The (Not So Secret) Secret Garden

Dinner with a good book at an expensive restaurant >>> almost everything else.

Since it was my first full day up in Scotland, I decided to go all-out. Cocktails, wine, dessert, and, of course, getting overdressed.

The Secret Garden by The Witchery is one of my most popular restaurants in the UK. It's easy to see why; candles and flowers everywhere really create a near-perfect date atmosphere.

The service was extraordinary and gave great recommendations.

I started with a shellfish bisque (because I refuse to say no to soup) and a tequila soda. It's still very funny to see waiters' reactions when I ask for tequila instead of a gin and tonic, but I have my favorite drinks for a reason (hello!). Then had a delicious lemon sole with a sav blanc. The only downside was that I did have to pick bones out of my teeth every couple of bites. For dessert, I had one of the best espresso martinis literally ever and a pear tarte tatin. I could've easily skipped dinner and just had about three of those!

Overall, the atmosphere, service, and dessert are the only reasons I would go back. The menu itself is a bit too small for my liking. The mains were good, but not enough for a USD 160 bill. The tables themselves were romantic but too close together, well, that and the fact that the couple next to me couldn't whisper to save their lives took away from the whole experience a bit.

And, to the man next to me, yes, I go to expensive restaurants alone because I like my own company AND it's called self-care, try it some time!