Duck's at Kilspindie House Hotel

This review appears in the The List's Eating & Drinking Guide 2008 – in the shops now or buy online.

The Kilspindie has been a landmark hotel in Aberlady village for many years. Edinburgh restaurateur Malcolm Duck took over in 2004 with the avowed aim of pulling folk out from the city, and the food's certainly good enough to tempt many to Sunday lunch or a bar meal after a game of golf or a walk on East Lothian's breezy beaches. Chef Brian Golan arrived in February 2008 and looks set to build on the hotel's reputation for good eating. The coyly named 'Ducklings' menu is not, as you might suppose, aimed at younger members of the flock (though they're not neglected) but an array of bar favourites plus a clutch of more sophisticated options. Dishes on the fixed-price dinner menu might include sweetly seared scallops with a sesame toast, or squab pigeon in a crisp tartlet with braised red cabbage, to be followed by a demure trio of sea-bass fillets with sweet pepper confit and anchovy butter. The chef's way with flavours is assured and his technical skills surefooted, so expect your fish to be fresh, your meat succulent, and your puds creamy, sticky, crumbly or high-voltage chocolately, as appropriate. The décor may not be in finest feather, but when you're well fed, who cares?

• High point: Bright cooking
• Low point: Dull dining space