Five fantastic autumn food weekends in the UK

Felicity Cloake recommends oysters in Whitstable, porridge and whisky in the Highlands and fish and chips everywhere

Autumn sees a bumper crop of UK food festivals, in Devizes, Abergavenny, Aldeburgh and Melton Mowbray, among others. The Dartmouth Food Festival, which takes place on the waterfront, boasts chefs and speakers including Matt Tebbutt, Prof Tim Spector and … ahem, yours truly. And once you’ve sampled your way around the many stalls, tasting events and workshops, you’re well placed for the area’s other edible attractions, including South Devon Chilli Farm, with its display tunnel and shop, the Manna from Devon wood-fired cookery school, and Riverford Field Kitchen (lunch from £29.50), as well as the Sandridge Barton vineyard. Notable restaurants include Mitch Tonks’s Seahorse (mains about £30) and, down the coast, Hope Cove House (mains about £16) and Jane Baxter’s Wild Artichokes in Kingsbridge (feasting menu £45). Or you could just get takeaway fish and chips (£9.95) from Tonks’s Rockfish and sit on the harbour wall. The chef-owned Brightham House B&B (doubles from £150) is just down the coast in Salcombe.