The The Drouthy Cobbler Experience

John Shanks was a cobbler (shoemaker), who lived on the north side of Elgin High Street with his wife Betty.

In 1807, John was appointed the keeper of Elgin Cathedral, also known as the ‘Lantern or the North’, and he immediately set to work, clearing away the rubbish and debris that had accumulated there since the building had fallen into disrepair.

John single-handedly removed 3,000 barrowfuls of rubbish, laid bare the foundations of the pillars, the elevations at the altar and the steps at the West Gate.

No-one who knew this Elgin shoemaker had the slightest idea that he would forever be celebrated as the restorer and saviour of the ‘Lantern of the North’.

John’s thirst for whisky garnered him the nickname ‘the drouthy’ cobbler’, drouthy being an old Scots word for thirsty, especially a keen thirst for strong liquor.

One of Elgin’s most popular hang outs, and affectionately named  'The Drouthy' by locals, we combine superb food and artfully created cocktails with a relaxed and cosy, yet stylish and up-market atmosphere.