Eating out: yes sir, yes sir, three plates full

It’s difficult to understand why more people don’t know about it — it is the epitome of what Scottish food should be, mixing traditional fayre and modern interpretations without resorting to gimmicks.

Atop the menu comes a warning: “at the Black Sheep Bistro all our meals are lovingly made on the premises by the head of the family..., therefore please be patient as everything is made fresh by one person.”

That one person is Angela Loftus, whose food is so good, I briefly considered asking her to adopt me at the end of the meal.

While travelling in America after university, one of my favourite things was the food — especially in the south, where restaurants are frequently set up like home kitchens, where mother cooks and the kids serve. This menu is packed full of Scottish favourites, but it feels like soul food.

To start, I opted for the cullen skink with crusty bread. It was the perfect start to my meal: a big hearty portion with the fish perfectly cooked and home baked bread.

For my main, on the advice of Angela’s daughter Claire, I opted for what she described as her “favourite dish on the menu”.

She didn’t steer me wrong, as the lamb shank braised in Guinness, with colcannon mash, was incredible.

The meat was so tender and tore so easily off the bone and the rich sauce was the perfect complement.

Despite being full to the brim, I ended up having about half of a steak pie that was going wanting across the table, and I have never tasted one like it.

For dessert, I had the biggest slice of bannoffe pie I had ever seen — and devoured it in about five seconds flat.

In the end, I’m quite glad I never asked Angela to adopt me — her food would be so impossible to resist, and I would end up the subject of a channel five documentary.

Rating: 10/10