Guildford, British, Modern Restaurant Guide

A “great view of the beach” (particularly from the deck) and across the bay to Godrevy Lighthouse in the distance has long been the major draw to this seaside café; while the food isn’t quite what it once was (breakfast is take-away only these days), it does its job, with dishes like crab linguine and fish ‘n’ chips playing up the local catch. PS – if you’re making a day of it, they also rent out 36 brightly coloured beachside ‘pods’ or shacks, allowing you to store your beach kit and refuel at this restaurant without the hassle of carting your valuables with you.

“The ‘one to beat’ in the surrounding area, despite increasing competition” – this harbourside restaurant with rooms is “a place for a quite special dinner, where the imaginative menus and ingredients continue to reflect Jude Kereama‘s heritage” (a mixture of New Zealand and Asian backgrounds). “The tasting menus remain very good value at a time when such menus are becoming all but prohibitively priced elsewhere”.

In a bracing coastal setting near the Minack theatre, this mustard-yellow dining pub-with-rooms has long been a well-known destination – much like its elder sibling the Felin Fach Griffin, near Hay-on-Wye; and The Old Coastguard, across the moor in Mousehole. The “lovely” bar is generally preferred to the main restaurant, but better yet eat outside “and you can look across the fields and breathe in the sea air” (there’s also a new outside bar, The Cow Shed, open Friday and Saturday from noon until sundown, and serving “great beer” from the Verdant and St Ives breweries).

“One to return to for its comfort and lovely views (even in winter)” of St Michael’s Mount and the Lizard – this Cornish seaside hotel with its “buzzy” bar/café is from the same stable as the not-far-distant Gurnard’s Head and the well-known Felin Fach Griffin in Wales. It wins praise for “capable gastropub-quality cooking” and its “buzzy style”. Top Tip – “great Sunday lunch”.