Travel
The coastal Kent town is brimming with butchers, bakers and fish-and-chip makers — plus a healthy dose of fine dining.
ByLarah Yearwood
Published February 21, 2024
This article was produced by National Geographic Traveller (UK).
On the Kent coast, where the North Sea meets the English Channel, the historic town of Deal was at one time the busiest port in England. Today, though, it’s less dockyard and more seaside resort, popular with day-trippers and weekenders from London and beyond, who come for the pebble beach and pretty castle and stay for the town’s growing culinary scene.
Deal Castle, which was commissioned by Henry VIII, is the town’s top tourist attraction. Work up an appetite exploring the picturesque grounds before you hit High Street in search of something to eat. For a quick snack, pick up a sausage roll or vegan pasty at modern independent cafe Hope & Lane and wash it down with an organic coffee.
For something a little more substantial, slightly further down you’ll find bistro Frog and Scot. Opened in 2016 by Benoit and Sarah Dezecot, this stylish bistro serves a changing menu of what the owners describe as ‘English tapas’, accompanied by DJ sets. Expect sharing plates such as baked mackerel with gooseberries and a mint salsa, or fried goat’s cheese dumplings with chilli honey, as well as smaller snacks and burgers. The Dezecots also run Le Pinardier, a wine shop and bar just a few doors down.
Opposite Frog and Scot, The Rose hotel and restaurant is on the site of what’s been a Deal landmark for more than two centuries, but its menu certainly isn’t stuck in the past. Dine on seasonal dishes such as burrata with fresh peas, broad beans and nasturtiums, or dry-aged pork chop with a romesco sauce made using smoked local apricots. You might also find evidence of the restaurant’s previous collaboration with star Portuguese chef Nuno Mendes, such as ‘Nuno’s olive oil cake’ with braised quince caramel.
For a family favourite, pay a visit to The Lane, where children eat free on Friday afternoons and the menu ranges from burgers to tacos (don’t miss Taco Thursdays). The afternoon tea, meanwhile, features unusual additions that change seasonally, from pork and apple sliders to chocolate orange tarts.
Deal isn’t just about dining out, though, with plenty of opportunities to pick up fresh local produce to take home. If you’re visiting on a weekend, Deal Saturday Market on the High Street is the place to visit. It’s been going strong since 1699, and today you’ll find stallholders stocking cheese, chocolate, craft beer and plenty of non-edibles, too.
On nearby St George’s Passage, meanwhile, The Black Pig is an artisan butcher specialising in locally sourced meats, whether it’s chicken from Faversham or lamb from Dover. The shop dry-cures and oak-smokes its bacon on site, and the sausages are homemade to traditional recipes. And for baked goods, let the scent guide you into Al’s Bakery (50 High Street), a local favourite full of fresh, handmade sweet and savoury snacks, such as cakes, doughnuts and breads of all kinds. Fill your stomach then fill up a bag and take a taste of Kent home with you.
Published in Issue 22 (winter 2023) of Food by National Geographic Traveller (UK).
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