Once known for soggy portions of fish and chips in newspaper, the food scene of Britain’s seaside towns has improved drastically over the past few years, with gourmet coastal spots now attracting foodies from across the country.
And for travellers looking to sample the best food and drink available in Britain’s seaside towns, the latest survey from Which? can reveal that Cornwall and Kent are the hottest spots on the map.
Four Cornish towns scored full marks for their food and drink offerings.
The impressive spots are Falmouth, Looe, Padstow and St Ives.
Padstow is particularly renowned for its Michelin-starred seafood restaurant, Paul Ainsworth at No6 and Ci Ci’s Bar.
The Cornish triumph was matched only by four seaside towns on the Kent coast: Broadstairs, Deal, Folkestone and Whitstable, all of which were also awarded five stars.
But according to the survey, conducted annually by the consumer champion, the culinary prowess of the UK’s seaside towns is not limited to the south of England.
28 destinations across the UK were named five-star foodie spots, meaning travellers can sample excellent seafood or gourmet fish and chips wherever they are on the coast.
Seaside town Broadstairs is one of four Kentish spots rated five stars for food and drink by consumer champion Which? in their annual survey
Holidaymakers try the culinary offerings of the Sloop Inn in popular seaside destination, St Ives, Cornwall
While often overlooked by tourists, north-eastern seaside towns Tynemouth, Whitby, Whitley Bay and Amble were all awarded five stars for food and drink.
Tynemouth also received full marks for its golden sandy beaches, where Which? recommends trying the seafood bowls from Riley’s Fish Shack, on King Edward’s Bay.
Wales also performed well, with popular family destination Tenby receiving five stars for both its foodie spots and attractive beaches.
Which? recommends Sandbar, a craft beer and street food restaurant as a great lunch spot among the town’s pastel-coloured houses and trendy shops.
Welsh seaside towns Beaumaris, Llandudno and Aberaeron also earned five stars for their food and drink.
However, for other UK seaside towns, the results of the survey were not so tasty.
Six seaside destinations across the UK earned only a single star, including West Sussex resort Bognor Regis – named the UK’s worst seaside town in another recent Which? poll.
The resort earned a paltry one-star rating in most categories, including ‘Food and drink’, ‘Value for money’ and ‘Scenery’.
The survey, released in June, asked 3,800 participants about their experience of 118 British coastal spots.
The popular West Sussex resort of Bognor Regis finished in last place in Which?’s poll of the UK’s best and worst seaside towns
Known for its coastal promenade, quaint beach huts and traditional arcade games, Bognor Regis has attracted beachgoers since its establishment as a resort in 1784.
However, the Which? report it described by one visitor as being simply: ‘a run-down seaside town’ and received a destination score of just 36 per cent.
Many of the UK’s better-known seaside towns performed poorly in this year’s survey; Skegness and Blackpool earned 54 per cent and 48 per cent destination ratings respectively, both winning only one-star for their scenery.
Bamburgh in Northumberland retained its place as the nation’s favourite coastal destination for the fifth year in a row.
