The Salutation Inn Restaurant

The great thing about pubs that close down is that they're often re-born as something better, and arguably that's the case with the Salutation Inn, a café and restaurant that has risen from this old Topsham pub. It's a restaurant with rooms basically, but (although the rooms are lovely) the emphasis is probably on the food, and above all fine dining, with local chef Tom Williams-Hawkes using everything he learned under Michael Caines at Gidleigh Park to create a menu that's both refined and tasty, and makes the most of the fantastic produce that's available on the doorstep. There is a choice of three menus, which change weekly, ranging from a regular 4-course menu (with choices) to 6 and 8 course tasting menus, and prices are very reasonable considering the quality of the food. If you can't stretch to the restaurant, just enjoy breakfast, lunch or a cream tea in the bright and airy Glasshouse café, whose pastries and cakes are sublime; they offer light lunches during the week, including a prix-fixe menu for £19.50 (for 2 courses) and decent and very popular roasts on Sunday lunchtimes.