This observer had been down at Mill Road
Allotments on Saturday, helping some of the plotters preparing for the open
day. The Sun had finally emerged and had been beating down for a couple of
hours. After midday I headed up the street quite thirsty and the idea formed in my mind
of having a pint in the Vic and just watching the world go by for a moment or
two. The pint of lager tasted very good, looking around I noticed that several customers
had come in to take advantage of the new lunch menu. On hearing that the
special of the day was home-made vegetarian pizza I succumbed and ordered,
being a less than adventurous soul most of the time I simply went for chips and
peas to accompany the pizza. There wasn’t a veggy option for the soup
unfortunately, but on a hot day that’s not too much of a misfortune. There have
been some days this July however when soup would have gone down very well.
It’s amazing how bright and airy the Vic is
when the midday sun shines, interesting too to this observer just how much activity
there is in our High Street compared to some other small towns. My pizza
arrived and, if I have any complaint at all, it was that the plate wasn’t big
enough, not because of the portion being too small but that it was too big for
the plate! It wasn’t long before a couple of peas escaped to roll across the
table. I set about tackling the huge, thick piece of pizza and some of the
accompanying chips. Simple tasty fare, it did the job filling my empty stomach
as the ambience of Saturday afternoon in the Vic got into its stride in the
background. I could have had homemade soup as well as a main course for £5.95 but
there wasn’t a veggy option available on Saturday. As it was a warm sunny day
that didn’t matter too much but unfortunately athere have been quite a few dreich
cool summer days recently when soup would have been appreciated.
Over in the "Library" corner one of the reugulars was sitting in a comfortable armchair reading the Press and Journal. In came Geoff Skeet, one of the Saturday afternoon musicians, a chance for a few minutes conversation with Geoff about affairs parochial and further afield too. A slight anxiety now over the number of calories I was consuming but the sun filtered through the window, the food and the craic was good and another pint was in order. Calorie counting could wait for another day.
Over in the "Library" corner one of the reugulars was sitting in a comfortable armchair reading the Press and Journal. In came Geoff Skeet, one of the Saturday afternoon musicians, a chance for a few minutes conversation with Geoff about affairs parochial and further afield too. A slight anxiety now over the number of calories I was consuming but the sun filtered through the window, the food and the craic was good and another pint was in order. Calorie counting could wait for another day.
I went the whole way (almost) and had a
half portion of the sticky toffee pudding. . More craic followed as other members of the band turned up.
Donald Wilson entered into a bit of banter with a couple of the regulars from
the Thursday night Legion Ceilidh who had popped down to the Vic for a meal and
an afternoon listening to the music. The music started and a mixture of
Nairnites and tourists started to fill up the tables and the area near the bar.
This observer spoke to one wifie present
who, a long time ago now, used to work across the road in the former Burnetts
the bakers shop, now Iain Fairweather’s model shop. She reminisced on some of
the sights she used to see on Saturday afternoons at the height of the darkest
days of the legendary Bermuda Triangle. Gurnites might be pleased, or
disappointed, in equal numbers that these days the Vic most certainly isn’t
what it used to be but it does offer a competitive option for lunch in
comfortable, welcoming surroundings and judging by the satisfying meal that
this observer had, is a welcome addition to the choices available when eating
out in Nairn.