Harbour inn in East Devon

I've been popping in this pub for years on and off for years as a ' tourist ' I just wanted a snack with a lunchtime beer, I saw pork crackling, perfect... I bid farewell to my £5-50 and was looking forward to my pork crackling with paprika salt on a bed of apple. I got half a packet of near stale pork crunch on some cold apple sauce... The lovely lady who served me looked embarrassed to put it on the table. I don't usually do reviews like this but sometimes I feel I have to.. come on Harbour inn... really!! ... One of the previous times I was there I found a slug in my lettuce ... The guy who was working there at the time reimbursed me, I don't know his name but he was in there this lunch time, I believe he, and/or his partner works at the picture house. .. I'm not trying to go out of my way to make an issue but just commenting on my experiences in there ..

Just what we needed after a blustery damp walk around the estuary. Nice and chilled this lunchtime the staff are friendly and the food was delicious!

A really good pub with great fresh food. Perfect after going to the Seaton wetlands. it's a good family pub.

A really lovely village pub. The staff were really friendly and helpful. A good selection of drinks and a good menu. We had the venison cottage pie with sides of mac n cheese homemade slaw and Parmesan chips. All cooked and presented very well indeed. We can highly recommend this lovely pub. Thank you and keep up the good work.

The service was very good, but food was mediocre and expensive. There was a band playing and were very good.

Very friendly traditional pub .

Lovely family meal. Great pub. Only minutes away from Seaton.

Excellent Sunday afternoon lunch. Good choice of roasts and other dishes, served quickly and in good portions. If you like Guinness, try the Badger Outland stout - it's superb. Great service and a mix up with a dessert was sorted quickly and with a smile - nice staff team who were very welcoming. Recommended.

We used the Harbour inn several times while staying in the village. It has a great atmosphere with friendly efficient staff. The food was fresh and tasty and the draught Fursty Ferret hit the spot too. Our little JRT was also given a warm welcome so we would definitely go back if we passed through again.

Even though it was a peak time, and they were down on staff numbers, a good experience. Helpful staff, and great quality Sunday lunch. Overall great!

Lovely place, friendly staff, do advertise a chicken shack but when I asked for chicken they had none.

We had a lovely lunch well presented. Pleasant staff, we hadn't booked but they got us a table, probably better to book in advance.

Nice food but on the expensive side. Lovely place but watch the wine prices. Other pubs £22 Harbour Inn £29:95.

This was our 2nd visit, the day before the kitchen was being deep cleaned and we wanted to return to try the food so we came back for a late lunch, early dinner. The service here is excellent and our doggy was made a fuss of which was really sweet. As we weren't particularly hungry we just shared a portion of the Scotch Egg and the Scallops with bacon and truffle sauce. Both were excellent. This is a lovely pub, lots of nooks and crannies and a really lovely atmosphere. Would definitely return if we're in the area again.

Lovely welcome from staff on duty. A beautifully looked after, real pub, in this small village. Situation is ideal with beautiful views across the estuary. Our meal was beautiful. Thank you.

We ate here on both nights of our stay in Axmouth. We had their delicious fresh pizza's the first night, which were lovely. On our second night, I had the fish pie (one of the best ones I have had) served with a lovely selection of fresh veg and some of the nicest new potatoes I've ever eaten! The staff were all super friendly and helpful. We'll definitely be returning the next time we're visiting Axmouth.

We drove over an hour specifically for the chicken menu that was advertised on the website and outside the pub. Very disappointed when we arrived to be told this wasn't available. Edit - I did email the pub after the response below to organise a chat, but did not get a response so don't feel I'm able to amend my review.

A very excellent pub. Food superb,staff efficient and friendly,I would definitely recommend this place.

It was a nice place. Friendly pub dog! Food was nice, but £24 for 5 bits of ravioli and some garlic bread...... It's just too overpriced. Eating there regularly would be impossible at those prices sadly. seafood on menu and other meat stuff, not much for vegetarians.

