What It Actually Costs to Eat Well on the NC500

The NC500 has developed a reputation in some quarters for being an expensive road trip. Some of that reputation is earned. Remote locations, captive audiences, and high operating costs in the Highlands mean that prices along the route are generally higher than you'd pay in a city. That's not unique to the NC500 and it's not going to change.

But there's a difference between expensive and poor value, and on the north-west stretch of the route those two things are not the same. Some of the most memorable meals you'll eat in Scotland are available here at prices that, given the quality of what's on the plate, are genuinely fair.

Here's an honest breakdown.

What drives prices on the NC500

Before getting into specifics, it's worth understanding why food costs what it does on a remote Highland road trip.

Supply chains are longer and more expensive. Staff are harder to recruit and retain in remote locations. Energy costs in the Highlands are high. Seasonal businesses carry fixed costs across a short operating window. A restaurant open five days a week from March to October has roughly 150 days to cover its annual overheads — that's a reality that affects pricing across the board.

None of this is an excuse for poor value. It's context for understanding what you're paying for.

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Coffee and cake stops — £3 to £8

The coffee and cake stops on the NC500 — and there are good ones — are generally reasonable. Cocoa Mountain in Durness and Dornoch is the standout: their hot chocolate is made with real chocolate and costs what a good hot chocolate should cost. Expect to pay £4 to £6 for a drink and similar for a truffle or cake. It's worth every penny and it's not trying to be anything other than what it is.

Most café stops on the route are in this range. Budget £8 to £10 per person for a coffee and something to eat at a decent stop.

Casual seafood — £10 to £20

The Seafood Shack in Ullapool sits in this bracket — a haddock wrap, eaten outside on the waterfront. This is some of the best value on the route because the sourcing is excellent and the format keeps overheads low. Expect to pay £12 to £18 for a generous portion.

This is the category where the NC500 genuinely delivers — fresh shellfish, simply prepared, at prices that reflect the fact that the supply chain is short and the overhead is minimal. Seek out the smaller, informal operations. They're often where the best value hides.

A proper meal at Crofter's Kitchen

We're going to be straightforward about our own prices because we think they're fair and we're happy to defend them.

Our half lobster is £25. The lobster comes from Paul’s creels in Badcall Bay, two miles from Crofter’s Kitchen. It was alive this morning. Grant splits and grills it simply, because a lobster this fresh doesn't need elaboration.

Our scallops — hand-dived by Adam off Handa Island — are priced to reflect the method and the quality of the product, not to extract the maximum from a captive audience on a road trip. Our oysters from Patrick and Lucy at Bow, near Durness, are on the menu right now and priced as oysters should be.

A meal for two at Crofter's Kitchen with drinks will typically come to between £30 and £50. For the quality of what's on the plate, the sourcing behind it, and the setting above Scourie Beach, we think that's fair. So, consistently, do our customers. We hold a 4.9 on Google across 500+ reviews and are TripAdvisor #1 in Scourie.

We won Scotland's Best Street Food at the Scotsman Scran Awards 2025. We're shortlisted at the Highlands and Islands Food and Drink Awards 2026 across three categories. We're not the cheapest option on the NC500, and we're not trying to be. We are, we'd argue, among the best value for what you actually get.

Fine dining on the route — £50 to £100+ per head

There are sit-down restaurants on the NC500 where a meal for one will cost £50 to £100 or more per head. Some of that spending is justified by genuine quality. Others are trading primarily on location and the captive nature of the NC500 audience.

Our honest advice: before you spend significantly on a meal anywhere on the route, check recent reviews rather than the menu alone. A beautiful setting doesn't guarantee what's on the plate is worth the price. The best meals we've heard about from customers who've done the full route have almost always been the ones where the sourcing was specific, the menu was short, and the operation was small enough to care about every dish.

The real value on the NC500

The best value on the north-west stretch of the NC500 is fresh shellfish with a short supply chain, cooked simply, in a place that understands what it has. That's not a generic observation — it's a description of what's actually available here, in a part of Scotland where the water produces langoustines, lobster, scallops, crab, and oysters of a quality that restaurants in Edinburgh and London pay a significant premium to import.

You're at the source. Eat accordingly.

Crofter's Kitchen is open Monday to Saturday, noon to 7pm, above Scourie Beach on the NC500. Croft 17, Scouriemore, IV27 4TG. Get directions.