Devon pubs for foodies: our Top 10

14th October 2014

Categories: Visitor News

Here in Devon we’ve got great food, we’ve got great pubs – and we’ve got great foodie pubs! If you like to enjoy restaurant standard food, made of excellent local produce, served in hearty portions and in a relaxed atmosphere, then this one’s for you – check out our collection of 10 top Devon pubs for foodies.

• More about Devon food and eating out and Devon pubs

The Pig on the Hill, near Westward Ho!
Voted Best Newcomer at the 2014 Great British Pub Awards, The Pig on the Hill (pictured above) has recently been taken over, shaken up, and is now seen as one of the best foodie pubs in Devon. With a rustic but contemporary decor and great outdoor area (kids love the pigs and chickens) it certainly looks the part, and happily the food measures up too. The chef has trained under Marcus Wareing and Gordan Ramsey, and so produces imaginative but hearty dishes such as Heal Farm pork tenderloin wrapped in serrano ham, served with apple marmalade, scratchings and twice cooked chips – with most dishes in at under £15.

The Jack in the Green, Rockbear
This one is more than a foodie pub – it’s a destination dining foodie pub and well worth making a special trip for. Talented head chef Matthew Mason (right) is well known around Devon’s food festivals and events for his chef’s demos, and was one of the earlier proponents in Devon of joys of sourcing and serving local produce. As you’d expect then, the Jack’s menu is full of lovely local stuff – in fact, its restaurant has a ‘Totally Devon’ menu, with dishes such as spiced Devon fish stew with tapenade, roast crown of wood pigeon with pithivier of leg and Jerusalem artichoke puree, and goats cheese mousse with toasted quinoa and raspberries, and there’s a bar menu with more simple dishes around the £13 mark too. More

The Sea Trout Inn, Staverton
This relaxed, friendly 15th century inn is not only popular with Devon’s foodie crowd, but its pet-lovers too – owners are actively encouraged to bring their dogs when they visit here. The Sea Trout serves a mixture of restaurant-style meals (such as seafood risotto with squid, scallops, tiger prawns and clams, topped with rocket) and pub classics (try lambs liver, smoked bacon, mash potato, spinach and onion rings), and as you’d hope, most of the ingredients are sourced from South Devon farms and fisheries. Most mains are between £10-£15.

The Cricket Inn, Beesands
Just metres from the beach and waters of beautiful Start Bay, The Cricket Inn serves amazing crab, lobster and scallops that’s been caught and landed on its doorstep, as well as locally reared beef and lamb and locally grown vegetables alongside, for around £15-20 a main course. Best dish? It’s got to be the pan seared diver caught scallops with saffron risotto – or the whole Start Bay lobster – or the West Country sirloin …This one’s also a real locals’ favourite, partly because they’re well looked after, with some tables reserved just for drinkers – but new faces are greeted just as warmly, and it’s dog friendly too. More

The Arundell Arms, Lifton
A former 18th century coaching inn, technically this is a hotel – but with flagstone floors, open fires and the friendly Courthouse Bar that you can eat excellent food in, it certainly ticks all the foodie pub boxes for us. It does have a more formal two AA rosette restaurant as well, but the bar menu is put together by the same head chef (Steven Pidgeon, a Master Chef of Great Britain), so you can expect hearty pies, excellent Sunday roasts and very good sandwiches, all made to an equally high standard. More

The Lamb Inn, Sandford
Another great award-winning Devon pub – this time a highly commended from South West Tourism in the Best Pub category. The Lamb is a cosy 16th century former coaching house with open fires, low ceilings and comfy sofas – and a cinema in a function room (as you might expect!). Its slight quirkiness and thoughtful touches makes it stand out, but its totally serious on the food front; most dishes are restaurant-style (think roasted rainbow trout with watercress veloute and chargrilled new potatoes) though there are steaks and simpler dishes too, again for around the £10-£15 mark.

The Grove Inn, Kings Nympton
It’s no surprise that The Grove Inn is in the Good Food Guide. Tiny though this pretty thatched inn is, its seats are filled most nights by locals and visitors making the journey into deep Devon countryside for its excellent food and drink. Run by a husband and wife team, pride and care is poured into everything they do, and the menu manages to be traditional yet unexpected at the same time. Chef Deborah serves a Devonshire suet slice (like a cross between a dumpling and a Yorkshire pudding – and made with clotted cream!) with her Sunday roasts, and a typical evening meal might be Devon chicken breast stuffed with thyme, Devon Blue cheese and parma ham – for just £11. Go there if you can, but do check ahead for availability. 

The Drum Inn, Torquay
Located in the very pretty thatched village of Cockington, you’d expect The Drum Inn country pub and restaurant is full of character – and you wouldn’t be disappointed. But it’s more than just a pretty place. Like lots of Devon’s best foodie pubs, it has that nice mix of pub classics done well and more inventive restaurant-style meals – plus dishes like the wild boar and chorizo burger, which fall somewhere in-between – plus a decent selection of local beer, cider and wine.

The Treasury Lounge, Plymouth
A slightly different offering this one – more of a contemporary city bar than a pub, but still a good place to get great food in a relaxed atmosphere. The menu is modern and imaginative, with lots and lots of different options: from breakfast to light dishes to full three courses, plus a great tapas-style grazing menu of snacks. You could start the day with eggs benedict, move to grilled figs with goats cheese, then to chargrilled soy salmon, and nibble on edamame beans along the way … and need never move. Bliss!