1. Brighton

The new Seasons Restaurant is a bit out of the way on Brighton Marina, but that means you escape the throngs of the seafront proper. The big, breezy sundeck has views of the marina, and the food (clue's in the name) is all seasonal and organic: try scallops with oxtail tortellini and braising jus.

· +44 (0)1273 675 007, seasonsrestaurant.net. Mains £9-12.50.

2. Cornwall

With its long waterside decked area, featuring a palm tree and recycled furniture, the cutely-named Miss Peapod's Kitchen Cafe in Penryn is ideal for a summery lunch. Food is organic, fairtrade and local but also tasty. Think calamari, chickpea and chorizo salad and organic rump steak; plus a kids menu with organic pitta burgers. The live music policy is eclectic: psychedelic folk, garage krautrock, gypsy jazz.

· +44 (0)1326 374 424, misspeapod.jubileewharf.co.uk. Mains £5-8.

3. Wales

The Sweet Shop in Aberdyfi, nicknamed the Pink Shop for obvious reasons, is the perfect place for a scoop. Owner Angela makes her own ice-cream (up to 20 flavours are usually available) using Carmarthenshire cream and milk: grab a cone of stem ginger and chocolate and head to the benches in the gardens over the road, which overlook the estuary, or stroll down to the beach.

· +44 (0)1654 767 754, Seaview Terrace. aberdovey.org.

4. Bristol

The terrace at Goldbrick House, which opened last summer, is a tropical haven above busy Park Street and the place where discerning Bristolians flock to sip champagne and cocktails and stare squiffy-eyed into views of the Mendip Hills and Totterdown. On the menu: pigeon with stilton, braised ox cheek, risotto primavera. If the skies darken, the interiors are decked in fashionable flocked wallpaper with funky lighting.

· +44 (0)117 945 1950, goldbrickhouse.co.uk. Mains £15-18.

5. Buckinghamshire

There's no sign of its previous incarnation as a grotty inn at the new Plough Restaurant in Wavendon. The garden dining area, with its clipped yew hedges, won an award for "best commercial design" in Horticulture Week, but there's no chance the setting will distract from the food: the epic tasting menu features nine courses - if you include the salmon ceviche amuse bouche and jerusalem artichoke with vanilla pod veloute - and the chef, from Cape Town, hopes to land a Michelin star within the year.

· +44 (0)1908 587 576, theploughwavendon.com. Tasting menu £65 per head, £115 with wine. Two/three-course lunch £16/£19.75.