The story
The Millbrook Inn sits at South Pool, TQ7 2RW, on a tidal creek above the Salcombe estuary outside Kingsbridge. Its modern British pub cooking earned a Good (2026) rating in The Good Food Guide, and the Michelin Guide lists it as Recommended for 2026.
Elly Wentworth is executive chef across the Millbrook and Fowlescombe, a luxury rural retreat with a working regenerative farm. The menu draws on that farm connection, pairing prime ingredients with an approachable style. Caitlin Owens has run the pub since 2021, and the kitchen has leaned back toward its roots since then.
Reviewers have singled out Brixham crab with fresh corn chowder as an opener, along with a Toulouse sausage and triple-cooked chips. Seasonal desserts have included a Fowlescombe farm honey and fig trifle with roasted hazelnuts. For now, the main food offer is the Sunday lunch, alongside a single daily pub dish that changes by the week, such as chillis, stews or pies made with Shorthorn beef.
The low-ceilinged rooms have a fire for winter evenings and a brook at the back for summer drinks, with dogs by the hearth and locals at the bar. The wine list is built around Coravin, so many bottles can be poured by the glass. Local ales, Salcombe Brewery cider and gin from along the coast are also on the bar. Two cottages, Land and Sea, stand across the road, each with two bedrooms and a private garden.
Recognition
Ambience
Details
History
For decades, the Milbrook has defended its reputation as a reliable source of decent pub food in the South Hams but since Caitlin Owens took on ownership in 2021, it has found a new stride. Elegant restoration has amplified the cosy low-ceilinged hostelry into a sophisticated destination, whether you’re staying in the rooms across the road, or rocking up sandy-footed from the beach, ready for a pint of Salcombe Brewery Ocean Cider by the babbling brook at the back. Beyond good looks, the menu is bolstered by its connection to Fowlescombe – a luxury rural retreat and working regenerative farm – and by Elly Wentworth, who works as executive chef across both sites, balancing prime ingredients with an approachable menu. Brixham crab and fresh corn chowder made for a swoon-worthy opener on our most recent visit, while a Toulouse sausage was packed with flavour and the triple-cooked chips were as good as you’d hope. Sunday lunches and seasonal desserts such as Fowlescombe farm honey and fig trifle with roasted hazelnuts complete the package, while on dark nights the fireside beckons for a pre- or post-prandial trip through the adventurous wine list, which uses the Coravin system to offer maximum interest by the glass. Service can fluctuate with the seasons but it always supports a convivial hubbub of happy diners.
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