With a few more weeks of summer left, many of us may be planning a trip to the seaside to soak up what’s left of the longer days and (occasional) sunshine. We’ve plenty of options for a day on the beach in Scotland, from awe-inspiring island retreats to city seascapes.
One of the most popular destinations for a day trip or weekend away, is Fife - in particular the east neuk. Home to picturesque fishing towns and villages, there’s plenty of excellent food and drink to be enjoyed in these charming spots.
One of the best known Fife towns is St Andrews, thanks mainly to its royal connection and its famous golf course and hotels. But there’s another reason that people have been flocking to this historic location - a charming seaside shack that serves some of Scotland’s most interesting toasties.
Aptly named The Cheesy Toast Shack, this eatery is located on Woodburn Place overlooking East Sands beach, making it an ideal pit stop for lunch. Its location also means that those enjoying a bite to eat can also soak up the views of the award-winning beach.
As the name suggests, you can order a range of cheese toasties and, if you’re lucky, tuck into them in the sunshine on the beach.
One of the most popular toasties on offer is the ‘secret recipe’ mac and cheese toastie, which internet star Kalani Ghost Hunter called ‘the best grilled cheese I’ve ever had’. Other toasties include ham, cheese and pickle and Red Leicester and chorizo.
The Cheesy Toast Shack is owned by Kate Carter-Larg and her husband Sam and was named the best place to eat at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in 2016 by us at The Scotsman.
The couple wanted to make "the best toasties in town" and they’ve garnered some famous fans since they setup the business. Marti Pellow, of Wet Wet Wet travelled to eat there from Edinburgh in late 2023.
Taking to Instagram at the time, they posted: "After a Wet Wet Wet weekend, we had a Wet Wet Wet midweek. We were delighted to welcome back Marti Pellow yesterday, who told Abi he’d driven all the way from Edinburgh, especially for one of our toasties, after trying them last year."
Famous restaurant reviewer Jay Rayner has described the award-winning toasty venue as 'an absolute gem' in an article on the best seaside food spots for The Guardian in 2022.
Rayner said of the shack: "There are few food items better engineered for the elemental challenges of a trip to the Scottish seaside than a cheese toastie, and there are few places that do them better than these two takeaway operations on the beach in St Andrews.
"These are serious items, built to keep you going as the winds blow and the sea crashes. The bread is cut thick. It’s bronzed and a little oily outside, with a deep filling." If that wasn’t high praise enough, our own Allan Crow, editor of the Fife Free Press declared that the business serves ‘the best toasties in the world.’
While we cannot guarantee the sunshine for a beach day, if you visit this business you will be guaranteed a tasty lunch.
