The Black Venus Inn — Restaurant in North Devon

I had a couple meals here last week whilst I was on a short holiday in the area.

I didn't have a reservation, but the staff were welcoming and gave me a table and very politely told me what time they needed the table back, which I have to say goes a long way.

First time I eat here, my partner and I ordered the Ribeye Steak and the Duck and we were blown away at how good it was. The food actually excelled places I've waited months for a reservation and/or had michelin stars.

As you can imagine, we came back for a second visit with high expectations. This time we ordered the chicken curry and another Ribeye Steak. The Ribeye didn't disappoint, but whilst the curry was good I felt that the dish as a whole definitely fell short of the standard of the other dishes we had tried. I'd expand on this by saying that the naan bread and the rice didn't seem as lovingly prepared as the curry itself. This is the only reason the review is 4 stars and not 5. I'd seriously recommend the owners look at reducing the number of options on the menu, or having the items like the Ribeye and the duck as 'chef's specials' or something similar to differentiate the standards to be expected from the different dishes.

We had dessert the second time around and it was very much excellent!

We enjoyed the humble atmosphere as it means the excellent food really catches you off guard. The beers on tap were also really tasty. I'd still love to come back and try some more of the dishes, but I'd probably try and stick to the more classic british ones to get the most enjoyment...

Recommended the Black Venus by neighbours. Easy parking opposite although, due to the weather, very muddy. Acknowledged as soon as we went in, but waited a while as the one FOH person was busy. All tables sat but a relaxed atmosphere. A very extensive menu, which made choosing a challenge. Our starters of garlic mushrooms, £8 and the prawn & trout tower, £9 were just delicious and beautifully presented. Our main courses, lamb curry, £19 and the 'Exmoor Beast' at £19.50 were equally as good. Great flavours, good portions, nice and hot. It was a pleasant change to enjoy a curry with salad instead of rice, not so filling. Finishing off with a strawberry meringue, clotted cream and ice cream at £8, it made a perfect end to a perfect lunch. A bill of £78.50 which included 3 pints of guest ale, £5 a pint, we thought, was quite reasonable. Looking at the wine list, averaging £7-8 for a glass, would bump a bill up considerably. A friendly farewell as we left. Given the time of year and miserable weather, it's an ideal place to go for great food, roaring fires and cosiness. When the tourists are a plenty, I would imagine it'd be a struggle to park and get a table, so I'd highly recommend booking ahead. Thank you Black Venus, we really enjoyed our visit...

Been here many times so the Venus was an assured go to. Sadly our family birthday lunch of 10, was pretty miserable today. There was a Christmas menu on but no crackers on the table, OK I can get past that even though the menu was pricey and we are 7 days away from Christmas. Music bass was loud and faulty so sounded like a boy racer had rocked up outside. Quite a few patrons looked unimpressed. Staff looked like they didn't want to be there no one was really that attentive. No one came up to ask us if our meals were alright. What I can't do is get over is how shocking our roast meal was. The veg was disgusting. Some of us had roast beef - just a slice and a bit roast beef. The only nice bit was the 2 roast potatoes on my plate. Not a hearty delicious feast we have enjoyed here for many years. A pathetic offering sadly, for which I could also pass by and never return however for £17.00 for a roast beef in comparison to other pub roasts around, we felt ripped off and were pretty annoyed. Thankfully we just ordered a main. As it was a birthday we kept a low profile on this so as not to end on a negative. But you've just lost a few customers for...