RESTAURANTS
EFFINGS
74 Queen Street, Exeter (01392 211888; www.effings.co.uk)
Elegant food hall with a mezzanine restaurant that combines fresh Devon
produce with artisan foods from Southern Europe. Menu includes full West
Country breakfast, kedgeree, rare roast Devon beef in a mustard coat and
local “hot smoked” salmon from Mike’s Smokehouse in Loddiswell.
THE GREENHOUSE
6 High Street, St Keverne, Helston, Cornwall (01326 280800; www.thegreenhouse-stkeverne.co.uk)
Small village restaurant serving modern rustic cooking. Fish on the specials
board is never farmed, game is on offer in season and home-made bread and
ice-creams, and all drinks are organic.
THE GURNARD’S HEAD
St Ives, Cornwall (01736 796928; www.gurnardshead.co.uk)
This dining pub near Zennor is a new venture in Cornwall from the owners of
the excellent Felin Fach Griffin in Powys. The Gurnard's has already
garnered the Cornish Newcomer of the Year from the 2007 Which? Good Food
Guide. Roast turbot, with broad beans, pea shoots and beurre blanc is
typical seasonal fare, served with smashing Atlantic views.
FIFTEEN CORNWALL
Watergate Bay, Cornwall (01637 861000; www.fifteencornwall.co.uk)
Menus change daily and are sourced from a who’s who list of Cornish producers
including fresh fish from Matt Stevens in St Ives and Belted Galloway beef
from the Kittow Brothers at Par. As well as a top-notch cooked breakfast,
sample plates include ravioli of Cornish ricotta and spinach with a sage
butter sauce, and a Cornish cheese selection.
THE HARROW
Little Bedwyn, Marlborough, Wiltshire (01672 870871; www.theharrowatlittlebedwyn.co.uk)
The owners Roger and Sue Jones take food and wine seriously and source
ingredients from Britain’s best larders. Along with a corking wine list they
serve wild Salmon from Scotland, diver-caught shellfish and Cornish
lobsters, caramelised confit of Gloucester Old Spot, alongside hand-grown
herbs and salads and local wild mushrooms and truffles in the autumn.
THE JACK IN THE GREEN
Rockbeare, Exeter, Devon (01404 822240; www.jackinthegreen.uk.com)
Having spent two and a half years with Shaun Hill at Gidleigh Park, head chef
Matthew Mason knows the value of using only superlative local produce - most
of it is grown or reared from well within a 25-mile radius of the kitchen.
The organic Fishleigh Estate supplies exceptional Red Devon Beef, Pole
Dorset Lamb, hung for between 7-10 days and their distinctive 'Happy Hogs'
Pork (a Large White & Berkshire X). Navarin of Exmoor Venison Loin with
Roasted Root Vegetables and Roast Rib Eye of Ruby Red Beef and Yorkshire
Pudding are two mains on the menu.
THE LANGTON ARMS
Tarrant Monkton, Blandford, Dorset (01258 830225; www.thelangtonarms.co.uk)
Good-value, Gold award-winning pub (Taste of the West Awards 2006) that uses
100 per cent Dorset meat and sources all its beef from the Tarrant Valley
itself. Staff are knowledgeable about the seasonal menu as are the owners
who also run a beef and dairy farm.
THE LOOKOUT
Durlston Country Park, Swanage, Dorset (01929 426473; www.durlston.co.uk)
A tearoom with a seaview that sources almost all of its ingredients locally
including Purbeck ice cream, Dorset Blue Vinney cheese and New Forest water,
and offers home-cooked daily specials, and occasional speciality themed food
evenings (sustainable seafood and a medieval banquet, for example).
THE MERRY HARRIERS
Forches Corner, Clayhidon, Devon (01823 421270; www.merryharriers.co.uk)
About 80 per cent of ingredients are sourced within a 20-mile radius of this
free house set in the Blackdown Hills. The menu features a local mixed
grill, a game casserole and crepes with West Country berries.
PORTHMINSTER BEACH CAFÉ
St Ives (01736 795352; www.porthminstercafe.co.uk)
Creative dishes in seaside setting. Sustainable fishing methods. Seasonal
local produce dictates the menu.
TRUFFFLES
Bruton, Somerset (01749 812255; www.trufflesbruton.co.uk)
Owners Mark and Deborah Chambers offer local liqueurs and wine as well as
Dorset steak, vegetables from Somerset, Wiltshire lamb and a popular West
Country cheese board. A “grill menu” uses carefully-reared British meats,
supplied by local farmers, cooked simply to bring out the best of their
flavours.
