Touring houses and gardens on the way to Canterbury, we stopped for lunch at The Bell in Ticehurst, another traditional pub but with some modern twists.
Stanley had bangers and mash, and I chose to have 2 appetizers instead of a main course, as they had softshell crab tacos. These turned out to be very good, and plenty to eat. With beer, coffees and service the total was 65 GBP.
Arriving in Canterbury, we settled into the Chaucer Hotel, which is now a Travelodge. Canterbury doesn’t have much to offer in the way of serious restaurants so we had to do a bit of driving in the evenings. Monday’s dinner was at the Whitstable Oyster Company, a 20-minute drive away in Whitstable.
I started with local oysters and Stanley with fried squid, followed by a dressed crab for him and whole roasted bream for me. Everything was extremely fresh and perfectly done. With a bottle of rose, the total was 136 GBP.
For Monday lunch I chose Fish on the Green in Bearsted, close to Leeds Castle, which we visited in the morning. This was a great choice. I began with fish cakes, Stanley with crab and tomato soup. Then I had plaice and he had hake. We shared a coconut parfait for dessert. With a bottle of rose, coffees and service, the total was 105 GBP. It gets very busy, so reservations are strongly recommended.
https://www.fishonthegreen.com/
Back in Canterbury, we drove a few miles to The Dog in Wingham for dinner.
The food was very good. I started with smoked burrata and tomatoes, and can’t recall Stanley’s starter. He then had roast lamb and I had pork belly. We shared a raspberry and frangiapane tart. With a bottle of wine, the total was 140 GBP.
The next day we had lunch at Dunkerley’s in Deal. It’s a lovely restaurant facing the sea, and they have a bargain lunch deal at 19.95 GBP for 2 courses.
I had a whole grilled mackerel to start. Stanley had chicken liver pate. The mackerel could have been a main course, and was delicious. He then had fish and chips and I had slow-cooked lamb shoulder, which was a huge portion but I managed to finish it because it was so good. With a bottle of rose and coffees, the total was only 66 GBP.
Our final meal in England was at the Fordwich Arms, a very short drive from Canterbury, where the food was absolutely fabulous, every bit as good as what we had on Sunday at The Pass, but not nearly as expensive.
3 courses are 75 GBP and a 5-course tasting is 125 (better to just order the 3-course and share dishes, just as much food for much less moey and not limited to the choices on the tasting).
We started with the scallop and duck liver parfait, then had the lamb and the suckling pig. For dessert we had the plum tart and the raspberry parfait. With wine and service the total was 225 GBP and well worth it.
A full report on the restaurants, with photos, and our house and garden tours, is on my blog:
