THEY say that stress – or lack thereof – plays a big part in how good food tastes.
It’s been scientifically proven animals that were slaughtered humanely taste better than animals killed in stressful circumstances.
I only mention stress because our meal at The Albyn marked a landmark – our first night out in what seemed like forever that we didn’t have to think about our wedding day and all the headache-inducing, pain-in-the-backside hassle that goes along with it.
The cloud had lifted and all we had to do now was enjoy our night out.
Sinking into a plush booth and kicking off our night with a couple of cocktails from the bar, the wedding day stresses were a distant memory.
To start I had sea trout cooked three ways (£6.95) – hot smoked with mint pea puree, tartare and pannacotta with horseradish.
I loved the light, freshness of it all, although the pannacotta combo really needed a bigger kick of horseradish because it tasted dangerously like a pudding.
My wife’s fennel and blood orange salad with yoghurt mint dressing (£5.95) was a real palate-cleanser before the main event with a taste that belied the few ingredients.
The main courses arrived in perfect time – not too slow, not too fast.
I couldn’t wait to get stuck in when my perfectly-pink loin of lamb (£17.50) appeared, sitting in a glistening splash of red wine and rosemary jus. Served with carrot puree and sweet, rich lambs liver (which really brought the meaty flavours alive), I had to keep telling myself to slow down, because all I really wanted to do was devour the lot in under two minutes.
Across the table the salmon marinated in lime, ginger and chilli (£20.50) was an expensive choice of main course but one my wife assured me was money well-spent.
Cooked perfectly and served with baby fennel, dill mash and a zingy pepper salsa, this was the kind of healthy main course that tastes amazing but – even better – also takes the guilt out of ordering a pudding.
And there could be only one – a warm chocolate fondant with Drambuie ice cream (£5.95).
It was as oozy and rich as I could have ever wanted.
As we finished nibbling on a delicious selection of cheeses (£7.50) I realised that the scientists were right.
Food really does taste amazing when stress is a thing of the past.