The Whitehouse

Arrival at the small coastal community of Lochaline is either by sea (on the ferry from Fishnish) or down the 20-mile single-track road that crosses the remote Morvern Peninsula. Husband-and-wife team, Chris and Agi Stanley-Fotos, brought their already well-developed kitchen/front of house partnership here in 2022, overlaying their contemporary culinary style on the sturdy whitewashed building that was once a canteen for 19th-century mine workers. The couple's love of foraging means that wild and humble pickings take their place alongside game from the neighbouring Ardtornish estate and other produce from nearby crofts and artisan butchers. This commitment to sustainability and localism is matched by Chris’s well-honed skills as a chef – creating light lunches and a daily fixed-price dinner menu of well-crafted dishes built on classical foundations with innovative personal elements. An amuse-bouche of caramelised cauliflower with wild garlic pesto on a quenelle of beurre noisette cream sets the tone, ahead of, say, a spring-like asparagus panna cotta and pea salad perfectly balanced by an earthy foraged mushroom beignet. After that, a centrepiece dish of sesame-glazed local duck breast, spring roll and pak choi shows confidence in blending flavours and inspirations. To conclude, heightened anticipation accompanies the kitchen's 'truly excellent' soufflés  – perhaps a golden-hued sea buckthorn and gorse flower creation. As for drinks, local spirits are paired with hedgerow gleanings to create distinctive cocktails such as the Morvern sour (made with homemade beech-leaf noyau, Nc'nean organic whisky and lemon juice), while a food-friendly wine list featuring some lesser-known regions starts at £27 a bottle.