Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
(
www.coltmans.co.uk
;
71 High St; mains £10-14; 10am-5pm Mon-Wed, to 10pm Thu-
Sat, to 4pm Sun)
This main street deli has numerous temptations, such as excellent
cheeses and Italian smallgoods, as well as perhaps Scotland's tastiest sausage roll - buy
two to avoid the walk back for another one. Behind the shop, the good-looking dining area
serves up confident bistro fare and light snacks with a variety of culinary influences, using
top-notch local ingredients.
FUSION
Sunflower Restaurant££
(
01721-722420;
www.thesunflower.net
;
4 Bridgegate; lunches £6-9, dinner mains
£12-16; lunch Mon-Sat, dinner Thu-Sat; )
The Sunflower, with its warm yellow din-
ing room, is in a quiet spot off the main drag and has a reputation that brings diners from
all over southern Scotland. It serves good salads for lunch and has an admirable menu in
the evenings, with creative and elegant dishes that always include some standout vegetari-
an fare.
Cocoa Black£
(
www.cocoablack.com
;
1 Cuddy Bridge; sweets £1.50-3; 10am-5pm Mon-Sat,
11am-4.30pm Sun)
Chocaholics should make a beeline for this friendly cafe, where ex-
quisite cakes and other patisserie offerings will satisfy any cacao-focused cravings. They
also run a school where you can learn to make them yourself.
CAFE
AMY HICKMAN: BIKE CLUB OFFICER
I work in Edinburgh for bikeclub.org.uk, an organisation which aims to encourage healthy lifestyles through cyc-
ling, and I'm a fanatical mountain biker myself. Scotland is a great place for mountain biking, and has developed an
international reputation - the UCI World Cup competition is held annually in Fort William.
Best Mountain Biking Spots?
I'm from the Borders originally, so I'm biased towards the 7stanes centres - Kir-
roughtree is the best, the trails there are great fun. I would also recommend Laggan Wolftrax for really challenging
and technical terrain. These are both man-made centres; one of my favourite natural trails is the Gypsy Glen circuit
at Cardrona, near the Glentress 7stanes centre; the guys at Glentress can give you the route details.
Off the Beaten Track?
My current favourite place for exploring is Fife - get hold of a map and go where looks
interesting! Kelty Forest and Blairadam Forest (near the village of Kelty) are good places to start.