VANILLA POD CAFE
4 Gosport Street, Lymington, SO41 9BE
(01590 673828; www.vanillapodcafe.com)
Clean, light, modern-looking cafe which serves up hearty breakfasts and tasty
lunches. Breakfasts cater for the health conscious (fresh fruit, organic
natural yoghurt, toasted muesli or oat, pear and raspberry loaf) and the
hungry (cooked breakfast with bacon, local sausages, beans, tomatoes,
portobello mushroom, free-range eggs). Food is sourced as locally as
possible, meat comes from nearby Sway and fish from Christchurch. Owners
Gary and Sarah both worked in the wine trade for several years, so there is
also an extensive wine list available by the glass.
THE VENUS CAFE
Blackpool Sands near Dartmouth, East Portlemouth near Salcombe and
Bigbury-on-Sea, Devon (01803 833338; www.venuscompany.co.uk)
A gold award-winner at the 2006 Taste of the West Awards, Venus’ three cafes
are fully committed to local sourcing, sustainability and green tourism.
Much of the food and drink heralds from Cornwall and the South Hams and
makes fantastic beach picnic fare. Try local organic beef and lamb burgers,
gluten-free pies, salmon bites, vegetarian tapas, and local, organic ice
cream with cracking sea views.
MEAT
BROWN COW ORGANICS
Perridge Farm, Shepton Mallet, Somerset (01749 890298; www.browncoworganics.co.uk)
Judith and Clive Freane cut their meat and deliver on the same day, locally
and to some Home Counties and London postcodes. Praise has been heaped on
their beef, available in cuts ranging from whole fillet to a 1kg strip loin.
They also produce bresaola, and have chickens, home-cured gammon, pork,
interesting sausages and, at Christmas time, turkeys.
DENHAY FARM
Broadoak, Bridport, Dorset (01308 458963; www.denhay.co.uk)
Amanda and George Streatfeild dry-cure hams and bacon. They also do the cure
for Duchy Originals and are renowned for their West Country Cheddar made
with milk from their five Friesian Holstein herds.
EVERSFIELD ORGANIC
Okehampton, Devon (0845 603 8004; www.eversfieldorganic.co.uk)
Mark Bury sold his computer company to take on the 850-acre estate, producing,
with the the help of other local farms, organic Aberdeen Angus beef, lamb,
pork and chicken, plus wild venison and game birds from the woods. All the
meat is traditionally butchered and hung on the estate, and there are
Christmas meat hampers and even student meat boxes, too.
HEAL FARM
Umberleigh, Devon (01769 574341; www.healfarm.co.uk)
Anne Petch and her daughter Rachel have built up a vast operation, which
offers hams, pork, Devon Red Ruby beef and game birds, sausages, stuffings,
stocks and hand-raised pies, pâtés and ready-made dishes.
HERITAGE PRIME, SHEDBUSH FARM
Bridport, Dorset (01297 489304; www.heritageprime.co.uk)
Ian and Denise Bell’s biodynamic beef is raised slowly for up to 42 months,
then hung for a minimum of four weeks. They also raise Tamworth pork and
Portland lamb. The price reflects the work that goes into producing such
great meat; and there are minimum orders of quarter pig, or one-eighth of a
cow, so it’s an idea to share with friends.
HIGHER HACKNELL FARM
Umberleigh, Devon (01769 560909; www.higherhacknell.co.uk)
Winners of this year’s Producer of the Year gold award at the Soil
Association’s Organic Food Awards, Tim and Jo Budden have been farming
organically since 1988, and produce South Devon beef, Lleyn and LleynxTexel
lamb, pork, chickens and hand-made sausages, kebabs and burgers on their
mixed farm complete with cider orchard (where the chickens roam).
HIGHER FINGLE FARM
Exeter (01647 281281;
www.exmoor-organic.co.uk)
Rona and Nevil Amiss of Exmoor Organic have moved from the wilds of Exmoor to
a former dairy farm on the edge of Dartmoor National Park, where they now
have their own abattoir and cutting room and continue to farm geese, ducks,
turkey, chickens (and pigs) to Soil Association standards. The poultry eat
corn that gives the fat its golden colour. The Amiss’s also farm geese for
Duchy Originals.
