Staff were absolutely lovely and the food was amazing. Our favourite restaurant in
alex milham
They may have ruined fish pie for me. Not sure it will ever be as good anywhere else. Superb food. Great service.
Ryan McCarthy
Excellent food and service! This is a must go if you’re in Whitstable. The staff are all lovely and welcoming. We had the Sunday lunch menu which was super tasty and great value.
Sara Shan
Had walked past this place many times but finally went. Excellent brunch menu- not boring and inventive, good quality food, most nicest service and ever so helpful as we had an infant! Highly recommend - I’ll be coming back for lunchKid-friendliness: They had two types of high chairs, even cooked an egg for my 6 month old and accommodated our pram!
Sarah Clark
I sent back the mussels which were full of sand so inedible.
Mike James
We were in Whistable for a couple of days and this place caught our eye. Great food and service. Highly
Sarah Laughna
Simple, seasonal, utterly delicious food, cooked exquisitely. Relaxed and friendly atmosphere with intuitive, attentive and warm service.A huge bonus for us was being able to take our beloved elderly retired guide dog. Not for everyone I know, the whole dogs in a restaurant thing. However so important to us.We visited twice during our stay ((lunch and dinner ) after all, when you find a gem.We cant wait to return. Thank you. Sarah Carl and Foxy
Sue Prince
Excellent
401hayleyh
I popped in for a bite. I chose their fish pie at £25.95. and a lemonade. I was alone in the restaurant and it was lovely. The fish pie came served on a wooden plate with dishes. I've never been a lover of wooden plates, but that's just my taste. I am very aware of the price of fish as I work with fishermen. However, I felt it was overpriced. If you're looking for delicious food and money is not an issue then go here. I felt £33.95 for a lemonade and a small portion was a lot and a service charge I didn't expect.
stevesteak
We dropped in here for lunch without a reservation, and fitted us in for a nice table for two. Very friendly welcome , relaxed vibe - which we like! The menu is simple but full of tasty options, including meat , fish and vegetarian meals. We had fish pie and the day boat mackerel, shared the cabbage side dish - the food was very tasty, medium size portions I would say - perfect for lunch. We shared the sticky toffee pudding dessert. Good selection of wines, including local ones - I had Chapel Down Bacchus All in all a lovely lunch, great service and nice atmosphere Happy to recommend and we will certainly return PS- I’d imagine it gets booked up at busy times of the year
Probably my favourite restaurant, ever. Always tasty, relentlessly innovative, amazing value for such considered cuisine. Truly splendid.
265irinaj
Visited this restaurant couple of years ago in the summer and was highly impressed with the food and service. We decided to make a detour and come here for lunch after our weekend in Canterbury. Our lunch was fantastic! We had an absolutely delicious sea bream with roasted vegetables and custard with berries for pudding. Service was excellent and very personal. I would love to come back there again soon!
John M
I chose Samphire for an evening meal during a short break in Whitstable as it had all the hallmarks of a promising restaurant - independently owned, locally sourced ingredients, short menu etc. Unfortunatly our expecations were sadly disappointed: 1. My scallop started was without a doubt the worst scallop dish I have ever had, and I order them quite often. It consisted of slices of scallop swimming in a cauliflower gloop and topped by hardened pills of black pudding. Verdict - should have sent it back. I did mention to the waiter about the BP however no response. 2. Beetroot and houmous starter. Not bad, but it's houmous, beetroot and a sprinkle of middle-eastern spices. Not that much cookery involved. 3. Gurnard main course. This is where the wheels came off. My wife had requested the sauce to be served separately but this was not passed on to the kitchen, resulting in her portion having to be re-cooked and us consequently not getting to eat our main courses at the same time. I'd say that this breaks a cardinal rule of restaurant service. The fish itself was acceptable, if somewhat scrawny. Gurnard is not the most expensive fish to buy and at £22.50 or so - no veg or garnish other than sauce . 4. Veg side dishes - £5 each on top : Hispi cabbage so-so; potato pave acutally pretty good. the high point of the meal. 5. Wine - good, fairly resonable price. 6. Extras - no bread and butter, pre-starter or anything else is offered, other than tap water. We didn't order dessert or coffee or have any pre-dinner drinks. The damage - £123.97 . I feel the restarant should have offered to waive the service charge in view of the main course error. If everything had been top class I would pay this kind of money with a smile but this was sadly not the case. Hopefully this was a January glitch but I'll leave it to others to find out whether things improve.
Michelle B
Lovely little restaurant, warm and inviting. Polite and welcoming staff. Food alas was average. I had fish pie, which was , ok, but have definitely made better myself. Served with cabbage, bit soggy and lacked taste.
952julians
Visiting Whitstable for new year and booked a lunch time meal on a Sunday for 6 friends. This fantastic little bistro did not disappoint! Staff were excellent, very attentive and took us through the menu with some recommendations. We all ordered cocktails and can thoroughly recommend the French Martini and Elderflower Fizz. I ordered cod croquetas for starters which were lovely. My friends ordered the cauliflower and basil soup and it was amazing, would definitely recommend. As it was Sunday we all ordered roast dinners, I ordered the roast beef which was exceptional but everyone agreed the pork belly was star of the show! Defo order the cauliflower cheese, really delicious. 5 ? definitely coming here again, thanks for a lovely meal.
