River Cottage Canteen and Deli, Axminster

It was another year and another birthday for me. We tend to like to go away for my birthday, sample a little bit of boutique luxury and of course good food on our travels, both international and national. It was with this in mind that we headed to one of my most favourite haunts to stay in the west country, the Lord Poulett Arms, a bijou slice of serenity the tiny little village of Hinton St George. From here, we can roam the gorgeous coastal towns of the UK, which include Lyme Regis and Seatown. On this occasion, special as it was, we booked into Hugh’s decadent River Cottage Canteen in Axminster for a very special birthday lunch indeed.

 

With a clientele made up of local residents, business people, tourists and artists, the clean, modern space must bustle from dawn till dark. From the sleek open kitchen comes an eclectic mix of modern British cuisine, expertly prepared using locally sourced ingredients and complemented by an array of interesting blends of juices. All the food is produced in-house daily and many of the fine ingredients can also be purchased at the deli .

 

We had booked in advance and of course arrived as eager as little beavers to start munching down on a trio of small plates, which as it was a Monday, were on a fabulous lunch time offer at only £10.  With ‘Veg Everyday’ in my mind, I was delighted to see that the individual small dishes were indeed made from the seasonal and I made my very easy choice of three dishes of roasted cauliflower with cumin and yoghurt and flatbread, beetroot and carrot with grapefruit and raw oyster mushrooms with barley and goats curd.

Gipsy Spread was equally spoilt for choice, he followed suit with the cauliflower, but then went down his own route with the ham hock crumble and the merguez sausage meatballs and hummus. The food was more than enough for us and so fresh and satisfying. Particularly, as we could see that we were eating low carb. You know how I like to ‘carb dodge’ if at all possible.

After a moodling along our lunch time, we paid our bargain bill, thanked all the gracious staff and left contented in the knowledge that that was a good birthday lunch. Customers are guaranteed to come away with a smile on their face, a comfortably full stomach and a wallet that hasn’t taken a battering.  Thanks Hugh for your great efforts on this amazingly simple dining concept that caters for meat eaters and veggies alike and to the purse strings of the masses.