Last night I dreamt of La Mar. You know you’ve eaten somewhere really rather special when you wake up the next day thinking about it.

Nestled in the heart of Exmouth’s marina, La Mar, with its effortlessly chic interior and windows that open wide to embrace the sea air in summer, is agreed upon as quite simply one of the most memorable places the One Mag team have eaten. Let me tell you why.

The restaurant began life as a function room for owner Maise Dawson’s already locally-loved Beach Pub below, with Maisie refurbing the room into the thoughtfully curated space it is today, confidently making decisions on interior design while considerately ensuring access for all with a state-of-the art lift installation. The result is welcoming and stylish, with a distinct nod to its seaside location without any of the typical cliché.

Award-winning chefs Cleo and Charlie have been with Maisie for a number of years, now occupying the open kitchen visible from the dining area, creating a pressure they soak up with a cool calmness. Quality local ingredients let these talented chefs do the talking, some of which come from just metres away.

Maisie’s serving staff have also grown alongside her. We were really impressed with how relaxed our waitress made us feel, delivering a fine dining experience that wasn’t pretentious or made you feel tense, while still reeling off all the knowledge on ingredients used in each of our dishes without hesitation when requested.

I feel the biggest compliment you can give a chef on their starter (or appetiser in this case) is wishing you could eat it again as a main – the pork belly bites make my mouth water just remembering them. Then there were the scallops which moved from being something delicious into the realm of true culinary artistry. 

As someone who suffers with food intolerances, I was thrilled to be presented with food which was an adaptation of what everyone else was eating and no less delicious.

For the main course, it was an even split between those that chose the Rump of Beef – tender, decadent, and made to sing by a flavoursome red wine jus – and the Confit Chicken Breast – which was cooked to perfection, succulent, and paired with an indulgent truffle mash. 

Seafood lovers could choose from the prawn and pumpkin ravioli or the roasted monkfish with celeriac fondant, carrot and orange puree and fresh sea herbs.

The Orange Crème Brulee was silky smooth and brought to life by Cointreau roasted peaches, while the Apple Frangipane, with its pecans and stem ginger ice cream, were divine and a triumphant way to finish our meal.

Loyal regulars have already amassed for this fantastic new restaurant delivering a confident yet relaxed, fine-dining experience. I think we’ll all be dreaming about La Mar for some time to come.

La Mar is open Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday evenings and is now taking bookings for their unique festive menu, starting from £45 for two courses. To book, call 01395 742725.

Words and Images: Mary Bennellick