The Jetty

Spring has finally taken hold, the bluebells have carpeted the woods and the daffodils and snowdrops have come and gone. Our thoughts turn to the sea, to warm days on the water, sitting on the sand and watching the sea birds wheel and the small boats bob. Biding our time until high summer when we get our annual break and sea-food, fresh sea food. Oysters, mussels, crab, lobster, fish...

We had an early taster of what is to come in Honfleur this March; where around the harbour restaurants, bistro's and cafes crowd, enticing you in with the promise of beautifully cooked, moules marniere, simmering in cream and butter, the aroma wafting in the warm french spring air. It was an all too brief pit-stop.

We have travelled to Whitstable to the Crab & Winkle, to Wheelers Oyster Bar and to The Pearson's Arms to sate our love of sea-food; we love The Oyster Shack and the Beach Hut in South Devon and so it was a pleasant suprise to hear that much closer to home, in Mudeford that the Christchurch Harbour Hotel has opened 'The Jetty'. I am pleased to say it was everything we hoped, and if you're there for lunch, you can pop over to the harbour and buy some fresh crab or fish, or a plate of winkles to take home afterwards and prolong the pleasure. The menu is a feast of local produce and sumptuous dishes and the restaurant looks out over the harbour through big bright windows with kayaks and wind surfers sweeping past in an ever-changing sea-scape. The Chef most certainly knows his fish from his onions, we enjoyed lobster, scallops, oysters and even a duck dish; we could have eaten our way through the entire menu, had wealth and time allowed. It was a wonderful treat and another all too brief delight to keep us ticking over until summer.