The Voyage of Buck, the cocktail bar and restaurant on William Street in Edinburgh’s West End, has appointed Nathan Graham as head chef as it marks ten years in the city this month. Graham arrives from Dùthchas in Leith, where he most recently ran the kitchen, and has already put his first seasonal menu in place. The appointment brings a local chef back to the west of the city where he grew up.
Graham grew up in Gorgie, went to Forrest High School and played for the youth team at Edinburgh City Football Club. His earlier jobs include a spell at Purslane in Stockbridge. Dùthchas was listed in the Michelin Guide for Great Britain and Ireland in 2025, the same year Graham reached the semi-finals of the Craft Guild of Chefs Graduate Awards. Describing his approach, he said: “My style of cooking is all about big flavours, simplicity.”
His first autumn menu changes with the seasons, and everything on it is made in house. Gerard Murphy, a local forager, delivers wild ingredients every week. Dishes include a rarebit made with Scottish cheddar and Guinness, Castle Game venison, Scottish hake with Madeira and wild mushrooms, and salt-baked celeriac served with celeriac fries and mustard cream. For dessert there is a baked custard tart flavoured with cinnamon and nutmeg, or sticky toffee pudding with vanilla pod ice cream. Graham named the venison and the rarebit as his two standout dishes. Scottish produce runs through the list, from the cheddar in the rarebit to the hake and the Castle Game venison.
The bar was voted the most stylish in Scotland at the Scottish Style Awards. Its theme follows a fictional traveller, William “Buck” Clarence, and the drinks list draws on cocktails from roughly 1900 to 1935, each named after a city on his journeys. Former staff include Mike McGinty, now a well-known Scotch whisky ambassador, and Nicole Sykes, who moved on to Lyaness and Satan’s Whiskers in London. Both of those bars rank among the world’s top 50 cocktail bars.
The venue is run by Big Red Teapot, an Edinburgh bar operator and special events company. Colin Church, its managing director and co-owner, said: “Reaching our 10th anniversary is a significant milestone in our journey.” The Voyage of Buck opens from 12pm until late, seven days a week, and also hosts private parties and events. It is about two minutes’ walk from the West End tram stop. The same company also runs The Blackbird on Leven Street in Tollcross.
