Ian Hamilton career talk 7th December

The Vine Leaf was one of St Andrews’s best loved restaurants for 35 years, thanks to husband and wife team, Ian and Morag Hamilton. Following its closure, Ian has joined Rotary and he entertained fellow members with a talk about his life as a restaurateur. Ian paid tribute to two people, both Rotarians as it happens, who had helped to make it possible: the late David Robertson, for business advice delivered free of charge during lunchtime walks together, and Bruce Alexander, of the Royal Bank of Scotland, for granting a bank loan despite evidence that few such ventures lasted more than 5 years. A key opportunity arose when the Hamiltons were able to purchase the rigg at the back of the restaurant, enabling them to extend it and to build a house for themselves. Archaeological excavation revealed roots that Ian recognised as old vines, suggesting that the site had once belonged to a vintner. Morag’s excellent cooking, featuring such local produce as chanterelles foraged from nearby woods and fresh lobster from Crail, Ian’s natural ability as mine host (though he did not say that of himself) and their pioneering introduction of a prix fixe menu, soon established the Vine Leaf as a firm favourite; and so it remained until fire damage, from a blaze in an adjacent property, and the pandemic persuaded the Hamiltons that the time had come to pursue other interests, such as Morag’s consultancy for Scotland’s Rural College. Ian concluded by recalling an evening in the restaurant in 2015 with Dutch golfers who, as children in 1945, had witnessed the food supplies being dropped by Bomber Command’s Operation Manna that saved them from starvation. A poignant moment because his late father was one of the fliers. Hotelier Eric Brown was the appropriate choice for the vote of thanks. It was also fitting that, just before Ian began his talk, Bruce Alexander was made a Paul Harris Fellow, in recognition of his service to Rotary, including the Club’s annual treat for Young Carers, which Bruce set up 12 years ago and continues to organise.