We spent the long Easter weekend in the beautiful Devon surfing village of Croyde.
We’ve been to Croyde many times before to ‘hang 10’ (or just hang out) and on this trip we were joined by my husband’s cousin and his wife.
We hadn’t seen them since our wedding last August and the weekend was a huge ‘thank you’ to Mark for being such a superstar DJ for us. He truly rocked the Tuscan hills that weekend!
We rented the fabulously quaint Victoria Cottage.
The cottage (Grade II listed) had 2 bedrooms and 2 lovely bathrooms. It was kitted out to a very high standard and really exceeded my expectations for holiday cottage rental. Outside was a gorgeous courtyard garden which came complete with all the essentials – a line for drying wetsuits and the all important BBQ!
The cottage was located in the centre of Croyde village but along a small lane so no passing traffic. At the end of the lane was a lovely thatched cottage (Victoria Cottage is just on the left of this photo):
Renting a cottage (rather than staying in a hotel or B&B) really worked on this trip, and not just because of our surf gear! Having our own kitchen meant I could really be in control of my food, especially breakfast.
I find in the UK this is the hardest meal to find options from. The breakfast options offered by most hotels usually extend to cereals, toast and a full English fry up, which obviously doesn’t leave many gluten free options to choose from. At least abroad I can have an omelette or some yummy fruit and yoghurt.
In the evenings we identified 4 options in the village. 2 of the 3 village pubs were out since their menu did not extend beyond pizza / baguettes / (wheat) nachos.
Instead we chose to eat at the Blue Groove where they played some very cool tunes and I enjoyed a great meal but one too manu Wokka Saki cocktails since I’m struggling to remember what I ate. Oops!
The following night we ate at The Manor where I enjoyed some grilled Cornish sardines (lush) and a lovely lamb shank. Like at the Blue Groove, the waitress at The Manor was exceptionally helpful in making sure I avoided gluten.
I always find it encouraging when the wait staff say they’ll “check with the chef”, and not “check with the kitchen”. Several of the meal’s components were removed and exchanged and I’m very grateful for their attentive service.
Next time I’m in Croyde, I will be going back to both The Manor and the Blue Groove.
Gluten Free Mrs D