41 Best Restaurants in The West Country, England

At this pub you can contemplate the quayside comings and goings over a pint of real ale and a sandwich, a pie, or a pasty, or a full meal of steak or seafood. The nautical theme comes through in pictures and the ship's wheel hanging from the ceiling. There are tables outside on the quay.

A 14th-century inn and a row of thatched cottages make up this pub–restaurant with great harbor views. The kitchen mixes local cuisine with European influences, so expect dishes like rack of Exmoor lamb or spiced pork tenderloin. There's fresh seafood year-round, and a superb game menu in winter. Booking ahead is advisable for the restaurant; otherwise, just show up for the bar menu, which features such snacks as soused mackerel fillet and crab sandwiches. In the attached hotel, corridors and creaking staircases lead to cozy guest rooms decorated in stylish print or solid fabrics.

In the heart of Plymouth's harbor, right next to the National Marine Aquarium, and with plenty of outdoor seating, this is the perfect spot to watch the boats go by and the antics of gulls while you refuel. It's part of a small local chain launched by Devon chef Mitch Tonks, and although fish and chips is the staple, there are plenty of variations on the theme, including chargrilled mackerel or sardines, as well as king scallops, fish tacos, fritto misto, and lobster. Almost everything on the menu can be made gluten-free, and there's a good selection of children's meals (as well as free fish and chips for under-11s). Takeout service is also available.

Fresh, seasonal, creative dishes are served at this smart but relaxed restaurant in the heart of Wells. Small and sharing plates predominate on the menu, which is mostly oriented toward such vegetarian dishes as grilled zucchini with whipped tofu and basil pesto, beetroot Waldorf with celery, grape, walnut, and apple, or sweet-and-sour eggplant with pickled cabbage. Some excellent meat and fish options do make an appearance, however, perhaps sea bream ceviche with orange and stem ginger dressing or braised lamb rump with carrots and salsa verde. Most dishes are around £10, and there's an enticing set-price lunch menu (£18 or £21). Try and book a table at the back, for partial views of the cathedral's west front.

This small and buzzing bistro has a nostalgic 1950s flavor, thanks to walls adorned with posters of past music and movie icons. Diners squeeze onto benches and into booths to savor dishes made with local seafood—including a majestic bouillabaisse—or menu items like the "Sam Burger" or "Super Salads." Without a booking, you might have to wait for a table.

In a prime riverside location, this seafood restaurant epitomizes the region's ongoing food revolution. The knowledgeable staff guides you through the Italian-inspired menu, which primarily depends on the day's catch and might feature Dartmouth lobster salad, tagliatelle with spider crab and datterini tomatoes, or cod loin al cartoccio. Leave room for the delicious desserts, too, such as apricot sorbet. Three-course prix-fixe menus are a good deal at lunchtime (£30), and Joe's Bar, attached to the restaurant, offers a good range of wines, locally distilled gin, and cocktails. The owner, celebrity-chef Mitch Tonks, also runs a much more basic fish-and-chips restaurant a few doors along called Rockfish, open daily.

In a narrow alley off Cathedral Close, you can lift a tankard of bitter in the very rooms where Sir Francis Drake and Sir Walter Raleigh enjoyed their ale. The pub dishes out casual bar fare, from sandwiches and grills to steak-and-ale pies, either in the bar or in the beamed and paneled upstairs restaurant. Drake, in fact, once wrote, "Next to mine own shippe, I do most love that old ‘Shippe' in Exon."

One of Cornwall's oldest pubs serves simple lunches as well as evening meals in wood-beam rooms that display the work of local artists. The traditional menu includes fish pie, salads, and burgers, as well as Cornish crab linguine. There's also a separate, quieter restaurant upstairs, and you can eat at the tables outside at the front or on a rooftop terrace for excellent harbor views.

Seasonality and local provenance are the guiding principles of this mellow, minimally decorated café–restaurant tucked up a side street between the harbor and Porthmeor Beach. You're encouraged to share the tapas-style dishes, which include St. Austell Bay mussels with shallots, garlic, white wine, and cream; hand-dived Dorset scallops, with cauliflower and hazelnuts; or turbot with anchovies, tarragon butter, and cider. The menu also includes some choice vegetarian options, and booking ahead will enable you to enjoy the restaurant's famed fixed-price "Sunday feast" lunches (£38; not served during peak summer months).

Part of chef Rick Stein's empire, this French-leaning bistro with contemporary art adorning its walls has a secluded feel. The menu is strong on seafood but also offers tasty vegetarian choices, featuring dishes like porcini linguine with white truffle oil, oven-dried tomato and thyme tart with Blue Vinny, or smoked chicken breast with carrot, ginger, and chili sambal. Look out for the "lunch specials", such as mussels in a cream sauce, and steak sandwich. Children are also well catered for. When the weather's nice, you can dine in the sunny walled garden, while Ruby's Bar next door offers a cozy nook for gins and cocktails. Upstairs are 10 spacious bedrooms individually decorated with stylish modern pieces.

The excellent café–restaurant upstairs at Watershed overlooks part of the harborside and serves sandwiches and hot snacks all day, along with coffees, cakes, and beers. For meals, note your table number and order at the bar. Food is served until 9 pm (8 pm on Sunday and Monday)