One reason we know North Devon is the place to be is that art-world superstar Damien Hirst opened a restaurant here in 2004. A handsome Victorian harborside house is split into various sections: Downstairs is a relaxed bar-café called the White Hart after the inn this used to be; then there's a classic oak-floor, white-tablecloth upstairs dining room (air-conditioned!) called the Harbourside Room; and next to that, the Atlantic Room—a sculptural space that looks like an upturned boat hull decorated with Hirst works. The food is serious and contemporary stuff: a whole roast trout or guinea fowl, or perhaps haddock Wellington. And, this being England, trifle for dessert.

Chef Nick Coiley is living his countryside culinary dream so that you can live yours. When he opened this place in 2000, he immediately set about befriending local suppliers of epicurean delights, planting crazy crops in his gardens (elephant garlic, white alpine strawberries) and curing, pickling, smoking, and baking (twice every day). You cannot find fresher food than this—Coiley even takes his kids out mushroom picking and foraging for prawns. After home-cured bresaola with marinated Jerusalem artichokes, delve into Devon lamb steak with asparagus tart and rosemary gravy, and enjoy cheese from the Ticklemore Cheese Shop in Totnes (1 Ticklemore St.; 44-1803-865-926). Pick up some home-brewed elderflower vinegar or spicy apricot chutney from the little store to take home.

Closed Mondays, Tuesdays, and most Sundays.

Don't walk, run to this throbbing, no-reservations gastropub by the Old Vic theater on the South Bank. Late arrivals—e.g., later than 9:30 p.m.—have found that most of the food has been wolfed down, except for, say, spaghetti with dandelion or deep-fried pig's head. This fine example of an updated pub serves untampered-with, back-to-basics food from a team that cut its teeth at St. John restaurant. Expect uncompromising dishes like duck hearts on toast and "rabbit, bacon, and mustard" (chunks of bacon with rabbit leg and mustard sauce) on the short and continually evolving menu. The list offers a dozen reasonably priced wines by the glass.

Closed Sundays.

Although Lancaster Gate is an exclusive part of central London, just a stone's throw from Hyde Park, it has always been rather weak in the culinary department—until now. Owner Thierry Tomasin (formerly head sommelier at Le Gavroche) has created a gem in terms of ambience, service, and food at this classic French restaurant, housed in a 200-year-old former pub. The main dining room, which retains the original wood paneling, holds 15 tables laid with crisp white linens and tasteful floral arrangements, while the old bar has been extended to create an elegant lounge that's perfect for predinner cocktails. This place attracts a lot of French customers (a good sign). Expect simple French dishes perfectly executed rather than complicated flavors and sauces; of particular note is the braised lamb belly and the red mullet, both accompanied by mouth-watering crushed mint potatoes. At around $30 to $35, main courses won't break the bank, and as you'd expect from Tomasin, the wine list is extensive but also reasonably priced.

Open Tuesdays through Sundays 11 am to 12 pm.

Upon entering, nothing about Baltic's vodka bar, cozy with recessed seating, prepares you for the soaring white-walled dining room. It's latticed with beams, lit by a fiber-optic chandelier of Polish amber lamps, and crackles with energy. The Eastern European cuisine served here is hearty and often exceptional: blinis, Siberian pelmeni (little veal and pork dumplings), and unpronounceable szczawiowa (sorrel soup). Pretty Polish women dressed in black take orders efficiently and unobtrusively, even during the Sunday evening jazz gigs and among the customary loud crowds. This is the best place for post Tate Modern unwinding.

Although it's a venerable-ish (30-odd-years-old) English chain, Browns is no McDonalds or Starbucks. The brasserie-style restaurants usually occupy interesting, even historic buildings; this one's in a Georgian police station and magistrates' court opposite Bath Abbey, with a former cell serving as a bathroom. The food is hardly ambitious—salmon cakes with mango salsa; steak, mushroom and Guinness pie; brownies and ice cream—but it's reliably good and reasonably priced. In pleasant weather, head for the large terrace of outdoor tables.

A makeover in 2005 while under new management, the Soho House Group, has upped the sex appeal of this long-time favorite of art dealers. One of the big improvements is the gleaming central bar, with its exceptional cocktails and Prosecco on tap. Dark wood and pea-green leather chairs, black-and-white tiled floors, and Art Deco lighting are pure 1920s Venice. The food is classic Italian—rustic Tuscan bean soup, veal Milanese, wild mushroom risotto. Also here is London's only cichetti bar, offering Italian tapas such as salt cod mantecato on crostini and Umbrian sausages with red pepper (served all day).

