My 9-5: Scott Smith of Fhior

The founder of Edinburgh-based restaurant Fhior, Scott Smith, shares his daily life and career path.

Where do you call home?

Fhior is on Broughton Street in between the New Town and Broughton but I live in Clermiston. I used to live in Edinburgh city centre but I wanted to live somewhere with outdoor space so I moved here. St John’s Road is nearby which has amenities such as a big Tesco.

My day starts with…

My alarm is set for 7.30am but my three-year-old wakes me up at 6.30am. The nursery drop-off is at 8am and then my working day begins.

A typical working day usually involves…

An ideal day at the restaurant is catching up on emails first thing in the morning and then I have meetings with the head chef or restaurant manager and we discuss staff changes and what dishes we are working on. I am in the kitchen at 11am to test the food and then we have a team meeting where we talk about any menu changes and things to improve on. Lunch service is from 12pm-3pm. After that I go to more meetings or I catch up on emails. Sometimes I meet suppliers away from the restaurant.

At 5pm I go back to the kitchen to check the preparation for dinner service. At 6pm we have a briefing before we serve dinner. I head home at 11pm.

I got my job…

I have always been in hospitality since I was 15. It is all I’ve known. Opening a restaurant was the end goal when I got into hospitality as I love the creative side of it. It’s hard to be creative with someone else’s money.

Any business is always a risk but what separates it from gambling is it’s an educated risk – you do research and make a business plan. To minimise risk you have to be confident in your ability, vision and goals and you need to be able to lead a team to make them confident to deliver your vision. There have been staff shortages in a lot of industries but for us reputation comes before profit so you attract the right calibre of people compared to what the industry is known for. Instead of long hours for low pay our team are well paid and work three days with three and half days off. You shouldn’t have to sacrifice a personal or social life to do what you’re passionate about.

The best part of my job is…

The reactions of customers. They are initially uncertain as they don’t see the menu until they are at the table. People are stricter with how they spend their money now. It is difficult to keep the menu value for money as costs are going up.

At Fhior you pay for a full experience – you can spend your entire evening here. There’s pressure on us to make sure the customers have spent their money well. It’s a high-end experience in a relaxed, homely environment.

My most memorable career moment is…

Before Fhior I had another restaurant in Leith called Norn and I won the Acorn Award which is given annually for the 30 stars of hospitality in the UK under 30. I had big plans but I never pushed for accolades or put myself into the limelight so to be given an award was a surprise.

After work I…

On days off I do a lot of climbing and bouldering at Eden Rock or Alien Rock which are both near the restaurant. I have a busy work life so my mind is always racing but when you are climbing you are on the wall focusing on what’s in front of you.

If I wasn’t the founder of Fhior, I’d have been…

Anything creative. I wanted to be an artist at one point or an architect but I wanted to work right away instead of doing a seven-year course. I like working with people and expressing myself.

What’s the best piece of career advice you’ve been given?

Be kind is the only great piece of advice – people have a vision that a successful businessman is ruthless and cutthroat but if you want to be successful and happy you should be good to your staff.

About Broughton

Broughton lies on the edge of the New Town around one mile from the city centre and borders Bellevue and Canonmills. The area is close to a variety of green spaces from Calton Hill, which has fantastic views over the city, to the Royal Botanic Gardens and Inverleith Park. Broughton enjoys all the benefits of city centre living with a wide variety of local shops, bistros and restaurants in the New Town and Stockbridge.

ESPC magazine

This article appeared in the April 2023 issue of the ESPC magazine. Find out more about the ESPC magazine and read the latest issue online.