The Famous Russian Tavern on the Isle of Bute, Scotland.

The photos shown here are of the interior of The Russian Tavern at Port Bannatyne a yachting village on the Isle of Bute in Scotland. Bought by a Russian family in 2000 A.D. this old pub with four guestrooms was in some state of disrepair. The old bar, that has been renovated into a reproduction of a traditional Russian Tavern of Imperial Times, was painted a dark shade of brown and the great fireplace had been boarded over. The windows that look out to the yacht bay and the Scottish highlands beyond had been covered over with three layers of curtains so that the only daylight that entered was via a small triangle of filthy net curtaining, the rest obscured by huge drapes.

Using old photos of traditional taverns, the room has been utterly transformed, and decorated with wall plates and tapestries. There is a piano, and beer barrels on the bar, wild flowers and candlelight,timber floor and stone fireplace. Moreover these conditions make for a relaxed atmosphere where fine, carefully crafted cuisine is served in an unpretentious manner. There are six different Russian beers, wines from the former vinyards of The Tsar, and twenty different vodkas.

In 2008 the trade magazine The Publican visited the island and gave Second Prize for design amongst all the hundreds of thousand pubs in the UK. The winner, in a renovated water-mill, had spent two million pounds on decor! Should you be visiting Scotland you will find food, drink and hospitality at a higher level at The Famous Russian Tavern.

http://radiotimes.qondio.com/