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| The Clinton Arms, Littleham, Exmouth, Devon |
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Clinton Arms, Littleham, Exmouth After a few weeks away from wot-lunching, a 9 month pregnant Kirsten and I, had what might be our last lunch together, the next time hopefully she will be bringing her baby. We went to the Clinton Arms, which had a garden and was great for a sunny day like today. For lunch I had chilli and rice, which was nice, though a little expensive, £7 ish. Kirsten had a ‘hammy’ – ham, eggs and chips, which was very large and tasty, though also a little expensive. The pub had quite a local atmosphere out of season, but as it was on the way to the Exmouth resort of Sandy Bay, it would probably be very busy in the summer. LWL score: 8/10
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| The Famous Ship, High Street, Exmouth, Devon |
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Jean and myself (Rachel) decided to go to the relatively newly refurbished pub The Famous Ship. The décor was light and airy and it was a huge pub, with loads of nooks and crannies. There was quite a large selection on the menu. As it was a cold day, I opted for the Sausage Yorkie, which consisted of 3 pork and leek sausages, peas, mash and red onion gravy, served in a large Yorkshire pudding. This was very warming and tasty. Jean had a tuna and cheese melted sandwich with delicious fries. The food was very good and moderately priced (roughly £5 each). Definitely worth another visit! LWL score: 9/10
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| Double Locks, Exeter, Devon |
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A group of us went to The Double Locks pub in Exeter. There are a few ways to get there, you could drive through an industrial estate and then over a very narrow bridge; walk from Exeter; or canoe down the Exeter Canal from the Quay. My friends chose the latter. We had children with us, so we sat outside on the decking by the canal, where there is a large adventure playground for them to play on. The food was of a varied standard. Two of us had ciabattas with roasted vegetables and mozarrella which were very good. One of us had mushrooms cooked in stilton, which was very sickly as the mushrooms were literally swimming in fat, and so couldn’t be finished. The children had sausages and either roast potatoes or mash, the sausages were lovely and herby, and of course, my little ice cream tester had chocolate with wafers, which was excellent (as usual)! The prices were about mid range, everything around £5. The Double Locks is an unusual pub, which you either love or hate. The patrons are a mixture of boaties/canoeists; businessmen from the industrial estate; packs of children on outdoor pursuits courses; ‘green’ families and the locals. It is certainly an interesting place to eat, especially in the summer as they have barbecues and camping facilities, with links across the water by ferry to Topsham. LWL score: 7/10
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| Nutwell Lodge, Lympstone, Devon |
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Kirsten and I went to the Nutwell Lodge, which is just down the road from Lympstone Commando Barracks. It is a carvery/pub, but the majority of people go there to eat, as it is reknown in the area for having excellent food at a good price. Kirsten and I both had the carvery, you can have a choice of meats: turkey, pork, lamb or beef – all of which are huge joints, no reconstituted meat in sight! I had a couple of slices of each meat. After you have got this, you move along a long line of vegetables and can help yourself, the list is huge: roast potatoes, Yorkshire puddings, new potatoes, cabbage, carrots, swede, red cabbage and cheesy leeks. You can also help yourself to meat gravy, bread sauce, cranberry sauce, mint sauce, horseradish sauce and stuffing. You can pile your plate as high as you like! We both thoroughly enjoyed our meal, but we had no room left for pudding, which was a shame as the choice here was massive too: gateaux, cheesecakes, steamed puddings and ice creams. The price in the week is very good value: £11 for two people. Children are welcome here, and there is a separate kids’ menu. I can thoroughly recommend the Nutwell Lodge and believe it is well worth a visit! LWL score: 9/10
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