After returning to Topsham on the 4pm ferry from Turf Lock we got our friend Rosemary to Topsham Station for her train to Exmouth (thanks Fiona) and then walked back down through the town to the river. I'd hoped that we could have a nice relaxing drink by the riverside at the Passage House Inn, but the pink-shirted Marine/commando stag party that we had met on the ferry back were there, so we continued on to the quay for a couple of pints of Hall & Woodhouse's Badger First Gold at the Lighter Inn.
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| The Lighter Inn, Topsham |
Sitting outside the Lighter Inn in what had become quite hot sunshine (yes - we forgot the suncream again) we were attempting to complete the Independent crossword but got a bit disatracted when the Marine/commando stag party turned-up - somewhat noisily. They drifted off to the next pub after a while, and Graham and Belinda came down to join us for a drink. In the meantime, I had managed to book a table for later in the evening at the nearby Galley restaurant, which is reputed to be the best restaurant in Topsham (according to TripAdvisor).
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| The Galley, Fore St., Topsham |
Andrew:
- Seared Scallops with roast Squash Puree, Pipers Farm Pork Belly, crisp Proscuito and Exmouth Clams
- Skate with saffron risotto, wild mushrooms
- Orange Blossom Panna Cotta with White Rum, Passion Fruit and Blood Orange reduction
- Exmouth Crab, Salmon and Prawns with Beetroot Gazpacho and Jelly of Tuscan Olive Oil
- Brill and Scallops with Celeriac Mash, Caviar, Five Onion Compote and Nasi Goreng Butter Sauce
- Exeter Pudding – Light Apricot Sponge with an Amaretto Crumble, Sauternes Fruit Compote and Vanilla Custard
Wine: Chablis, Saint Martin Domaine Laroche (£37)
Total cost: £112 for two.
I really liked my starter - I had been itching to have scallops for ages, and these worked really well with the pork belly and squash puree. I'm not sure that the clams really added much to it though. The skate was really good too - fairly thin slivers of fillet on a deliciously savoury bed of saffron risotto and wild mushrooms. Dave's brill was pretty tasty too, and he got more scallops as well! The desserts were good, but perhaps did not really live-up to the expectation.
Afterwards, we met-up with John & Fiona, Sonny and Graham at the Lighter for a late night drink. We had quite a good chat, including reminiscing about life in Hatfield 35 years ago, and John's more recent trip to South America.
Not wanting to go straight to bed, I strolled town to the Passage House Inn for a last pint of Otter sitting down by the river. Some of the Polish bar/kitchen staff were there, and I was somewhat surprised to witness them being given their tips for the night by the manager. This comprised a few coins literally wrapped in a screwed-up £5 note. One of them counted - £7.65. He didn't seem particularly disappointed, so I assume that they do actually get a basic wage (and quite right too).
On the way back to the apartment I noticed how clear the night sky was, and how full of stars. Even somewhere like Topsham, where there are plenty of street lights and some quite bright floodlights around the quay area, there are thousands more stars than you get to see in London - you could even make out the Milky Way - just.
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