A few steps here, a few steps there and we still couldn’t find it. Due to an already used GPS device waypoint, Nik almost sent us 127km out of the way to find the treasure, but, in the end, find it we did. Another weekend, another geocache, although this time we took Ean and Vicki on their first. Mum and Bart where there with us at Pakefield church, too, but we let the younger two of our party do all of the work. Well, almost all.

As well as treasure, there were sheep. Two, to be exact, sleeping in a fenced off area next to the gravestones at the western end of the churchyard. The woolly pair had the run of the eastern tip of the church’s grounds, too, which was where there straw-filled house was nestled, quite rightly resembling a mini manger. I don’t know how long they’ve been there, but I never knew that the churchyard had live residents, even if they are members of the bovidae family.

Before our treasure-seeking and windy cliff walk, we enjoyed our lunch (Bart and Vicki even had Lobster Thermidor) at The Third Crossing restaurant at Haven Marina, watching the boats bob and up down on the inlet, masts chinking in the low wind while the jetty swayed in the low swell. Cards and yet more hot cross buns followed the rendezvous at the church, and although Bart isn’t quite yet winning at ‘Palace’ (the polite name), he’s getting there.

He certainly did better than on Sunday night, where we think he worked out that no strategy is possibly better than one at all..

Good reports had come back from The Saracen’s Head Hotel, and so we booked a table for five (Bart was conspicuous by his absence). It was only after the event that Nik told us that the hotel’s restaurant had been the subject of an episode of Ramsay’s Kitchen Nightmares when it was in its previous incarnation, D-Place.

Mother’s Day at The Saracen’s Head Hotel: Ean, Nik, Rich, Vikki and mum

The foul-mouthed chef had clearly worked wonders and turned the place around, though. (But not before trade had reportedly gone down 50% and the place made bankrupt within two weeks of Ramsay’s departure.) With the exception of underdone but surprisingly tasty vegetables, the meal was very good. My roasted pepper soup was full of flavour and the addition of toasted white bread to accompany it made a nice change from a bread roll.

The beef served for the main course was beautifully tender, the roast potatoes cooked until just the right side of crispy and the Yorkshire Pudding was an equal of those cooked at home. Even the wine was good, and at £11.95 per head for two courses plus wine, it was excellent value, too. The only thing that could be criticised was the service, which could, at times, be a little slow. That wasn’t all bad, though, as it gave us time to digest one course before moving on to the next.

Not feeling blue: one of the new Rhode Island Ranger chickens meets Ean

The rest of the weekend was, as usual, equally as enjoyable. Family fun on Saturday night was had by playing cards after a three-courser consisting of tomato flan and a mezze starter, fish pie and spicy rice, and treacle tart to finish off. Yes, there were small computer matters to attend to, but they were dealt with swiftly and easily, leaving us more time to socialise, catch up, and for our visitors to meet the new additions to the back garden chicken coop.

An eggy breakfast on Sunday rolled into a stroll around the shops before the Mother’s Day lunch at Saracen’s and while we didn’t have coffee or dessert in the restaurant, it was much nicer to have a pre-journey portion of tea and cake before mum, Ean and Vikki whizzed the 88 miles north up the A12 to home. And for a change, mum did nothing. A Mother’s Day which was true to its word.

Mum and Bart (below) took us out, and have dined at the Flint House on more than one occasion recently. So much it seems, that on the Saturday night we visited, the personal service was second to none. It’s one of their favourite places in the town to eat, and it’s easy to see why.

Easy to find in the High Street, the unassuming exterior leads into a smart and welcoming interior; all wooden floors, white and deep-coloured walls, and coastal-themed pictures. We were seated in the bar area and were brought flavoured nuts and nibbles while we browsed the menu and took our first sips of the Adnams Fizz we’d ordered.

The area surrounding the Flint House is steeped in history. Situated off the High Street are a series of scores (possibly derived from the Norse ‘Skor’ meaning a cut or furrow), ancient thoroughfares linking the road with others below and behind the buildings atop. The narrow lanes are though to have been originally created by people treading paths in the sloping cliffs as they walked between the High Street and the beach village.

One of these ancient pathways, Wilde Score has direct links to the Flint House itself. The Wilde family lived in the building from 1588 to the 1740s. Constructed in 1586, the Flint House is the oldest house in Lowestoft, and although nearly all of the cottages in the scores are now just parts of the town’s history, the building which now houses the restaurant still stands. Sadly, the look-out tower built by local sailor Sir Thomas Allin does not, although I have my doubts as to these days whether you would need to see any Dutch man of wars approaching anyway.

Our own Dutch man recommended dishes from the extensive menu, and after we’d made our choices and ordered, we were taken and seated upstairs, in a table in the corner with a view of Gulliver, the town’s solitary and imposing wind turbine, who was barely peeping over the tree tops outside. For a Saturday night, we thought it quiet, but as the short waiting time for our meals elapsed, slowly the tables started to fill.

