Côte Exeter

You're sitting metres from Exeter Cathedral's Gothic towers, which is either a blessing or a curse depending on how you feel about tourists with cameras. Côte manages to rise above its prime Cathedral Yard location with genuinely decent French food that doesn't rely on the postcard views to carry it. The confit duck leg is properly rendered, the moules marinière come in a pot big enough to share (but you won't want to), and they do a cracking job with breakfast if you can stomach croissants at 8am. The interior strikes that difficult balance between chain restaurant efficiency and actual warmth – think polished wood, burgundy banquettes, and staff who know their way around a wine list. Yes, it's part of a group, but when the alternative is another gastropub doing 'elevated' fish and chips for £18, Côte's honest French cooking feels almost radical.