Stopped by the Royal Marine Hotel in Brora on my way back from a jaunt up to the Orkney Islands with my pal, Jeff Radice, director of the documentary "No No." We wanted to have a pub lunch but, alas, it was after 3pm and we were in the wilds of Scotland. So no pub lunch for us. Luckily enough we were recommended the Royal Marine in Brora.
The crowd was gathered to watch Andy Murray on his way to victory at Wimbledon. It was funny because a kid in one of the families was getting very excited and kept cheering for Andy. Every time he opened his mouth his parents would hush him and apologize to everyone around. Come on folks, he's just a kid. Ahhh.....you Brits are so polite.
The place was pretty posh, so I was surprised to see - wait for it - NACHOS on the menu. HOOORAY!! I hesitated to order but was soon goaded into sampling the local fare by my travelling buddy.
The nachos arrived quickly and I sampled what the Broronians had to offer in the way of nachos.
Overall, they weren't too bad. The chips were ok and there was plenty of cheddar. The problem with the nachos came down to the same problems encountered on this side of the pond: nachos not cooked long enough and WAY too much sour(ed) cream.
I always forget about that when I order nachos here, but I don't want to seem like a prima donna... "Yes, I'd like the nachos, but could you not put anything on them other than cheese and beans, cook them until the cheese starts to brown - not just melt - and leave off any other toppings because otherwise they get really soggy?"
The other odd thing was that they somehow got the salsa UNDERNEATH the cheese. I just remembered that from looking at that picture I took. Which means they piled the dish up with chips, put salsa on top and then put cheese on top of the salsa and THEN put it into the oven. Salsa, for those not from the Southwest, is generally served cold. The really awesome places will have their salsa sitting on ice.
However, overall, I can't be too critical about these nachos. Not as good as some other places, but not the worst that I've ever had.