Where to eat out in Camber, Rye and Dungeness
From toes-in-the-sand fish and chip eating on the beach in Camber, to Rye’s up-and-coming culinary scene,here’s our pick of where to eat in Camber, Rye & Dungeness. From standout restaurants with locavore menus and trendy watering holes that offer more than just a pocketful of Rye to whet your whistle with.
Camber
A short walk from all our properties in Camber finds you at the award-winning, The Gallivant. Tucked away behind the sandy dunes, The Gallivant has an air of the Hamptons about it. Sustainability and locally sourced ingredients are the order of the day on chef Nico Fitzgerald’s regularly changing menu, featuring the likes of whole Rye Bay brill, burnt lemon and fennel sauce or wild garlic orzotto, English asparagus and parsley with Twineham Grange cheese. The Gallivant make the most of their location, right in the heart of the English wine country and have an abundant selection, with one of the largest English wine lists in the country to sip your way through and don’t miss their Oyster Happy Hour, from 5:30 – 6:30pm. Unfortunately, please note that The Gallivant is adults-only, and children 16 and under are not allowed.
Seasonally opening, Camber Landing with its laid-back beachy vibe is the coffee shop to see and be seen. By day you can order Allpress coffees and pick from the deli items and pastries on the counter, or shop. Lifestyle brand Rae is in the store. Come nightfall, there’s great music, cocktails on tap, natural wine, and their very own craft beer, Camber Beer. Follow their Instagram for all their pop-ups and events.
Photo credit: Sara D’Souza
Rye
Nearby culinary crown jewel in the East Sussex landscape, Rye packs more than its fair share of stand-out restaurants within its two-miles of historic cobbled streets, and you’ll need more than a few days to work your way through them. You’ll be spoilt for choice from fresh fish and chips (try Marino’s for the best), to the Retrouvius-designed heaven of The George Hotel in Rye. Think tender steaks and fresh Rye Bay scallops smoked on the charcoal-fired George Grill and a heady nightcap in the inviting Dragon Bar afterwards.
Grade II listed Whitehouse Rye is a cosy café and bakery, with a counter full of freshly baked tempting treats (perfect for picnics) and is the perfect ideal spot. Must-visit The Fig has garnered rave reviews for its laid-back interiors and its excellent lunch, brunch, and dinner menus. Think bowls of spiced aubergine shawarma, slow-cooked bowls of Thai pork shoulder or smoked salmon and whipped horseradish. To sate your sweet tooth, Knoops makes the best hot chocolate in Rye, nay, the UK.
Image credit: Georgina Holt
Try the laid-back shabby chic charm of The Ship Inn or, The Globe Inn Marsh on the Military Road set amongst quirky interiors. Similarly, The Standard Inn in the heart of the citadel serves great nosh and good local beer in unpretentious yet chilled surroundings. While on nearby East Street sloping, 15th century The Union is a gloriously atmospheric place to kick back and relax and work your way through Head Chef Mariana Cogo’s excellent menu of produce-led seasonal cooking. Don’t miss The Union’s Sister property country pub The Plough, just outside Rye on the road to Battle.
Set in an old warehouse with towering arched windows, Webbes at the Fish Café eschews the wood-clad décor of its swashbuckling neighbours and is a more refined affair. With market-fresh fish expect the likes of Rye Bay fish stew with saffron potatoes or a fish board with pickled herring, potted crab, prawns, mackerel pate and squid fritters.
Photo credit: Canva
Featured in Phaidon’s Where Chefs Eat bible, the lovely Landgate Bistro has a firm focus on foraging with year-round mushrooms, berries and herbs, plus local fish (lemon sole, cod, scallops, squid and the odd gurnard), rabbit, venison, pigeon or mallard from the surrounding woodlands, and of course the delicious Romney Marsh lamb. They’re open for dinner, Wednesday to Saturday with bookings between 7 and 9pm.
Lastly, it’s not a trip to Rye without a saunter down medieval Mermaid Street, it’s regularly lauded as one of the prettiest streets in the UK. Step inside the 600-year-old Mermaid Inn and soak up its storied history as a former smuggler’s hideout. Cosy up at The Giant’s Fireplace or dine at its candlelit Linenfold Restaurant. At the bottom of the cobblestones, you’ll find the excellent Mermaid Street Café and its daily roster of great eating; breakfast until 12pm, lunch, then afternoon cakes, and early dinner in the summer months. Try the fresh crab sandwiches, homemade sausage rolls or the Scotch eggs. For more excellent brews and great cake, there’s the traditional Cobbles Tea Room. Café des Fleurs by Rye Railway Station is another lovely spot for a caffeine pick-me-up.
Photo credit: Georgina Holt
Three miles northwest of bustling Rye is bucolic Peasmarsh and tucked within those lush, rolling hills is Tillingham, a brilliant Michelin guide restaurant in East Sussex. Home to 70 acres of vineyards, a working farm, and a Michelin Guide Green Star restaurant. Helmed by former Silo and Conduit head chef Brendan Eades who joined in 2022, has said “our walled garden follows the same holistic methods (as the biodynamic vineyard), including cover-cropping, companion planting and a no-dig approach.” Everything is centeredcentred around fresh, local produce, with the meat reared on Tillingham pastures and daily catches coming from Rye Harbour.
Photo credit: Tillingham
Dungeness
Make sure you stop at Camber Holiday Cottages’ favourite place, the casual, Dungeness Fish Hut Snack Shack, family run by Kelly. Tasty lobster and crab rolls (when in season) or the best fish finger sandwiches you will have ever eaten. Homemade flatbreads with crunchy slaw, set in the surreal surroundings on Dungeness, check for opening times. While you’re in Dungeness, sink a refreshing pint at Ales by the Rails at RHDR Railway Station.