Great food, staff are amazing. Hope to be back one day. Thanks all

Food was nice, but, we we're a party of 7, 5 were served their meals at the same time, the 6th after 1/4hr and the 7th after 1/2 hour. We were told everything is cooked fresh and if they run out of something it needs to be cooked. We then ordered dessert and were told they'd run out of certain items and then had to wait for what was available. The pub wasn't even that busy. We've been coming here for more years than we can remember but doubt we'll eat here again.

Phone to confirm menu before you turn up , otherwise you may be as disappointed as I was.

Called in for lunch with my wife. Nice setting with pleasant staff. The food we had was really nice , freshly prepared and well presented. Will certainly be going again!

Friendly welcome, excellent and quick service ( not particularly busy so that helped) We ate the venison pie and fish pie, served with lovely fresh veg - all very tasty! The creme brulee was 👌. Lovely ,characterful pub - would highly recommend.

Went on a recommendation (the best steak ever), had the Sunday lunch with roast beef truly the best I have ever had, many thanks 🙏

Last year it was so good we came back. Disappointed. We were not allowed to order a drink at the bar but shown to a table in a corner cupboard, Table legs made sitting comfortably impossible. Drinks came 10 min later then the food which was poor after last year. Return unlikely!

Great pub with a fantastic garden and view. Lovely fish pie!

We popped in for a drink as we were staying close by. Served by a friendly young woman and made to feel welcome. Decided to stay for Sunday lunch. Two of us had roast beef (excellent they said), two of us had roast lamb (we both thought we’d have preferred it cooked a bit more) and one of us fish pie (would give it a miss he said). Vegetable were plentiful and not over cooked. For five of us it cost under £100 which we thought was good value.

Food was great ,service was excellent and considering we had such a big table there were no mistakes on any of the orders.The lad that served our table was super efficient and a credit to the pub/restaurant.

A lovely place to stop and grab a drink. Always friendly staff and a nice, peaceful garden. They take cash too!

Sat in garden under an old twisted Silver Birch Perfrct

Great food and drinks. Beautiful pub with a lovely atmosphere. Couldn't ask for more.

This pub has real potential to be very good, I hope these recent reviews help improve it. Pub was busy, which was nice but think they may have been understaffed or with new untrained staff. Noone to greet us for a while, had to track someone down and ask for menus. Had to go find someone to order drinks, which didn't arrive for 20mins. Food was ok, roast was nice but had some random blended swede that was like baby food. Fish pie was overpriced for the small lacking amount of fish, seemed to be cheap frozen fish with lots of potate and spring onion. Drinks order was wrong, so asked about resolving it and the waitress just never came back. The manager was good and took it off the bill when I then asked. Some more staff, high training and this place could be good.

We had a lovely meal here at lunchtime. It was nice to sit inside as it was a very hot day. It was very nice.

Nice lunch in the garden, only spoiled by far too much salt in the mussels sauce.

Lovely freshly made Sunday lunch. Sat in the beer garden which was very pleasant. Did think it was slightly overpriced at £17.00 would normally expect to pay about £14.00 for the size and quality.

Nice place if you're down here try it

Very good food and friendly waitresses. We had a lovely evening:)

Best fish and chips I’ve had in years

Lovely typical English pub, small but very nice menu. Food was delicious and great fun after the Seaton/Colyton tram ride

Been coming here for the last 10 years whilst holidaying in the area. Always good food and a differing selection on the menu each time we visit. In common with other restaurants, food prices have increased quite a bit. Our most recent visit the menu prices were a little bit higher than expected. However we were OK to pay £18.50 for a version cottage pie and £23.50 for a fish fillet. As expected the food tasted excellent. The downside is the portion size was very small and didn't reflect what I paid. I felt very short changed compared with similar establishments. I left feeling hungry. Perhaps this pricing would explain why staff out numbered diners? I didn't like being ripped off and won't be going back.

Beautiful authentic pub, shame there's no lunchtime sandwiches on the menu. Appart from that, the food is very good 👍 😋.

