Famous Blacksmiths Shop, Gretna Green, Scotland

⭐⭐

The Famous Blacksmiths Shop is the historic marriage house in Gretna. Built in 1713, with weddings commencing in 1754, it remains hugely popular for both weddings and general tourism.

There are several outlets on the site, which is in the centre of Gretna Green - there's the Blacksmiths Shop itself, which is the famous, historic wedding venue. There is the Blacksmiths Gretna Green Experience, which we didn't go to today, but will certainly go back to in the future to learn about the history of the site. There are several shops, each selling gifts - mostly Gretna Green branded, as well as some local produce - and craft gins and whiskies. There is also both a food court for dining and a food hall for produce purchase. Outside, you'll find the sculpture garden, with all sorts of weird and wonderful art.

The shops were cute and quirky, but to be honest they were all much of a muchness. The same brands and products were available across all of the shops on the site. The shop staff were very friendly, though, and the stores were all clean, nicely presented and well stocked. The prices were high, but no more than you would expect for a gift shop.

The reason for the low score, though, was the food court. Our visit there today was really disappointing. The food court is attached to the "Wee Big Shop" - a small store selling gifts, confectionary, liqueurs and tea and coffee to go. We had planned to grab a to-go coffee, but the chap at the counter was tied up with some other customers. We waited a couple of times to order, whilst he wrapped up his conversation, but after a few minutes and no acknowledgement, we went to the food court instead.

The website describes the Blacksmiths Food Court as "five star rated", and it is apparently a "5-star Visit Scotland attraction". This is not the experience we had today.

The food court was very quiet. We had gone in at around 3:50pm, and I had been concerned that they were due to close at 4:00pm (there is nothing worse than customers coming in just before closing!!) but we were advised that closing time was 6pm. Tea and coffee is self serve, so I opted for an Americano and Mr went for hot chocolate. The first issue I came across was the mugs - they were all marked and stained. I reassured myself that they have all been through the dishwasher, and are therefore sterilised, but not a great start. We went to pay, and the only interaction that came from the till operator was the price, and the response of "over there", when asking where the milk was for the coffee. It felt as though he just didn't want to be there.

There were no other customers in the food court when we sat down, yet every single table in the vicinity was covered in either crumbs, food marks or sugar. The cleanliness was really disappointing, and it gives the overall impression that the staff just don't care. Had it been close to closing, or really busy, I could probably have overlooked it, but it was neither. There was someone vacuuming, however, the whole places just seemed quite grubby. My coffee was actually not too bad, but Mr's hot chocolate he described as "powdery" - both were quite expensive for what they were.

Overall, I would go back to visit the Blacksmiths Gretna Green Experience, and I would get a takeaway coffee, but I think I'd give the foodcourt a miss.

At a Glance Information:

• 🐶 - Dogs allowed in the Conservatory area

• 🚽 - Yes

• 🚗 - Yes

• ///allies.drops.thin