A low-key beach kitchen wedged between the hills above the sandy
cove of Porthcurnick, this sage-green-painted shack is the go-to
shoreside eatery of choice for walkers traipsing along the South
West Coast Path. Stop off for an energy-giving lunch of crab
sandwiches, Cornish pasties and seafood chowder, or bag a ticket to
one of The Hidden Hut’s summer feasts. Seated at banqueting tables
along the beach, you’ll be tucking into piled-high platters of
seafood and vast paellas peppered with crustacean claws. It’s the
fare of world leaders – quite literally. Simon Stallard and his
team were pitmasters for the 2021 G7 summit’s Cornwall adventures,
serving flame-licked seafood to the likes of Macron, Merkel and
Biden.

This quietly acclaimed seafood restaurant sits a five-minute ferry ride away
from the flashy Sandbanks stretch of the Dorset coastline. Located
on the deceptively named Isle of Purbeck (it’s actually a
peninsula), the restaurant is surrounded by shallow waters and
glittering sunset views across to Brownsea Island. A team change a
few years ago has amped up the menu: start with a pink grapefruit,
lime and tequila wild sea bass ceviche, then dive into fire-roasted
hake doused in a roasted chicken-butter sauce, with charred leeks
and a pesto crumb. The special here is the Dorset blue lobster,
flashed in the flames before serving.

Welsh beaches exceed expectations, from Barafundle Bay’s
expansive golden slope and the tide-shaped splay of Saundersfoot to
Llandudno’s prim and proper Victorian promenade, the country is
edged with beautiful stretches of coast, and – the icing on the
cake – some of the UK’s best restaurants. Our favourite? This
sophisticated eatery, which straddles Oxwich Bay’s golden crescent,
on the western Gower Peninsula. Duo Neil Kedward and Zoe Agar’s
third venture, Beach House, is so close to the shore that sand creeps
up under the door. Chef Hywel Griffith runs the kitchen, sending
out a menu bursting with the best of the area’s natural larder.
Plates make use of shoreside ingredients and foraged finds from the
low-slung hills at the restaurant’s back. Expect Glamorgan butter
slathered over slices of laverbread loaf and sweet Oxwich Bay
lobster served with sea purslane, wild garlic and rock
samphire.

Perched atop the shingled expanse of Lyme Bay’s beach, this
waterside spot provides front-row seats to the fishing boats busy
catching tomorrow’s menu in the western end of the English Channel.
The café has been plating up hand-picked Portland crab
bubble and squeak and kippers from Chesil Smokery for over 30
years, so you can be sure these guys know what they’re doing. Stop
by for breakfast, before hitting the waves with your paddleboard,
then head back at noon to refuel on crab-clawed seafood platters
and some of the best fish and chips in the county.

Sheltered beneath the cliffs of King Edward’s Bay, this rustic
barbecue
joint has been making waves. Opened by chef Adam Riley and his
wife, Lucy, its relaxed flame-cooking and laid-back deckchair
dining have made the humble spot a destination in itself, bringing
visitors from near and far to the edge of lesser-visited Northumberland. Don’t expect
silver service, but do look forward to the likes of chargrilled
monkfish fresh from the fire, lobster charred in its shell and
butterflied mackerel and squid plucked from their skewers and
tucked into takeaway cardboard boxes. Devour with your toes in the
sand, and wash down with a local beer.

Pick up a strong coffee to fuel a morning stroll across the
expansive butter-coloured sands and rocky fringes of South Milton
from this rustic beach café, whose crab rolls make a top-notch
pre-amble snack. Open early till late (11pm), Beachhouse’s casual
menu is all about the fruits of the sea, with bang bang
chilli-laced jumbo prawns, smoky fish cakes, fish finger butties
and cheesy chips taking centre stage. Grab a seat at a picnic bench
to savour top-class Devonshire seafood done simply throughout the
day.

Moules-frites eaten on a harbour pontoon only accessible by
boat? This one’s right up our street. While The Mussel Shoal
might not strictly be beachside, given it’s over-water, we’ll let
it slide. This recent opening in Porthleven is all about the
experience: chowing down on crispy salt-and-pepper squid,
comforting chowder and steaming bowls of garlic-spiked Cornish
mussels on a balmy summer’s evening, floating between the twinkling
lights of the fishing boats that pulled in your dinner. If you’re
more comfortable on terra firma, the hut in the harbour has
seating, too, but a group booking out at sea is just more exciting,
right?