Beside the great 12th-Century Augustinian Abbey of Jedburgh, in the lee of the sheriff-court clock tower, sits the Clock Tower Bistro. Run by chef Alasdair Wilkie (chef profile page 23) and Ruth Johnston, the bistro is tastefully decorated – a beacon of contemporary, quality dining.

Open from Tuesday to Saturday for morning coffee, lunches and dinner, the restaurant’s innovative range of dishes – prepared from local beef, lamb, game, fish, cheese and vegetables – makes selection an agonising process. All of the beautifully presented dishes, each a work of culinary art, are enough to make tastebuds sing.

For starters I was eventually seduced by the local black pudding with chargrilled pancetta and a wholegrain mustard sauce, topped with poached egg, while my partner opted for the homemade spinach and ricotta ravioli which was married with a tomato and mascarpone sauce and dusted with Parmesan shavings.

Our main courses were equally thrilling. My venison medallions, laced with a rich Rioja reduction and served on a haggis potato cake with baby carrots, were tender, ultra lean and succulent. My partner, who ordered the chargrilled tuna loin steak in a garlic and red chilli marinade, said his dish was fresh, robust and perfectly seasoned. We followed this with crunchy meringue topped with chocolate sauce and fresh raspberries, and warm almond and mixed berry tart with a vanilla creme Anglaise and fruit coulis. Both were a delight to behold and devour, thanks to their precisely balanced textures and flavours.