Restaurant review The Nobody Inn, Doddiscombsleigh, Exeter, Devon.

In case you were wondering, I can report with certainty that this is not just the first time I have eaten in Doddiscombsleigh, about five miles south-west of Exeter, between the Teign Valley and the Haldon Hills, but the first time I have eaten in a pun. It's the Nobody Inn, which takes its name from the unfortunate moment during a former landlord's wake when his coffin was brought back to an empty pub.

You half-expect, on turning up to eat in a pun, that the menu will be saturated with double entendres, or a court jester will pop out from under the table; but in fact this bar and restaurant with rooms is no more comic than other country inns in deepest Devon. It does, however, differ in three crucial respects: the service, food, and affordability are excellent, whereas generally round here you'd think it was your lucky day if you chanced upon just one of that holy trinity.

The original building goes back to the 17th century. It has a beautiful thatched roof, low – and at times very low – black roof beams, a blazing fireplace, rickety, beer-stained tables, and dim electric bulbs, which convert the shafts of sunlight piercing the windows into an ethereal glow. They take orders only at the bar, and leave you well alone to eat your food. A bevy of local ales at around £3 make it the sort of place that aged locals attend religiously. They, too, feel part of the centuries-old furniture.

There are five starters, 13 mains (two vegetarian), four desserts and a selection of cheeses, all crammed on to a single A4 sheet of paper. It's all very minimal fuss and unsurprising – but that doesn't stop the dishes coming out of the kitchen from attaining an impressive standard.

The duck-liver pâté (£6.95), for instance, is extremely smooth and moist, and comes with perfectly toasted wholemeal bread. So, too, does the duck terrine, which is the same price but has an excellent orange marmalade – not too sweet, and full of tiny chunks of orange rind that add intense flavour and a contrasting texture. The soup of today – butternut squash – is rich and creamy and worth £4.75. Best of all among the starters, and again £6.95, are crisp, pungent crab cakes with a memorable red-pepper mayonnaise. The short strips of pepper are cooked until soft and visibly bleeding flavour into their greasy companion.

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