Our Inspector's View

It’s not often that new country house hotels hit the headlines with such a bang, but when a chef of Michael Caines MBE’s stature is the driving force behind the operation, the hospitality world sits up and takes notice. While Lympstone Manor is hardly ‘new’ – it’s a creamy-white, Grade II, Georgian manor built by the Baring banking dynasty – it has been transformed by Michael Caines’s vision and now stands proud, a gorgeous building with sublime views over the Exe estuary, set in 28 acres of grounds that were planted with a vineyard in 2018 to produce sparkling wine. The place delivers everything you’d hope from a country house given a stylish 21st-century twist: comfort and sheer class are delivered in equal measure throughout the public areas, the styling working a treat thanks to soft-focus hues, hand-painted wallpapers, designer chandeliers and modern artworks, and the mood is intimate and unbuttoned. Elegant and outstanding cuisine, augmented by a significant 600-bin wine list, underpin the Lympstone experience, served in three exquisite dining rooms, where the service tone is the same throughout, friendly, engaging and completely devoid of reverentially hushed tones. The cooking delivers a seamless blend of classical technique and precision with contemporary riffs on flavour and texture, opening with cannelloni of basil pasta, filled with sweet langoustine and supported by fennel purée and the sharp kiss of sauce vièrge to counter a creamy langoustine bisque. Following that, salt cod is married with paprika, crab, samphire and chorizo, an explosion of flavours reined in by the acidity of lemon, while butter-poached Brixham turbot with scallop, leek terrine, cep purée and chive and truffle butter sauce is a dish of silky panache and top-flight technical know-how. Things end with a theme on apple – feather-light mousse, jelly, sorbet, crisps, crumble and caramelised apple purée, all highlighted by vanilla foam.

Awards, Accolades & welcome Schemes

5 Rosette Award for Culinary Excellence