The story
The Potted Lobster Bamburgh is a seafood restaurant in Seahouses, at 3 Lucker Road, Bamburgh, Northumberland NE69 7BS. The Good Food Guide rated it Good for 2026, and the seafood menu does most of the talking.
Locally landed lobster is the centrepiece. The kitchen makes a potted version bulked out with shrimps and crayfish, and it also poaches lobster with garlic mayonnaise or grills it with thermidor sauce. Starters might be Shetland mussels or smoked trout and leek tart. The specials board can bring garlicky langoustines or pan-fried halibut with lobster mayo.
Richard Sim, a local chef, started the restaurant in November 2015 as a small bistro. The kitchen cooks with produce from nearby harbours and farms, and it works closely with named suppliers to shorten food miles. Diners who prefer meat or vegetables are catered for too, with dishes such as duck and port parfait, wild mushroom and spelt risotto, and rump of lamb with red wine jus.
Blue and white maritime colours, blond furniture, and seafood prints on wooden planks give the room a relaxed beach-hut feel. Staff are knowledgeable and will advise on the menu. There is outdoor seating, and the restaurant has a dog-friendly area.
Desserts follow the seasons, with a baba soaked in sloe gin rather than rum and a glazed lemon tart served with fresh raspberries. The drinks list includes beers from the Alnwick Brewery. The wine selection is the strongest part of the list, with a wide range of international styles and grape varieties.
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With its maritime blue-and-white colour schemes, blond furniture and seafood prints on planks of wood, this buzzy seafood restaurant has the feel of an upmarket beach hut – although that’s where the similarity ends. Knowledgeable, friendly staff are on hand to advise on the menu, which majors in fresh seafood in various forms. As expected, locally landed lobsters are the headline act – from a potted version bulked out with shrimps and crayfish to various classic riffs (poached with garlic mayo, grilled with thermidor sauce and so on). Alternatively, kick off with a bowl of Shetland mussels or smoked trout and leek tart ahead of battered haddock, a freshly dressed crab salad or something from the specials board (perhaps garlicky langoustines or pan-fried halibut with lobster mayo). Meat eaters and veggies are also well served, whether your penchant is for duck and port parfait, wild mushroom and spelt risotto or rump of lamb accompanied by buttered mash, red wine jus and homemade mint sauce. Desserts have seasonal flavour, be it a baba laced with sloe gin rather than rum or glazed lemon tart with fresh raspberries. Beers from the Alnwick Brewery show up well on the drinks list, although most praise is reserved for the wine selection, which offers a terrific international choice of styles and grape varieties.
1 Rosette Award for Culinary Excellence
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