Lathwells

Lathwells is a welcome addition to the delightful town of Bideford where, despite an injunction to book a table in the front of the restaurant 'and watch the town buzz with excitement', one enjoys a rather more relaxed pace to that in some of our other country towns.

Specialities of the house are local fish, meat and produce and owner John Emms is enthusiastic to the point of devotion over the sourcing of his materials. In fact Lathwells pays heed to so many of the practises that many look for in a favourite restaurant, such as homemade dishes, even down to the bread, your own table for the evening, frequent menu changes, taxis arranged to collect you from the door, 30 covers only, private function room for 10, buzz at the front, romance at the back of the restaurant. Just great!

Which brings us to the food with a typical meal starting along the lines of prawn risotto with lobster sauce, or a pancake filled with mushrooms, Devon cheese and white wine sauce, followed by slow cooked beef with bacon, mushroom and red wine sauce and mash with more than a dash of horseradish to add sparkle. Sea bass is served with garlic butter or lobster and brandy sauce, or perhaps the black bream with garlic butter or cream and spinach appeals more. You might even find yourself sitting next to the gardener who grew some of the five local vegetables that come with every main course, together with potatoes or salad.

Puddings of Grand Marnier crème brûlée or chocolate and rum pudding bring to a close a thoroughly satisfying meal that achieves an excellent level or presentation, suggesting infinite care in the preparation.

Smooth service, an impeccable wine list and table furnishings that are elegantly simple all contribute to making this a place not to be missed.

Lathwells is very conscious of its place in the community and every year adopts a local charity. In 2005 they raised £1250 for Care Watch, as a result of which 49 local children had a wonderful day out at Longleat - with pocket money to spend!

Click on their friendly Website to learn more about John Emms's background, particularly with Waitrose, where he learned how to deploy what he acknowledges as their totally ethical approach to the food chain from start to finish.