Short answer: The London Inn sits on the village green, which is the best thing a pub can have with children — somewhere to send them. The Ferry Boat Inn does an outdoor grill at weekends and lets you take food onto the beach. The Clipper needs no booking and you order at the counter.
On the village green, dog friendly, with a good catch of the day. The green is the feature: children can be on it while you are at a table, which is effectively a play area without being one. In a village this small that is the obvious family choice.
An outdoor grill at weekends, local beer and cider, and — the useful bit — you can take a takeaway from it onto the beach. On a fine day that solves lunch completely: food from the pub, eaten on the sand, with crab lines in the water.
Open 8am to 9pm, no booking needed, and you order at the counter. All three of those matter with young children. The long hours mean it works for an early breakfast before the ferry or an early dinner before the drive home.
Reasonable prices and a rooftop terrace, and it is quieter than the Strand — which is the point. When the waterfront is full in August, this is where to go instead. The terrace is upstairs, so factor that in with a buggy.
The best view in the village and a strong Sunday roast, by the tunnel entrance. It is more of a proper lunch than a family scramble, and it is up the hill — worth it for the Sunday roast and the view, less so with a toddler mid-meltdown.
Crabbing off the beach, and the Smugglers' Tunnel down to Ness Cove. Between those two and the green, Shaldon gives children plenty to do without a single ticket.
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