Samphire
Whitstable, Kent
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There’s lots of love for this little high street restaurant. Well supported by locals – do book – it has all the hallmarks of a trusted neighbourhood eatery: warm, welcoming service, intimate but informal atmosphere and a snappy choice of seasonal dishes. Following the arrival of chef Mark O’Brien in 2022, there has been a shift of emphasis, with cooking over coals and whole animal butchery very much to the fore – but it is still all about good food, good wine and a good time. Dishes are chalked up on blackboards and feature specials from the Korno grill, say dry-aged porterhouse with salsa verde, a pork chop with corn and almond chilli oil or stone bass with lemon and caper butter. There’s also a market-driven, short-choice carte taking in anything from cured trout with pickled cucumber and crème fraîche to Samphire fish pie, as well as some good-value fixed-price menus. The set lunch, in particular, is a winner, and absolutely outstanding value when you consider plump grilled sardines with lemon oil, slow-braised venison with roast acorn squash heady with cumin, and a generous sticky toffee pudding with vanilla ice cream – plus a glass of house wine thrown in for good measure. Brunch is back on the agenda, too. Kentish wines feature on the short, very reasonably priced and predominantly European list, and there’s a good by-the-glass selection.
