Food-lovers will find similar independent-minded spirit. Breakfast – a proper one – could be at the Alde Café, a true Local Gem where sauces in plastic bottles sit on the checked tablecloths and a full English or kedgeree or crab rarebit are cooked to order. Don’t miss the bacon and scallop butty with the optional bonus of black pudding on the side.
A brisk beach walk maybe, before dropping anchor at The Suffolk for lunch, dinner, or a sundowner and snacks on the sea-view terrace. Chef Luke Truelove’s seafood-leaning menu might include a lunch special of puff-pastry fish pie and peas; gleaming Maldon oysters; lobster and chips; or a push-the-boat-out whole brill to share. Finish with a perfect tart, maybe salted caramel with stem ginger ice cream, or apricot-pistachio frangipane. The six rooms are delightful, some dog-friendly too.
No visit to Aldeburgh is complete without a visit to the family-run Golden Galleon or its OG sister business Aldeburgh Fish & Chip Shop, frying (in beef dripping) since 1967. Expect to queue, but also to be rewarded by fish & chips just as they should be: hot, crisp, salty, vinegary, just-made and delicious. Take them to the beach (gull alert…) or head to The Upper Deck Diner above the Golden Galleon for a gull-free experience. For straightforward brasserie fare check out The Lighthouse which has been plying its trade for over 25 years, and Regatta restaurants, the latter owned by the twin brothers who also run the ever-popular Plough & Sail in nearby Snape.
Talking of pubs… you’ll find Suffolk brewer Adnams’ delightful Cross Keys a few steps from the beach, perfect for an energising honey-glazed gammon, eggs, and chips and pint of Ghost Ship. The pub’s close to the lively Thai Street Café whose generous pork skewers with satay sauces, and aromatic fish curries will perk up your palate come dinner time.
Be sure to fill your foodie boots before leaving. Choose fresh sole, skate, bass and crab (according to season) from Dean Fryer’s beach shack – he’s one of the last of Aldeburgh’s day-boat fishermen – or smoked fish from beach-based Ash Smoked Fishes. On the High Street, The Aldeburgh Market fishmonger-deli-restaurant is a local favourite, and a place to shop or sit down for a fish-leaning menu that’s global in inspiration: think Malaysian prawn sambal, south Indian fish curry, or a hearty New England chowder. Meat at Salter & King butchers is superlative (the ex-dairy beef from nearby Iken is not to be missed) while crusted sourdoughs and glossy pastries are piled high at the Two Magpies café and bakery, and deli foods tempt at Lawson’s. Pick up a bottle of Fishers coast-inspired gin, distilled next door to the Brudenell hotel, and indulge in all things chocolate, coffee and gelato from Suffolk’s own Harris & James. One thing’s for sure: you won’t leave Aldeburgh hungry.
Ditto if you take the short drive to Orford, a charming village sheltered from the North Sea by the River Ore and the atmospheric spit of land that is Orford Ness nature reserve. Pink-painted, multi award-winning Pump St Bakery shop and café will fix your lunchtime needs with savouries, pastries – our rec: the frangipane-filled puff pastry bear claw – and excellent coffee, while their shop across the square is packed with exceptional, beautifully packaged, single-origin bars and drinking chocolate. By the quay is Pinney’s of Orford where the slab is heavy with fresh and smoked fish and shellfish, much from the family’s boats, and cabinets are full with local pickles, oils, patés and preserves. Pinney’s Butley Orford Oysterage restaurant could be your spot for a simple meal of Butley Creek oysters, the freshest of grilled skate, bass or dover sole according to season, or you could check out the similarly straightforward fare at the Crown & Castle where a reliable evening menu might offer sea bream fillet with potato terrine and parsnip puree, or local pork with leeks and spätzle pasta. The Sunday lunch there is generous, ditto afternoon tea, a classic tiered collection of sandwiches, scones and pastries – and there are plenty of rooms for when all this eating calls for an overnight stay.
Please check opening times before making a trip as these are liable to change.
