The Tower Inn, Slapton, Kingsbridge, Devon
The Tower Inn at Slapton is the kind of place where you want to linger, where the charm and the relaxed atmosphere gets into your soul and makes you feel that all is good in the world. It’s certainly a far cry from the craziness of modern life – the setting is idyllic, right next to the ivy-clad ruins of an old chantry tower, hence the pub’s name. In fact, it was originally built to house the stonemasons who worked here, helping to build the chantry college that stood on this very spot for almost 200 years from 1373 until 1547 when it was destroyed in the Dissolution.
Remarkably, the kitchen has been out of order at The Tower Inn for a while, after it was completely destroyed in a fire. But the innovative chef has turned his talents to cooking outdoors over wood and coal fires, and going by the excellent food he turns out, he’s perfected his craft. On the nights they do food, they just offer a few dishes, rather than an extensive menu – things like whole cooked bream, lamb chops, and half a chicken with aioli, keeping it simple but letting the quality speak for itself, allowing people to come together to enjoy it while they chat. And of course, ingredients are carefully selected from the best that the area has to offer.
Inside is bursting with rustic charm – stone walls painted dark green, mismatched tables and chairs, big old settles and scrubbed pine table tops. In the colder months the log fire blazing in the wood-burner adds to the ambience and makes you want to hunker down and stay as long as you can. In the summer when it’s all bright and sunshiney, there’s no better place to be than in the garden at the back of the pub
If there are more than 6 of you and you want to eat here, give them a call and they’ll tailor a menu to what you want.
Open Thurs- Sat from 6:00pm and Sundays 12:00-3:00pm
T: 01548 580216
All information correct at the time of writing