Haggis Pope

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Haggis Pope

Local to Edinburgh, Fraser Horn gives tours of the city which are authentic and tailored to the needs of guests.

Tours available, Bespoke, Alcohol (of your choice), LGBTQ+, Literary

25/01/2024

“Is there for honest Poverty
That hings his head, an' a' that;
The coward slave - we pass him by,
We dare be poor for a' that!
For a' that, an' a' that.
Our toils obscure an' a' that,
The rank is but the guinea's stamp,
The Man's the gowd for a' that. “

Tonight is Burns Night, a day for eating Haggis, Neeps + Tatties. For that reason he’s often most famous for his “Address to a Haggis” which in reality sounds like a joke some of his admirers took a bit far. If Burns should be remembered for anything it’s his humanistic belief that life was valuable regardless of your station or class.

He was just a farmer who learnt to write to express his earnest beliefs about the world and he ended up inspiring the romantic movement of poetry in the English language alongside the national movement for a Scotland which could feel happy with itself for being an interesting place with values worth celebrating. His work was never small or parochial or unimportant regardless what his critics might have said and that’s why we love him and that’s why we eat haggis tonight.

Special thanks goes to my Malagan photographers and for this photo

25/12/2023

Merry Christmas all! This is breakfast because my Haggis Wife is amazing at French toast bake. Also featuring a bottle of maple syrup some of my Canadian guests brought me!

16/12/2023

Festive family brunch at the always reliable Victor Hugo's, featuring waffles with bacon, an eggs benedict roll, and mulled wine. Not pictured: the lemon cake wolfed down by the Wee Haggis.

14/12/2023

"Now you know Dasher and Dancer and Prancer and V***n..."

It may be cold out, but that's no reason not to eat ice cream. Get yourself down to Alandas this month and get a special festive reindeer cone to celebrate the holidays. And don't forget to add melted chocolate to your cone for a melty finish!

Alandas is dog-friendly and Augie approved

13/12/2023

We’re at the time of year to make homes bright, merry and gay. That means it’s time for something green and natural. Christmas trees, a one time a year expense, so something you want done right.

For the last couple years we’ve been getting our trees from Tollcross Tree Works. They get all their trees from Pitlochry so it’s about as local as is possible. It’s good to not have to worry about the environmental cost being too high. Further to the environmental cost, they’re only £10 a foot with free bicycle delivery in Edinburgh included. They also do something that I wish every tree lot would do: they measure the tree up to the crown (the bit where most of the branches stop), not to the top of that one lone bare branch at the top. It means that you’re paying for the amount of tree you’re actually getting, instead of paying for a six foot tree when actually 8 inches of that is a bare branch.

It means that once a year I’m able to talk to my favourite gardener and walk about a small lot filled with Christmas trees. What can be more exciting that that?

If you’re still looking for a tree, they are located just next to the International Bar on Tarvit Street. Dog friendly and Augie approved!

10/12/2023

We were invited to Makars Mash Bar. This is the first time this has happened to us so it was a big moment! We were to take a look at their mushroom emporium which they’ve been working on as part of their plant based menu. It’s also a great way to bring the food supply chain as local as possible, literally growing mushrooms in a climate controlled cellar.

I will be returning soon to try some of their mushrooms but there was something else on the menu I had to have: lamb shank! I cannot resist a big hulking leg of lamb. With black puddings mash and a side plate of haggis, neeps and tatties, I was in a delightful place. My Haggis Wife had slow-cooked beef shoulder with cheddar mash and was very appreciative of its taste and texture.

Normally I pass puddings but on this occasion my eye was drawn to the ‘ice and dirty’, a sort of Baileys sundae. HW went for the delicious brownie. Overall we were fair pleased.

Afterwards we went to look at the mushrooms. It kind of looks like samples from an alien planet. It’s also cool they use the carbon dioxide produced by the mushrooms to feed other plants down in the cellar. It’s a triumph of urban farming. I was told they’re looking to expand their production with another facility too so I’m excited to see what they do with that.

Thanks very much to Makars for inviting us and to Ray, Neo and Tonya for looking after us. Even though we were invited on this occasion, I’ve eaten at Makar’s before and frequently recommend them on tours for their haggis and veggie haggis.