PIPERS FARM
Cullompton, Devon (01392 881380; www.pipersfarm.com)
Peter and Henrietta Greig support a community of local family farms,
producing wonderfully flavourful meat of the highest quality. You can order
Red Ruby beef, pork, chicken, lamb, venison, geese, hams and Bronze turkeys
as well as sausages and all-meat burgers made only with herbs and spices,
and ready-to-go casseroles made in the farmhouse kitchens. Or visit their
immaculate shop in Exeter’s foodie haven on Magdalen Road shopping parade
(01392 274504).
THE RIVERFORD MEAT BOX
Totnes, Devon (0845 603 6091; www.riverfordmeatbox.co.uk)
Offers organic cuts of roasting beef, diced lamb, beef burgers and country
paté, as well as an optional ready-prepared meal such as pheasant with
spiced oranges and cheeseboard. Boxes cost between £44-75; delivery is £5.
THE WELL HUNG MEAT COMPANY
Buckfastleigh, Devon (0845 230 3131; www.wellhungmeat.com)
As well as individual cuts, their famous sausages are made with all pork, and
no fillers, such as rusk. Choose either the butch, garlicky, Toulouse-style,
or the gentler Breakfast variety for eating on its own, and the newest pork
and apple, made with 25 per cent organic apple.
FISH
FISHWORKS
(020-7355 0366; www.fishworks.co.uk)
Fed up that he did not have a decent fishmonger near by, Mitchell Tonks, a
former accountant and fish lover, packed in his job to open FishWorks, in
Bath, in 1995. Fishworks has gone from strength to strength and now there
are branches in Bristol, Christchurch in Dorset, and dotted around London,
together with a seafood bar in the Foodmarket at Harvey Nichols. The
FishWorks philosophy is that fish should be fun and simply cooked, and, at
each location, the staff move between the shop, café and kitchen, so the
person selling the fish is also a cook and can talk you through what to do
with it. If you cannot get to a FishWorks shop, you can order online and
have fish delivered.
BROWN AND FORREST
Somerset, (01458 250875; www.smokedeel.co.uk)
Michael Brown began catching eels in the late Seventies and learnt the skills
of smoking in Germany. His family business is noted for its eel, which is
hot-smoked over beech and apple, and smoked fish, ranging from haddock and
herring to salmon from Loch Duart, and Devon trout. “This is classic slow
food, smoked in small batches, which we taste constantly,” says Brown. While
stocks of European eels in general have plummeted, all Brown’s fish come
from the rivers Test and Stour.
FOWEY FISH
Fowey, Cornwall (01726 832422; www.seafoodsdirect.co.uk)
Graham and Sue Giles set up Fowey Fish in 1983 and the business is now run by
their daughter Karen. Ninety per cent of the fish comes from local boats,
including Karen’s brother Andy’s boat, and from the fish market at Looe.
“Sometimes a particular fish isn’t plentiful, or the weather is too bad for
the boats to go out, so it’s best to keep an open mind about alternatives,”
says Karen. “We’ll phone our mail-order customers and say, ‘No turbot today,
but how about some brill or John Dory?’ ” The company also sells local
smoked fish from Tregida Smokehouse, in Launceston, it specialises in wine,
and offers a range of local deli produce.
MATTHEW STEVENS & SON
St Ives, Cornwall (01736 799392; www.matthewstevensandson.co.uk)
A family business that has expanded to employ 35 staff handling a wide
selection of fresh fish landed at West Country ports, including Newlyn and
St Ives. It also supplies smoked fish and makes its own fish pies and
fishcakes. On-line ordering is available.
THE PILCHARD WORKS
Newlyn, Cornwall (01736 332112; www.pilchardworks.co.uk)
Specialises in Cornish sardines and pilchards and also salts and presses
pilchards and sardines in the old-fashioned way. Also cans its own pilchards
in olive or sunflower oil.
QUAYSIDE FISH
Porthleven, Cornwall (01326 562008; www.quaysidefish.co.uk)
John Strike sells fresh Cornish fish landed by local boats from his shop and
by mail order. Depending on the season, choose from whole, dressed crab,
lobster, crawfish, oysters, mussels or mackerel. He also smokes his own
haddock, kippers, prawns, salmon and trout.
WING OF ST MAWES
St Columb, Cornwall (01726 861666; www.wingofstmawes.co.uk)
With 24 years’ experience of supplying fish to the catering trade, Wing of
Mawes is used to delivering around the country. It buys its fish each
morning from markets at Newlyn, Looe and Brixham, from small boats if
possible.The fish is prepared and sent out the same day, by overnight
courier. The choice ranges from bass to turbot, mackerel, shellfish and fish
smoked in the company’s own kilns.
