Local Restaurants

If like my wife and I, you like eating out, here are a selection of local restaurants at which we have eaten (at great cost to my wallet and waistline) and are happy to recommend.

Instow (1mile)
A small village where the rivers Taw and Torridge meet and go out to sea. A 2 minute drive or you can walk via the Tarka Trail (35 minutes) and if you have too much too eat or drink (or both) can catch the bus back which runs every 30 minutes until 11.10pm .

Boathouse www.instow.net/boathouse/boathouse.htm
Tel. 01271 861292
Av. 3 course meal £20.00, bottle of wine from £10.00.
Calls it's self a seafood restaurant but caters for everyone. Excellent food and value for money and if you are lucky, a lovely view over the estuary.
Need to book well in advance for the restaurant but no reservations are taken for the bar area, which some people say has a better atmosphere, can have to wait up to 45 minutes for a table when busy.

Instow Arms www.theinstowarms.com
Tel. 01271 860608
A av. 3 course meal £20.00 house wine £12.50.
This is a new pub in Instow which opened at the end of 2010. It has a good, varied menu with daily specials.
The two meals we have had so far have been very nice but they do need to improve their service but I'm sure this will happen as time goes on. Dog friendly (downstairs)

Wayfarer Inn
Tel. 01271 860342 Av. 3 course meal £20.00, bottle of wine from £9.75.
Lovely old pub feel to it with real fires in winter, great selection, good food and value for money. Dog friendly. Booking in advance recommended for weekends.

Westleigh

Westleigh Inn (3 miles to west, 5 minute drive.) www.thewestleighinn.co.uk
Tel. 01271 860867
Av. 3 course meal under £20.00 bottle of wine £12.50
Old fashion sort of pub, which serves great food and is dog friendly, large beer garden with views of the river Torridge.
Recommend booking well in advance for weekends.

Fremington
A small village 1 mile to the east of Lower Yelland , 30 minute walk, 2 minutes in the car or bus (every 10 minutes during the day and 30 minutes in the evening until 23.10.)

Han Court www.hancourt.co.uk
Tel. 01271 373865
Set menu from £17.50, bottle of wine from £12.95
Excellent Chinese restaurant, what more can I say. Booking in advance recommended.

Graylings ( take away only)
Fish & Chips , lovely fish and chips, large menu and all cooked to order.

Barnstaple

Claimed to be the Oldest Royal charted Borough in England is now the biggest town in North Devon, there are too many restaurants to name them all, but here are a few of our favourites. 4.5miles to the east of the farm, 10 minutes by car, 15 minutes by bus (every 10 minutes during the day and 30 minutes in the evening until 23.00.)

Lilico's www.barnstapleonline.co.uk/lillcos.html
Tel.01271 372933
A tapas bar, situated on the main square, which serves great Mediterranean style food, which is sourced locally where possible and is well priced especially the early evening deal (5.30pm-6.30pm) any 6 dishes and a bottle of house red or white wine for £30.00

Zena's www.zenasrestaurant.com
Tel.01271 378844
Av. 3 course meal £25.00, wine from £10.95.
Situated in the centre of town, serves a fusion of European and Caribbean cuisine made with fresh ingredients, in lovely surroundings. Very popular at lunchtime and due to popular demand now open Thursday, Friday and Saturday evenings.

Honeymoon
Tel. 01271 329800
Av. 3 course £18.00 wine from £10.00 bottle.
We think it is one of the best Chinese restaurants in Barnstaple , always good food at a reasonable price.

Fullam www.fullamrestaurant.com
Tel. 01271 328882
Av. 4 course £20.00 house wine £12.70
Another excellent Chinese restaurant. It has a large selection of dishes with greater variations than the usual “ run of the mill” Chinese that every one is familiar with.

The Old Bus Station
Tel.01271 372975
Av. 3 course meal £16.00, wine from £10.25 bottle.
Beautiful Italian food cooked with fresh local ingredients, the best pizzas in Barnstaple by a long way, advance booking recommended. Live music nights. Dog friendly.

Bideford. www.bidefordtown.co.uk/

4.5 miles west of the farm, 10 minutes by car, 15 minutes by bus (every 10 minutes during the day and 30 minutes in the evening until 23.00.)

Nestling alongside the River Torridge, Bideford is a market town and a port, with an active fishing industry. Cargo ships call in to load and unload and the MS Oldenburg, which plies between Bideford and Lundy Island , is often to be seen tied up by the quayside. First mention in the history books of the Quay was in 1619 when there were beaches at the river's edge. As the ship-building trade boomed, the Quay was developed and there are still marker stones in the pavement as a testament to that reconstruction. Sir Walter Raleigh is believed to have brought his first cargo of tobacco to Bideford and the town soon became one of the largest tobacco trading centres of that period.

Again there are too many restaurants to mention them all, but oursome of our favourites are:

Lathwells www.lathwells.com
Tel. 01237 476447
Av. 3 course meal £22.00, wine from £10.00 bottle.
Winner of the North Devon Restaurant 2007.
Delicious food, sourced locally, cooked with pride, what more can I say, except it is recommended to book a week in advance for Friday or Saturday night.

Maya Indian restaurant (01805 622445) in Torrington (9 miles inland, 25 minutes drive), we think it is the best Indian in North Devon by a long way.

Hunters Inn at Newton Tracey, tel. 01271 858339 (5 miles inland in the middle of nowhere), av. 3 course meal under £20.00 bottle house wine £12.00. A lovely old fashion sort of pub, which serves great food. Dog friendly.

Last but not least is
The Quay www.9thequay.co.uk tel.01237 473355, a restaurant in Appledore. 2 course meal £18 50, 3 courses £22 50. A lot better than the usual pub grub, a bit more expensive but worth it.