In this whitewashed 16th-century coach inn fronting a pretty fishing port, chef Chris and wife Jo Coubrough serve up good English grub with Pacific Rim and Mediterranean influences. Dining at the ocher-walled restaurant is pretty swank: Flash-fried squid, bacon, and black pudding—or a lamb-and-sweetbread terrine—might be followed by roasted breast of partridge with wild mushrooms on crushed potato, or steamed North Sea cod with ginger, lemongrass, and lime. In the adjoining black-beamed Crown Bar, things are much more casual: You can order great sandwiches or share a Crown Black Slate—a platter of mixed Asian and Euro appetizers (smoked-chicken salad, seafood spring rolls, goat cheese and rosemary brûlée) served on a slab of slate. Weekend reservations are essential for the restaurant. And by the way, "hotel" is no misnomer: There are 12 beautiful rustic-minimal rooms upstairs.

Imagine if Jacques Pépin—no, if Rachael Ray owned the Baltimore Orioles and set up a restaurant at Camden Yards that was open only on game nights. That doesn't quite approach the absurd glory of this venture. Delia Smith is sort of like Julia Child crossed with Julie Andrews, a quasi-saintly culinary savior and TV personality who also happens to be a sports nut. She owns the Canaries, the Norwich City soccer team, and she put her reputation on the line by operating the Carrow Road catering. Here you can eat the intelligent, yummy English–Continental food that endeared Delia to at least three generations of gastronomic neophytes: coarse country pâté with cornichons and toasted granary bread; swordfish ceviche with cilantro and mint; confit of Norfolk duck with sour cherry compote; jerk pork with grilled pineapple salsa; spinach-and-pine-nut lasagna with three cheeses. And you can see a championship soccer match, too.

Burnham Market sometimes seems to be populated entirely by ex-Londoner antique dealers, and they all like to gather here. There are plenty of reasons why. When current owners Matthew and Caroline Owsley-Brown took over Fishes, half of Norfolk went into mourning that the previous owner was no longer in charge; as if that wasn't a hard enough beginning, the Owsley-Browns opened for business on September 11, 2001. Despite all this, the place has grown and thrived under their care. Their menus change not once but twice a day, according to what has arrived fresh on the local Brancaster, Lynn, Great Yarmouth, and Lowestoft boats. Smoked eel with foie gras and piquillo pepper terrine made even more decadent with homemade brioche, and roast Thai-buttered lobster with ginger, scallions, and sweet basil stir-fried noodles are just a couple of choices you might get to try. Desserts are amazing too, as is the daily-home-baked bread. Even the wine list is exemplary (if you have a few too many glasses, ask about one of the two luxury bedrooms overlooking the village green that are available for overnight stays). Reservations are essential. No children under five are permitted after 8:30 p.m.

Closed Mondays September through July.

Back in 1997, seafood obsessive Mitchell Tonks had the bright idea of combining a fishmonger with a café—and a fish-cooking school. Since the tenth branch opened in July 2006 (in London's Parsons Green district), FishWorks is officially a minor national phenomenon, with Tonks almost equaling Rick Stein as England's TV-chef fishmeister. Freshness and good value are the mantras here, with chef Ollie Navias bringing the pick of the catch from the store's fishermen-suppliers to table. You can select your own specimen from the fish counter, or try dishes like roasted skate with brown butter with capers, breaded fried haddock, or sea bream baked in salt (the selection varies with market availability). Taramasalata made from fresh smoked cod's roe is the house specialty. Unusually for England, the casual dining room is augmented by a covered, heated deck.

Closed Sundays.

After being closed for most of 2006 due to a room expansion, this country house hotel on 40 acres is again offering the grandest, most refined dining in Devon. The restaurant is all about chef Michael Caines, who is also co-owner of Abode Exeter. An alum of the kitchens of Raymond Blanc, Bernard Loiseau, and Joël Robuchon, he's consistently lauded as one of the greats. While keeping up with trends (nobody can lag in this country of food fiends), he cooks in the classical French tradition, with a twist of wit: langoustine cannelloni with braised fennel; roasted Dartmoor lamb accompanied by potato fondant, onion and thyme purée, and tomato fondue. Although unusual for a Michelin-two-star place with all the bells and whistles and complexity, he changes the menus every day. Lunch is a relative bargain, and about the only way to eat here without investing in a (very glorious, very expensive) room so you don't have to trek home—Chagford is a tiny village surrounded by the endless wilds of Dartmoor.

