During the days of summer sunshine we took the opportunity to head out of town and show off our amazing Scottish scenery to Sabine, who was visiting from Cologne. We combined this with an opportunity to sample some our out of town restaurants.

One place which proved a particular hit was The Swan Inn, where we had dinner. We enjoyed a drive around the beautiful Trossachs and on our return journey we showed Sabine the quaint huts at Carbeth before heading over to the Campsies, where we stopped off for dinner at The Swan Inn, which lies at the base of the hills in Lennoxtown.

This historic village inn, which dates back to 1787, reopened earlier this year and all appearances suggest that it has quickly become very popular and the restaurant, which adjoins the bar, was surprisingly busy for a Sunday evening.

However, we were lucky to find a table tucked in the corner and service was swift and staff very pleasant. The menu was pleasantly varied with options ranging beyond the usual bar room fare. I had the scallop starter, which was delicious and very unusual with just a little haggis to give it a kick.

All three of us enjoyed our main courses and cleaned the plates. Sabine chose The Chilli Bowl which comprised of homemade beef chilli, served with rice, pitta bread and sour cream. Exceptionally good value at only ?8.95 and she pronounced it to be 'delicious'.

Jim enjoyed his pasta dish of Linguine in a rich wild mushroom, shallot and garlic cream sauce topped with parmesan shavings and I had chicken stuffed with black pudding on a bed of crushed potatoess with seasonal vegetables and thyme jus. The portion were very generous and I couldn't quite finish my meal but it was super tasty and beautifully presented. We finished off with coffee and shared a sweet of White Chocolate Cheescake.

A particularly nice meal in a very pleasant atmosphere. The Swan Inn is definitely on the right track and I'm sure this new, old, hostelry will go from strength to strength. We'll definitely be back.

The Swan Inn 1 Quarry Lane, Lennoxtown, G66 7HB Telephone: 01360 310 920 email

Pat Byrne, August, 2011.