Good food guide
Sandwiched between the sea and soft green, fertile hills Dorset produces some of the best food in the country. From luscious scallops to succulent, organic lamb it’s all there. Just waiting to be cooked. These are some of the best places to buy or dine out.
However, if you are nervous about kitchens or would like to extend your skills then the first port of call has to be Lesley Waters’ cookery school at the Old Manor in Evershot.
Lesley holds a range of courses and masterclasses including Men Only @ The Old Manor, The Spice Trail, Modern British, and a fabulous Ladies Day that includes a session with Sandy Macfarlane, a TV make-up expert. Tasting sessions and lunch in the conservatory provide a great opportunity to meet new people and make friends.
Tucked away, high on the Golden
Cap estate, Nikki Exton has created a Garden Café with a Mediterranean feel.
It’s part of the organic farm she runs with husband Dean. Views over to
Portland are stunning. More importantly, the food is cooked to order and it’s
consistently good. The menu includes Greek salad with feta and olives,
frittata with roasted vegetables, or for walkers in need of a top up, bubble
and squeak. As for the warm Dorset Apple Cake with clotted cream, with a cafetiere for two…… relax, read the papers and let Dorset nurture you in the
most wonderful way.
Open Mid March to mid October from 10.30am. Closed Mondays. Dinner must be pre-booked. Take your own wine for a small corkage fee.
From the farm Nikki and Dean produce top quality, free range pork, along with organic lamb and beef under the Soil Association guidelines.
Head for Eype off the A35 and before the turning for Highlands End follow the signs for Downhouse.
Fish. And fabulous!
Network member Wendy Deeming, (and our reflexologist),
at the Hive.
The Crab House Cafe
01305 788867
This was a wonderful discovery just before lunch one Sunday! What impressed me was that the staff were so helpful and found a table in what was a very busy, booked restaurant.
The Crab House is on Ferryman's Way, just before you launch out to Portland. There is a sign but it's not that obvious - take a swift right just before the mini roundabout and pub.
The quality of the food is superb. Thai fishcakes with a sweet chili dip were served exquisitely and tasted just as good. Oysters and crabs are a specialty.
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The Boathouse
On the banks of the river at Christchurch The Boathouse is a bright and sophisticated place for morning coffee or lunch or more. Loved the view and the decks with brollies and chairs.
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Good reports
Although taste in meals out is somewhat personal, if you’ve had a positve experience please share it, and tell everyone! It’s a real pleasure to find somewhere that serves good food to a consistently high standard.
The following have been tried a tested by Network members. Please e-mail contact@dorsetnetwork.com to add to the list or to discuss an enhanced entry.
The West Bay Hotel, Station Rd, West Bay near Bridport.
A wonderful starter is rich, duck pate and warm toast with onion marmalade.
The Anchor, Burton Bradstock
Great fish. Highly recommend the Anchor Combo, a huge platter of seafood.
The Green, Sherborne
Excellent on all counts.
Café Shore, Sandbanks, near Poole
Enjoyed pan-fried skate wings. Shore salad was good as a light lunch, loved the curried crème fraiche on mango and chicken. Worth it for the views over Pool Harbour alone.
The Engine Room, Poundbury Garden Centre, Poundbury.
More than a coffee shop. One Network member had a Christmas meal there and was impressed with the roast pheasant. Try Poundbury Tart – a mix of fruit and nuts in a sweet white sauce served in a pastry case.
Winyards Gap, Cheddington, West Dorset.
Enjoyed very much. Nice presentation of melon, Parma ham, salad and granary bread.
The Egg Cup,
Between Bridport and West Bexington on the coast road.
Favourite with local people for breakfast. Just over £5 buys juice and a full English with wonderful views of the Bride Valley.
Longs Chippie
East St in Bridport - tucked away in the car park.
Posh fish and chips to take out or eat in a very nice cafe. Try the platter of fish and seafood with goujons of plaice, cod in beer batter, herb crusted salmon tail.....
The Riverside
West Bay
Two course lunch around £16. Excellent choice of fish and seafood. Divine lemon brulee.
Views over the river to the cliffs beyond. Good atmosphere.
Thanks to Marian Conway for field-testing on several occasions and recommending:
The Brace of Peasants
Plush
The Green
Sherbourne
The Queens’s Arms
Corton Denham
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