My wife and I stayed for one night after a long day of hill walking. Really nothing we didn't like about this place.

We had a beer on the deck overlooking the golf course when we arrived after our hike then headed to our room to clean up for dinner - we got a suite on the top floor, good size with separate bed and sitting rooms - overall very comfortable.

Dinner - This was probably the best meal of our trip. We both had the scallop & black-pudding starter which was wonderful, then Venison and seabass respectively. To finish - cheese platter, coffee and port. Restuarant was busy and clearly a special spot for visitors and locals alike.

B&B perhaps a little over-priced but food and drink was excellent value so it averaged out. In conclusion - highly recommended, if you don't eat here when you are in the area you will have missed out!

We were persuaded to try dinner at the Glen Lui hotel on a friend's recommendation and I'm very glad we did so.

It's one of maybe half a dozen surviving "big house" hotels in Ballater which hark back to a bygone era of tourism, converted from a private residence nearly 50 years ago and hidden away at the end of a residential street off the A93 Ballater to Braemar road. Without a brown tourist road sign for guidance it would be very difficult to find.

At first impression there's little to distinguish the Glen Lui from the gaggle of similar establishments in the town all of which offer hearty Scottish choices - slabs of salmon, venison, Aberdeen Angus steaks and the rest including, yep, the inevitable haggis.

But we persevered with the menu and found some more original touches, including duo of lamb with barley risotto and sea bass with blackcurrant shallots. The prix fixe options were also at the less eye-watering end of the local going rate (£22-50 for two courses, £27-50 for 3) so we decided to give it a go.

On arrival we were very pleasantly surprised to find the Glen Lui’s dining room bright and airy, located within a large modern conservatory extension.

The young, keen and knowledgeable staff made us very welcome. They were eager to share tips to help our menu choices, such as the fact the black pudding served with the queen scallops starter was specially "imported" from Stornoway and was said to be the finest in Scotland.

Starters were entirely adequate, if uninspired. I'd have preferred my smoked salmon starter 'draped' with a Marie Rose dressing as promised, rather than drowned in the stuff, and the haggis balls were exactly that - three balls of haggis lined up on a rectangular dish - but these details aside it was hard to fault the cooking or indeed the presentation, which is enhanced by contemporary tableware.

Our main courses were all first class, including a tasty wild mushroom asparagus and saffron risotto as well as the lamb and sea bass dishes already mentioned. The salmon steak came with an oatmeal crust providing a welcome contrast to the texture of the fish.

Light and well-chosen desserts included a cappuccino ice cream and a delightful full-flavoured creme brulee made with vanilla pods.

We were fortunate to visit the Glen Lui on what was probably the warmest night of the year so far, and we were therefore able to round off our meal with coffee on the outside terrace overlooking the local golf course and the River Dee. Unusually the Glen Lui also offered Indian chai as an after-dinner option.

The wine list was varied. It would be a nice touch to include the house wines explicitly on that list .. the house Shiraz was not only a good choice for us, it was also a fiver cheaper than anything else offered, something I only discovered when the bill arrived.

I'm certainly looking forward to a return visit to the Glen Lui next year ... and given that there is still only one restaurant I know of in Ballater offering anything other than big helpings of Scottishness at dinnertime the Glen Lui is a good choice for an original take on the ubiquitous Highland theme - at a (relatively) affordable price.

I originally posted this review in the "Restaurants" section under under "Restaurant at Glen Lui" then found all the other restaurant reviews are over here in the "Hotels" section of TA.

loved the food here - we really loved the scottish food and this hotel was no exception :-)

My husband had a business meeting and I went along for the ride. Very glad that I did as we were welcomed and shown to our very comfortable room by Murray and then came down to a superb dinner cooked by his Mum, Susan. Very much a family affair where the Bells take an interest in their guests.