Scotch was poured, laughs were shared, melodies were sung and the haggis was blessed as the Martha’s Vineyard Scottish Society celebrated Burns Nicht at the Portuguese American Club in Oak Bluffs Saturday night.

This year marked the 32nd year the Scottish Society has celebrated the birthday of Scottish poet Robert Burns, with this year’s celebration falling on his 261st birthday.

Members of the Scottish Society gathered before dinner for drinks and conversation as they purchased raffle tickets for a table full of goodies with the proceeds going to the Scottish Society’s scholarship fund for Island graduates heading off to college. Items for this year’s raffle included wool kilts, vests and cardigan sweaters, a Saint Andrew’s Cross blanket, seasons one through four of Outlander, along with bottles of wine and scotch.

Once everyone was seated, Chris Scott welcomed the crowd with the story of Bad MacTavish, an off-color poem which Mr. Scott said Robert Burns enjoyed collecting.

After the poem, the crowd erupted in laughter as Mr. Scott invited “all men in kilts” to join him by the kitchen for the procession of the haggis. Fifteen gentlemen marched single file behind the haggis, held aloft by chef Thomas Engley, as the honorary Scottish dish made its way to the podium for the ‘Ode Tae a Haggis.’

The Scottish gentlemen in all their kilted splendor. — Aaron Wilson

Mr. Engley said this was his second time cooking a haggis, which according to him is no easy task. “If I was working with dynamite, I’d be fine. If haggis goes bad, it goes bad big,” the chef said with a laugh.

Nevertheless, Mr. Engley’s haggis was a smashing success. David Rhoderick delivered an animated ode, complete with a sequence where he raised a knife above his head and came down on the haggis, slicing it open as steam billowed out. Mr. Rodrick pulled the haggis apart and belched in satisfaction.

The Scottish Society Singers sang a grace written by Robert Burns and then dinner was served and plates overflowed with prime rib, highland chicken, baked finnan haddie, chappit tatties, bashed neeps, cock-a-leekie soup, vegetarian pie and of course haggis.

With stomachs full, the evening concluded with toasts, songs, poems and an auction to benefit the Scottish Society’s scholarship fund.