Short answer: Woodpecker bar and kitchen has a playhouse outside and children's portions at a fixed price. Ten minutes east, the Pack o' Cards at Combe Martin has a big beer garden with a play area and a stream at the bottom — the best family pub garden in the area.
A word on what to expect. Devon coastal pubs very rarely have playgrounds in the way inland family pubs do — the buildings are old, the sites are small and the land is expensive. What they have instead is a beer garden, a beach or a public play area within sight. That is usually enough, but it is worth knowing before you drive somewhere expecting a climbing frame.
The pick within reach of Ilfracombe. Family-run, inland from the coast, open from seven in the morning, with a playhouse outside and smaller portions for children at a fixed five pounds. Dog friendly, and it lets paying customers stay overnight in a camper in the car park, which is a niche detail but a telling one about the attitude.
Reviewers describe booking last minute for a family of four with a pram and being welcomed in.
Ten minutes east and the best family pub garden in the area by a distance. It is a genuinely unique 17th-century building designed around a deck of cards — 52 windows, four floors, thirteen rooms per floor — with a big beer garden that has a play area and a stream at the bottom for children and dogs to paddle in.
There is a Sunday carvery. One warning worth passing on: reviewers report no baby-changing facilities, which catches people out.
Right on the quay in Ilfracombe with raised seating over the harbour. Dog and child friendly, doing fish landed locally with batter made in house, and gluten-free options. The harbour itself — boats, Verity, the fish market — is the entertainment, and it is free.
Above the harbour with a flower garden and the Sunday lunch people drive a long way for. It opens from 3pm most days, so check before turning up for lunch. More of a grown-up meal than a children's romp, but the garden helps.
Book if you are more than four, and book for Sunday lunch anywhere on this list. Devon pubs fill and the ones with gardens fill first on a sunny day.
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