Layered whipped cream, toasted oatmeal, honey, whisky and Scottish raspberries. Edinburgh's standard summer pudding, eaten July to August when the berries are at their peak.
Where to eat it: 6 restaurants across 2 cities.
Cranachan started as a harvest-festival dessert in Highland farming households where cream, oats, heather honey and the late-summer raspberries all happened at once. The whisky came in at table rather than the kitchen originally; the cook poured a dram into each glass before service. The Edinburgh bistro version codified the layered presentation through the late twentieth century and the city's restaurants run it as their default Burns Night dessert and through the July raspberry season. The Stockbridge Market raspberries from Perthshire growers are the canonical fruit.
Common allergens: Dairy, Gluten
Tip from the editors. Use a single malt with sweet, fruity notes rather than a peated one; Glenmorangie or Aberlour are reliable. Peated whisky overpowers the raspberries.
Tom Kitchin's Leith dining room on Commercial Quay in Edinburgh, Michelin-starred since 2007, the kitchen that brought Scottish provenance back to fine.
Order: The Land and Sea five-course tasting menu, with optional wine pairings from a 400-bottle list.
Tip: Saturday lunch tastings are the most reliable booking; the chef's table in the open pass accepts two with 30 days notice.
James Thomson's heritage dining room at the top of the Royal Mile in Edinburgh, opened in 1979 inside Boswell's Court, the city's grand-occasion fine-dining.
Order: The Witchery Theatre menu of three courses at £50 before 18:30 or after 22:00, the only value play.
Tip: Ask for The Secret Garden, the second dining room down the stairs; the candlelit version of the experience.
The Dome on George Street in Edinburgh's New Town, opened in 1996 inside the former Commercial Bank building, a glass-domed grand brasserie room running.
Signature: Scottish smoked salmon platter, Roast beef Wellington
Order: Smoked salmon platter at lunch and the roast beef Wellington at dinner under the central dome.
Tip: The Georgian Tea Room at the back is a quieter alternative if the main hall feels too touristy at peak hours.
Howies on Victoria Street in Edinburgh, the Old Town flagship of David Howie Scott's Scottish-bistro mini-chain opened in 1990, the city's everyday Scottish.
Signature: Haggis bonbons with whisky cream, Aberdeen Angus steak
Order: Haggis bonbons with whisky cream as a starter and the Aberdeen Angus steak with peppercorn sauce.
Tip: Pre-theatre two-course menu from 17:30-19:00 is the value play. The Waterloo Place branch is the second-best room.
The Ubiquitous Chip has anchored Ashton Lane, Glasgow since 1971, a cobbled West End courtyard institution serving modern Scottish cooking and venison haggis.
Order: The venison haggis with clapshot and whisky sauce, on the menu in some form for decades.
Tip: The upstairs Brasserie is cheaper and takes walk-ins; the ground-floor Restaurant is the full-dress experience.
Stravaigin has cooked 'think global, eat local' in Glasgow's West End since 1994, a Gibson Street basement pairing homemade haggis with pan-Asian plates.
Signature: Homemade haggis, neeps and tatties, Buttermilk fried chicken
Order: The homemade haggis, neeps and tatties, on the menu since the restaurant opened.
Tip: The ground-floor cafe-bar takes walk-ins and shares the kitchen; the basement restaurant is the sit-down booking.
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