Michelin-starred chef Michael Smith, founder of Loch Bay restaurant on Skye, is joining Perle Hotels as culinary director and brand ambassador, taking responsibility for food and drink strategy across the independent Scottish hotel group.
Smith will work with the teams at Perle Hotels’ properties in Skye, Oban and Glencoe, as well as its new Edinburgh hotel opening in 2027, to develop individual restaurant concepts based around provenance, local sourcing and ‘a strong sense of place’.
Smith, with his wife Laurence, opened Loch Bay on Skye’s Waternish peninsula in 2016, going on to earn a Michelin star and international acclaim for its seafood-led cooking using local produce.
He will take up his newly created role at Perle on 10 November following Loch Bay’s final service on 31 October
Smith explained: “Loch Bay has been the realisation of a lifelong dream. It was a huge personal challenge for my family and me, and I’ve learned so much.
“I feel like I’ve achieved everything that I’d ever hoped to, expressing a version of what we believed to be a magical little restaurant. So now I’m ready for a new challenge.”
Smith already has a long-standing connection with Perle Hotels.
More than a decade ago, he was involved in developing Dulse & Brose at The Bosville in Portree, a restaurant built around provenance and seasonal produce from Skye, the Highlands and Scotland’s west coast.
On taking up the Perle role, his first priority will be to spend time in each of the hotels, getting to know the restaurants and the people behind them before working with the teams on how each can evolve, from menus and sourcing to developing a stronger sense of place and individual identity.
He said: “Hotels and restaurants are living entities – they have their own energy. There will be existing narratives in each location, and it takes time to uncover all these things.
“I’d like to take time to experience each venue, feel the different energy of each one, and look for opportunities to tap into new markets or new visitor experiences.”
Beth Rehman, owner of Perle Hotels, said: “Michael’s appointment is a significant investment for us, not just in our restaurants but in our people and in what we want food and drink to become within Perle.
“We’ve known Michael for many years and what has always stood out is his understanding of what makes a restaurant work – the food, of course, but also the people, the place and the experience around it.
“Our hotels are all very different and we want their restaurants to be different too,” said Rehman. “We don’t want to impose one concept across Perle. We want to give each restaurant a much clearer identity and make them places that local people and visitors want to come to whether they’re staying with us or not.
“Michael brings an enormous amount of experience, but also real enthusiasm for working with our teams and developing what is already there. We’re delighted he’s joining us and very excited about what we can achieve together.”
Smith added: “The opportunity that Beth has created for me was unexpected, but having given it serious consideration with my family, I know this will be an incredible opportunity for me, going into the next stage of my career and doing something I’ve never done before, at a new level. That is a privilege.
“This new role allows me to call upon almost 40 years of experience, and I find that extremely exciting. It is also an opportunity to pass on what I’ve learned to the next generations coming up through Scottish hospitality.”
He concluded: “Good food is really simple to achieve. You use the best ingredients that you can get hold of. You apply a little bit of skill, and you don’t overthink it.
“We have such a rich natural larder, and it should be celebrated, supported and enhanced. Perle Hotels has been doing that quietly and admirably for the last 10 years, and that’s something that I’m very happy to be a part of and continue to support.”
Perle Hotels’ collection comprises The Bosville, a boutique hotel in Portree, Isle of Skye; Marmalade, also Portree, occupying a historic former manor house which has been extended to create a 34-bedroom hotel; The Bracken Hide, also Portree, described as ‘a design-led wilderness hotel’ set across 52 acres, with individual cabin-style hides, a restaurant, whisky bar, sauna and wild swimming pond; the Perle Oban, a luxury hotel and spa in a 19th-century building overlooking Oban harbour; Glencoe House, Glencoe, a historic mansion offering suites and lodges within ten acres of private grounds; and, opening in 2027, Edinburgh 16-20, a new townhouse hotel on Castle Street in Edinburgh city centre.