Unfortunately can't leave a good review. We booked the table in advance. We arrived on time to be met by confused staff. We were sat down. And we asked if pizzas were being made. Just as we had fussy children. Unfortunately they sent the chef home. So all of us had to go find somewhere else to eat. The waitress wasnt bothered. Her attitude was to say I should have asked if they were available before booking the table. I gave a few stars for the aesthetic of the restaurant as I can't fault the decor and design as it's lovely.

Service a little chaotic, atmosphere loud, not the place for a quiet lunch, but the food was very good although not warned about the small portion of scallops.

Great place fantastic staff, highly recommend for stag dos and Beer festivals

Lovely pub near the river, friendly service and good food. Has a dog friendly garden.

First time I've eaten at The Harbour and it will be the last. Had a roast with family today and while the food tasted good, there wasn't a lot of it for £18!!! The chicken roast cost £17.95 and consisted of half a small chicken breast, a drumstick and a thigh (so the cheaper parts of the chicken), with 3 roast potatoes, and a yorkshire. Between 7 of us, we had 3 tiny little plates of veg, and actually had to ask the waiter for more veg as there wasn't enough to go around. The service also left something to be desired. We were asked to leave about 5 minutes after finishing our food because they needed the table. The chap at the bar also seemed quite put out by the fact we all wanted to pay separately.

I've eaten here 12 mths ago, and the food and service was excellent, but it's gone downhill sense then. You don't get as much for your money and the service was terrible, we were asked to finish up after an hr because they needed the table, there was 7 of us and we only just finished eating! Won't be going again!

Historical pub with gorgeous real fire. Recently taken over. Lovely staff who are friendly and engaging. Great food but a little expensive. Beautiful décor. Kids welcome, and wheelchair accessible. Great parking, and good garden. Brilliant position if you use the campsite. Less than 100m to the estuary. Definitely worth visiting.

Great little pub quite expensive and flat beer

Wow what an amazing pub nice and big old amazing place with lovley hudge open fireplace so lovley and welcoming and the bar man spencer was such an amazing houst and wonderful guy so nice and cool we will definitely be coming back and stopping off here on our travels again well worth a visit

Very expensive!!! The most I've ever paid for a pint!!!

The food and service were good. We went on Easter Sunday, and unfortunately, they got so busy our desert order got lost. After 20 minutes of waiting, we decided to leave.

Nice staff, good service Plenty of nice fresh vegetables but the meat was a little disappointing, plenty but not very tender

Very friendly staff and really good food. Some of the best pizza I have ever eaten!

A nice pub with in a lovely location. The food was very nice and there is a wide range of drinks available. Tight parking if busy so head there early.

Ate here a few times now and thoroughly enjoyed it. Sunday was really good amazing roast and lovely atmosphere The pub was busy which is always a good sign means they are doing something right

Wonderful bar manager, very kind and helpful. Food was amazing

Food was delicious and the young man serving us was so helpful and polite definitely be back

We booked online for a table of 4 for Saturday night at 7.15pm. The restaurant was almost empty as we walked in, which we thought was surprising, and we were shown to our table. The waiter gave us the menus and took our drinks order. The waiter returned 5 minutes later to take our order. 2 of the party ordered the lemon sole. The waiter said that the kitchen had “run out” of lemon sole. He went on to say that the kitchen had run out of sirloin steak and fish pie too! He then remembered that the kitchen had replaced the sea bass with sea bream! We could not believe our ears. This was a disappointment to one member of the party as they were going to order the sea bass. This was a Saturday night!!! It would have been very helpful if the waiter had told us about the changes to the menu when he first gave us the menus! Feeling very frustrated, and indeed very disappointed and annoyed not to have our chosen meals, we all decided on fish and chips. It arrived and despite the batter looking very anaemic and not crisp, 3 of the party managed to eat theirs as they were hungry. However, one member of the party found the batter was very soggy, the cod was over cooked and the peas were undercooked. It was almost inedible. This was mentioned to the waiter when he cleared the plates. We also advised him that the glass of wine chosen by one member of the party was not at all pleasant. It was very unpalatable and only a couple of sips were managed. He said he would advise the chef and the manager about this situation. We waited and waited, but there was no offer of another different glass of wine or indeed another dish to replace the dreadful fish and chips! 2 of the party then had a dessert, again nothing special at all. We asked the waiter if the desserts were cooked in-house, or were they “brought in” . He replied “I think so” but was unsure!!! We asked for the bill. It was paid, very reluctantly in full. The four of us were looking forward to our meal having looked at the website several times to admire all the photos of some of the dishes on offer and enjoyed reading the details of the head chef’s “Michelin star training”!!! We thought we were going to be “wowed”. The dishes we chose came no way near looking like the similar presentation of some of the dishes shown on the website. Our expectations were not fulfilled at all. A very unsatisfactory evening indeed. We will not be returning and we will certainly not be recommending the Harbour Inn to any of our friends. Sent from my IPad

