19 Best Restaurants in The West Country, England

One of England's foremost country-house hotels occupies an enclave of landscaped gardens and streams, reached via a lengthy, winding country lane and private drive at the edge of Dartmoor. Its pricey contemporary restaurant, directed by chef Chris Eden, has been showered with culinary awards, including a Michelin star, and you'll see why when you dig into the steamed turbot served with squash, caviar, and seaweed or the aged fillet of beef cooked over coals, with smoked bone marrow, garlic, and spinach—two of the choices you might find on the three-course prix-fixe dinner menu (£135). There's also a "lounge menu," served in the lounges or on the terrace, which includes such starters as cheese soufflé and smoked salmon, and beef sirloin and gnocchi as main courses. The wine list is formidable, and the locally pumped spring water is like no other. If you're not up to a full meal, wholesome sandwiches are offered all day. You can also order a luxury picnic hamper (£125 for two) containing an array of cold meats, cheeses, bread, salad, sweet treats, and wine, which can be enjoyed at any time and anywhere in the house, within the grounds of Gidleigh Park, or farther afield. Inside the long, half-timber building, built in 1928 in Tudor style, you'll find antiques in the public rooms and in the 24 luxurious guest rooms. Note, however, that the hotel and restaurant are closed on Sunday and Monday (except on bank holidays).

This dining-focused pub with bright, homey furnishings and a relaxed vibe looks past green fields to the ocean beyond. The frequently changing fixed-price menus (£40 or £48) feature fresh, inventively prepared meat and seafood dishes—look for hake with imam bayildi and garlic yogurt or lamb loin with potato and cheddar croquette and tender-stem broccoli. Leave room for some enticing desserts. Eight smallish rooms provide guest accommodations. The inn sits near the curvy coast road 6 miles west of St. Ives.

The restaurant within this Georgian house has magnificent views across the wooded, rhododendron-filled Tamar Valley and a sophisticated menu featuring traditional British cuisine with French elements. A typical starter and main course might be ginger-cured salmon with mango, wasabi, and dill, followed by Creedy Carver duck breast with textures of shallot and pommes duchesse, while desserts include pumpkin crème brûlée with blackberry sorbet and spiced orange and blackberry. Alongside the à la carte two- or three-course lunch menu (£32 or £39) and the three-course dinner menu (£69), there's a six-course tasting menu (£85). A converted coach house and the main house contain 16 sumptuously furnished guest rooms. It's 3 miles west of Tavistock.

Exeter-born master chef Michael Caines has breathed new life into this elegant Georgian mansion overlooking the Exe estuary 5 miles south of Exeter, where he has created a Michelin-starred showcase for his sophisticated and highly original recipes. The wow-factor starts the moment you arrive, with unforgettable estuary views—a fitting prelude to seasonal three- or four-course lunches (£85–£110), à la carte fixed-price dinners (£185), and multicourse tasting menus (£230 and £240) that might feature shellfish mousseline with langoustine bisque; steamed Cornish cod with Jerusalem artichoke and mussels; or chicken and smoked ham hock terrine with duck liver, pistachio, and truffle mayonnaise. The separate vegetarian and vegan menu has choices like roasted leek terrine with pickled mushrooms, hazelnut, and black garlic, while typical desserts include rhubarb soufflé with vanilla sorbet, and coffee parfait with candied almonds and white chocolate ice cream. For less formal dining and more modestly priced menus (£48 and £60), try the Pool House Restaurant and Bar, where tables overlook the outdoor pool. Luxurious accommodations are also available on site.

Paul Ainsworth has been expanding his culinary presence in Padstow to rival that of Rick Stein, and, for many foodies, Ainsworth offers the better experience at this intimate bistro—his original foothold in the town—where diners seated in a series of small, stylish rooms feast on ingeniously concocted dishes that make the most of local and seasonal produce. The four-course set-price menus (£160) for lunch and dinner might include smoked pike roe with pink grapefruit and Cornish jack crab to start, followed by pigeon with salted plum condiment and black cardamom or wild turbot with Iberian ham mousseline. Just be sure to leave room for dessert. The atmosphere is warm and lively, with swift, ultra-attentive staff.

Occupying a former police station, this modern, clean-lined restaurant affords serene views over the passing swans and boats. Upstairs, the more formal restaurant serves delicately cooked dishes like Brixham plaice with 'nduja butter, clams, and samphire, or local asparagus, pea, and fava risotto, while the lip-smacking desserts include passion fruit syllabub with marshmallow and macerated strawberries or ricotta mousse cheesecake with almonds. On the river level, the Pontoon Bar has a more rough-and-ready menu that includes mussels, pan-fried peppers, and burgers, and with its terrace seating, it also makes a great spot for a weekend brunch, afternoon coffee, or evening drinks.

