The Pea Green Boat

Chris Pike has run this seafront spot in Sidmouth for over a decade, building it from a cafe bar into a proper restaurant without losing the coastal, unhurried feel that gives it its name. Tables sit right along the front with sea views, and outdoor seating puts diners close to the esplanade and whatever is happening on it - live music during the Folk Festival, passers-by on a summer evening. The kitchen works around fresh local produce, cooked simply rather than fussed over.

Starters have included a Jerusalem artichoke salad with Somerset goat's cheese curd and walnuts, and mains run to braised cod fillet with brown butter, samphire and French fries, finished with wasabi caviar - food with more ambition than the cafe-bar label suggests. Clifton Coffee is on the machine for daytime visits, and the wine list is genuinely long, sourced from producers across the world rather than a safe house selection. It isn't a cheap night out, but between the view, the wine and the cooking it's built a loyal following on Sidmouth's seafront.