A Highland bar at the top of Scotland

Open 7 days a week: 12:00pm – 11pm (last orders called at 10:30pm)

Food served daily: 12:00pm – 5:30pm

Evenings: drinks-led with a lively, social atmosphere

*No reservations required

The Brass Tap has long been a social hub in Tongue, and our live music nights continue that tradition.

Join us on selected evenings for:

• Live sessions every last Friday of the month
• A growing calendar of social events and entertainment
• A relaxed, informal setting showcasing local talent
• Great food, drinks and company

Whether you're visiting or local, there’s always a seat waiting.

Standing on the edge of the Kyle of Tongue, with views stretching towards the ancient ruins of Castle Varrich, Tongue Hotel has welcomed travellers to the far north for generations.

Built in the mid-1800s by the Duke of Sutherland, the building began life as a hunting lodge, a place of gathering after long days on the hill and by the water. Here, stories were shared beside open fires, and food and drink reflected the landscape around it; game from the hills, fish from the Kyle, and produce shaped by the seasons.

At the heart of the hotel sits the Brass Tap.

Named after an original brass water tap still found within the bar, it offers a quiet nod to the building’s earliest days, when guests would draw water to accompany their dram after long days on the hill. While the name itself may not be centuries old, the spirit of the space certainly is a place of warmth, conversation and community.

Across the water stands Castle Varrich, once the seat of Clan Mackay and believed to date back over a thousand years. The village of Tongue itself has long been a meeting point of Gaels, Picts and Vikings, and in 1746, the Kyle witnessed a dramatic encounter between a Jacobite treasure ship and the Royal Navy — a moment that echoed into the wider story of Battle of Culloden.

Today, the Brass Tap carries these layers of history lightly. It remains a place to gather, where locals and travellers meet, where music is shared, and where stories continue to be told.

Not bad for a bar at the top of Scotland.