Tom Kerridge names 'the UK's best ever restaurant'

While outsiders think there's a keen rivalry between celebrity chefs such as Tom Kerridge and Rick Stein, in fact the Buckinghamshire-based restaurateur has nothing but admiration for what has done in Cornwall. began life as a nightclub called The Purple Tiger. But, 50 years ago this year the nightclub closed down and Rick, and his wife Jill, opened the restaurant on the same site.

And Tom, speaking on podcast, said that Rick Stein's Restaurant in is "arguably one of the best restaurants, if not the best restaurant this country has ever had". It's exceptional not just for its food, Tom says, but for "where it's located, what it does, what it's done for an area and a region, the industry that it supports right next door". Tom says that Rick runs "a proper restaurant, and charges proper prices".

While it may not be a cheap night out – a piece of turbot with some Hollandaise sauce and a few new potatoes might cost you £75 – it's top quality food, Tom says. In fairness, Rick does offer some terrific bargains too – for example, through the traditionally shower-prone month of April, any families caught in the rain can pop in and get a kids' meal for just £1. It's certainly worth a visit, from Tom's point of view.

He says that with seafood sourced from literally just outside the kitchen window, Rick Stein's Seafood Restaurant is "almost the perfect restaurant". He explains: "It's not got Michelin stars..

.but what it has got is energy. It's got atmosphere.

It ticks so many boxes and it's a brilliant, brilliant place." By contrast, Rick's chip shop, named 'Stein's Fish and Chips', just down the road received from one travelling restaurant critic. Gary Hanna, who runs the restaurant review YouTube channel Gary Eats channel is certainly no fan of Rick's restaurant.

perfecVowing never to return to a Rick Stein restaurant, he said: "I had his fish and chips and I've got to say they were disappointing. In fact, actually called it out and said it was a tourist trap." Gary had to wait approximately 20 minutes for his meal, a delay he thought was fair enough given that the food was going to be freshly prepared.

However, he was disappointed with the haddock he received, describing it as "really sorry for itself," and overly greasy. Upon tasting, he found the fish dry, commenting: "That's not good. That's not good piece of fish at all.

" The chips didn't fare much better in Gary's estimation, being "a bit dry," and somewhat undercooked. The scampi also failed to impress, with Gary dismissing it as "mass-produced mush". He labelled the mushy peas as "rubbish", and was unimpressed by the separately charged condiments.

Despite being offered a replacement meal on the house, Gary declined, saying he didn't want to end up wasting another piece of fish. He concluded his review with a personal message for the proprietor. He went on to say: "I appreciate that [Rick Stein's] not here running it himself personally but his family, or whoever's running his organisation is running it guys sort it out – because you're ripping people off this is a tourist trap and it's not acceptable.

" However, the restaurant has received a number of excellent reviews on Google, including one from William Lindsay who said: "Excellent fish and chips, we ate in and had one grilled cod and one battered , good size portions and very nicely cooked. Good value for the quantity and quality provided. Fast polite efficient service.

".