Short answer: Wighton, inland at Orchard Way, is the big family pub that copes with a full room and a pushchair. Cockington Country Park has a Lutyens-designed pub and children's playgrounds on the same free site — the best combination in Torquay.
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 best family pub setup in Torquay is not really a pub, it is a park with a pub in it. Cockington Country Park has no entrance fee at all — a thatched village, a manor house, craft workshops, lakes, woodland walks and children's playgrounds — plus two tea rooms and the Drum Inn, designed by Edwin Lutyens.
Reviewers describe it as somewhere with something for everyone and specifically note that there is no entrance fee, so it is accessible for all. Children can run about, adults can sit, and it costs nothing but the parking.
The big family pub, inland at Orchard Way. A beer garden, mixed grills, lamb shanks and a kitchen that copes with a full room. Reviewers describe arriving with a dog and having a bowl of water brought out unprompted, and a table found for a group without a booking.
Not scenic, but the most reliable large-group meal in Torquay with children in tow.
The Dock on Victoria Parade is relaxed, open ten till ten, with outdoor tables and a dog-friendly welcome. It is the dependable all-day option down by the harbour, with the boats for entertainment.
Meadfoot Beach Cafe sits above the beach huts with outdoor tables facing the sea and food made to order — and it stays open in poor weather when other beach cafés give up.
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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