Café Cùil

On the Isle of Skye, These Women Chefs Are Helping Reshape the Region's Cuisine | Condé Nast Traveler

"After emerging from the trees and spotting its telltale red roof, I arrive at Café Cùil, where Clare Coghill—an award-winning chef who launched the restaurant from an East London kitchen six years ago—greets me with a hug and shows me a light, airy interior with floor-to-ceiling windows that frame the wild landscape of Carbost and the Cuillin mountains. She uses the restaurant’s remote location to champion Hebridean produce and Gaelic culture, building seasonal menus around what’s found nearby: foraged nettle, meadowsweet, and gorse in spring and summer, and autumnal dishes that feature black pudding from Harlosh and beef brisket from Lochalsh. The food is playful and rooted in place — I’m still dreaming of the Highland-spiced lamb with flatbread, labneh, heritage tomatoes, and fresh mint; the Isle of Skye crab atop scrambled eggs with Cùil homemade kimchi and crispy chili oil; and a curried cauliflower with beetroot hummus, summer greens, and nettle salsa — all washed down with the signature Cùil‑Aid, a spritz of highland strawberries and foraged meadowsweet. Beyond the dishes, Coghill emphasizes a welcoming, healthy workplace and a deep connection to local producers, and she plans to publish a Café Cùil cookbook focused on Skye recipes." - Carinne Geil Botta