The Dipping Lugger

A truly exceptional destination, unmatched anywhere in Scotland. From the moment we arrived, the welcome was warm and genuine, with nothing ever too much trouble. The building has been carefully restored and furnished to a very high standard. Robert and Helen were wonderfully engaging host, chatty, amiable, and attentive throughout our stay. The restaurant was outstanding, with every detail thoughtfully considered, from the comfort of the chairs to the remarkable flavours emerging from the kitchen. Breakfast overlooking Loch Broom was an absolute delight, a setting that perfectly complemented the quality of the food. And while we didn’t sample their gin, the bespoke Cromarty Brewing Co beer proved to be an unexpected bonus, as were the Tunnock's teacakes.

Should have been better. A few key points where we felt our experience was lacking. 1.⁠ ⁠Wine. We asked for advice on the wine menu twice and told to "pick one from the pairings" and "anything from the menu is good, just pick one". If an extensive wine menu is offered, please understand it enough to offer something from it. Wine pairings complimented dishes well but came with no mention of why or how it compliments the dish. 2.⁠ ⁠Flavour. Each individual item had good flavour but the entire menu felt unbalanced and lacking in experience. Flavours were too big and resulted in a dish that lacked depth and complexity. The food felt more in-line with a menu half the price. 3.⁠ ⁠Attention to detail. Service was slow at times and often confused. The rose wine was introduced as "tasting like berries". No member of the kitchen team came to greet the tables. There was no story line to the menu - which was a total missed opportunity and pretty much a standard at this price point. We still enjoyed our night and there were plenty positives. A few items shined on their own (Deer, bread, and the chocolate pudding). Ultimately, our table agreed that the value is just not there.

Living on the Isle of Lewis, the location of the restaurant could not be better for us: allowing us a night away with minimum travel. My husband & I thoroughly enjoyed every aspect of our visit: the service, ambience, flavour, potion size, explanation of locally sourced produce…the full package. However, it was Robert’s care and attention in the week leading up to our booking that stood out for us. We faced unforeseen difficulties which threatened to ruin our short break to Ullapool, but Robert went above and beyond to help and still accommodate us. 5 star treatment that went far beyond the food!

We stayed here for dinner, bed and breakfast and everything was absolutely amazing! Robert and the team took care of us from the moment we checked in. The service was excellent, getting a complimentary G&T to enjoy in the sitting room when we arrived, to getting a tin of sweets at checkout for the journey home - spot on!👌 The food was delicious and very good value for an 8 course tasting menu with wine pairing. The scallops were incredible, as was the venison. As a foodie, I would highly recommend a visit here!

This meal was starting in a good way. The entire dining area is beautifully decorated, warm and comforting. The service was relaxed while also thoughtful and caring. The food was exquisite. Each dish was presented with refinement and thoughtfulness. I expected a nice meal, I received a world-class dining experience.

One word...Divine. Whether you go for lunch or dinner the food is divine ( I did both).I'm not one to step out of comfort zone when it comes to food, but this place convinced me otherwise. From the flavours of the food to the welcoming atmosphere of the restaurant I cannot recommend this restaurant enough. I am looking forward to my next visit.

The food is delicious and service was very friendly. As we were dining we were told where everything comes from locally, even pear chutney made from the village's pears. It's a cosy restaurant which allowed us to have a beautiful, relaxed meal and a lovely day out in Ullapool. I would highly recommend for lunch if you're looking for a fine dining taste of Ullapool, made with care and local ingredients.

My wife and I, together with two good friends from London, had been lucky enough to pre-book a table months ago, and visited for dinner on the 12 June. The food was absolutely outstanding, whilst 3 of us had the normal tasting menu, we had on booking made the restaurant aware that my wife does not like to eat seafood/fish and they have made every effort to replace the two fish dishes on the menu with equivalent vegetarian dishes. This was highly appreciated as we had recently visited another fine dining restaurant where the non-fish replacements for my wife had been rather disappointing. All courses were nicely presented, the flavours were balanced, deep and layered, and in all courses the main protein had been highlighted and not overpowered. The seafood dishes, scallop and langoustine were cooked to perfection. My favourite dish was the main meat course, deer, again cooked perfectly pink and with a juniper rub, which could have easily overpowered the flavour of the protein, but the chef managed to keep it perfectly in the background. My wife's favourite dish was the pea custard with pancetta crumbs, (which in my opinion could have benefitted from ever so slightly more pancetta) and my wife also was delighted to say that she never thought potato soup could be as delicious as in her "Jersey" dish. Both, pre-desert and main desert were wonderful, with the pre-desert providing some refreshing palate cleansing before the main desert. Overall it was a truly outstanding dinner, the service provided by Robert and staff was excellent and they were making us feel welcomed and provided a relaxing and friendly athmosphere. The portion size was exactly right, I personally hate it when a tasting menu is so limited in portion size that it provides almost only one bite and without the ability to try different combinations of the ingredients, very well done indeed. The only minor improvement to the athmosphere could be in bringing all tables into the main dining room. We had a place at a table for 4 which was seperated from the main area and with a bit of through traffic, however this was of no great detriment to our enjoyment of the evening. We will most definitely return to the Dipping Lugger in the future as we travel the Skye and Ullapool region at least once a year.