Visit East Lothian > Food and Drink > 8 Top Foodie Delights in East Lothian

8 Top Foodie Delights in East Lothian

March 8, 2022

We were lucky to visit the town over the space of a couple of days and believe that we found some wonderful foodie eateries that we would love to share with you.

The Loft Cafe & Bakery

We stopped for breakfast at The Loft Café & Bakery which is in the town of Haddington, around a 20-minute drive from North Berwick.

If you have the good fortune of visiting on a bright day, they have a gorgeous outdoor seating area which is where we were lucky enough to find a table. Otherwise, if you prefer, you can always opt to sit indoors.

Ordering a Full Loft (full breakfast) and a Breakfast Toastie along with some coffees, we found the service to be quick and friendly. The portions were just the right size for us and it was really fairly priced for the quality of food that we received.

All of the food that we saw being served looked delicious and they have a great, varied menu. I would love to return and try some more of the offerings, especially one of their homemade sausage rolls!

Vegetarian and gluten-free alternatives are available for many of the menu items.

Bostock Bakery

We visited Bostock Bakery twice on our visit to North Berwick and I think that is a testament in itself.

They offer a selection of bread, pastries, cakes and coffee to take away.

On our first visit, we bought a Pastel de nata (Portuguese custard tart) and a savoury croissant. We sat in the nearby park to eat them and they were both so delicious that we made a mental note to return and buy a loaf of bread for our stay.

On our second visit, we chose a crusty white bread and a cruffin (thrown in for good measure). Again, both were really tasty. This was my first taste of both a Pastel de nata and a cruffin - highly recommended!

This is a very popular bakery and there was almost always a queue outside, so don’t hesitate too much if you are looking to purchase something or they may just have sold out!

I would also say, yes, it’s a little bit more expensive than the supermarkets but it is definitely worth it for the quality, the taste and the freshness of each item.

There was definitely a lot of love put into these recipes.

Drift

Drift is a great spot for breakfast, coffee, cake and lunch in North Berwick.

They use a lot of fresh, seasonal, Scottish produce but to me, it was the incredible cliffside views that really caught my attention. Using an upcycled shipping container with large floor to ceiling windows that overlook the water and the incredible Bass Rock, this is definitely food with a view.

The menu at Drift is erring on the side of accessible fine dining in my eyes. While you can still order the full breakfast, sausage roll or soup, the ingredients and flavours are somewhat richer and of a higher quality.

If you don’t have the time to sit in but would still like to try the food at Drift, why not visit their Takeaway Trailer which can be found outside the restaurant, or order one of their Treat or Pick Me Up boxes to eat at home.

Steampunk Coffee

The premises are lovely but at the time of our visit, there was no hot food being served, it was back to basics, good coffee and some cake. I believe that the building was an old joinery warehouse and it looks fantastic, so I was sad that we couldn’t have the full experience.

Nevertheless, we bought some iced coffees as the weather was so lovely and enjoyed them as we walked around the town and took in the sights.

Steampunk are coffee roasters first and foremost, coffee is clearly the passion, and it was great!

They obviously take a lot of pride in what they do and you can buy some of their coffee and/or equipment from the store.

The Lobster Shack

The Lobster Shack was the one place that I just had to visit. There was no question, this food van had been all over my news feeds for what felt like years.

Unbelievably, I didn’t get the opportunity - I was on a tight schedule and didn’t have time to wait in the long queue; they were closed; awaiting food deliveries - for whatever reason, we couldn’t make it work!

I was so disappointed because their menu and the pictures that I have seen, look so delicious.

One day…

The Rocketeer

But fear not, because I discovered that The Lobster Shack and its sister The Rocketeer restaurant nearby, offer almost exactly the same menu.

The main differences being, that The Rocketeer has indoor seating and also offer some meat dishes. Now, I would advise you to make a reservation quite early if you would like to dine here, as there are only 10 or so tables. Book ahead of time especially if you want a lovely beachfront view.

We visited over lunchtime and had two courses. Starting with the sharing platter, we had hot salmon and prawn fishcakes, two prawn fritters and some squid which came with 3 dips.

Each part was delicious and we even had comments from other tables exclaiming that they wished that they had ordered it, so the sharing platter is a must in my eyes!

For mains, we ordered the fish burger and the dressed crab, both came with double-dipped chips.

Both the food and service were brilliant, this is a must-visit.

North Berwick Fry

Sometimes, going out for a meal is not on the agenda, but you still want to treat yourself.

We felt this way after a long day of travel and we could not decide (or agree) on where to eat.

Frankly, we were tired and in desperate need of some rest, so we did what any tourist by the seaside does, and got some takeaway fish and chips!

The North Berwick Fry was the closest to us and had some great reviews. We visited the shop, ordered 2 standard fish suppers and received them almost immediately.

I was a little disappointed that they were served to us in boxes rather than being wrapped in paper as I wasn’t sure how well they would retain the heat, but we got back to our cabin and all was well.

The food was still hot, the portions were large, definitely no complaints and it was really tasty.