26/11/2023

It’s now exactly one month until Christmas and time to start your shopping. So today, two places that are good for both souvenirs and Christmas gifts: Red Door Gallery on Victoria Street, and the Tron Kirk Market on the High Street.

Red Door is a great wee destination on Victoria Street; every American relative I have has loved the place and bought something to take home to remember Edinburgh. It’s very Scottish and full of pictures by small, local artists.

At Tron Kirk, more than 20 different Scottish artists and designers have come together to fill this old church with interesting creations. If you want something unique to gift it’s definitely a good location.

One thing which is cool about both these shops is that they are so central yet a world apart from many of the surrounding souvenir shops in terms of quality and individuality.

24/11/2023

Today's sharp drop in temperature makes for some very appropriate hot chocolate weather. I shared my top 5 places to get hot chocolate in Edinburgh last year, and I'll reshare in Stories, but it seemed like a good time to add an extra five spots to the list. In no particular order, we have:

(gelato hot chocolate float)

And last year's list, which still impresses:

Next up to try: !

20/11/2023

I went to The Real Greek for a date night with my Haggis Wife (she hates that title). They do small plates mezi so we ordered a bunch of stuff and were able to get a lot of classics like lamb meatballs and halloumi fries, while we were also able to try something new in the shape of pork monastiraki (also adore the tower effect for the service). I was able to celebrate having a great week of tours with champagne so all my guests can see where their generous funding went!

Because dogs are not allowed inside the restaurant itself we were seated in their outside section but we felt very well taken care of by Maciej, who is the manager (name pronounced sort of like Magic). All round I’d recommend.

18/11/2023

The Southern is a bar in Newington which deserves the spotlight today for two reasons: it’s a cool place with a good selection of local microbreweries and they also gave me a prize of beer and hats!

The Southern is dog friendly and Augie approved.

13/11/2023

Took a friendly family trip to Stockbridge gelateria, Joelato. Honestly, it was amazing stuff. I had salted pistachio with rich chocolate and Granny Haggis and the Wee Haggis had snickers. Mine was good as expected but the snickers was something else. The Wee Haggis’s feedback “Cold!” was very approving as she finished it all. Mrs Haggis had a hot chocolate float with coffee straciatella, which was a perfect balance of hot and cold and appropriate for even the chilliest of Scottish weather. Even the Most Wee Haggis got in on the excitement with his first lick of gelato, which he adored.

Joelato is dog friendly and Augie approved. There is a second Joelato location at Bonnie & Wild at St James Quarter, though Bonnie & Wild does not allow dogs.

11/11/2023

This is our Earth baptized
With the red wine of War.
Horror and courage hand in hand
Shall brood upon the stricken land
In silence evermore.

by Ewart Alan Mackintosh

The First World War was a uniquely shocking war for everyone. It was the First War with fighting in the air as well as land, where weapons of pure terror like gas and defensive structures which tore the flesh like barbed wire, mixed with machine guns and continual bombardment destroyed
the senses. It’s important on Armistice Day to remember these horrors and their aftermath. It’s also important to remember the civilian cost, as their losses were even higher than the military ones even if you disinclude the pandemic which followed the war.

Lest we forget.

05/11/2023

Celebrating Bonfire Night early with a s'mores hot chocolate from Mimi's

03/11/2023

“November’s sky is chill
and drear,
November’s leaf is red
and sear”

-Walter Scott

Here is Augie representing his fine camouflage abilities in the Fallish colour scene

28/10/2023

The Witchery is a restaurant near the Castle which goes all out for their Halloween/Autumn decor. It also has a very good name for spooky season! 👻 👻 🧙‍♀️ 🧙 🎃

25/10/2023

St Cuthbert’s Graveyard is one of the oldest in Scotland, with burials dating back at least a thousand years. It has some of the best photos of the castle too and is just next to Princes Street Gardens and the Ross Fountain, which makes it an absolute must for anyone who wants glorious photographs of their time here. Especially atmospheric at this grey and spooky time of year 👻

23/10/2023

October is hot chocolate time at

23/09/2023

The first day of autumn in the Meadows 🍂

14/09/2023

When it comes to Indian food, the best places in the world are in India. The second best are likely in London and I’d say the third best are probably in Edinburgh. 3 of my top 20 restaurants in the world are Indian restaurants in Edinburgh. This post is about my first Indian love here, Mother India.

