Dining Review - April 2008
Why don't you send in a review of your favourite local dining experience for May 2008?

I would like to share one of my more memorable eating experiences at a place recommended to me by a fellow seafood lover.  Just an hour or so drive along the coast road set on The Green at Salthouse is Cookies Crab Shop and here we had a great seafood meal which didn’t cost an arm and a leg. 

At first sight I wondered what I was going into, as there appeared to be a large garden shed with a gazebo in front, tables and chairs and a number of people sitting around with plates of seafood.  Going into the shop, where there were several more tables, I was faced with a cold counter full of local seafood. 

As there were seven of us in our party we had pre-booked a table.  Although a bright sunny day, it was a bit on the chilly side so we were glad to have been given a table in the summerhouse.   Teas, coffees and soft drinks were available but if, like us, you wanted wine, its take your own!

Spoilt for choice, some, like myself, opted for a nicely presented platter of crab, prawns, cockles, small pieces of smoked mackerel with various toppings, anchovies, smoked salmon and rollmop served with salad, bread and butter and hot new potatoes.  Other choices included baked potato, smoked mackerel fillets, crayfish and trout.  The full menu can be found on Cookies website at www.cookies.shopkeepers.co.uk

The upside was good food with plenty of choice, reasonably priced, efficiently served and pleasant surroundings reminiscent of rural Greece.

The downside was it can get very crowded in the season so it’s best to book and the toilet is across the Green in the pub yard and costs 20p (what’s happened to spending a penny!)

Driving past I had always wondered why there seemed to be so many cars parked in front of a garden shed, now I know and I’ll definitely be going back.