Great Queen Street is the name of a restaurant located on Great Queen Street. From that fact, you know it's a place where stolid common sense wins out over cleverness and wit. The terse menu descriptions—asparagus; beetroot, goat's curd, and mint; beef rib for two; crab on toast—reinforce the sense that this is a place for Serious Cooking, not frivolity. But Great Queen Street, the younger sister of popular gastropub Anchor & Hope, is anything but pretentious: It's just a long room with a bar to one side; seating arranged in a grid; walls painted dark red; and floors, tables, and chairs fashioned from nondescript wood. But it's all energetic, friendly, and light. The beet salad is chunky and substantial, a sprinkling of bread crumbs underscoring its earthiness. The beef rib and its accompanying chips are exemplary (the chef, Tom Norrington-Davies, buys a whole side of Hereford beef each week and works his way through it). Braised dishes are a specialty—if you see oxtail, order it. The produce is all seasonal and fresh; the wine list brief, reasonable, and ever evolving (the wine is served in tumblers, naturally); the apron-wearing servers knowledgeable and welcoming. In short, Great Queen Street is a terrific choice for a moderately priced lunch or dinner in Covent Garden. And unlike at the Anchor & Hope, reservations are accepted.—Peter J. Frank

Open Tuesdays through Saturdays 12 to 2:30 pm and 6 to 10:30 pm, Sundays one 2 pm sitting, and Mondays 6 to 10:30 pm.

A backstreet off Tottenham Court Road is the unlikely location for Alan Yau's highly lacquered, low-lit Michelin-starred restaurant. The dining room is divided by antique latticed wood screens from Beijing, which are surrounded by glass wall panels subtly lit in deep blue and purple. The waitresses, dressed in flowing frocks by Hussein Chalayan, are more than a match for the interiors. Succulent platters of dim sum are favorites in both the restaurant and the laid-back Ling Ling bar. Also of note is the roasted silver cod with Champagne and Chinese honey and the Chilean sea bass with Chinese celery and lotus root—flavors that linger (in a good way) long after you emerge from the temple-style doors back into the slightly down-at-heel alleyway.

Unprepossessing from the outside and rather near the highway, this 18th-century inn has a cozy interior and an impressive pub/restaurant. Dishes run from the refined (pork liver pâté, baked local salmon with chive and lemon white wine sauce) to the hearty and veddy British (lamb shoulder braised in Jennings Cumberland Ale, pan-fried steaks, roasted crispy half-duckling). When the inn changed ownership in June 2006, vegetarian selections were added to the menu, including a braised leek and creamed mushroom crumble and spiced vegetable curry with broccoli, cauliflour, carrots, and potatoes. To tipple, there's a good range of single malt Scotch whiskeys, Jennings real ales, and a fine selection of wines. Upstairs are five comfortable bedrooms under wood beams.

This gorgeous 16th-century inn is officially a gastropub, but it's an extremely elevated version. Here in the heat-lamp-warmed gardens or on the covered terrace, in the air-conditioned dining room or the wood-paneled bar, pick from a long menu of new-Brit food that wouldn't be out of place in the hippest Notting Hill brasserie. Duck and beetroot broth with juniper oil; braised pork cheeks with mead sauce and vegetable-and-borlotti-bean cassoulet; or spiced black bream with curried parsnip mash and lemon and cumin dressing—these are the kinds of dishes to emerge from what the restaurant claims is the world's largest Aga (solid-fuel stove; increasingly trendy stateside).

While Scott's, The Ivy, and Le Caprice favor diners with perseverance or a famous name, J. Sheekey, the fourth in the best-known quartet of restaurants in Caprice Holdings' stable of eight, remains surprisingly accessible. From its theatrical David Collins decor and ostentatious crustacean platter stacked to the ceiling to its equally showy clientele, many of whom have just stepped offstage in nearby theaterland, J. Sheekey is a show-off. With some of the most delicious fish to be had in London, impeccable service, and an electric atmosphere, it's far more deserving of your reservation skills than its snootier siblings. Scott's, which has been hard to get into since it reopened in 2006, has an oak-paneled, understated decor in keeping with its classy Mayfair location. Its upscale menu includes fried cod's tongue, stargazy pie, and pan-fried slip sole, as well as posh fish-and-chips with mushy peas. Le Caprice, opened by Jeremy King and Christopher Corbin (the duo now in charge of the marvelous Wolseley and St. Albans), looks dated in its black-walled 1980's Eva Jiricna design, with tables too close together, yet it remains a glitterati favorite. Both Le Caprice and The Ivy have similar, multiculti comfort menus: seared tuna, fish cakes with sorrel sauce, roasted lamb, and the ever-popular Scandinavian iced berries for dessert. The rich and famous keep coming back, so they must be doing something right—even if it's only controlling the paparazzi.