Warm and welcoming staff, good food and beer, and dog friendly 👍

Booked Sunday lunch for 9 of us after doing the dalwood 3 hills trail race . All 9 roasts turned up together on hot plates. Lamb /pork and beef Roasts Nice big plate of tasty food just what you need after a 10mile run washed down with a nice pint of thirsty ferret. Great pub and friendly staff.

Lovely service, a little too sweet in places , with the meal seasoning. When asked, if everything is ok, didn't feel I could say, as others were listening. Didn't want to seem as complaining. As I was ok with meal overall. As a regular of pub roasts all round.

Very welcoming pub - super friendly staff. Would recommend 👌👍

Poor service. Took nearly 45 mins to get a burger, and a pork chop (which wasn't a pork chop!). There were only 5 other people eating in the pub, so I hate to think what the service is like when it's busy!! Food not good. Both dishes had a burnt taste to them. Also, didn't appreciate the pub dog begging at our table, when we did eventually get our food. Won't be returning .

Èxcellent meal and service. Will definitely visit again.

Lovely pub, very friendly staff, great service and tasty food...

Great spot near the river.Oldy wordly pub of the nice kind.Been here many years ago for a meal.

We came for the highly recommended Sunday roast and I can honestly say it's the best roast we've ever had dining out. Thank you Harbour Inn it was delicious.

Great pub, serving great food and local beers.

Popped in for a quick drink & a bowl of chips after walking the dogs . The place was very busy but the staff were very attentive & extremely welcoming. Standard are clearly set high …… as a matter of course with every glass being checked for cleanliness before a drink is poured. Every single staff member was courteous smiley & even though probably shattered after the festive period never let their professionalism down for 1 minute . The pub has an amazing open fire great atmosphere & an overall good vibe . All this could be so different with a different staff attitude. So to conclude keep on doing what you do because you are smashing it . As for the customer, be prepared to be spoilt .

Lovely old pub serving great food. Very dog friendly. We live a few miles away and aim to eat here regularly. Good menu given the quieter winter period, Good selection of wines by the glass. Great service and cheerful clientele. Food is prompt and good. What more can you ask for?

We live not far in tatworth somerset. Lovely gluten free fish and chips and sticky toffee pudding! Nice portions and the staff we really friendly and helpful. Great atmosphere . Thankyou. We had a lush meal.

Gorgeous pub with great staff. We visited this afternoon for Christmas Eve dinner; everything from booking to eating was fantastic, the food was delicious and very reasonably priced, and the staff were all very attentive and friendly. Would highly recommend!

Passing by on a road trip, we managed to secure a table at short notice. We were not disappointed. The menu has a wide selection of typical pub fare with everything freshly prepared and generous portions. Their fried chicken is amazing and frankly too much for one. Great service by the staff. Thanks for a lovely evening.

Was a very quiet evening, no atmosphere. Wasn't busy still waited long times ... however fish pie was lovely 😍

Authentic original thatched pub with ope. Fore and amazing grub!

