Lochleven Seafood Cafe Fort William and Lochaber

Seafood spectacular

Usually when I hear the words "seafood platter" I imagine myself sitting in some Belle Epoque brasserie in Paris, or perhaps Deauville. A moustachioed waiter, dressed in white shirt and fulllength black apron comes rushing through the swing doors from the kitchen, bearing one of those splendid "assiètte de fruits de mer", a tiered chrome tower laden with crustaceans, dripping ice and lemon.

Given the fact Scotland has, arguably, the finest shellfish in Europe, my image should surely feature my native land, yet, try as I may, I find it hard to think of Scottish restaurants that serve up shellfish in such profusion.

Mussels are now commonplace, that's true, and our chefs' love affair with scallops shows no sign of fading. But a veritable seafood feast of this sort? That's still an elusive experience.

And here's where to find it – Lochleven Seafood Cafe, on the shore of Loch Leven, looking across the loch to the towering pap of Glencoe. Here we were served a seafood platter that would make top fish restaurants of the world green with envy. These platters, served on celadon-green ceramic bowls, look so heavy with the fruits of our seas and lochs that we marvelled at the wrist strength of the waitresses.

A platter, supposedly for one, costs £27, but would serve two very generously and stretch easily to satisfy three. I have a wonderful fishmonger who could, on a good day, supply such an array. But it would cost me at least £30 over the counter. This platter was a huge bargain.

The inventory of seafood present was as follows: half a huge lobster, a dozen or so langoustines, half a brown crab, six razor clams, two oysters, about 10 squat lobster, a handful of surf clams, plus countless mussels and cockles.

To help you consume this orgy of seafood, there was red wine vinegar with shallots, a gentle homemade mayonnaise and a proper aioli, made with basheddown garlic, salt, egg yolk, a sprinkling of saffron threads plus lots of extra virgin Arbequina olive oil, (no half-baked mayo out the jar with some pulverised garlic here) and a basket of hot, crusty rolls with a ramekin of good butter.

All the seafood had been cooked perfectly, the lobster left fleshy and moist, the crab still juicy and sweet. Dealing with a platter like this is a surgical operation. The cafe equips you for the task with shell crackers and a dainty collection of pointed silver objects resembling hat pins.

As my companion worked his way with relish through the platter, I tried out the hot offerings. A starter of about a dozen long, thin razor clams was a meal in itself.

The clams tasted not unlike squid and had been sauteed with onions and wine then tossed with parsley and walnuts. The latter, a bit of an unusual choice, went surprisingly well with the clams.

By the time I had devoured my main course – a substantial lemon sole on the bone, beautifully cooked and served with a fresh tomato and pepper salsa-type dressing – my companion was still excavating the deepest cavities of his marine bonanza. This gave me time to eye up some of the meat options people were eating around us. For future reference, the neck oflamb with crushed potatoes and capers looked pretty special, as did the artichoke and bean pate with sourdough toast.

Despite having devoured a mountain of marine life, we still managed to dispatch a dreamy coffee jelly, spiced, I think, with cardamom, along with a tangy posset, exploding with passionfruit sandwiched betwixt a vanillastippled rice pudding and poached pink rhubarb.

The shop adjoining the Seafood Cafe supplies shellfish to Spain and imports back from Barcelona rustic tableware, first-class oil, olives, wines and so on. It's a neat idea that the cafe intercepts some of our national seafood treasures before they disappear into the tapas bars and paella pans of Catalonia. Chef Barry Moran, a local man with a starry, fartravelled CV, aims to "provide the highest quality Scottish seafood"and, here's the bit I like, "at reasonable prices".

A medal for services to Scottish seafood might just be in order.

© Sunday Herald