A thick smoked-haddock soup with potato, onion and milk, named after the Moray village of Cullen. Edinburgh's standard winter-warmer starter; on every Scottish menu in the Old Town.
Where to eat it: 7 restaurants across 2 cities.
Cullen skink first appears in print in Meg Dods' Cook and Housewife's Manual in 1827, though the dish itself is older fishermen's fare from the Moray Firth. The Edinburgh bistro circuit adopted it as a heritage starter through the 1980s, when Scottish provenance returned as a kitchen marketing pitch. The naturally-smoked Finnan haddie (haddock cured over green wood) is the canonical fish; the soup should be milk-based, never cream-thickened, and the potato is roughly broken rather than blended. The World Championships of Cullen Skink have run since 2010 in Cullen itself, and Edinburgh's bistro versions reliably circulate through the top placings.
Common allergens: Fish, Dairy
Tip from the editors. Use undyed haddock if you can; the lurid orange dyed version is industrial smoke flavouring and skews the soup sweet rather than savoury.
Tom Kitchin and Dominic Jack's Stockbridge gastropub in Edinburgh, opened in 2013, the casual sibling to The Kitchin running British classics in a Comely.
Order: Fish and chips with mushy peas, or the Sunday roast that books out a week ahead.
Tip: Children's menu is taken seriously here; meatballs and mash is a proper plate.
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 New Town offshoot of the Leith Fishers seafood mini-chain in Edinburgh, on Thistle Street since 2001, a brasserie-style room running East Coast fish.
Signature: Cullen skink, Whole grilled lemon sole
Order: Cullen skink for starters and the whole grilled lemon sole with brown butter.
Tip: The original Fishers Bistro on the Shore in Leith is the smaller, more ambient sibling if you want the Old Port version.
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.
Cafe Gandolfi has anchored Glasgow's Merchant City since 1979, a warm room of hand-carved oak serving Scottish classics like Cullen skink and smoked venison.
Signature: Cullen skink, Smoked venison
Order: A bowl of Cullen skink followed by the smoked venison with gooseberry.
Tip: The upstairs Bar Gandolfi is a quieter spot for a cocktail before or after your table downstairs.
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.
Two Fat Ladies at The Buttery is Glasgow's oldest restaurant, an 1870 Argyle Street room panelled in dark wood and built around Scottish seafood and game.
Order: Whatever landed that day from the fish board, plus the pre-theatre menu if you are heading to a show.
Tip: The dark Victorian rooms make this a special-occasion booking; ask for a table in the original panelled front room.
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