Staff were absolutely lovely and the food was amazing. Our favourite restaurant in
They may have ruined fish pie for me. Not sure it will ever be as good anywhere else. Superb food. Great service.
Excellent food and service! This is a must go if you’re in Whitstable. The staff are all lovely and welcoming. We had the Sunday lunch menu which was super tasty and great value.
Had walked past this place many times but finally went. Excellent brunch menu- not boring and inventive, good quality food, most nicest service and ever so helpful as we had an infant! Highly recommend - I’ll be coming back for lunchKid-friendliness: They had two types of high chairs, even cooked an egg for my 6 month old and accommodated our pram!
I sent back the mussels which were full of sand so inedible.
We were in Whistable for a couple of days and this place caught our eye. Great food and service. Highly
Simple, seasonal, utterly delicious food, cooked exquisitely. Relaxed and friendly atmosphere with intuitive, attentive and warm service.A huge bonus for us was being able to take our beloved elderly retired guide dog. Not for everyone I know, the whole dogs in a restaurant thing. However so important to us.We visited twice during our stay ((lunch and dinner ) after all, when you find a gem.We cant wait to return. Thank you. Sarah Carl and Foxy
Excellent
I popped in for a bite. I chose their fish pie at £25.95. and a lemonade. I was alone in the restaurant and it was lovely. The fish pie came served on a wooden plate with dishes. I've never been a lover of wooden plates, but that's just my taste. I am very aware of the price of fish as I work with fishermen. However, I felt it was overpriced. If you're looking for delicious food and money is not an issue then go here. I felt £33.95 for a lemonade and a small portion was a lot and a service charge I didn't expect.
We dropped in here for lunch without a reservation, and fitted us in for a nice table for two. Very friendly welcome , relaxed vibe - which we like! The menu is simple but full of tasty options, including meat , fish and vegetarian meals. We had fish pie and the day boat mackerel, shared the cabbage side dish - the food was very tasty, medium size portions I would say - perfect for lunch. We shared the sticky toffee pudding dessert. Good selection of wines, including local ones - I had Chapel Down Bacchus All in all a lovely lunch, great service and nice atmosphere Happy to recommend and we will certainly return PS- I’d imagine it gets booked up at busy times of the year
Restaurantji Recommends
Probably my favourite restaurant, ever. Always tasty, relentlessly innovative, amazing value for such considered cuisine. Truly splendid.
Visited this restaurant couple of years ago in the summer and was highly impressed with the food and service. We decided to make a detour and come here for lunch after our weekend in Canterbury. Our lunch was fantastic! We had an absolutely delicious sea bream with roasted vegetables and custard with berries for pudding. Service was excellent and very personal. I would love to come back there again soon!
I chose Samphire for an evening meal during a short break in Whitstable as it had all the hallmarks of a promising restaurant - independently owned, locally sourced ingredients, short menu etc. Unfortunatly our expecations were sadly disappointed: 1. My scallop started was without a doubt the worst scallop dish I have ever had, and I order them quite often. It consisted of slices of scallop swimming in a cauliflower gloop and topped by hardened pills of black pudding. Verdict - should have sent it back. I did mention to the waiter about the BP however no response. 2. Beetroot and houmous starter. Not bad, but it's houmous, beetroot and a sprinkle of middle-eastern spices. Not that much cookery involved. 3. Gurnard main course. This is where the wheels came off. My wife had requested the sauce to be served separately but this was not passed on to the kitchen, resulting in her portion having to be re-cooked and us consequently not getting to eat our main courses at the same time. I'd say that this breaks a cardinal rule of restaurant service. The fish itself was acceptable, if somewhat scrawny. Gurnard is not the most expensive fish to buy and at £22.50 or so - no veg or garnish other than sauce . 4. Veg side dishes - £5 each on top : Hispi cabbage so-so; potato pave acutally pretty good. the high point of the meal. 5. Wine - good, fairly resonable price. 6. Extras - no bread and butter, pre-starter or anything else is offered, other than tap water. We didn't order dessert or coffee or have any pre-dinner drinks. The damage - £123.97 . I feel the restarant should have offered to waive the service charge in view of the main course error. If everything had been top class I would pay this kind of money with a smile but this was sadly not the case. Hopefully this was a January glitch but I'll leave it to others to find out whether things improve.
Lovely little restaurant, warm and inviting. Polite and welcoming staff. Food alas was average. I had fish pie, which was , ok, but have definitely made better myself. Served with cabbage, bit soggy and lacked taste.
Visiting Whitstable for new year and booked a lunch time meal on a Sunday for 6 friends. This fantastic little bistro did not disappoint! Staff were excellent, very attentive and took us through the menu with some recommendations. We all ordered cocktails and can thoroughly recommend the French Martini and Elderflower Fizz. I ordered cod croquetas for starters which were lovely. My friends ordered the cauliflower and basil soup and it was amazing, would definitely recommend. As it was Sunday we all ordered roast dinners, I ordered the roast beef which was exceptional but everyone agreed the pork belly was star of the show! Defo order the cauliflower cheese, really delicious. 5 ? definitely coming here again, thanks for a lovely meal.