The Harbour View Kinghorn Ltd — Restaurant in Scotland

I don't normally post negative reviews. Rather, I write privately to the restaurant raising the issues we had to give them a chance to up their game. I tried to find an email address for this restaurant. No luck. Anyway....sad to say, this was a highly disappointing meal for us. ☹️😓 Beautiful sunny day, so we decided to go to the beach - Aberdour. Lovely! Then a wee drive around the coast to Kinghorn. First issue was with signage. Difficult to see the restaurant as signage wasn't the best. A bit of difficulty finding the entrance too, parked in the carpark and it wasn't obvious where the entrance was. The building itself has seen better days, and decor wise is a bit of a mish mash. In need of an upgrade. FOOD -DISAPPOINTMENT! We had checked the menu out beforehand on Google and one member of our party had chosen this restaurant because it had oven-baked brie as a starter and because the reviews were 4.5 stars. However the menu online was totally different from what was offered on the day. No brie. ☹️ Anyway, after a bit of a wait, our order was taken. Sirloin steak, medium rare with whisky sauce. Two steak pies and soup and sandwich for the wee one. It took a long time to come. Waiting staff said the restaurant downstairs was very busy. We accepted that. Not in a hurry, just hungry. Eventually the food came. The sirloin steak was raw. Medium rare is pink and warm in the middle - this was red and cold in the middle...not just bleu - very bleu. We returned it and the same steak was brought back by the chef a little more cooked. No apology. No talk. No smile even.☹️ He actually seemed a bit detached and was not acting in a way one would expect for a busy chef. Sauntering, I would say - manyana like. The steak in the steak pie was a reheat...some bits soft, some hard. Not very appetising. Most left. Vegetables were from a frozen pack, watery and tasteless. Fries were obviously reheats too. Overdone and hard. The whisky sauce - the alcohol had not been cooked out of the sauce. It was as if it had been poured in and left like that. One to watch as the diner was the driver. He didn't eat it as he was concerned about the effect on him for driving afterwards. Red flag!

POSITIVES The tables were set with pristine white linen and looked inviting. The waiting staff were pleasant and did a reasonable job in difficult circumstances. The location is absolutely stunning! I mean stunning.

ISSUES This place could be a goldmine if someone with enough resource could intervene:

Revamp the building Install decent signage Declutter and redecorate Align the online menu with what is offered Get a decent chef

I paid the bill and left a tip for the waiting staff. I felt sorry for them as they did a good job of serving. They were friendly and helpful and at the end of the day - have to be paid. I shared my feedback with one of the waiting staff and she said that lately, there had been a number of complaints about the food and she would tell the owners.

The food was just not worth the money.

The location is 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 The waiting staff 🌟🌟🌟 The food - no stars -...

We thought we would try the harbour view as they were suggesting some specials from Spain and we do love Spanish cuisine. We thought it was also very special to support local businesses at this difficult time. The staff were polite and courteous. It was a special touch having the chef coming to take the food order. We were at the end of a Sunday afternoon sitting and of course ended up late in but the staff were very accommodating as we had phoned in advance to apologise that we would be ten minutes late. We had ordered the seafood paella in advance as suggested. We were also keen to try out the merluza and duck dishes as they were advertised as Spanish specials. The Mac and cheese and scampi were also ordered for people who were not keen on Spanish cuisine.

Food review. Generally the food was ok. The Spanish style dishes lacked seasoning and we felt that they had been toned down for the local Scottish pallet. The paella was nice but again lacked flavour. Could have done with more garlic and Spanish seasoning. The Mac and cheese and the scampi were typical pub style food.

Atmosphere The views from upstairs were amazing, but the decor seemed a little confusing. The Indian themed wall paper and decor seemed to clash with the scenery.

Suggestions

This restaurant has great potential and is so refreshing compared to the previous establishments that had been here before. However in order for it to survive it will need to,

Cut down the number of staff. Remove the table cloths and minimise the decor. Improve the external entrance areas to make them more attractive. Especially the link between the council car park and the establishment. Consider that less can be more. Focus on handing out higher quality well seasoned dishes rather than large quantities.

These should be taken as constructive criticism and used to support and build rather than taken as anything negative. The concept you have is great and with time this can build into a wonderful...

Went here for dinner on Saturday 15th August, during a weekend stay in nearby Burnt Island. We were not disappointed on any level. The restaurant is above a pub, it may not look much from the outside but when you enter the restaurant you are immediately wowed by the views over the water. We were greeted by a friendly, young waitress, who showed us to our seat and took our drinks order. The restaurant is lovely and bright, clean and fresh. With gorgeous decor and little string lights by all the windows. For starters we shared nachos, which were exactly as described and expected. For mains, I ordered the battered haddock and chips, which was lovely. The batter was absolutely perfect. My husband had the burger and chips and was also delighted with his meal. Homemade and cooked to perfection. We didn't have room for dessert! We cannot compliment this restaurant and their staff enough. They were so friendly and helpful, nothing was a hassle for them at all. The food was delicious and well presented, and fantastic value for money. We would definitely recommend and can't wait to...