Leave the gags about deep fried Mars bars at the door — London is getting a deli dedicated to Scottish food, and it looks pretty braw.
The Shoap (which is Scottish for The Shop, as if you didn't know) opens on St John Street in Angel on 9 February 2024*, selling a cornucopia of delicacies from north of the border including Stornoway black pudding, filled Glasgow morning rolls, Arbroath smokies, smoked fish from East Neuk and Bare Bones chocolate made in the east end of Glasgow. from spring 2024, it's start to sell hot food too: scotch pies, black pudding sausage rolls, cullen skink, haggis with tattie puree — that kind of thing.
Auld Hag are behind the deli; they've been pedalling Scottish scran in London for some time (quite literally — they used to deliver haggis by bike), but this is their first bricks and mortar venture.
Says Founder Gregg Boyd: "When I moved to London I couldn't believe Scottish food wasn't readily available. Where could I get a roll and square sausage or a scotch pie or a can of Tennent's? Where was all of our incredible produce like cheese, soft fruit, seafood and beef? This is where the idea of Auld Hag was born."
While a lot of the food will be upmarket (think cheeses from Edinburgh's IJ Mellis, charcuterie from East Coast Cured in Leith, and marmalades from the Isle of Arran) there's also room for no nonsense classics such as Lorne sausage, shortbread and Mackie's crisps. (We never said this was a health food shop, alright.)
As for scotch eggs? Probably not. That particular delicacy was created by Fortnum & Mason in 1738.
*We'd previously reported it'd open in summer 2023, but that was delayed
