SOUTH WEST
1. The Croust House - Hidden in a twist of lush lanes on the Lizard
Peninsula, this on-farm café is the home of Roskilly's superb Cornish ices.
The 75 flavours served in the ice-cream parlour change regularly and can
include orange mascarpone, gooseberry and clotted cream fudge. Evening
barbecues with music are held during the summer holidays and you can see the
Jersey herd being milked 4.30-5.30pm daily -Tregellast Barton, St Keverne,
Cornwall (01326 280479; www.roskillys.co.uk
)
2. Hotel Tresanton - Breakfast to dinner is served on Tresanton's
elegant terrace, with stunning views across Falmouth Bay. Seafood and
Cornish cream teas are popular, along with weekend barbecues from July. A
good way to sample Olga Polizzi's hotel chic as a non-resident - 27 Lower
Castle Road, St Mawes, Cornwall (01326 270055; www.tresanton.com)
3. Porthminster Beach Cafe - This beachside cafe with an outside
terrace is in a wonderful position overlooking Porthminster beach in St
Ives. Fresh fish, sustainably-caught if possible, is served for a long lunch
(12-4pm) or dinner - Porthminster Beach, St Ives, Cornwall (01736 795352; www.porthminstercafe.co.uk)
Readers choice: The Winking Prawn, North Sands, Salcombe, Devon (01548
842326; www.winkingprawn.co.uk).
A fabulous seafood restaurant right on the beach. There are buckets and
spades and dressing-up boxes, and barbecues on fine nights. Great for a
relaxed holiday meal. Catol Bagni
4. Riverford Field Kitchen - The lunches and suppers served at this
innovative field kitchen are made from what is best on the organic farm that
day. You have to book for the food and daily farm walks, but it can be done
on the same day before 10am. The front of the building opens up to the
countryside beyond and there are picnic tables outside - Wash Barn,
Buckfastleigh, Devon (01803 762074; www.riverford.co.uk)
5. Oyster Shack - Open from breakfast onwards, this relaxed, popular
restaurant is a great place to kick back and indulge in a long seafood
feast, with the added bonus that you can bring your own wine at lunchtime. A
new branch has just opened near the beach at Salcombe (no BYO) - Milburn
Orchard Farm, Stakes Hill, Bigbury, Devon (01548 810876), Hannaford's
Landing, 10-13 Island Street, Salcombe, Devon (01548 843596; www.oystershack.co.uk)
6. Square & Compass - One of the loveliest locals in Britain, the
Square & Compass has sculptures and chickens outside, good beer, simple
food and a small fossil museum. A great place for a stop-off on a Dorset
coastal walk - Worth Matravers, near Swanage, Dorset (01929 439229)
7. The Crab House Café - A wooden shack with hats on hand to keep
off the sun and views overlooking Chesil beach, this is one of those
satisfying places to eat by the sea. Open Wednesday-Sunday, 12-3pm and
6-9pm, and Mondays in high season. You can buy crabs and their own farmed
oysters to take away - Ferry Bridge, Portland Road, Weymouth, Dorset (01305
788867)
8. Bank House Café - Rambling roses and a tumbling mill steam are
part of a secret garden with dining tables at the Bank House Café, a
Georgian house in a medieval town at the foot of the Mendips. Food is served
all day, with dinner served on Thursday, Friday and Saturday - The Square,
Axbridge, Somerset (01934 733004; www.bankhousecafe.co.uk)
9. The Wheatsheaf - New owners are making the most of serving good food
in this idyllic pub garden in the beautiful countryside south of Bath. Three
terraces overlook the valley below and provide plenty of space for weekend
barbecues, boules, and boisterous children. More elaborate meals are served
on the top terrace, and there's also a simpler garden menu - Combe Hay,
Somerset (01225 833504; www.wheatsheafcombehay.com)
10. Roger Wilkins' Cider Shed - "Lounge Bar", it says in
painted white letters above the cow shed. Roger Wilkins' farm is the perfect
place to sample this newly fashionable drink in the heart of cider country.
Expect a number of lounging bodies and snoozy smiles. Open Monday-Saturday
10am-8pm; Sunday 10am-1pm. Off-sales available - Land's End Farm, Mudgley,
Wedmore, Somerset (01934 712385)
Apologies - the Walpole Arms has now rightfully been restored to East Anglia
Times Online, London,
Northern Ireland appears to have been overlooked. Why so?
Sharon, Belfast, N Ireland, UK
So we've got the South West, South East, London (obviously in an undefined compass location all of its own), East Anglia (which seems to no longer be in the South East) AND Middle England (incidentally nowhere near the middle, that would be a few miles out of Birmingham). Then we have the North. So from Birmingham and Coventry in the midlands, through Cheshire, Liverpool, Manchester and Lancashire in the North West (the greatest population concentration outside London), over to Leeds, Sheffield, York and Newcastle in the North East, and up to Cumbria and Northumberland up in the true North, all has it's own single category?! As for Scotland and Wales, well obviously they are so small there's no point in even splitting them into Norths and Souths. Shocking journalism.
David Roper, Ormskirk, The North
The Walpole Arms is a wonderful place to eat but why have you put it in the Middle England section - It is very much in East Anglia.
David Cooper, Norwich, Norfolk
Delighted to see The Walpole Arms at Itteringham in your list, but somewahat surprised to find North Norfolk in Middle England!
Richard Bryan, Oulton, Norfolk
and the east midlands?Or any Midlands,come to that?We would love to pop to Sennen every day but sadly a lot of us are land locked-but still not short of placers that would make this (very lazy) list!!
tony, leicester, leics
Oh be quiet and be grateful you don't live in Scotland/Wales neither of which appear to have a north, south, east, west or anything! Just one big village up here. I can walk to them all from my wee croft on the harbour(cause thats where we all live).
McTaddyoosh, Edinburgh , Scotland
MIDDLE ENGLAND
Shepherds Ices
Since when has Hay-on-Wye, Powys been in Middle England?
don, Y Gelli, Cymru
If you live in Sheffield are you not meant to read the Times? Nearest eateries you feature are usually outside of 100 mile radius. We have so much outdoors there must be something good to eat. Peak District, Yorkshire Moors. East Coast.
rebecca pierce, Sheffield AKA another planet, SOUTH YORKSHIRE
Exactly Peter. What indeed happened to the NW?
M A Love, Tarporley, UK
And what happened to the North West????
Peter Cobrin, Chester,
Another great place in the South West is The Vineyard Cafe at Sharpham Vineyard nr Totnes, this is real Al Freso eating with magnificent views of the River Dart, combine a walk through the vines and along the river with a delicious lunch cooked by Rosie Weston and her team, all ingredients are sourced locally and the dishes range from home made soups and pates, fresh lobster, smoked fish and local cheese platters, chargrilled vegetable bruschetta plus other specials as available, the home made puddings are divine especially the chocolat brownies, and this can be enjoyed with a glass of Sharpham white, red or rose. Contact Rosie on 01803 732178 (cafe open May -Sept 7 days a week 10am-5pm)
jo hoar, Beaminster, Dorset