The starters duly arrived, and the ham, quail’s egg and salad dish was well judged and tasty. With plates quickly cleared, the mains arrived in good time. Bart and I chose the sumptuous lamb’s liver and lamb chop with new potatoes and vegetables, which was smooth, rich, and delicious. In especially good service, mum requested that the piece of fresh plaice that came with plaice goujons was replaced by more of the breaded fingers, which the chef duly changed.

The desserts were equally as good, even if we didn’t really need them. My banana fritters, with vanilla and white chocolate pannacotta were presented nicely, while Nik’s Eccles cake and earl grey tea cream sounded intriguing and tasted even better, all served up in a half-filled large teacup and saucer. The strawberry sundae meanwhile was (I’m told), very fruity and cooling, the perfect end to a perfect meal. All of the desserts looked great, with as much care and attention taken over them as our first two courses.

With the mint teas and coffees that finished off the evening, we were brought petit fours, which we didn’t eat. But no worry, they were wrapped in silver foil, and we took them home to enjoy later. It’s that word again – service – and something that will bring diners back again and again. If you enjoy good food, in very pleasant surroundings, with excellent service, then the Flint House is for you. It’s at the very least a four out of five.

• Flint House Restaurant Ltd, 80 High St, Lowestoft, NR32 1XN
  Tel: 01502 573640

But today, day trippers we were, as we had a lunchtime appointment celebrating a friend’s birthday. As her mum is French, Emilie had chosen La Trouvaille in which to mark her 30th birthday, and with its light décor, and interesting lunch menu serving the ‘finest ingredients, and an extensive wine list from the south and southwest of France and Corsica in an upbeat but relaxed environment,’ I can see why.

Sitting in the dining room upstairs (which we had to ourselves as there were 23 of us) with its deco-esque panelled mirrors, black iron fireplaces, and stripped and polished floorboards, it was like sitting in someone’s grand front room. With the sash windows open to let the summer still air in, and the flowerboxes full of brightly-coloured pansies (and reflected in the window boxes opposite), the whole place exudes a laid back, relaxing, and very French atmosphere.

The staff are genuinely French, and from bringing the arrival drinks, serving the menus and food, topping up the copious amounts of wine, to clearing the tables after we’d eaten, they were polite, courteous, and more than accommodating. The food was exemplary, too. The chicken pate and toast was more than up to expectations (the only criticism being that there could have been more toast, but that’s true of most restaurants), and the guinea fowl stuffed with halloumi cheese, marjoram, and tomato in a beetroot sauce with curly kale was deliciously tender.

Three of us picked one each of the trio of desserts, and I can say that if you choose either of the chocolate mousse, crème brulée, or selection of cheeses, you’ll enjoy them. The price was good too; at £20 a head for the three courses (or £16.50 for two courses), it was all very reasonable. In true French or continental style, it was also one of the longest lunches I’ve had for a long time; we ate, chatted, and drank for over four hours.

Open Monday to Saturday from 12.00pm to 3.30pm for lunch, and 6.00pm to 11.00pm for dinner, and situated at 12A Newburgh Street (a stone’s throw away from Carnaby Street and Oxford Circus Tube) La Trouvaille comes highly recommended.

Rather than reflecting an airy, light space, devoid of any signs of life – as was so often the case on those post-coffee afternoons – tonight the large windows welcomed us into a warm and friendly restaurant, buzzing with young and old clientele. We didn’t even have to book, although it was a close run thing at one point as to whether we’d get a table. In the end, two were pushed together.

Situated in Fore Street towards the southern end of the town, the building curves around the end of the road, and has a white, crisp, and clean décor, with naturally-hued wooden tables and chairs of a simple design contrasting nicely with the similarly-coloured banquettes. Even the menu design was nicely done, with fonts chosen giving a nod to old railway signs from a bygone age.

The menu at The Dining Room is equally restrained, if not as simple as we first thought. Local Suffolk fayre sits nicely with ‘exotic’ food such as blue fin tuna and grilled pineapple with chilli syrup and Malibu ice cream. The starter of roasted butternut squash with rocket salad and grilled mozzarella was enjoyable, if a little spoiled by an overuse of chilli in the dressing.

My main course of wild mushroom risotto was very enjoyable, and on looks alone, was one of the best risottos I’ve ever been served. Creamy in texture and cooked to perfection, the rice grains were puffy and tender, and the whole dish had the right amount of wetness and taste. The haddock and chips were great, too, the other mains less so, with a little more disappointing over use of ingredients – this time, salt.

But, it was excusable with the risotto, as these types of dishes are salty by nature, especially if vegetable stock is used in the cooking.

There were no complaints about the dessert, though, with our vanilla and raspberry crème brûlées tasting delicious, the rich red fruit tucked away at the bottom of the pots complementing the subtle vanilla. These interesting twists on a classic dessert rounded off the meal most pleasantly.

With prices on a par with other restaurants of a similar ‘upmarket’ nature, the bill wasn’t extortionate either. If you add in the courteous and attentive staff, that crisp interior, and the good food (salt overuse not withstanding) the new venue should be able to keep drawing in discerning diners from the town, and maybe even countywide.

To book your table at The Dining Room, call 01473 225888 or find the restaurant at 14-40 Fore Street, Ipswich, Suffolk, IP14 1JU.