Salcombe Restaurant Guide

This “tiny restaurant executing delicious fish” is “a real gem” and “hugely successful in expensive Salcombe” – no wonder it’s “always fully booked”. Experienced owners Nick & Nikki Horne took over from Rob & Anna Johnstone two years ago and it has been a seamless transition – they are “friendly, professional, not stuffy and know what they are doing”. The menu is dominated by their own hand-picked local crab, but there’s also “scallops to die for”.

“A lovely spot to eat fantastic fresh Devon seafood, simply served and tasty every time” – this informal operation was originally an oyster farm where guests picnicked beside the Avon estuary. These days there’s a bar, but it’s still pretty basic.

Mitch Tonks’s Mediterranean-inspired harbourside HQ “always hits the spot” and is run “with charm and polish” – “the anchoiade and focaccia alone is worth a trip from the northern Highlands!”.

“A menu with a huge range of fish might suggest a serious fish place” but the original Rockfish (opened in 2010) overlooking the River Dart “feels more like a fish ’n’ chip restaurant with less-than-smart tables, chips with everything and the usual few leaves for salad. People seem mostly to eat the fried food. That said, you could have whitebait, a huge crab at a huge price and juicy gurnard not fried. Service is fast and cheerful”.

“Worth a detour. Have been coming since they opened under new ownership in 2019 and it’s only grown in strength despite the pandemic. Absolute gem!” – limited but very enthusiastic feedback on this 14-bedroom hotel on the South West Coast path, with commanding views of the sea and looking over Hope Cove beach (which is yards away). The food is brasserie-style fare (sirloin, red mullet, confit duck…) and good value.