Recipient of a Michelin star in 2006, the Ledbury brings unprecedented polish, panache, and amuse-bouches to Notting Hill, taking this postal code to new levels of gentrification. Ledbury's large windows, chandeliers, and linen-swathed tables, breathes understated wealth and good taste. The star of the show is Australian-born Brett Graham, former sous-chef at the Square, the Ledbury's sister restaurant in Mayfair. He wows diners with scallops roasted in licorice; lasagna of rabbit, and terrine of Iberian ham with Iberian pork cheeks and foie gras.

Named in honor of the candy factory that once stood here, neither this upstairs dining room nor downstairs café, located just outside the newer of Norwich's two shopping malls, is remotely canteenlike. Rather, they're cheery places for intelligently cooked, locally sourced food, such as dressed Cromer crab with celeriac rémoulade, or pesto-baked corn-fed chicken with goat cheese mash. (Burgers, by the way, are better next door at Tootsies.) At the end of the meal, everyone gets to dip into the huge dish of Quality Street chocolates—Mackintosh's most-recognized candies. Children, of course, adore this.

Maze is a May 2005 addition to the Gordon Ramsay empire, although head chef Jason Atherton is behind the Asian-influenced French cuisine. Atherton's take on the BLT—a sandwich of bacon and onion cream, chilled lettuce velouté, and tomato gelée—betrays his El Bulli roots, but there's plenty to satisfy more-traditional tastes, including a dish of grilled lamb with braised lamb neck, seasoned with Moroccan spices. For wine pairings, ask the sommelier to suggest a flight—a trio of glasses selected to complement each dish. The formal dining area is an elegant affair, with plush seating in cream leather, divided by glass panels with a green maze design. Those looking for a more casual atmosphere can eat at the rosewood bar, which serves the same menu as the restaurant. In typical Ramsay style, even that is an upmarket affair, where the modern oriental decor is taken as seriously (well, almost) as the food.

Even if you don't stay in Michael Caines's hometown showcase, the Abode Exeter Hotel, make an excuse to eat in his restaurant. For all the hype, Michael Caines at Abode Exeter is uncommonly accessible and affordable. For around $32, you can get a three-course lunch of locally sourced, modern English dishes, such as roast duckling with garlicky cabbage, and a charcuterie plate with crisp pickled vegetables. The adjoining Champagne Bar offers similarly tasty and reasonably priced light bites, including a traditional Devonshire cream tea for less than $8. If you're in the mood for an all-out meal, the restaurant accommodates with a seasonal dinner menu. Highlights include savory pea and Parmesan soup, a showstopping lamb roast with confit and tapenade sauce, and an extensive selection of Devon cheeses. Advance reservations for dinner are recommended, but the restaurant and bar pride themselves on speedy seatings for lunch and afternoon tea.

After ten years earning accolades in the center of Bath, chef Stephen Shore moved his Goose to this medieval house in a nearby picture-book village. The house-made breads, local fish (delivered daily from Devon), and all-English seasonal produce are given modern treatment here. Selections might include a pie of roasted rabbit and wood pigeon; a salad of Cornish lobster, green beans, potato, and quail eggs with truffle oil; and Cornish lamb with a pine kernel crust and poached sweetbreads. The good news for those too sated to drive back to Bath: There are seven quaint and comfortable rooms upstairs that can be had for about $200 per night.

A favored inn in the Troutbeck Valley since 1689, the Mortal Man is known for fabulous views down the valley to Lake Windermere. The restaurant prides itself on serving massive portions of traditional local specialties such as roast shoulder of Cumbrian lamb, served with onion puree, pomme fondant and green peas. The large bar offers simpler pub grub, like a smoked trout fillet with a spring vegetable salad in creamy tomato dressing and a Cumberland sausage baguette sandwich, topped with grilled onions and ale gravy. All 12 guest rooms get the celebrated vistas, but the best panoramas are provided by the ones on the top floor.

