Leave the gags about deep friend Mars bars at the door — London is getting a deli dedicated to Scottish food, and it looks pretty braw.
The Shoap is set to open on St John Street, in Angel, later this summer (hopefully by August), and will sell delicacies from north of the border including cullen skink velouté, filled Glasgow morning rolls, Arbroath smokies and haggis with tattie puree.
Auld Hag is behind the deli; they've been pedalling Scottish scran in London for some time (quite literally — they used to deliver haggis by bike), but this is their first bricks and mortar venture.
Says Founder Gregg Boyd: "When I moved to London I couldn't believe Scottish food wasn't readily available. Where could I get a roll and square sausage or a scotch pie or a can of Tennents? Where was all of our incredible produce like cheese, soft fruit, seafood and beef? This is where the idea of Auld Hag was born."
While a lot of the food will be upmarket (think cheeses from Edinburgh's IJ Mellis, charcuterie from East Coast Cured in Leith, and marmalades from the Isle of Arran) there's also room for no nonsense classics such as Lorne sausage, shortbread and Mackie's crisps. (We never said this was a health food shop, OK.)
As for scotch eggs? Probably not. That particular delicacy was created by Fortnum & Mason in 1738.
