John Dory Wine
Sandgate, Kent
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With its buzzy atmosphere and enthusiastic staff, this contemporary bottle shop, wine bar and sharing-plates eatery feels like a real treat. Set in a parade of shops within sniffing distance of the English Channel, the tiny venue is a joint venture from the team behind the Space Bar & Kitchen in Folkestone and wine experts Louisa Walls and Zeren Wilson. With its basic decor and close-packed tables, it puts wine front and centre – the walls are lined with bottles and the set-up is, first and foremost, a wine emporium. It's somewhere for those who want to drink well for not too much money and embrace quality wines slightly outside the norm. There’s a daily changing blackboard of wines by the glass including, on our visit, a fabulous MIP Côte de Provence rosé for £7.50, as well as platters of cured meats and cheeses, bread from the excellent Docker Bakery in West Hythe, sausage rolls, exemplary tinned fish and Spanish Bonilla crisps. The place doesn't have a kitchen, everything on the menu is outsourced – and it's impeccable sourcing, extending to frequent appearances from a locally made curried goat pie and a superb pâté en croûte. In addition, it’s worth looking out for regular evenings from Alkham Valley Pizza and special pop-ups from restaurants such as Kensington’s Kitchen W8. Service is just right – keen, smiling, efficient and casual, but knowledgeable too.
