Family delis, cafés and grocers on The Quay in Appledore and on Marine Parade in Instow. Started 1926 by Queenie Johns at The Quay Inn. Run today by Anthony Johns and Sue Johns, fourth generation, with the Beach Hut on Instow Sands re-opening April 2026.
Appledore is the working-quay village, the row of harbour cottages where the boats unload. The Quay Inn, the Johns of Appledore shopfront, the ferry slip down the road. Instow is the long-beach village on the opposite bank, where the Tarka Trail meets the sand and where great-great-grandad Dick used to row provisions across at low tide. Both shops have a kitchen, both share the same daily bake, both share the Low-Water Dick gin shelf.
Every item on the café counter is baked or cooked on the premises, mostly in the Appledore kitchen, and rotated through to the Instow counter the same day. Pop in to either shop, or phone 01237 429 065 for Appledore, 01271 860 310 for Instow.
Stocked daily from the independent producers Anthony has been buying from since the 2008 Appledore opening. Devon cheese on the counter, Devon butter on the loaf, Devon greens in the basket. The Low-Water Dick gin, named for the family great-great-grandfather, sits on the shelf in both branches.
Every item on the café counter is baked or cooked on the premises, mostly in the Appledore kitchen out the back, and rotated to the Instow counter the same day. Sourdough baguettes by 09:00, the lunch quiche from the late-morning bench, the cake counter for the afternoon walk-back from the Tarka Trail.
Instow looks out over the long sandy beach and the Taw-Torridge estuary. Appledore looks out over the harbour-row and the ferry slip. Both run Mon-Sun 08:30 to 16:00 for food, both keep coffee and cake on until 16:30. Dogs welcome at both. Buggies welcome at both.
Open seasonally on the Instow beachfront, the thread back to the 1940s when the family first fired up a beach hut café here. Styles ice cream, takeaway flat whites, hot chocolate for the dog-walkers who come down the Tarka Trail. Re-opens April 2026.
The Johns connection to the Taw-Torridge estuary starts in the early 1900s with Dick Johns, great-great-grandfather to Anthony. Dick used to row provisions across the water from Appledore to Instow, regardless of the tide. The village called him Low-Water Dick. The gin on the Johns shelf today is named after him.
Dick's son Freddie met a girl off the train at Instow station. Queenie. They married. In 1926 Queenie opened the formal Johns business at The Quay Inn, a few doors down from where Johns of Instow stands today. The Beach Hut Café on Instow Sands came in the 1940s. Three generations on, the shop is run by Anthony Johns (fourth generation, who started as a supermarket trainee manager and came back for the family business "and a certain Saturday girl there") and his wife Sue Johns.
The 2008 Appledore opening on The Quay was the family's first move across the water. The 2018 ten-year refit, with Leader 5 community funding and a ribbon-cut by local RNLI coxswain Martin Cox, made the brief explicit.
“We have been a part of the local community in North Devon for over 90 years and are passionate about showcasing the best of Devon's food and drink, from gin to cheeses and items from our own kitchen creating everything from granola to pâtés, quiches and divine cakes every day.” Anthony Johns · Speciality Food Magazine · 19 June 2018
Appledore is the working-quay village. Instow is the long-beach village. The Tarka Trail (Devon's flagship coast-path cycle route) runs along the Instow side. The Appledore-Instow ferry runs in summer.
7 The Quay, Appledore, EX39 1QS. Right on the harbour row, opposite the Quay Inn. Café, deli and grocer under one roof, the kitchen out the back. Same family, four generations.
Marine Parade, Instow, EX39 4HY. On the seafront, looking across the estuary at Appledore. The original Queenie Johns site, in the family for nearly a century. The Beach Hut sits a hundred yards down the sand and re-opens April 2026.
Tell us which branch, when you want to collect, and roughly what you want held. The kitchen bakes daily so an early heads-up matters for big numbers. Quiches for the Saturday picnic, sausage rolls for the regatta, a Low-Water Dick gin hamper for a Devon-leaving relative. Phone the branch, drop in, or use the form.
Trade and restaurant enquiries are routed through sales@johnsofappledore.co.uk. We will pass it on.
If your question is not here, phone Appledore on 01237 429 065 or Instow on 01271 860 310, or pop in during opening hours.
Both branches run Mon-Sun. The Appledore café serves food 08:30 to 15:30, coffee and cake until 16:00. The Instow café serves food until 16:00, coffee and cake until 16:30. The Beach Hut on Instow Sands is closed for winter and re-opens April 2026. The grocer hours run a little longer on both sites, see Visit below for the exact times.
Yes, every item on the café counter is baked or cooked on the premises, mostly in the Appledore kitchen out the back, and rotated through to the Instow counter the same day. Granola for breakfast, the quiche from the late-morning bench, the cake counter for the post-Tarka-Trail afternoon. The Low-Water Dick gin is the one Devon-distilled name on the shelf we did not make ourselves.
Both cafés take dogs. Bowls of water at the door, biscuit jar at the counter. The Tarka Trail and the Appledore-Instow ferry both bring a steady stream of dog-walkers through, particularly in the summer. The Beach Hut on Instow Sands is the easiest stop for an off-lead beach run.
Low-Water Dick is on the shelf at both shops year-round. The online shop on this site lists the current bottle and a few other Devon spirits, drinks and hampers we put together at the holidays. For trade or wholesale enquiries, email sales@johnsofappledore.co.uk and we will route you through.