Devon's 10 Best Independent Galleries, Shops and Restaurants

We’ve called upon our Devon friends to shine a light on the best independent shops, locavore restaurants, galleries and boutique boltholes for staying and playing in Plymouth, Totnes, Dartmoor and beyond.

11 November, 2020

Words by
Grace Lee

If there were ever a particularly good time to support locally owned businesses, it's now. With that in mind, we've drafted in our most in-the-know Devonian friends to give us the lowdown on this spirited county's top independents, including plucky seafood shacks, a slow-fashion boutique, Exmouth's floating river café and Plymouth's thriving new cultural hub.

A pocket guide to Devon's best indie shops, restaurants and galleries

TO SEE

thingstodo

The Box

Plymouth

Touted as the most significant cultural initiative in the UK in 2020, this £46 million project brings together fascinating collections on the city's naval heritage, contemporary art installations, an interactive media lab, archive space, a shop and a bar. Smack bang in the middle of the city, the centre's diverse mixed-media attractions have been earmarked with the power to completely transform Plymouth's reputation. This is the type of space where a hyper-contemporary digital installation challenging racial stereotypes rubs shoulders with a giant reconstruction of a woolly mammoth (who knew Plymouth Sound was their stomping ground during the Ice Age?)

Address

Tavistock Place, PL4 8AX

+44 1752 304 774 Go to website

thingstodo

White Space Art

Totnes

Housed at the heart of this quirky market town, Totnes' White Space Art gallery was established in 2003 by husband-and-wife duo Jolyon White and Sarah Bowman with the intention of platforming local south-west craftsmanship. The rolling exhibition space showcases a mixed bag of paintings, prints, ceramics and jewellery from both emerging and established artists, and many of the artworks can also be bought from its online shop. The gallery exhibits at several art fairs across the area, and most artisans featured can be found trading at local markets throughout the year too.

Address

72 Fore Street, TQ9 5RU

+44 1803 864 088 Go to website

TO SHOP

shopping

The Topsham Bookshop

Exeter

If floor-to-ceiling bookshelves and quaint interiors are your thing, then this is one (quite literally) for the books. Set across three levels of a 17th-century building with several different rooms on each floor, The Topsham Bookshop is a paperback paradise for every genre imaginable. Specialising in out-of-print and secondhand books, it also has a well-stocked local-interest section piled high with tomes on Devon, Cornwall and the wider south-west region for those looking to buff up on British history and topography.

Address

27 Fore Street, EX3 0HD

+44 1392 877 895 Go to website

shopping

Sancho's

Exeter

Curating a wide variety of ethically made and sustainable products that don't cost the Earth, Sancho's is Exeter's antidote to the fast-fashion industry. Founded by university friends Kalkidan Legesse and Vidmantas Markevicius, who share a passion for ethical trading and zero waste, the store is named after Kalkidan's Ethiopian family nickname “Sancho”. There's also a well-stocked online shop for lockdown scrolling, as well as a new, online wardrobe-swapping platform on the cards.

Address

117 Fore Street, EX4 3JQ

+44 1392 757 510 Go to website

TO EAT

restaurant

River Exe Café

River Exe

Surely winning first prize for being the most scenic food joint in the county, River Exe Café was founded by local wakeboarding company Exe Wake, bringing together its love of watersports and booze. Serving up a delectable range of local produce alongside the freshest seafood in town, the restaurant is located on a floating pontoon and is only reachable by water taxi from Exmouth Marina (or your own boat, if you happen to be so lucky). Evenings here are spent lapping up Instagram-worthy sunsets and rubbing shoulders with Devon's cool boating crowd, a glass of local wine (cultivated two miles upriver) in hand.
+44 7761 116 103 Go to website

restaurant

The Elephant's Nest

Dartmoor

This chocolate-box country pub has all the trappings of a quintessential English watering hole – wood-beamed interiors, local ales on draft and a green, sleepy beer garden to the front. Set within Dartmoor National Park's wild moors, the main building also has a stone extension offering weary ramblers three generously sized rooms for bed and breakfast within skipping distance from the bar.

Address

Horndon, Tavistock, PL19 9NQ

+44 1822 810 273 Go to website

restaurant

The Oyster Shack

Bigbury

Nestled between the towns of Kingsbridge and Modbury, Bigbury-on-Sea is home to the largest sandy beach in South Devon and attracts a haul of visitors year-round for its fresh seafood joints. The Oyster Shack is the village's award-winning spot for spiced crab soup and oysters from its shucking shed, where you can dine outside under a shaded tarpaulin in summer or inside next to a roaring fire in winter. Don't be put off by the garishly bright decor – this is sea-to-fork fare at its best.

Address

Milburn Orchard Farm, Stakes Hill, TQ7 4BE

+44 1548 810 876 Go to website

restaurant

The Curious Kitchen

Brixham

Tucked just behind the harbour front on Brixham's Middle Street, The Curious Kitchen strikes the balance between healthy brunches and indulgent desserts (you can inject its signature DIY doughnuts with a filling of your choice through a syringe). Everything that's dished up from the seasonal menu is freshly made on-site, save for its sourdough, which is drafted in from the artisanal bakery up the road, aptly named 5 Doors Up. The decor here is industrial-chic meets seaside town- think reclaimed floorboards, exposed brickwork and moody lighting.

Address

14-16 Middle Street, TQ5 8ER

+44 1803 854 816 Go to website

TO STAY

hotel

The Old Piggery

Dartmoor

This open-plan cottage for two may have the most scenic bathtub view in Devon. Hidden in the hills of an 11th-century farm on the eastern edge of Dartmoor National Park, The Old Piggery has everything you might expect from a thoughtfully modernised farmhouse annexe: soft wooden furnishings, traditional dimpled walls, breakfast essentials straight from the farm and even a suspended king-size bed. But the real star of the show? A giant pair of outdoor rolltop baths that look out from the hideaway's screened decking to the untamed wilderness beyond. There's also a large network of hiking and biking trails on the farm's doorstep, if you can tear yourself away from the tub.

Address

Windout Farm, Tedburn St Mary, EX6 6DR

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Go to website

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