Newport Summer Festival

Sometimes the best way to appreciate Dundee is from the other side of the bridge. Just under 2 miles away lies the charming little town of Newport-on-Tay which offers some of the best panoramic views of Dundee. From here you can see the vast, silvery Tay enveloping the city and the V&A leaning magnificently over the water’s edge. To the left, the Tay Rail Bridge cuts across the shoreline as the rolling, blue hills contour the horizon. It’s easy to forget how breathtakingly beautiful Scotland is when you’re nestled away inside a bustling city. Sometimes you just need to venture a few miles away to see things in a completely different light and gain a refreshingly new perspective on the city.

And Newport itself is just as picturesque as the stunning view to the North. The coastal little suburb has the feel of a small seaside village, with the local High Street boasting some quaint shops and retailers as well as the renowned Newport Restaurant.

The restaurant offers the best of high quality, locally sourced produce, served with scenic views across The River Tay. It’s fantastic food in a breath-taking location.

The Newport Restaurant also celebrates the best of local craftsmanship and produce with their regular Summer Festivals. Earlier this month, the eatery transformed into a miniature fête as friends and families came together to enjoy the best of local food, drink and live music. Showcasing craft food and drink from local independent suppliers, the festival also included food demonstrations from The Bakeoff winner Candice Brown and The Newport’s head chef, Jamie Scott.

Newport Summer Festival helped to raise funds for Dundee Bairns, a new charity providing food and activities for children in Dundee. The enterprise hopes to raise awareness about child poverty and holiday hunger whilst supporting young people in the city’s deprived areas. A raffle for a Newport hamper helped to fundraise for the charity, including hand-picked confectionary items, fresh coffee beans from Sacred Grounds and natural soy wax candles from The Candle Bothy.

Serving up a delectable array of food from deep-fried halloumi to fresh crab salad, The Newport Restaurant made the most of local produce, sourcing oil from Kirkcaldy, fresh local oysters and gin from Dundee.

It’s no secret that speciality gins are having a moment right now. Fife and Dundee are hotspots for new start-up distilleries, each offering their own innovative and unique take on gin making and distilling. Stalls at the Newport Summer Festival showcased local craft spirits including Dundee Dry Gin, Never.25 and The Gin Bothy.

The Dundee Dry Gin bottles are inspired by the iconic Keiller’s Marmalade jars, infusing Dundee’s heritage of jam making with its new tradition of gin making.

Another delightful distillery is The Gin Bothy which infuses Scottish tradition with a contemporary twist. Using fresh, local botanicals carefully hand-picked from the Angus Glens, The Gin Bothy produce hand-crafted gins and gin liqueurs from grain to glass. Even those that don’t enjoy the acquired taste of gin will love their fruity, refreshing gin liqueurs. I would highly recommend their raspberry infused liqueur with either lemonade or prosecco!

The festival had a real feel of togetherness; friendly faces; an amazing live band playing on a warm summer’s day; beautiful, locally sourced produce and all overlooking a stunning Scottish backdrop. Newport Summer Festival is a great day out with wonderful food and drink which helps to support a brilliant cause.

Have you been to The Newport Summer Festival? I’d love to know your thoughts, so why not drop me a Facebook comment below? Or you can head over to the Urban Dundee archives for more things to do in Dundee.