Review of Thornham Deli: Super extensive menus featuring fresh, quality food on offer at coastal restaurant with friendly staff

On a beautifully crisp autumnal Sunday afternoon, my partner Lee and I travelled to Thornham Deli for lunch with his family.

The premises, on the village’s High Street, is a restaurant, shop and bakery - and also offers suites for a place to stay.

It’s one of a number of eateries along the coast that I’ve been wanting to try for a while, so I was excited to give it a go when it was suggested for a Sunday meal.

As Thornham Deli is walk-in only, we were hoping that we’d be able to get a table for five and thankfully - while it was quite busy - there were a few big tables still going spare just past midday.

While the restaurant is spacious, it also has a cosy feeling about it - with local artwork (which is for sale) and coastal-themed decorations adorning the walls.

It was also spotless, and there were lots of staff members on hand to tend to customers - who were friendly, helpful and charismatic.

Starting with drinks from the sizeable menu - featuring coffee, tea, hot chocolates, soft drinks, Thornham Deli gin and tonic, juices, beers, lagers, wines, milkshakes and smoothies - I decided to get a chocolate milkshake with oat milk (£6.25 plus 50p for the oat milk).

It was creamy and delicious, and I had a job to not finish it off in one go.

Lee had a non-alcoholic Peroni (£4.75), while his dad Bernie had a Belvoir ginger beer (£3.50), and both his mum Gina and niece Georgie had an orange juice with Sprite lemonade (£3.88 each).

Moving on to mains, the food menu was beyond extensive, with options including all-day breakfast, sandwiches, wraps, lighter meals, burgers, pasta, pizza, nourish bowls as well as a vegan menu, children’s menu and chef’s specials. There’s even a menu for dogs too!

Those with intolerances are also catered for as gluten-free options are clearly highlighted.

I was tempted by a number of dishes from the vegan menu including street food tapas and pasta but eventually opted for the vegan breakfast, which came with a sausage, grilled tomato, mushroom, potato 'crunchies', baked beans, wilted spinach, avocado and sourdough toast (white and low glycemic index multiseed were also options) for £13.50.

My meal looked very appetising and tasted the part too - it was full of different flavours and textures, everything was cooked well and it was a good selection. The potato crunchies were a particular highlight, and after some recent bad experiences with overripe ones, it was a relief to get some perfect avocado.

Meanwhile, Lee chose the mixed grill from the chef’s specials which came with sweet chilli chicken, minute steak, half a gammon steak, lamb fillet, Cajun chicken wings, portabella mushroom, cherry vine tomatoes and ‘fat’ chips for £23.50.

He said the meat was “perfectly cooked”, with the Cajun wings “particularly tasty” and the chips well done - crispy yet fluffy on the inside.

Lee felt it was a good portion size and that he certainly wasn’t going to go home hungry.

As for Bernie, he went for the fish finger wrap which consisted of Norfolk beer battered fingers with chef’s tartare sauce, rocket and chunky chips for £14.50.

Gina and Georgie both chose the Sunday roast from the chef’s specials (although Georgie had the kids’ size) which consisted of roast chicken supreme, pigs in blankets, sage and onion stuffing ball, carrot and swede puree, curly kale, leeks in cheese sauce, Yorkshire pudding and gravy. The adult portion was £17.95, while the kids’ one was £8.50.

Bernie said his fish finger wrap was fresh and filling, while Gina and Georgie said the roast was delicious and also a good portion size. Gina said the cheesy leeks “made” the meal.

Although everyone felt that their meals had been healthy portion sizes, a few members of the group still had room for desserts.

Lee chose the key lime cheesecake with cream to round off his lunch (£4.75), Gina picked the salted caramel cake (£3.95), and Georgie opted for the carrot cake (£3.75).

To accompany the cakes, they also ordered two English breakfast teas (£3.50 each) and an Americano coffee (£3.25).

Gina described the caramel cake as “to die for”, with the topping being “lush”, while Lee said his cheesecake was “creamy” and “just how a cheesecake should be”. All agreed that the cakes were tasty, fresh and clearly homemade.

Our total bill came to £123.40 - or £24.68 each - which we felt was good value for money considering we had ordered eight drinks, five mains and three desserts, with the food being fresh and of excellent quality.

Afterwards, we had a quick browse of the shop, which had lots of lovely, local - and some quirky - items for sale.

Now having experienced Thornham Deli for the first time, I’m sure it won’t be too long until I return to try more of what they have on offer.

It’s great to see a business such as this which is thriving - judging by its popularity - and also championing all things local.

Ratings out of five:

Food: The menu was extremely extensive and offered something for everyone, while the dishes themselves were filling, fresh and flavoursome. ****

Drink: Again, the options were pretty sizeable, and included locally-sourced ingredients as well as popular brands. *****

Decor: The interior and exterior of Thornham Deli were welcoming and everything was pleasant to look at, including local art for sale. ****

Staff: All of the workers we encountered were friendly and helpful. *****

Price: Some of the dishes were on the pricier side, but I’m sure this reflected the quality of the ingredients used. All told, we felt that the total bill was fair and value for money. ****