Housed within the historic Plymouth Gin Distillery in the heart of the Barbican, this restaurant owned by a distinguished local culinary duo blends a leisurely, cheerful atmosphere with high-quality dishes that favor local produce. The menu might include monkfish with mussels and potato terrine; pea and lemon risotto with ricotta cheese; and steak from the charcoal grill. To finish, try one of the toothsome desserts, perhaps the lemon posset with strawberries or the white chocolate parfait. There are good set-price menus at lunchtime and early evening, and you can sample gin cocktails in the Refectory Cocktail Lounge on the same premises, made with the Plymouth Gin distilled on site.

The finest of a slew of restaurants and cafés in Bristol's trendy, newly developed Wapping Wharf harborside district, this compact venue might be squeezed into a pair of shipping containers, but punches way above what its diminutive dimensions might suggest. The seasonally changing menu is also on the small side, and most dishes are tapas-size, but every one is startlingly original, and each is a winner. Smoked trout with golden beetroot, buttermilk, and horseradish, for example, is an excellent start to such mains as rump of lamb, cannellini beans, and rainbow chard. Desserts are also fabulous, and you can watch it all taking shape in the open kitchen. Dishes on the seven-course tasting menu (£55; request when booking) are unspecified—it may surprise but will not disappoint. The restaurant is steps away from the Floating Harbour and M Shed, and there are tables outside on the deck for warm days.

Locals and visitors alike make a beeline for this gastropub in a 16th-century building with a number of small dining spaces done in spare, contemporary-country style. Elegantly presented dishes might include dry-aged moorland sirloin in a peppercorn sauce, beer-battered haddock, or butternut squash with cauliflower tempura and curry broth. Set-price menus are sometimes available, and there are gluten-free options and a separate vegan menu. If you don't want to go the whole hog at lunchtime, wholesome sandwiches are also served (every day but Sunday). Three spacious guest rooms make it possible to linger.

Set back from the harbor, this elegant, Michelin-starred eatery offers sophisticated but relaxed dining, with views over Torbay from its Georgian windows. To start, you might have the option to try barbecue lobster with lobster custard, apple, and sorrel or cured Brixham mackerel with fennel yogurt and cucumber, followed by such main dishes as roasted rump of lamb or line-caught bass with shiitake and Thai green sauce. The highly skilled kitchen team is matched by the pleasant and attentive wait staff. At lunch, you can choose between the set menu (£32.50–£38.50), a multicourse tasting menu (£58), or a set-price à la carte menu (£57.50 or £75), which is also available in the evening alongside the evening tasting menu (£98.50).

Slightly off the tourist track but only a few minutes from the cathedral, this classic gastropub offers a winning combination of traditional decor lightened with tasteful modern touches and great, locally sourced food. The eclectic menu includes such standout dishes as Madras chicken and butternut curry, Halloumi burger, and beer-battered haddock. It may appear small at first sight, but there's a second dining area with a similarly cozy feel upstairs. Good local ales are served at the bar.

Floor-to-ceiling windows overlook the Avon Gorge and Clifton Suspension Bridge at this restaurant, where meat and seafood dishes are cooked over an Argentinian asado, or firepit. Look for onglet, aged rump, fillet steak, sea bass, and monkfish tail, as well as such vegetarian options as roasted cauliflower steak and spicy charred carrots. Fixed-price early evening menus are also available. Sited inside the Avon Gorge Hotel and part of the Hotel du Vin group, the restaurant is named after the two legendary giants whose competition for the hand of the beautiful Avona led to the carving of the gorge. Enjoy pre- or post-prandial drinks on the broad outdoor terrace of the adjacent White Lion bar.

For views and location, this breezy beachside eatery with a crisp, modern interior and deck seating can't be beat. On the menu you'll find hearty breakfasts and a judicious balance of meat, seafood, and vegetarian dishes for lunch and dinner, from salads, sandwiches, and burgers to fish risotto and sweet potato and chickpea red Thai curry. There's also a beach bar for drinks, ice creams, and other snacks, barbecues at weekends in summer (roughly Easter–Oct.), and live music on Sunday evenings.

Seafood is the main event in the two small, pink-toned rooms of this restaurant off Market Jew Street. The menu showcases whatever the boats bring, though crab Florentine, grilled on a bed of spinach and topped with Parmesan, and whole Dover Sole with chive butter are usually available. Meat dishes might include guinea fowl with a mushroom and apple stuffing and wrapped in filo pastry. The restaurant is small—just six tables—and the semiformal style is intimate, elegant, and traditional.

Just a 10-minute drive from the hustle and bustle of Padstow, this coastal retreat occupies an opulent old farmhouse surrounded by delightful grounds with glorious sea views. Like other branches of this hipster chain, the menu prioritizes ingredients produced within a 25-mile radius in such dishes as lamb rump with kohlrabi, broad beans, and nasturtium; middle white pork loin with red onions; harrisa-braised leeks with smoked quinoa and almonds; butterflied gurnard; and Newlyn plaice. The restaurant's wood-paneled main dining room, with its fine Jacobean ceiling, is augmented by less formal beamed and flagstoned areas, and there is also the outdoor Lobster Shed (late May to late September) for wood-roasted lobster and chargrilled meats. Round off your visit with a stroll round the kitchen garden, where much of the restaurant's produce is grown. A range of rooms is also available here.

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.

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)