6 Best Restaurants in The West Country, England

Seafood fans can indulge their passion at this unpretentious, convivial spot near the harbor; wood floors, colorful wall tiles, and an array of maritime knickknacks set the mood. Fresh, locally caught fish is brought to your table for inspection before being simply but imaginatively prepared. The extensive menu offers dishes ranging from humble—but abundant and beautifully cooked—fish-and-chips to lobster and crab grilled with garlic and brandy. There's a wine bar upstairs for a pre- or postprandial drink.

Just steps away from where the boats unload their daily catches, Rick Stein's modern and airy flagship restaurant has built its reputation on the freshest fish and the highest culinary artistry in town. The menu includes everything from grilled Padstow lobster with herbs and stir-fried Singapore chili crab to meat and vegetarian dishes. Choose between sitting either formally at a table or on a stool at the Seafood Bar. Guests at one of Stein's hotels can also book a table on the panoramic rooftop terrace—and a stay in one of the sunny, individually designed guest rooms overlooking the harbor is an enticing option if you don't feel like moving very far after your meal.

Overlooking Swanpool Beach a mile south of Falmouth, this popular eatery has a lively buzz and a menu that showcases the best seafood to be found in Cornish waters. Plump and juicy scallops from Falmouth Bay, mussels served with baked focaccia, wild prawns in 'nduja sauce, lobster with garlic and herb butter, crab risotto, and plain old fish-and-chips are among the favorite items on the family-friendly menu, while cocktails and mocktails can be ordered at the table or in the adjoining alfresco bar. Staff are young and enthusiastic, and the ambience is relaxed. Book a table on the outdoor terrace for the best experience—Pendennis Castle is visible just across the bay. Swanpool Beach is a stop on the Falmouth Coaster bus route.

One of the country's foremost chefs, Nathan Outlaw, has established a base in Port Isaac, where he has two top-notch seafood restaurants. The Fish Kitchen, right on the quay, is the more casual of the two, occupying a 15th-century fisherman’s cottage with just eight tables and the three-course fixed-price menu (£88 per person) features the freshest seafood available, all creatively prepared and sustainably sourced. Your meal might include monkfish satay with peanuts and lime or cured gurnard with sweet potato, chili, and coriander. The smarter, roomier, and pricier Outlaw's New Road at the top of the village also serves a set seafood menu for lunch and dinner at £105 per person (Tuesday through Saturday). No children under 10 are allowed in either restaurant.

Unbeatable for its location alone—on the broad, golden sands of Porthminster Beach—this sleek, modern eatery prepares imaginative lunches and evening meals that you can savor while you take in the marvelous vista across the bay. The accent is on Mediterranean and Asian seafood dishes, and typical choices include sea bass fillet with local asparagus and a sauce vierge, Indonesian monkfish curry, and roasted duck breast with baked beetroot, burnt orange, and gin sauce. There's a gin bar and outdoor kitchen too—a tempting stop on a sunny day for breakfast, a snack, or just a drink—and two sister restaurants (Porthminster Kitchen on the harborside and Porthgwidden Beach Restaurant, in the Downalong neighborhood) have smaller and cheaper menus that are equally strong on seafood.

In a prime riverside location, this seafood restaurant epitomizes the region's ongoing food revolution. The knowledgeable staff guides diners through the Italian-inspired menu, which primarily depends on the day's catch: look for scallops with garlic and white port, spaghetti con aragosta (with local lobster and datterini tomatoes), or Dover sole or gurnard grilled over charcoal. Leave room for the formidable desserts, too, such as panna cotta with prunes and Armagnac. Set-price menus are sometimes available, and Joe's Bar, attached to the restaurant, offers a good range of wines, locally distilled gin, and cocktails. The owner, celebrity-chef Mitch Tonks, also runs a much more basic fish-and-chips restaurant a few doors along called RockFish, open daily.