FRUIT & VEG
BROWN COW ORGANICS
Perridge Farm, Shepton Mallet, Somerset (01749 890298; www.browncoworganics.
co.uk)
As well as meat, Brown Cow sends out organic vegetables and fruit, grown on
its own and local farms, topped up with fair-trade produce. You can order
boxes with their choice of produce, or individual fruit and veg.
THE DORSET BLUEBERRY COMPANY
(01202 891426; www.dorset-blueberry.com)
Jennifer Trehane’s family has been growing blueberries since 1959 and it is
constantly experimenting with new varieties. You can buy its produce, some
of which is organic, in season at M&S, farmers’ markets, shops
throughout Hampshire and Borough Market in London. Jams, juices, sauces and
pies are available online and you can also buy bushes to grow.
JEKKA’S HERB FARM
Alveston, Bristol (01454 418878;
www.jekkasherbfarm.com)
Jekka McVicar grows hundreds of varieties of herbs on her organic farm near
Bristol. Pots of herbs are available mail order, or you can buy seeds.
ROD AND BENS, BICKHAM FARM
Exeter, Devon (01392 833833; www.rodandbens.com)
Friends Rod Hall and Ben Moseley met at agricultural college and teamed up to
launch a box scheme based at Bickham Farm. They supply their own vegetables,
salads herbs and fruit, calling in additional produce from other local
organic farms when necessary.
MILK
MANOR FARM
Dorchester, Dorset (01300 341415; www.manor-farm-organic.co.uk)
High-quality milk and cream from four Dorset farms. Pam and Will Best, the
owners, believe that milk should be pure so refuse to homogenise it.
RIVERFORD ORGANICS
Buckfastleigh, Devon (0845 6002311; www.riverford.co.uk)
Free delivery of organic milk from a Devon farm with a regular box. A 1-litre
carton costs 89p.
CHEESE
DENHAY FARM
Broadoak, nr Bridport, Dorset (01308 458963; www.denhay.co.uk)
Farmhouse cheddar from five Friesian Holstein herds selected for the high-
protein quality of their milk.
THE FINE CHEESE CO
Bath (01225 448748; www.finecheese.co.uk)
Flies the flag for local Somerset produce and traditional production
techniques.
WOODBRIDGE FARM
Stock Gaylard, Dorset (01666 502865; www.houseofcheese.co.uk)
Mike Davies has revived the old recipe for Dorset Blue Vinney, made with milk
from his Friesians.
FARMERS’ MARKETS
BATH FARMERS’ MARKET
Green Park Station First and third Sat of the month, 9am-2pm. (www.bathfarmersmarket.co.uk)
Bath was where it all began for farmers’ markets in the UK. Now find Somerset
ducks, pâtés and pies, fish and game from the Wiltshire Smokehouse,
free-range hen, duck and goose eggs, goat’s custard and ice-cream, wine
vinegar and plum juice, yoghurt, cheesecakes and preserve, amid a wealth of
local produce.
BRIDPORT FARMERS’ MARKET
Arts Centre, South Street Second Sat of the month, 9am-1pm. (01258 454510)
Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall pilots new River Cottage products here and may be
spotted browsing among the stalls of Blue Vinney and other West Country
cheeses, hand-made crisps, muesli, home-baked cakes and quiches, pâtés and
terrines, smoked fish, jams and chutneys, local cider and ale.
BRISTOL FARMERS’ MARKET
Corn Street Wed 9.30am-2.30pm, and the Slow Food Market, Corn Street, the
first Sun of the month, 10am-3pm. (0117 9224014; www.visitbristol.co.uk)
Recent winner of a Soil Association award, the market offers the usual staples
of wet fish and shellfish, buffalo and other cheeses, fruit and veg,
hand-made bread, honeys, apple juice and plants and herbs, but with strong
emphasis on local, organic and free range. Visit the Slow Food market for
fresh fish and local sausages for Sunday lunch, to be washed down with local
beer, cider or perry (an alcoholic pear drink). Or watch one of the regular
cookery demos.
More
Real Food listings
Where can one find Wood Pigeon since I found a delightful recipe in the Style magazine for wood pigeon and dandelion salad. My Butcher insists that Wood Pigeon aren't available until mid June, and I really don't think I can wait that long
Nicola Bowden-Jones, Bristol,
only one comment ... well more of a question ... why no listings for the south of england? hampshire, sussex, surrey and kent.
Tim, bournemouth,