The Fife Arms Hotel

Dined in the Clunie restaurant- had the most amazing meal. Great, friendly service in a beautiful and interesting setting. Wonderful art everywhere and the staff were super friendly and well informed. Our meal was unbeatable. Obviously it is not cheap but the portions were generous and overall it felt like good value for such an experience

Where else can you have high tea or an evening drink directly underneath a Picasso? Everywhere you look - from the fireplaces to the wall hangings to the chandeliers - is a curated art gallery arranged into an extremely comfortable space. Our whole family enjoyed the live music and relaxing evenings in the drawing room & lobby. Beyond the common spaces, the rooms are thoughtfully designed with an impressive combination of luxury and rustic. You never forget that you are in the small town of Braemar in the Cairngorms, but couldn’t ask for more comfort. The complementary drinks & other local offerings in the room add to this feeling. The food is also excellent. This was my only worry before arriving, but both the Clunie and Flying Stag blew us away. The roast dinner at the Clunie was absolutely incredible. Service can be a bit slow, but the staff was friendly and the food was consistently very good. Have a drink at Elsa bar before dinner. Don’t miss Bertie’s (the whiskey bar) - the staff was very knowledgeable and the vibe is incredible in both bars. The surrounding area (the town of Braemar, the hikes, etc.) is exactly what we were looking for in the Cairngorms. Finally, the staff is what stands out above all else. Laurie at the front desk & the Ghillie team (especially the female Ghillie from Australia whose name I didn’t catch) were overly accommodating with our many many requests & extremely pleasant to interact with. There was no room for improvement here, at all.

We were looking forward to our Sunday lunch after much hype about the food. No mention of birthday so why asknon booking system. Set menu so no need for the server to explain anythjng we had to ask for kids menu. Champagne was wrung from the bottom of the bottle and somewhat lack lustre. The food was okay. It was little things roast potatoes had that dried out reheated texture. Beef itself was good quality albeit small portion. Gravy overly salted, personal preference perhaps. Sebream was also well cooked. Pork belly had 3 textural elements all fine there. Desert from kids was good however the panna cotta had overly firm texture. For me it was the finer details that were the let down. Waitress spraying nearby table whole we were eating and wiping crumbs onto the floor. No table cloth or place to put dripping glass as the waitress spilled. Cutlery not laid correctly. Maybe evening service worth the hype but as far as Sunday lunch goes there are just as good if nothing else better value options allover Aberdeenshire.

Whilst visiting braemar decided for a drink and a snack,called in the flying stag ordered mussels and chips . When served the waitress promised a bowl for the shells and finger bowl,neither came .There were four unopened mussels in the one portion and the chips were overcooked McDonald style fries .

My husband and I enjoyed a lovely lunch here on 9 August. Food and service in the Stag Bar were fantastic. Real ambience and relaxed atmosphere. My only negative was the unisex toilets. I thought that I had gone into the gents. Unfortunately there was that odour that perhaps only a woman notices. Stick to male and female toilets please. 🙏

We stayed for two nights at the hotel, dinner bed and breakfast and it was exceptional. Superb customer service from arrival until departure p, food was excellent and I had the delight of a facial and massage by Joy which was wonderful. A great experience and definitely should be a must visit if you are passing.