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Hello foodie world!

(Latest update: January 2026)

Welcome to the No Expert food blog.   Our reviews cover restaurants, cafes, products and food related events. The opinions on these pages are our own or those of our dining companions. We’re not food experts that can describe the ins and outs of cooking techniques and ingredients so don’t expect autopsies on every dish we’ve ever eaten.  What we do know is what we like.

Not everyone will agree but we hope you might find our culinary experiences useful as some of these restaurants can be very expensive and maybe we will save you some time and money by avoiding the disappointing and recommending the very best.

No Expert has relocated to Kent, so you will now see us focusing on some of the excellent eating establishments and food related events in “The Garden of England”. 

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Flavours by Kumar : Ramsgate

Latest Visit ( December 2025) :-

Over the years as restaurants come and go in Ramsgate, Flavours by Kumar has persevered. It still looks pretty much the same as it did on my first visit many years ago, and they still have their reasonably priced set lunch menu. It’s also a popular choice for home delivery and one of these places where you know every dish is going to be good.

We’ve recently been ordering a la carte rather than ordering from their set lunch menu. They have a large selection of starters that we’re working our way through, for lunch we typically order a sharing platter & some extra starters. Highlights include Gobi Manchurian (just stunning, love the texture & flavour), the Chilli Pork and the Mint & Coriander Chicken.

The amuse bouche and the little cup of soup are also a treat, there’s a good reason this restaurant is called flavours.

Older review 2014 :-

I have been eating regularly at Flavours by Kumar for a while  now and just realised that although it is included it in the No Expert – Eating and Drinking Guide it does not have a more in-depth review in its own right; which it most definitely merits.

The restaurant is tucked away in a side street in Ramsgate (2 Effingham Street). It is in a converted pub that still looks like a pub when you enter, but don’t judge this place by the decor, this is not your average Indian Restaurant. The owner and Head Chef, is Anil Kumar, who worked at The Cinnamon Club in London, and in restaurants in Dubai, Jordan and India.

We go for the set lunch which is amazing value. You start with a welcome drink usually a mango juice concoction. Then a small amuse bouche, which is a mouthful of deliciousness. They have a nice selection of starters, the Masala Dosa is a work of Art, and I highly recommend the Squid dish.  Next there is a small complimentary cup of spicy soup. There is also a good few main courses to choose from. We have tried several of them, the highlight for me is the Goan Fish Curry, it is served with rice and warm freshly made naan bread.

The service is good and there is a small selection of  wine.

The restaurant is well regarded, it won a Tiffin Cup award to find the UKs best South Asian Restaurant and has been favourably covered in the national press, see Guardian article which described the food at Flavours by Kumar as some of the tastiest Indian Food in the South East of England and they are so right. If you are in the area, this is a treat not to be missed.

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Vincent’s : Ramsgate

Update (November 2025) :- Vincent’s will shortly be under new management, so likely to be menu & opening time changes.

Latest visit (October 2025) :-

An Instagram post for a black pudding & omelette roll called ‘Vincent’s black & gold roll’ drew my attention back to Vincent’s, it’s somewhere I usually just pop in for mint tea & cake if I’m passing by on a sunny afternoon. However now they’re doing breakfasts from 8:30am Wednesday to Saturday and from 9:00am on Sundays.

The black & gold roll was really good, cheesy egg omelette and a large slice of black pudding, served on a surprisingly large roll (I’m keen to return to see if they’re as generous with their bacon rolls). Their Coffee was excellent too, so Vincent’s is now firmly on my list as a regular breakfast venue. The café is located in a really attractive, charming decorated hut overlooking the local Tennis Courts in Spencer Square. They have several tables inside and plenty of outside seating available when the weather permits.

Update :- Returned to checkout their Bacon rolls. We thought £7:50 for a Bacon roll was excessive, well above the average price, but seriously it was an absolute bargain. Easily twice the size of a typical bacon roll, it was huge, loads of good quality bacon cooked to order, one roll crispy, the other not, options for streaky or unsmoked back bacon. I’m absolutely stuffed. Highly recommended.

First visit  (May 2023) :-

Vincent’s is a gem of a cafe in Ramsgate, one you would struggle to find without local knowledge. It’s located in Spencer Square in the little hut overlooking the Tennis Courts, I didn’t even realize that it had inside seating, but it does and it’s surprisingly spacious. It’s a friendly place serving good Coffee and homemade Cakes. The outside seating is on both sides of the hut, so you can also sit overlooking the rather stunning Vincent van Gogh sculpture.

