Iain Nicholson appointed head chef at The Machrie hotel

Nicholson’s CV includes time with Albert Roux, working as a sous chef across his Scottish and London restaurants including Le Gavroche. He has also worked in kitchens in the US, France, and Switzerland as well as in restaurants such as The Adamson, The Rav, Mingary Castle and The Atelier.

He joins The Machrie from a position of head chef at Vie Montagne in Verbier.

The Scottish chef is also an experienced forager and the creator of Nobadfoodlab.org, a website showcasing foraged ingredients and designed to educate budding chefs about Scotland’s ingredients. During the pandemic he retrained as a tree surgeon and set up his company Life’s a Birch Tree Care.

At The Machrie, he plans to create dishes using almost exclusively Scottish ingredients, with most of the produce sourced from Islay and Argyll, with a menu that will reflect his training and his Scottish heritage.

“The pandemic provided me with a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to try something new, but I am delighted to be back in the kitchen to start my new journey with The Machrie,” he says.

“Cooking, and the creativity that comes with it, will always be my life’s passion and I have exciting plans in the pipeline. My aim is to put The Machrie on the food map, providing diners with an exclusively Scottish experience as possible.

"I want guests to be able to close their eyes, taste my food and know exactly where they are, and I look forward to achieving this as The Machrie.”