Devon's Best Roast Dinners: Tea on The Green, Exeter



The good British roast dinner, is there anything better than sitting down to one on a Sunday? I have taken pride in my home cooked roasts for years, but sometimes it's nice to enjoy a roast that has been cooked by someone other than me! Devon is full of wonderful restaurants offering carvery or plated roasts, with lots of fresh local produce. I have often had difficulty in finding where is best to go, so decided to start the hunt to find 'Devon's Best Roast Dinner'.

A little while ago I went on the search for 'Exeter's Best Breakfast', and crowned my very worthy winner, The Daisy Cafe. I scored each venue based on the food, service and atmosphere to crown my winner. I put a shutout on Social Media to hear some of my reader's recommendations, and set about the task of trying them all out- who said that blogging is hard work!

What makes the 'perfect roast dinner' for me? 

Succulent meat, lots of fresh veggies, crispy roasted potatoes, thick meaty gravy and a perfect Yorkshire pudding/stuffing etc. It needs to have the correct balance between meat and vegetables, plenty of potatoes and enough gravy for every mouthful.

Check out my other Roast Dinner Reviews here

This week we visited Tea on the Green in Exeter. Located in the centre of town on the historic cathedral area, just down from the ill fated Royal Clarence Hotel. Popular for their afternoon teas, delicious cakes and lunches, they also offer a classic Sunday roast.  It is one of the old buildings located on the green, which makes for a really homely feel and relaxed atmosphere.





One of the things we spotted on the drinks menu was a 'tipsy tea'. We went for a Long Island Tipsy Tea, which was house tea, rum, vodka, Cointreau, gin, lemon and sugar. It was delicious, and served in the most gorgeous duck egg blue tea pot and cups.

This was an extra special start to our roast, and made me want to come back to enjoy one of their famous afternoon teas!


I went for rare beef as my meat, as it is one of my favourite roast meats. I also find it is a good test of a kitchen to see how the beef comes out. The roasts were plated but served with a big portion of veggies separately. I like this as you can choose the veggies you fancy, without them taking up room or gravy on the plate! There were roast potatoes, carrots, crispy parsnips and kale. We asked for some cauliflower cheese on the side and some extra potatoes. My beef came with a Yorkshire pudding and meaty rich gravy, and was again served on some quirky crockery.








My boyfriend went for the chicken roast, and said the chicken was cooked perfectly and was succulent. The portions were a generous size and there was plenty of meat served on our plates. There were only a few potatoes added on the main portion, so I was glad that we asked for some extra on the side. The gravy was rich and just the right consistency to last every mouthful on the plate without overpowering the flavours.

It was a really pleasant atmosphere to sit in for a few hours and enjoy a home style cooked roast. We loved the 'tipsy tea' and can't wait to go there and try out their afternoon teas.

Food ***** Atmosphere ***** Service *****

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