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The West Dorset Magazine, March 25, 2022
Vittles (food & drink)
It’s a shore thing: Top quality food By Karen Bate newsdesk@westdorsetmag.co.uk
When scathing food critic the late AA Gill poured four vinegary stars of five over a Burton Bradstock beach café in a Sunday Times Magazine review in 2005 – the café quite literally became a destination overnight. Out-of-town foodies travelled for miles to reach The Hive Beach Café to be swallowed whole by huge skies and rolling ocean while dining on fish soup, described by the famed critic as ‘not remotely grand, but tasting nicely of its constituent parts’ or the ‘particularly good’ ginger and spice cake. And while this shoreline gem had always hummed with hungry locals, dog walkers and visitors, this little visit from Mr Gill while he was staying with his mate Billy Bragg up the hill, propelled the café into something gastronomical. Steve Attrill and his GP wife Debbie took ownership of The Hive in 1991, and along with their daughters, Maisy and Emily, submerged themselves serving the finest seafood, embracing sustainability and taking care of their team of four. As their reputation flourished, food awards followed and the team swelled. Today Steve employs 175 people, mostly locals. The premises have grown too. Now they own their own
THE PLACE TO BE: The Hive Beach Cafe at Burton Bradstock and, below, from left, mixologist and manager Fefe Kovacs and head chef Will Hickton, the Fireball, the club's most popular cocktail and, below, serving up delicious locally-sourced seafood
micro-bakery to cater for their daily artisan bread. They have also developed The Top Marquee and taken ownership of The Club House in West Bexington and The Watch House Café in West Bay, which sits just yards away from the golden cliffs
made famous by ITV’s Broadchurch. This isn’t showboating but a real desire to meet the tidal wave of demand. The companies who supply The Hive Beach Café company feel the tides too. Steve said: “It’s always been our mission to use locally sourced, sustainable ingredients and support local suppliers wherever possible, which is some task when you have a couple of hundred covers at lunchtime. We serve seafood and shellfish and support sustainable fishing methods.” West Bay fisherman supply the fish, organic
vegetables arrive from neighbouring Tamarisk Farm, cheese arrives from the West Country Farmhouse Cheesemaker at nearby Ford Farm and Steve buys vodka from Black Cow Vodka and raids the larders of Chesil Smokery and Lyme Bay Winery. The café nestles on the sea shore amid the cliffs, a hugely popular part of the Jurassic coast, particularly with dog walkers. Steve caters for the dogs too – giving them their own menu with special biscuits, chewy bones and dogfriendly ice-cream. “It can be stressful when
