Cafe 1

We don't understand why this place is so highly rated. The only reservation open a week in advance was 5.30pm on a Friday evening, beginning of October 2025. Service was good and atmosphere was ok but we were disappointed with the food. They forgot cheese in the pear walnut and blue cheese salad. We had to ask for it. We had the venison burger and the Orichiette pasta dish. The pasta was undercooked, bland and basically flavorless. The bread looked good but was crumbly, dry and no flavor. The best part of the venison was the sauce but the overdone burger was a disappointment. But we liked the chips which came with the burger. You could see into the kitchen and watch the staff of 20 somethings working hard.

Visiting from the states & a local recommended Cafe 1. The monkfish/muscle soup was outstanding & I was thinking about the meal & the overall experience even days later. Highly recommend the pork belly as well. So glad we stopped in for the fantastic service, food and atmosphere. Thank you!!

We had a beautiful dinner here. Family of four. We hadn't been for a long time, we definitely made the right decision in coming back. The meal was so good, the atmosphere, cocktails, everything was great! Will definitely return.

We had Our best meal in Inverness and honestly the best meal of our trip thus far in Scotland here. It was fantastic from start to finish. For appetizers we tried the bread, prawns, ravioli, and scallops. The winner was the ravioli for us. For entrees we had the burger, which my wife said was one of her favorite burgers ever, the salmon which was fantastic, the steak (filet) which was delicious and our second favorite steak ever, and the chicken. All were cooked perfectly and we would get them all again. Too full for desert this time. We had several cocktails including the daquari and our favorite one was the pornstar martini. Delicious! Can’t recommend this meal enough. The restaurant doesn’t look like much from the curb, but it is great inside and much larger than you might expect. The noise was a bit much when full. Our only complaint. Reservation is recommended.

Lovely restaurant, very unexpectedly spacious with fresh locally sourced food. Very friendly staff, great food - I had the special boiled Cromarty Langoustines which I was a little surprised to get cold but they were very tasty. Unfortunately they’d run out of the gluten free dessert option but were happy to make me an affogato instead. I had to decline as I can’t drink caffeine that late but really appreciated their willingness to accommodate. There was a big group celebrating a birthday that made it a bit noisy but definitely a restaurant I recommend.

Came in for the first time today with my boyfriend and dinner was excellent. our steaks were cooked perfect, the pork starter was so so good. I had a cosmopolitan and a passion fruit mojito, both were great, probably the best cosmo i’ve had in inverness. The service was amazing too, very friendly servers who were also attentive and fast. Thank you very much! :)

Such a lovely lunch experience with their set menu! Friendly service, delicious food, and the bonus of being dog-friendly too. Definitely recommend!

We were a party of 5 and heard such good things about this place. Shame it didn’t live up to expectations. Good food but the entire staff was so stressed and we could feel it. They already said sorry in advance they had event and couldn’t seat us until 8:15pm but that was delayed and everything was so behind we ate way too late. It wasn’t a pleasant dining experience to be absorbing everyone’s stress they forgot to serve the fries and didn’t even offer something like a drink or a pudding to make for such a delayed service and disappointing experience.

We had a reservation and we're seated right away. Our drink orders arrived quickly. The room was so loud that we could not hold a conversation. 45 minutes after placing our food order, we asked for a status update. We were told "soon". Another 15 minutes, we asked the manager for an update. She stated that since we didn't order a starter, it takes longer for our order to come out. Made no sense. Order came out after more than an hour and the food was very good but not worth the wait or the inattentive service.

Had high expectations after the reviews on google. Seems to be a popular place for locals. We were seated next to a large table that was celebrating a child's birthday. Very. Very. loud! so loud we could not comfortably speak to one another but had to shout. Service was good, staff is kind. The cheeseburgers were large and very dry and the noodle dishes were like someone dumped a cup of Costco teriyaki sauce on some udon noodles and threw in the microwave. I've been in Scotland for two weeks and it was by far the worst food I've eaten. Also it was way overpriced. I do not recommend.

Without spending too much time discussing the pros ad cons of Scottish cuisine, let me start by saying this is one of Scotland's little gems! The food is delicious and innovative and the service and setting are delightful! Well done! I loved the Asian fusion in some of the dishes but marveled at the traditional Scottish dishes which were light and flavorful! If you are visiting Inverness, Cafe One is a must stop. I do not think that you can go wrong with anything on their menu. Equally impressive is their excellent wine list and bar! BTW some of the reviews for this spot are absurdly out of date. This place is 5 stars across the board!

Amazing food and cocktails! Lived in Inverness for a year with my girlfriend (vegetarian) and we tried a lot of different restaurants. This is up there in our top 3 places to eat. Always busy so make sure to book in advance to get a seat.

