I thought I'd do something a little different tonight and share some of the incredible meals we have been enjoying whilst holidaying in the UK. Coming from Adelaide in South Australia where we have a pretty solid food-culture I didn't really know what to expect from the food here in England however I have to say it has really surprised me from a quality and creativity perspective. Below are images of some of our meals. My apology for not being able to remember all the fine details about each one; When I eat I don't tend to record the ingredients. So...Here goes.

This was tonights meal at a pub in Wells, Somerset called The Crown just a stone's throw away from the magnificent Wells Cathedral. It was slow-cooked beef brisket with hand-cut chips covered in gravy, wilted kale, snow peas and baby carrots on a bed of beetroot and caramelised onions. One word: Superb, and all for the low price of just under 17 pounds!

Next up is a little after-dinner cheeseboard featuring cheeses all made locally in or around Falmouth, Cornwall. This was served by our friends after a spectacular dinner (which you will see later) and was a taste sensation! Clockwise from the round cheese with the red knife in it is: Helford camambert, Cornish yarg with nettle leaf rind, Cornish gouda and lastly Cornish blue cheese. All tasted spectacular and together with a glass of Merlot made for a splendid evening. (Oh yes, in case you are wondering, you eat the nettle leaf rind. So good!)

I've written about this one before, the Cornish pasty. This ingenious meal was originally brought to the Cornish miners during their work day by their wives or sisters. As the miners would have very dirty hands the side braid of pastry was designed as a handle to be used to eat the pasty and then would be thrown away. So clever. These days that braid of pastry is one of the most desirable parts! This one was purchased and eaten in a little fishing village called Porthleven, Cornwall...I have eaten way too many Cornish pasty's...But not enough! :)

In the lovely little town of Tavistock, Devon we stayed at a B&B in a 600 year old ex-monastery. The owner directed us to a little pub an easy six-minute walk away called the Whitchurch Inn. The dish you see in the foreground is homemade steak and jail ale pie served with chips, seasonal vegetables and gravy. TO...DIE...FOR! Trust me. This was spectacular!

The other dish in the background was my wife Faith's meal of cod on a bed of ratatouille and potatoes. Also very good.

Whilst on the fishy-theme below is a trio of fish Faith ordered in the lovely little harbour village of Boscastle, Cornwall. The Riverside was our accomodation and we ate our meals there also. This dish included cod, sea bass and haddock served on a bed of spring-onion mashed potatoes and vegetables and a cheese sauce. I didn't try any myself but she didn't leave any on the plate so let's assume it was awesome.

Below is my meal from the same night in Boscastle. This was a combination of chicken and beef strips they called cock and bull on the menu. It was quite a simple dish with the meat served in a thick and creamy gravy alongside horseradish mashed potatoes and roasted vegetables. Simple in concept but quite scrumdidlyumptious in delivery.

Ok, it's time to take it old-school now...

To the right is your typical good old-fashioned fish and chips. We ate this meal in a fish and chip shop in Bideford, right opposite the river. My meal was the lower plate with cod, chips and garden peas. Faith had the fisherman's basket including haddock, panko prawns and squid. The third plate to the left is deep-fried camembert cheese served with a spicy plum sauce (just off camera) and salad.

This meal cost us 25 pounds all up with two drinks. Not too bad I think!

To one side of the restaurant they had a take away shop and over the hour or so we were there we saw a constant stream of customers, sometimes lined up out the door, to order. Popular little spot and rightly so. The meals were pretty good and we thought very well-priced also.

OK, considering I mentioned camembert cheese in the meal above let's stay on that theme. The dish below was a bit of a surprise. Faith and I took our friends, and hosts during our stay in Cornwall, to a thatch-roofed pub called the Punchbowl and Ladle for a last-night-there dinner. The pub is a very homely, welcoming place and one feels instantly comfortable once inside. We ordered our meals including the dish you see below which Faith and I ordered for our starter's. (One each). When they arrived and we saw how big they were we just looked at each other and said WTF!

What you are looking at is an entire round of camembert cheese crumbed (breaded, they call it) and deep fried. It's served hot on a bed of salad with cranberry sauce and some bread. We have had similar meals before (deep fried camembert, but never did they bring out a whole one! Anyway, I ate all of mine (yep, what a pig), and Faith cut her's up and shared with the other two at the table who were trying to get through their own starter's of quite large prawn cocktails.

Speaking of our hosts, G and T, we were overwhelmed with their hospitality and largesse; They were the perfect hosts and we are very grateful. The first night we arrived they prepared the meal you see below which was salmon on a bed of baked vegetables (carrot's, onion's, potato's and roasted garlic) served with snow peas and garlic bread! This was the meal that preceded the cheese platter you saw above. It was a lovely meal made better by sharing it with the best company!

OK, so I don't want to bore you too much with all the food we have eaten, but I wanted to show you a selection. It has been a revelation really; The way they source local produce and present it to diners with flair and interest. There's nothing super-complicated as far as preparation but the quality of the food and the interesting, often subtle ways it is put together speaks highly of the food-culture here. We are impressed!

Thanks for reading.

Faith & Galen x