I’ve noticed a bit of a change in style over the years. Indian restaurants used to do white table clothes and a sort of silver service approach to dining. In the last decade they’ve gotten more into a relaxed small plates, tapas style of dining. I’m all for it as it lets you have different dishes.

That being said I do love chicken so here there is chicken tikka masala and pakora, and also lamb.

To go with it I’d recommend their mango lassi.

09/09/2023

“The three most exciting sounds in the world… anchor chains, plane motors, and train whistles” - George Bailey ‘It’s a Wonderful Life’

The second day of our Aviemore adventure started early with a breakfast at a place called Cobb’s, hearty food for a beginning, and then a step backwards in time to the 1930s. There’s a steam train up there, newly restored in all its art deco finery. It’s a short route, but we found ourselves entertained by our guide, a woman called Sam who seems to have a history of travelling the world and breaking men’s hearts by standing up for herself. We were in the observation car because coach tours took up the regular seating and I would recommend the observation car especially because it’s barely more expensive and comes with some refreshments and better windows.

The train stopped at a couple of small stations which have been kept in working order but old school style. An entertaining feature was that this was clearly designed for a train lovers audience as the shop had some properly niche books and collectors items. I’m not a train enthusiast really but still bought something so I can always look at the weird train book I bought which is very readable. Maybe it’ll spark something in one of my kids.

Back in Aviemore we noticed the shop was selling old timey badges. There were many on offer, Engine Driver, Station Master, Guard, but the most appropriate for me was Porter because I always carry all the things!

Amazingly, this 1930s painfully reconstructed train is dog friendly, Augie however remained in Edinburgh.

08/09/2023

Nestled in the Grampian Mountains, the town of Aviemore has been inhabited since the Bronze Age. Today it’s a quiet town, a popular place to stay during adventures in the Highlands as it’s very close to ski slopes and there’s a lot of water for windsurfing and forests for walking. Beyond this it can be ideal for a romantic birthday trip, which I enjoyed with my Haggis Wife.

The Highlands are well worth a few days on any stay in Scotland. The natural landscape is awe inspiring. The people are friendly and the pace of life is a little slower, especially compared to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. A town like Aviemore is a great place to stay both as a jumping off point and for its own value. The restaurants there are very high quality as they cater to a mountaineering crowd who visit year round and always come back hungry.

Two places we ate worth remembering, Cheese & Tomatin (a pizza restaurant with handmade pies) and the Cairngorms Hotel (a classic Highlands style hotel with traditional food).

I also found the place tickling my interest in military history as I’d always heard the Highlands was used extensively to train commandoes and this was done partly near Aviemore. There’s a plaque to Norwegian forces trained there.

The town is already worth it for the above reasons but outwith this, there is another fun draw I’d love to talk about tomorrow so stay tuned!

Aviemore is dog friendly but Augie had a staycation.

20/08/2023

Love, Peace and Coffee is a wee cafe in Newington, the heart of studentville. The cafe does really good pancakes (or waffles) loaded with chocolate, whipped cream, bananas, peanut butter and a variety of other options like fruit and jam. I ordered the Alex (maple, bananas and peanut butter) and the man himself did a fist pump as some of the combos are named after their staff.

Check it out if you want a fun spot just off the city centre. Love, Peace, and Coffee is dog-friendly and Augie approved.

18/08/2023

Edinburgh Book Festival is one of the largest book festivals in the world and very culturally significant for the hundreds of events they put on. They have their own book shop where you can find top modern titles in a bedazzling array of genres.

They also have signings on days where authors are doing events and that’s how my haggis wife met Jenny Colgan, a Scottish romance fiction writer par excellence who is lovely.

The book fest means more to me since I worked there in logistics back in 2018. It was an incredible operation to be inside, shifting over 100k books over the course of the set up, duration, and take down of the event. I thought about doing it again the year after but found my calling as a tour guide from that point and never had the time. Still, having these enriching experiences inside Edinburgh’s great cultural events is an experience I’ll always treasure.

07/08/2023

Homies has already appeared on here once before but we thought this deserved a very special post. Pizza for breakfast! A special on offer at Edinburgh Street Food till the end of August.

Breakfast pizza sounds an oddity but really it makes sense as an option. Carbs from the dough, tomatoes are a good morning vegetable, cheese is always delicious, and ham and egg is a beloved breakfast combo.

It’s the kind of food that once you see it, you want it. A man stopped by our table and asked us where we got it because it looks so good

31/07/2023

Come on Barbie, let’s go party!

The other day I got all dressed up in pink because it was a Wednesday and me and my haggis wife were going to the Everyman to watch Barbie. Everyman has quickly become one of my favourite cinemas in town as it has a great old school elegance to it. So if you want to watch a film, that’s a good spot.

On to Barbie, I’m not totally sure what I was expecting but it certainly felt different than what I’d anticipated. It’s for a lot of really good jokes in it, it looks fantastic, and I found the plot fun. It was also a fun event because virtually everyone was wearing pink and I like when people make an effort for cinema.

We also went out for drinks at a cool place but more on that another day!

04/07/2023

Howdy, y’all! I’m wearing red and blue (shorts, sitting down) in honour of the 4th of July, the day the Yanks cast loose their colonial chains to avoid paying taxes. There’s also some vague parallels in Scottish history so helpfully displayed by Mel Gibson in his documentary, Braveheart. Seems a lot of countries want independence from the English!

Sadly, there aren’t that many distinctly American themed places which we have left to cover in Edinburgh, so we returned to one of our favourites, Butta Burger, and I had fried chicken and fries (just out of shot) (covered in perma John cheese), and an all-American Coke.

Butta Burger is dog friendly, Augie approved, and look at how he hovers anticipating food

01/07/2023

The world of food is so expansive it can be easy to miss out on great cuisine without direct exposure to it. With that in mind, I present Hungry Wolf - a Georgian restaurant (as in the country, not the US state or British period of history). It’s pretty rustic with high quality ingredients. In the hands of a good chef, wonder is achieved.

We had khachapuri (a bread boat with cheese and egg), shkmeruli (garlic chicken), and khinkali (meat dumplings) in a tiny wee restaurant with only four tables. They don't serve alcohol but you can BYOB and there's a pub next door.

If you’re looking to broaden your food horizons with a visit to an intimate Georgian food experience, Hungry Wolf is definitely the one for you.

Given it’s small size and the fact the kitchen is in the same room as the dining area, I will assume it’s not dog friendly.

24/06/2023

Pride Edinburgh in full swing today as colourful flags fly representing the entire spectrum of human sexuality and personhood. The weather is glorious and later there will be more events throughout the city.

Incidentally, I do LGBT tours so if you’re interested do get in touch!

20/06/2023

Mor is a bake house which feels to have just sprung from nowhere in the last 6 months to having an ever growing number of locations in Edinburgh’s city centre. It’s easy to understand why though when you experience their offerings. British and Scottish pies with good quality pastry and meat. A tasty culinary sensation and at a price point which makes it an attractive lunch or snack option. This post is just a few of their savoury options, 4 items for 2 people because we got excited.

Chunky steak pie, steak bake, cheese and bacon bites, and a haggis sausage roll because if a place has haggis options I’m always going to go for it. They even have a haggis pastie which I will be returning for in the future! We also got a Bakewell slice, brownie, and caramel yum yum for later.

I’ve thus far been unable to confirm their dog friendliness but Augie was very excited at the prospect.

18/06/2023

Happy Fathers Day to all my fellow dads out there. Got to say being a tour guide is so good for me because it means I spend half my waking hour showing visitors round this beautiful city and the other half raising my two gorgeous children alongside my excellent wife who keeps the whole show going. With props to artist Dick Vincent for the cute illustration

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Wet day in Edinburgh, Sandy Bells is the ticket. With its convivial atmosphere and folk music I feel ship shape. Looking forward to tonight’s rugby against Ireland. I’m an eternal optimist and think we could do it #scovsire #pubs #pubsedinburgh #sandybells

For #nationalpoetryday (which nation I haven't checked), here's a recitation of Burns lovingly shot by a customer called Debbie who had no 'gram #poetry #edinburgh #scotland #tourguide

Hard to explain the feelings I felt watching this coffin coming past. It was a moment I expected was coming at some point in humans history but assume she would outlive me. We will see what is to follow #queen #queenelizabeth #edinburgh #edinburghcastle

#circus #circustent #festival #edinburghfringe

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