Wow...French/Scottish fusion...Wow. This place is Michelin recommended and no wonder why. Went here a couple times..Wow. What a beautiful place. The entrance is misleading at first as it's right next to the Inverness Castle. Before you walk in you can't help but view all the Michelin Recommended Red Tags year after year this place has received. You try to look into the the restaurant windows but you can't see anything just the menu posted outside. After finally walking in you see a mini bar and what happens next is you walk into a whole different establishment then you first expected. The ambiance set just right as your escorted through the front of the restaurant and I was lucky enough to be seated below the LED brightened stars shining in intervals on the black ceiling which was such a nice touch. The food was phenomenal. Had spicy calamari in thai sauce as the starter course and for the main course I had an amazing ratatouille housed in a double wrapped filo pastry shell. Great service good wine selection, I guess the place to wine and dine in Inverness.

We visited Cafe One this evening for the first time, although I've lived in Inverness now for 6 years it's a place I've never frequented before to eat. Needless to say the food was excellent, very well presented and tasted excellent, staff were very freindly and courtious at all times and the 'early bird' option £11 for two courses was a snap. I will definately be visiting again sometime soon during the early bird deal of course :)

We made a reservation here for dinner when we were in Inverness for our group of 7. We had a great dinner - food was delicious and service was great. Would highly recommend!

Amazing staff and food. This place is great it has the best food I have had. In Scotland.

We had an excellent lunch here today. One of the best meals we have had in Scotland! The watermelon, feta, Olive salad was amazing, the liver pate really good. The pork chop was so tender and tasty. They had a great take on fish and chips with a pea purée, yum! Great plating, everything looked as good as it tasted. The staff was friendly and accommodated our limited time.

Pleasant restaurant offering uninspiring and mediocre dishes at somewhat higher prices than comparable restaurants in Inverness. We had lunch here, and found the service to be fine and the atmosphere okay. Portions are on the small side. Reading the other reviews, it seems we may have missed something.

We've been here on several trips with excellent service and food in the past but last night was a different story. This is not about being short staffed due to the pandemic. We would all understand that. There were triple the number of servers here than anywhere we'd seen in weeks but they were untrained brainless automatons. For instance they might come to take the dinner dishes away because that was the 'duty' and ignore all other dirty dishes . But that is not the reason for this review. I was served a beetroot salad. I lifted what i thought was a piece of lettuce to my mouth and to my horror found that it was a wet rag that we later learned was used to gather water and other debris from the salad bowl. After explaining to the server she took it away without apology. It was all I could do to continue to eat and the thought of it still gags me. I didn't want to make a scene because my husband had tried so hard to get reservations here. I didn't want to spoil our last night in vacation. When the bill came they did not have the decency to remove the salad... and the server would not address it. We asked for the manager who treated it like a joke and said something like ' you won't get covid from it, that's for sure. ' really?

This chef has the TINIEST kitchen I have ever seen (the dining room is divided in two and the open kitchen is visible from one part -- I asked and that IS the kitchen!), but he sends out some of the better food I've had anywhere. The dessert with raspberry, cream and oats is totally memorable (although unfortunately the NAME of the dessert is not!) The wine service was quite professional but otherwise the service was a little uneven. The decor is very nice, and overall it was an extremely enjoyable evening.

A lovely little restaurant in the heart of Inverness with a homely feel as the owner is constantly in the restaurant making sure you're having a good time. The food here is great quality though the combinations are sometimes a little fussy if you are more of a meat and two veg type of person. They offer an Early Bird menu with one course for £8.50 or two courses for £11.00. Book early though as this is a popular littlle retreat. Don't get me wrong, I love this restaurant and the quality is top notch. My personal peave is that on the special menu there aren't many options, usualy just two or three and the main menu is quite expensive. I would definitely recommend this place. Just check all your guests like the look of the menu before you book.

Painfully noisy, very unpleasant atmosphere. We waited over an hour for our main course, and we are still waiting. Very sorry we didn't' make another choice.

Steak was cold and very small, staff were friendly though. Service was good, just found the meal poor

Amazing place to have a family dinner! For vegans they always have a full vegan menu upon request. Very kind staff as well:)

Cafe One was excellent. The ingredients were fresh and locally sourced. The duck confit with crisp gnocchi was amazing, as was the halibut, and the lamb. The desserts were delicious and I ordered the cheese plate after dinner just to have more of the blue murder cheese that I sampled with my salad. We were a party of five with two kids and they accommodated our menu changes for the kids. The owner was lovely and chatted with us as we left, which left a fabulous impression. Definitely worth it if you are looking for a delicious dinner.

Food was very fresh and delicious! We tried the filet, the Ribeye (sauce was top notch) and the chicken breast dish which I loved. The Raspberry Moscow Mule was the best I've ever had. The crepe for dessert had Malteser Ice cream and a toffee sauce - just wow. We usually never order dessert out but this was just amazing. Would go back if we had another night here and definitely recommend! Call for a reservation to avoid a wait.

Expensive!!! The food is good, but no better than I have had in other resteraunts. The staff are average, a little snobby actually, which is why I didn't tip them.

interesting place, we tried on several occassions to get a table and eventually succeeded. The food was of an acceptable level for the cost, but to be honest forgettable by the standards set by the growing high standard of restaurants in inverness. What I , and my partner, struggled with was the way were treated by the? manager?, it very much felt like we were uninvited guests to a private party and felt very uncomfortable. I have no inclanation to give this place the benefit of the doubt

Nice food and good service but slightly on the expensive side for what you get.