The Mistley Thorn
"Coastal village inn where seafood's a speciality" - AA Inspector
MANNINGTREE, ESSEX
This 18th-century coaching inn overlooks the Stour Estuary at almost its widest point. During 2016 the back of the building underwent a major refurbishment which introduced a new exhibition kitchen and enlarged the dining area. There's no doubt that diners comprise the majority of customers, but Adnams ales and a choice of 17 wines served by the glass can be enjoyed at the bar in the relaxed and casual ambience. Fresh and locally-sourced ingredients are the highlights of the daily-changing two-AA Rosette menu. The emphasis is on seafood, which sees the likes of Mersea rock oysters served with shallot and ginger mignonette; a smoked fish trio with mustard dill sauce; and chargrilled dayboat squid 'a la plancha' with chilli, garlic, lemon oil and herbs. Non-fishy alternatives include chargrilled Suffolk Red Poll beef with hand-cut, skin-on fries; and home-made potato gnocchi with spinach, hazelnut pesto and pine nuts.
AA Pick of the Pubs
High Street, Mistley, MANNINGTREE, CO11 1HE
Marlborough Head Inn
East of England, ESSEX
Le Talbooth
milsoms
Discover Essex
Essex is full of pleasant surprises. It has the largest coastline of any county in England, with its fair share of castles, royal connections and scenic valleys. Take Colchester, for example, which was built by the Romans and is Britain's oldest recorded town. Its castle contains the country's largest Norman keep and yet, a stone's throw from here, East Anglia's newest arts centre promises to put Colchester firmly on the map as Essex's capital of culture.
Tidal estuaries are plentiful and their mudflats offer migrating birds a winter feeding place. Essex was known as the land of the East Saxons and for centuries people from all over Europe settled here, each wave leaving its own distinctive cultural and social mark on the landscape. Walking a little off the beaten track will lead you to the rural retreats of deepest Essex, while all over the county there are ancient monuments to explore:
the great Waltham Abbey
Greensted, thought to be the oldest wooden church in the world
the delightful village of Pleshey has one of the finest examples of a former motte-and-bailey castle
Hedingham Castle, magnificently preserved and dating from the 11th century.
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