Dugie and Jenny Foreman in the low hills of Aberdeenshire. Wark specialises in meat and charcuterie that comes from traditional breed meats including Belted Galloway beef, Oxford, Sandy and Black pork, Hebridean lamb and Aylsebury duck. A familiar sight at local markets, they also hold monthly open days (Thursday, Friday and Saturday of a given weekend) and have a buyers’ scheme. Their impressive range now includes pork pies, home-made confits, rilettes and even corned beef.
■ Watt the Butcher Butcher, Beef 39–41 Murray Street, Montrose, Angus 01674 672777 Mon/Tue & Thu–Sat 8am–5.30pm; Wed 8am–1pm. Closed Sun.
Neil Watt was once in charge of meat at the Savoy hotel, and now owns this butchers, which acts as the exclusive outlet for the finely marbled flesh of pedigree Aberdeen Angus from the Glenbervie estate by Stonehaven. Watt has a formidable reputation for the quality and traceability of the meat on offer. Fresh liver and kidneys, as well as local lamb in season, are all available too.
HIGHLANDS, ISLANDS & ARGYLL ■ Briggs’ Shetland Lamb Lamb Cuckron, Stromfirth, Weisdale, Shetland www.briggs-shetlandlamb.co.uk Web/mail order.
On his croft at Weisdale in the heart of the Shetland Mainland, Richard Briggs rears 100 per cent Shetland lambs, a breed recognised by the PDO
50 THE LARDER
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