DART to Mouth Deli is the toast – and taste – of Devon.

The al fresco cafe in the Dartmouth Old Market has been declared the best place to visit in the county for a cream tea.

Independent food reviewer Ditch Towns­end has shared his top cream tea finds following his travels around Devon.

From over 400 tea shops and cafes he visited last year, he chose the Dartmouth experience to be the best.

Rayne and Kevin Ward who run the Dart to Mouth Deli said they were ‘over the moon’ at the accolade’.

‘It’s wonderful news for us and for Dart­mouth as a whole,’ said Rayne, who remembers Ditch visiting early one morning in October.

‘We originally started making scones mainly for the river picnic boat and they proved popular so we introduced them into the cafe,’ she said.

Rayne said the scones were not mass produced but baked daily using all local ingredients – with a hint of vanilla and one egg.

‘When they’re gone, they’re gone,’ she said.

‘The secret is in the handling of the mix. It’s got to be treated with respect.’

Ditch said cream teas were the ‘ultimate comfort food’ and a kind of therapy.

He ate up to eight a day on his travels and has now published his findings in a book, The Devon Cream Teaser. He scored places on grace, and the spread’s flavour and lastly by cost.

Of the Dart to Mouth Deli, he says: ‘Settle down outside this delightful little deli under heat lamps and a blanket to enjoy Dartmouth’s wonderfully picturesque courtyard market going on around you.’

He describes the scone as a ‘perfect semi-shortbread tasting one, with hints of vanilla and a fantastically soft biscuity consistency, without being too dense and heavy.

‘The skin was firm but suddenly yielding to a gorgeous crumble. Medium-soft and tasty Devon cream joined my astonishing plum and crab apple jam choice – a superb combination.

‘A choice of bagged tea revealed a nice Assam to accompany it all. Do this early – for breakfast even – as the scones can run out.’

He adds: ‘Dartmouth is such a beautiful, historical, estuary-side town; my favourite in south Devon without a doubt.’