Inside Scotland’s 'most beautiful' country house hotel & restaurant as it reopens

Exactly a year ago I visited Boath House in Nairn for the first time and was struck not only at this Georgian mansion house’s beauty, but how tranquil the sprawling grounds were.

The state of the house’s surrounds is no mean feat given the venue is situated off the A96 road and just outside of Nairn.

At the time the house was being managed by Cabin Studio - the team behind London’s Sessions Arts Club - and had been since 2022.

The hotel restaurant, the Dining Room, had recently opened and was given a nod from the Michelin Guide in late 2023, while the Garden Cafe was popular with guests, locals and families.

The Good Food Guide also named the chefs, Katie Austin and Philip Mcenaney, as ones to watch. It seemed like everything was going well, but in January this management arrangement came to an end, and Boath House closed temporarily.

Owned by Steven and Lorna Mayne, it wasn’t long before the couple engaged a new management team, one they have worked with on their other properties in Ireland and Sri Lanka.

And now the beautiful home and grounds are back open to the public, with the garden cafe once again a busy hub. The addition of a farm shop is new and there are plans to add more experiential offerings for guests, as well as have the grounds somewhere for locals to visit “24/7.”

Boath House is a listed Georgian mansion that's now a boutique hotel. | Rosalind Erskine

Coming back a year later, not much has changed - some large artworks have disappeared - but the hotel still has a relaxed atmosphere, it's just more pared back.

There’s no formal check-in desk - there never was - and as before, the grounds are free for guests to wander, with hammocks and secluded seating dotted around.

Guests are encouraged to enjoy drinks in the living room area before dinner, with complementary glasses of champagne. It’s like a refined house party - albeit not one I’ve experienced outside of work, but the vibe is there.

The fine dining restaurant Moine is being headed up by chef Iain Nicholson, who is serving a four-course menu of local, seasonal dishes.

He is highlighting Highland cuisine, cooked simply, but maintaining a level of experience for the diners. When we dined, the dishes were Scottish asparagus, Fife buffalo, hand-dived Orkney scallops and the first of the Scottish strawberries.

A tasting menu is coming, as is a bar and experience-led events such as whisky tastings, including a Boath House whisky, distillery tours, partnerships with offroading groups to host Cairngorm trips and stargazing with a local observatory.

James Kevan and Melissa O'Neill from the new management team explained how there is a lot of excitement now about the future and “what can be done”.

Mr Kevan said: “There’s a lot of things that are close to happening, but aren’t quite ready yet - a lot of experience-driven things. We see this as a place for international travellers, but also the local community, and the phrase we’ve been looking at is reimagined Highland heritage - marrying the old with the new. We’re looking at how to make this a destination that people come locally, but also one that people travel to.”

Boath House living room where guests can relax and enjoy pre-dinner drinks. | Rosalind Erskine

Moine, formerly the Dining Room restaurant, is only open for guests who are staying at the hotel for now, but the plan is to open it fully in the summer - a time when a lot of these new plans will come to fruition.

Ms O’Neill said there was an “exciting summer ahead”, including opening the bar, which will have a fixed cocktail menu from the grounds. She said “we’re big on trying to maximise what Boath offers”. “I’m really looking forward to that and we have identified people who are going to be coming in and working on that part of the business,” she said.

The farm shop is the first foray of the new management into engaging more with the local community. Ms O’Neill said: “Our main focus has been reigniting the garden cafe and putting in the farm shop - that’s really to encourage this constant relationship with our local community as I think that was something that was missing before and we really want that.

“We want people here, on the grounds and experiencing the place. It’s a very boutique offering on the hotel side, but we have this glorious garden, which we can hopefully work into being open 24/7. The summer will be packed with localised events.”

The grounds are home to a walled garden, the cafe and farm shop, lake and secluded sauna, of which there are plans to turn it into a more woodland spa space with treatments such as massages being made available.

The grounds at Boath House | Rosalind Erskine

Boath House had a Michelin Star under its previous owners, and the inspectors had made a visit last year, so are there plans to get back on the radar of this prestigious guide?

There will be a la carte and tasting menus available, as there was before, and the new management said they were keen to support chef Iain Nicholson in what he wants to achieve in his career.

Ms O’Neill said: “I know that [Michelin] is important to him, but it’s important to him - and us - to set a solid foundation. This is a legacy for all of us.

“We want to build something sustainable and that is here in 20, 30 or 40 years’ time. We don’t necessarily feel like we need to be in a hurry for anything. But that [awards] obviously is the goal.”

There are plans to get the chefs from the other properties to visit each location to learn from each other, so there could be a Sri Lankan guest chef tied-up at Boath House in the not-too-distant future.

The sense of excitement and opportunity is palpable, and it is lovely to see this grand dame of a house back open to be enjoyed by visitors and locals alike. Who knows what the summer may bring in terms of weather, but it sounds like Boath House will be the place to be.

Find out more on the Boath House website.