If you spot people peering, blushing, and pretending not to stare the way they do with a celebrity in the house, that's because the chef-owner himself is a TV luminary (and okay, maybe that's Mrs. & Mr. Paltrow-Martin at the corner table). John Burton-Race acquired the once-legendary Carved Angel restaurant (hence the new name) and thoroughly new-Brit-ized it from soup to nuts—literally—reopening in May 2004 to great buzz and fuss, and taking only seven months to win Devon's first Michelin star. The constantly changing fish dishes are based on the day boat's catch: Brixham turbot grilled with béarnaise sauce; steamed sea bass with braised vegetables; creamed leeks and oyster broth. Meat is just as local, such as roasted, herb-crusted Blackawton lamb.

Closed Sunday evenings and Mondays.

Maybe it's counterintuitive to make a reservation at a shack, but this extremely laid-back spot is so phenomenally popular that there's little point turning up without one. You may well find stragglers from lunch still here at 6 p.m., relishing the Mediterranean tavern feel. Everything has that plucked-from-the-sea taste that goes down so well with a cocktail or glass of wine. On the huge seafood list: local oysters au naturel or grilled with garlic and Parmesan or bacon and Worcestershire sauce; famous local crab soup; grilled whole Dover sole.

Since taking over in 2002, young Australian chef and surfer Michael Smith has turned this informal beachfront bistro with simple white decor and brightly colored contemporary art into a happening, must-book destination. Superfresh seafood dominates the menu, much of it spiked with Mediterranean or Asian flavors, such as pan-fried Falmouth scallops dressed with yuzu, purple shiso, and sanga radish. On the terrace, heaters and blankets keep the shivers away after the sun sets so you can stay put and finish that bottle of white wine being chilled in a plastic beach bucket.

Closed Mondays and for breakfast and lunch Thursday through Saturday in the off-season.

In the dining room of this traditional coaching inn, built in 1548 in the town where Wordsworth went to grammar school, the emphasis is on organic lake trout from Esthwaite Water, as well as local favorites such as wild Graythwaite estate pheasant, cured hams and Cumberland sausage, Herdwick lamb, local venison, haggis, black pudding, and fresh cheeses. The inn also rents 13 rooms and is a convenient base for exploring Near Sawrey (where Beatrix Potter lived), Esthwaite Water, Grizedale Forest, Claife Heights, and Tarn Hows.

If you keep hearing about the British gastropub phenomenon, this is a good place to see what the fuss is about. An alehouse since 1837, this modest-looking place was overhauled in 2002; it's now an open-plan, stone-walled nouveau pub with farmhouse tables and a big skylight. The monthly-changing, pan-Euro menus with daily specials are fresh and usually interesting (if egregiously spelled: beetroot-cumin "gazpatcio" and a "creviche" of salmon and scallops were on offer recently). Alongside the beers on tap—including Guinness, the Belgian white beer Leffe, and one or two "guest ales"—there's a good wine list.

This multimillion-pound collaboration between triple-Michelin laureate Pierre Gagnaire and Mourad Mazouz (owner of Momo, the groovy North African restaurant off Regent Street; 25 Heddon St., Piccadilly, W1; 44-207-434-4040; www.momoresto.com) has completely transformed a grand period building. The reinvented space—done up with a slightly weird modern interior and pitched to a rich, arty crowd—houses a bistro (The Gallery), a restaurant (The Library & Lecture Room), assorted bars, a nightclub, and a pâtisserie. Brace yourself: In the Library & Lecture Room—luxuriously upholstered with honey-colored quilted walls and bull's-eye mirrors—you'll run across probably the highest prices in London (expect to pay £500 for dinner for two if eating à la carte). Surrender to finely wrought dish-ettes: a charcuterie starter with silky goose foie gras; pigeon breast perfumed with juniper; langoustine four ways; veal sweetbreads; breast of Chalosse chicken poached in Mersault; partridge and wild boar; lobster tail with apple sauce. There are five different menus: from à la carte down to the plat du jour.

