Emsworth
Tucked up in the sheltered left armpit of Chichester Harbour, it's hard to believe that sleepy Emsworth was once home to James Duncan Foster, who built the 110’ ‘Echo’ the largest sailing fishing vessel ever built in England, and you can see her model in Emsworth Museum
You can bring
your boat alongside the quay outside the wonderful red brick mill (tide and
keel permitting) that is home to Emsworth Slipper Sailing Club. Or there is a
visitor's pontoon, with access to the quay along the coastal path. Emsworth has
two sailing clubs and one marina.
With winter
approaching the quay was a bustle with boats dismasting ready to come into the
yard. Warm sunshine, sparkling water, an
idyllic scene though perhaps quieter now than in the past – with prized
boatbuilders, oyster catchers and ancient Mariners
The Slipper
Sailing Club has a great bar upstairs and far reaching views out to sea, over
the intriguingly named Slipper Pond, where I can see model yachts racing. The
club doesn't do food so I move on.There's a friendly bunch enjoying breakfast
outside Flinstones, next door to the
renowned restaurant 36 the Quay.
Then Fat Olives is a coupla doors up
on the right, which has an equally good reputation for fine dining (No 1 on
Tripadvisor). A notice board outside the flower decked Blue Bell Inn, offers a 'husband's crèche' for busy shoppers, and
then I see Woosters, all retro
styling, offering good wine and live music on top of decent food, but not open
yet.
I head to Emsworth Deli for my first coffee, beans roast in Arundel by Edgecombes, and
chat to Ben Laycock about his produce and customers . He gets his bread from
fourth generation Westbourne Bakers, but I'm told that Heidi's Patisserie on
the High Street also have fresh bread and pastries delivered from their bakery in Havant daily.
It seems that Fat Olives is becoming the favourite for the special night out
from the food point of view, but the locals are enjoying Woosters’ wines and
the live music. The hands down winner for best pub is the Blue Bell.
Emsworth is a
pretty town with everything you need to hand; a good butcher, veggie shop,
baker, hardware and wine shop, and a terrific choice of places to eat, it
punches high.It's still too early for lunch so I head over to check out the
wine shop VIN, and notice that the
cafe a friend recommended called
Driftwood, was full to bursting.
VIN is a neat
shop, filled with bottles and offering some interesting wine courses, teaming
up with Fat Olives for lunch. The shop is new and cheerfully run by Jonathan
Rogers, who has a mature 25 years experience in the wine trade. If I walk past
Dolphin Quay (big hoohah about redevelopment here) and follow the path along
the waterfont I get to Emsworth Yacht
Haven with around 250 berth holders and the bustling Deck Cafe upstairs run
by 21 yr old Ed Collison. The specials are going down a storm as is the burger
and home made cakes. With plans for an open kitchen and winter evenings I’m
sure the berth holders are delighted with this new opening.
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| The Deck's popular house burger |
Best
pub - the Blue Bell. Just up from the
quay and with a fine line in blackboard humour. The pub is pretty full by 12
and there's a nice mix of people reading the papers over a coffee, ordering
their first pint and reading what's on the specials. I notice they were listed
in the Sunday Times best fish & chips honours and that they have an
interesting looking beer on the pumps - called Mainsail. On asking I was told
that it was a relatively new beer made just up the road by Emsworth Brewhouse. They are proud of Grant and his award winning
Craft Ale Nano-Brewery, sustainably brewing Mainsail, Flotilla and Woodhouse
bottled beers, with a run of 500 bottles each brew, and then delivering locally
via zero emission electric vehicles. Grant is currently working on a hefty 5.4%
US IPA style beer called Skipa for Christmas, so watch out.
Chef Tom Babb
is a gifted cook and today's specials include haddock Mornay and a chicken and
leek pie, made properly in a tin with pastry top and bottom. The infamous fish
& chips are up on the board, as is treacle tart - heaven. I’m in!
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| The Bluebell's haddock Mornay - superb |
Best
café – Driftwood. Now back to Emsworth for lunch and what a tough
choice. If you're on your own then Driftwood
is a great spot, with Union Coffee (you can buy the beans here) lovely crisp bottomed
quiches and a dangerous display of cakes; the quiche of the day was red pepper,
bacon and brie, with proper short pastry, followed by lemon meringue pie.
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| Driftwood's lemon meringue pie |
Big
night out? A happy foursome head into Fat Olives, just over the road, and explain that they love coming
here for lunch once a month, and live in Petersfield, so have many good choices
locally, fair praise indeed.
The
hike: The Solent Way ends
at Emsworth, so head back over to Langstone for a decent 6+ mile circular walk
along the coast, enjoying the twitching of seabirds one way and the graveyard
at Warblington the other. Mill ponds, ducks and pubs, you could be in Suffolk! Choice of pubs
for lunch, though The Ship seemed more popular, a Fullers pub.
www.conservancy.co.uk
– for all mooring/ visiting queries
Best tweeters
- @EmsworthLife
