The Pilchard Inn, Devon’s oldest smugglers pub, welcomes highly experienced chef Philip Raymond to lead its culinary team. The talented chef brings 10 years of expertise from roles in Michelin-starred and AA Rosette restaurants, including The Samling Hotel and Paschoe House, and will steer the Pilchard Inn’s ambition to become one of the best dining pubs in Southwest England.
Philip will be bringing his focus on seasonal ingredients and flavours to the Pilchard Inn, drawing from the rich larder of local produce that the area offers. He aims to provide guests with hearty, traditional meals, creating simple, seasonal British dishes,
including pastries and local seafood, to showcase the exciting, wide-ranging flavours and cuisines of the country.
“The Pilchard Inn has always had a strong food offer and I am just looking to enhance that,” Philip explains. “I want to deliver classic, modern pub fare at the Pilchard Inn, embracing diverse flavours and ingredients to produce beloved British recipes to the
highest quality.”
Philip will be drawing from his experience crafting inventive fine dining using seasonal, fresh ingredients at the Lake District’s Samling Hotel, and his skill in obtaining and retaining three AA Rosettes at Devon’s Paschoe House during his tenure as Head Pastry Chef.
“The Pilchard Inn’s stunning coastal position means it is already a destination both for its unique location and fascinating history,” he says. “My vision is to turn it into a truly special destination by offering some of the best pub food in Devon and the
Southwest of England.”
With nearly 700 years of maritime history within its walls, the Pilchard Inn is one of the nation’s oldest pubs. Located on the South Devon coast – almost upon the golden sands of the tidal Burgh Island – the pub offers magnificent views over the surrounding
Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty while the tide ebbs and flows just steps away.
It has been home to local fishermen since 1336, before being taken over by smugglers and pirates who lured unassuming sailors to their fate along the rocky shores. Today, its rustic wooden interior still retains much of its past, from stuffed parrots to rifles
and ship figureheads adorning the walls. Adding to its dramatic history, notorious smuggler Tom Crocker was shot in the pub’s doorway in the 1500s, with the island celebrating the legend annually on 14 August with the Tom Crocker Day Festival.
The Inn has reopened seven days a week from 11am – 10pm for summer and its visitors can sample locally-brewed craft beers, wines, ciders and spirits, including Burgh Island’s very own London dry gin, blended using 17 different botanicals, some of which are
from the island itself.
A stone’s throw from the Pilchard Inn’s doors is Burgh Island Hotel, a spectacular Art Deco landmark built in 1929 that is surrounded by sea views. Burgh Island itself is two miles from Bigbury-on-Sea on the mainland, where cars can be parked. Visitors have
the option to walk across the Bigbury Beach causeway during low tide. When the tide comes in, visitors can instead ride the island’s unique third generation hydraulic sea tractor, designed in 1969 and renovated recently, to arrive at the Pilchard Inn in a
style that would rival the entrances of its historic seafaring visitors.
You can join us on our social media pages, follow us on Facebook, X (formerly known as Twitter) and Threads where you can keep up to date with whats going on in South Devon.
Got a news story, blog or press release that you’d like to share or want to advertise with us? Get in touch via email admin@wearesouthdevon.com