When Skylon opened in 2007 in Southbank Centre, the notoriously snippy London food press groused that its food didn't measure up to the view. More recent visits have revealed that the view over the Thames is as lovely as ever, and even better, Skylon's kitchen has learned from, or perhaps simply outlasted, its detractors. Finnish-born executive chef Helena Puolakka offers an elegant restaurant menu as well as a slightly less formal "grill" menu, both dominated by seafood. The best dishes are creative fish and vegetable preparations with bright, tangy sauces, like salmon with kohlrabi and tomato "petals," and pan-fried halibut with baby squid and chorizo. Some of Skylon's signature dishes bear a Scandinavian stamp, such as the gravlax and mackerel tartare. The atmosphere has a Nordic flavor as well, expressed in the Danish furniture and midcentury modern air of the wood, glass, and steel surroundings (themselves an homage to the original Skylon, a 1951 art installation that once stood on the site). Reserve ahead, but arrive early enough for a drink from the classic cocktail menu at the bar, to sip while watching the sun light up the river.—Siobhan Adcock

Open Mondays through Saturdays noon to 11 pm, Sundays noon to 10:30 pm.

There are two choices for dining at this 17th-century coaching inn. The more elegant St. Johns Restaurant offers panoramic views of St. Johns in the Vale and dishes made from the freshest of local ingredients. The popular lamb shank is marinated in Jennings bitter and accompanied with potatoes and seasonal root vegetables. In the more laid-back bar room, with ladder-back chairs under a beamed ceiling, you can nosh on traditional cod and chips or a local Borrowdale trout dish, accompanied by beer a Cumberland or Cockerhoop Ale. The inn also offers 17 rooms with original oak beams and Inglenook fireplaces. There is a separate poolroom with a big-screen TV for major sporting events.

St. Johns Restaurant open for dinner only; pub open for lunch and dinner.

A one-minute walk from the cathedral close is this bi-level bistro that many consider to be Norwich's best casual restaurant. With walls painted in National Trust colors (historically correct hues—a bit of a U.K. cliché, but still good-looking), pine farmhouse tables, bare floorboards, and leather chesterfield sofas in the upstairs bar, the ambience is laid-back—as is the kind, efficient service. Chef Brendan Ansbro's cooking is confident in the extreme: He pulls fresh, seasonal, local ingredients into slightly unusual combinations, such as salt and pepper fried squid with black bean dressing and crispy onions, or Haughley Farm chicken breast with pancetta ragout, wild mushrooms, chorizo, and cabbage and mash. Altogether, this jolly place typifies all that's good about "nouvelle Norfolk." Do reserve ahead, especially for weekends; it's popular.

Closed Sundays.

This traditional slate inn of 1872 occupies a fabulous location at the heart of the Langdales with views over Tilberthwaite fells. The popular stone-floored bar serves a wide selection of ales and whiskies, as well as good food. Edibles range from lunch at the bar—Cumberland sausages, roast ham, homemade fish-cakes—to dinner in the more refined restaurant, where a meal might consist of smoked breast of wood pigeon, a poached fillet of red sea bream in lemongrass and ginger, or roast leg of Lakeland lamb served with a garlic confit and mint-scented jus. Too full to move? There are also ten rooms and one self-catering cottage for rent.

Restaurant open for dinner only; bar open for lunch and dinner.

This suite of sunny rooms filled with farmhouse tables and Rajasthani doodads is so comfy you won't feel like leaving once the meal's done (and that may take a while; the servers here tend to be young and somewhat distracted). The food is exemplary, and all local. The beef was raised here on the surrounding estate of the Earl of Leicester; the game was shot here, and the oysters gathered from down the nearby shore, as was the samphire—a kind of wild seaside asparagus with a sadly short season (late spring). Some typical dishes: spaghetti with local crab, lemon, cream, and Parmesan; skate wing with fondant potato, baby leeks, capers, and aged balsamic vinegar; pan-fried calf's liver with parsley mash, crispy bacon, and maple syrup. There's also amazing fish and chips and kid-size miniburgers made of Holkham beef. Reservations are essential. The ten-room hotel upstairs is also recommended.

See funky young Devon in progress at this restaurant and bar that opened in 2003, largely to cater to the surfers who virtually own this beach. The interior reflects the restaurant's seaside setting, with beach scenes by local artists on the walls and salvaged driftwood tables and chairs. The food is hearty Euro-Brit-Asian: mussels marinière or with lemongrass and coconut; spicy beef salad with Thai dressing; linguine with clams, mussels, chili, and cherry tomatoes; grilled sea bass with fennel, orange, black olives, and basil. Then there are classic plateaux de fruits de mer and proper puddings like a summer fruit charlotte with clotted cream. On a fine day, after catching a wave (or after driving here), the bar and beachside terrace are as chill as Ocho Rios. Upstairs, there are even "surf shack"-style apartments you can stay in (Westbeach Studios; 44-1271-871-224; www.surfersworld.co.uk/hotela.htm).