Review
The Bonaparte Restaurant, The Berry Head Hotel, Brixham

The location of The Berry Head Hotel and its Bonaparte Restaurant offers the most inspiring views of the English Riviera. Sitting on a cliff, it’s an important wildlife site, being part of the Berry Head National Nature Reserve.

We arrived early evening to find the bar buzzing with locals and visitors, enjoying the air of luxury that the hotel’s comfortable interior and prominent position affords.

Once settled in the restaurant with a table by the window, we ordered drinks and perused the Table d’Hôte dinner menu. As we sipped on a cold crisp Chablis, we were presented with an amuse-bouche: a black olive tapenade that was roughly chopped for texture, with a smooth, salty pork mousse.

For starters, I chose the handpicked Brixham crab with celeriac remoulade, pickled fennel and saffron emulsion. Deliciously light, it was a true taste of the seaside. For the main course, my brill was pleasure on a plate! Its crispy skin and succulent flesh were perfectly matched with the cavolo nero, smoked salmon potato cake, and tomato and olive salsa. The brill was landed at Brixham Harbour, which you can just about see from the window. Knowing its local provenance made it taste even better.

Andrew had the red mullet starter and raved about its meaty flavours, highlighted by a salty-sweet chorizo jam. To follow, he chose the pork belly with braised pig cheek and tenderloin that was served on a rich truffle pomme purée with ruby kale; all hearty flavours that hit the right notes.

To round off a very pleasant evening, we chose an indulgent chocolate torte and an espresso. Delicious!