Very disappointed with the food. Ordered duck, the portion was tiny. It came with "dauphinoise potatoes", which tasted like sliced boiled potatoes. And it cost £23.75!! Also ordered the garden burger, and that's all it was. No sides, coleslaw, gherkins, anything. Just a plain burger on a plate. Even had to order fries separately. Such a shame as we used to love The Harbour.

Recommended and featured in the Good Pub Guide and Devon Live. Pretty and very comfortable pub with sofas, albeit a generic chain. Delicious light lunch from the reassuringly short menu. Doggy friendly. On site parking.🇬🇧🇳🇿

Amazing, Food At an event at the harbour inn … I had seabass in a Thai sauce. My partner had breast with most gorgeous, sweet, smash and vegetables that were so well presented and tasty. I can’t say how overwhelmed we all were with the food on our table, the standard was sublime , and it was created in volume as there was 130 guests. I do not know how they did it. It was totally amazing and will come back and dime off the main menu very soon. Well done Chef!!

Lovely country pub near to the river. Great setting and atmosphere

Definitely my favourite local pub. Can’t ask for me.

Excellent service and food was amazing

Staff very pleasant food o.k would have preferred puddings to be offered with custard.

Had an amazing meal at the harbour inn. The staff were amazing and very helpful with my Nan. Great atmosphere, loved all the dogs in there. Food was very good and can’t fault in anyway and overall feel it was great value for what we had. Such a great place and highly recommend

Lovely traditional pub, friendly staff. Sunday roast amazing. Well presented and tasty. Service was excellent. Will definitely be returning.

Thought food was average nothing to right home about just an average place

Lovely food, friendly staff, nice traditional pub. I had fish and chips and my wife had fish pie, both excellent. We will be back

Last minute decision to have a Sunday lunch here. From the moment I walked in to leaving I felt very welcome from the young team there. The meal (Sunday roast) was excellent and served quickly and beautifully prepared and presented.

I don’t think I could recommend this more. A last minute booking for a table of 9 (inc 4 children) on a Sunday. We were shown to a private room which was wonderful, staff were friendly and attentive but most important of all, the food. We had the roast beef, pork, fish and chips and all kids had the pasta. The portions were fantastic and I can honestly say, the best roast I’ve had out in a long, long time!

Excellent service and delicious food, all served by charming helpful staff. Cannot rate it highly enough. We will definitely be returning soon.

Sunday lunch always good here but the new management is on somewhat of a roll... served perfectly within a few minutes of ordering, our last nosh before heading overseas and where else could we finish but the Harbour Inn for the roast beef and all the extras. Super food, service and value and we apologise profusely for being unable to remember to bring cash for the tip. We'll fix that next time, I promise!

Visited with friends for a bite too eat and a drink. Staff friendly enough. Got some drinks and decided what to have for lunch. A couple of us opted for their "chicken shack" fried chicken and the rest had traditional meals. The Chicken wasnt great ! The fish pie was also disappointing considering the price of £17 and chicken at £14 ea. When you consider this place is next to a camp site you would have thought it would have been busier. Food average at a high price. Drinks also expensive. Now I know why the pub next door was full.!!

It is a traditional pub with excellent food and friendly staff. You can be busy but can book on the internet .arrive early to guarantee parking

Called in today for lunch. Shown to a table and told our order would be taken at table. Half hour later no service received, therefore left. Can't comment on the food as we didn't get a chance to try it. Not the service that Hall & Woodhouse would expect.

Great atmosphere, now has a chicken shack added to the menu too. Food was excellent.

Nice steak and chips smidge on expensive side for what you get but made up for by nice venue and decent location.

Good food and a nice atmosphere

Love the Harbour I’ve had many lunches there usually having the chicken shack menu I love it ! Especially the chicken Caesar salad ! Delicious reasonably priced with a good atmosphere and great staff ….

We went to Axmouth for Sunday lunch without booking and with a dog. They quickly found us a table and we were so glad we’d found them. The food was amazing. All Sunday roasts were brilliant, but I had the venison cottage pie, which was the best thing I’ve eaten in a long time. The selection of vegetables brought with the meals were extensive and very tasty. Would definitely recommend.