Spencer Square leads into Addington Street where you will find some interesting independent shops, see the Addington Street section of the Ramsgate Shopping Guide for details.

Vincent’s is also located at the start point for the Vincent van Gogh self guided walking trail.

 

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Giant Coffee : Ramsgate

Wow, yet another new Coffee Shop/Café has opened in Ramsgate. This new coffee shop Giant Coffee is located on the ground floor of the old wine warehouse in Charlotte Court not far from Staple. This almost hidden area is also home to the Ramsgate Arts Club in the old wine warehouse basement and to the very attractive Saltworks shop next door.

There is plenty of space for outside seating in Charlotte Court too,  it will be a lovely spot in the summer.

The Giant Café itself is quite small and cosy with friendly staff, excellent coffee and delicious plant based cakes (amazing what a good baker can do without dairy). We had a piece of ‘Chocolatey’ banana cake with a hint of coconut and a very refreshing and tasty pineapple cake. We’re looking forward to returning to try more of their cakes. They also have Coffee Shops in Margate and Broadstairs.

Update : We’ve been back a few times now, their coffee is that good. They have some excellent savoury pastries too.

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Quince : Westgate-on-sea

We have been making good use of the seasonal 69 Open Top bus to go to less familiar parts of Thanet. Westgate-on-Sea and Westbrook are an easy reach (Norman Road bus stop).  You can get there quickly by train too. Highlights are the beach cafes at St Mildred’s Bay and West Bay, the Sunken Garden, the Carlton Cinema, the Brocante in Ethelbert Street, Staple cafe (hidden away in a back street) and Quince. This local restaurant is well worth a visit, reservations are required so plan ahead. We had a lovely lunch there with excellent service. They have set and a la carte menus and a decent wine list.

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Njord – Scandi Style : Cliffsend Pegwell

Latest visit (September 2025) :-

Njord had to close for several months this Summer due to flooding, but thankfully it’s now open again, completely renovated and with a new chef and new menus. We popped in for breakfast, ordered a Full English and Chef’s Toast (almost a Full English on toast – it didn’t exactly match the menu description as it included Chefs rosti rather than pickled red onion, but I was fine with that). I also couldn’t resist some post breakfast Apple pie. It’s great to see this excellent cafe back on its feet.

The (seasonal) 69 Open-Top bus can be used to get here from Ramsgate, the Viking Ship bus stop is only a few minutes walk from Njord.  

First visit (May 2024) :-

I’ve wanted to try out Njord for a while now, I mean a Scandi style place overlooking Pegwell Bay is so intriguing. So we headed out on a lovely sunny day (it’s only a few minutes away from Ramsgate by car or bus) and about a 40 mins walk if you’re feeling energetic!

Njord is in a great location on the edge off the Pegwell Bay nature reserve, it’s rather lovely inside, with a mix of comfy lounge style seating & coffee tables, dining tables with bench seating and bar stools at the window overlooking the bay. There is also some outside seating and lots of bike racks for cyclists.

The breakfast/brunch menu is mainly muffin, sourdough & croissant based dishes. We rather fancied the less conventional breakfast of Cochon Pulled Pork with Sundried Tomato & Chorizo Tapanata and Poached Kentish Free Range Eggs on a toasted English Muffin with Hollandaise sauce & chilli flakes. However they’d ran out of pork and were doing a pulled Chicken recipe instead, so we ordered that and Americano Coffees. The Coffees were served quickly and were excellent, I even had some left when the breakfast muffins arrived, the pulled chicken muffins tasted as good as they looked too, nicely spiced from the Tapanata and very filling.

Njord is also a Bar with an excellent drinks menu, lots of different brands of rum and gin is always a good sign. They also serve a few cocktails to enhance your breakfast/brunch experience.

The cakes at the Bar looked really good as well, they’re from the Beardy Baker in Canterbury, so I’ll certainly be back to try those.

Attractions in the area include the aforementioned Pegwell Bay nature reserve and the Viking Ship Hugin, which is a great photo opportunity and I guess sort of in keeping with the Scandi style at Njord.

 

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Sargasso : Margate

Sargasso is located out on the Harbour Arm in Margate. It’s been on my wishlist for ages, so we booked a table on a hot summer evening. It’s stools rather than chairs and benches for outside dining, so not really somewhere to linger. We sat at the bar with a good view of the open kitchen and ordered a few dishes from the tapas menu. The food was good, especially the tomato salad and sourdough bread but pricey (3 dishes, bread & wine £160).

You also need to be aware that there is no toilet in the restaurant itself, only some porta loos next door.

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