Interiors, News I 13.04.23 I by

Fardaa revives a dilapidated barn on Scotland’s Isle of Mull as a restaurant

An abandoned basalt barn on Scotland’s Isle of Mull has gotten a busy second life as a minimalist community restaurant, Croft 3.

The island is home to around 2,800 people and draws thousands of tourists a year thanks to its natural beauty and rich wildlife, which includes white-tailed eagles. Croft 3’s owner and manager, Jeanete Cutlack, bought the ruined building in 2019 with the intention of opening a community focussed restaurant and tasked childhood friend and architect Edward Farleigh-Dastmalchi with the task of reviving the old ruin.

The studio Fardaa founder has rehabilitated what was left of the original stone barn, using salvaged basalt and traditional lime mortar to create the dining room. Original openings have been expanded to capture views over Loch Tuath, and the barn now houses Croft 3’s dining room.

Photography: David Barbour

Raw plaster, stone and the exposed timber roof deliberately recall the island’s ruggedness in an unfussy minimalist fashion. A single piece of Douglas fir has been turned into long communal dining tables, while the chairs are reclaimed from a cafe, their green frames injecting some colour into the space.

Fardaa also added a new larch-clad volume to the existing structure that echoes the original and will take on a silvery hue as it ages. This new wing houses the chef’s kitchen and visitor facilities.

Croft 3’s menu is ‘small, seasonal and, wherever possible, locally sourced’, says Jeanette Cutlack, though the dishes range in influence. Meat and fish are sourced from the island, including smoked trout and lobster, and on Sundays, the restaurant serves a classic roast beef dinner.

Croft 3, Fanmore, Isle of Mull, PA73 6LX

[h/t Dezeen]

Photography: David Barbour
Photography: David Barbour

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