As part of our commitment to minimising the environmental impact of our cruises, we aim to serve produce that has low food miles. Our Chefs love to make use of the excellent local produce available and here are some of the suppliers in Argyll and the Isles they use:
Jacksons Butcher
Traditional butchers since 1932 who specialise in the finest Scottish lamb, beef, pork, and poultry. Alister, the current owner, is the third generation of Jacksons to run the business and is always a great help to our chefs when placing orders.
D Watt & Son
Officially Oban’s oldest family business situated on the Railway Pier. Carol offers a great selection of local fish and shellfish, including Salmon, Crab, Mussels, Langoustines, Trout, Haddock, Cod and much more.
J M Breckinridge
Another family-run business to the Argyll area that delivers all over the West Coast of Scotland. It is one of the most established suppliers of fresh fruit and veg in Scotland. Yet another great service, which delivers to our vessels.
Go Naked Veg
Local to Oban, the shop sells fresh fruit and veg plus organic products aiming to reduce plastic waste – they cut out all unnecessary packaging and bags.
Millstone Wholefoods
A health food shop central to Oban which started in 1985. They offer an extensive selection of organic produce, vitamins, fresh baking, and are well-stocked with supplements. A great shop to browse when looking for products to serve our Vegan guests.
Alba’s Kitchen Garden
An intimate, well-stocked delicatessen local to Oban, supplying lovely produce with a wonderful cheese selection - our Chefs always enjoy browsing the cheese counter!
Taste of Argyll
Taste of Argyll offers lots of local produce under one roof, packed with local meats, cheeses, preserves, coffee, chocolates, and more.
Inverlussa Mussel Farm
A real treat for our guests is going ashore at Loch Spelve to collect some freshly harvested mussels for the Chef to cook that day. The farm has been voted the best mussel producer in Scotland on numerous occasions.
Skipper Rob
A speciality of Hebrides Cruises is hand-dived scallops, often provided by Skipper Rob. He has many secret spots where he likes to find Scallops, only ever taking as much as he needs for guests aboard. The Skipper and Wildlife Guide join guests at mealtimes, to catch up on the latest adventures and plan the following day’s activities.
Fairtrade Argyll
Oban became a Fairtrade Town back in 2006. It is a simple way that each local business can make a difference through everyday choices. Whether it be better prices, decent working conditions, local sustainability, and fair term of trade for farmers and workers in the developing world. We aim to serve some Fairtrade products aboard our vessels, for example, coffee and chocolate.
Please see below a link to Oban’s Fairtrade Directory, giving some extra information, listing shops and cafes that serve or stock Fairtrade items.
Chris went out of his way to avoid the threatened weather, with the happy result that the weather was much better than expected at this time of year. The team also arranged the itinerary to make sure that, where a guest had specific requests, these were accommodated (and without having a negative impact on the other guests). They tried very hard to show us as many species of wildlife as possible and to introduce us to areas and their history that we might not have been aware of. The guided walks were much more interesting than going on our own and the crew took great care in getting us all on and off shore, with radios for safety when we decided to split up. The presence of Hannah, in particular, made all the difference. Her knowledge of the local wildlife was exceptional and it was very interesting to hear about the islands and communities that we visited. She (and Chris) kept a look-out to make sure that anything of interest was highlighted to us on the voyage and her end of day wrap up reminded us of what we’d seen. Craig looked after us very well and seemed to be everywhere – he was certainly very hard working. I think that he cleaned the cabins as well – he definitely did a good job there. Along with Hannah, the meals that Izzy cooked were the best thing about the cruise for me. On a previous cruise (with another small company), the quality and service of the food (and the garrulous chef) spoiled the cruise for me. I was a little worried about this when I joined this cruise, but needn’t have been. Izzy was a great cook, providing a nice variety of well-cooked meals. Serving sizes were appropriate for the daily menus and we did not go hungry (or leave the table feeling too full). I looked forward to seeing what the next meal would be and also very much enjoyed her cakes. The whole team looked after us very well, but weren’t too obtrusive, allowing us to have quiet moments and to talk amongst ourselves.
Jo Boait: 21 September 2024The Small Isles and sea lochs: Wildlife havens