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Swerving airport chaos and sticking to the UK for your summer hols? Cornwall's food scene is white hot at the moment with plenty of London talent (along with homegrown) making their mark there. With so much to choose from, we've done the legwork for you with an edit of the best places to eat on the southwestern edge of the UK.
Destination restaurants
The Alverton
Tregolls Road, Truro, Cornwall, TRL 1ZQ
Chef Ollie Wyatt, previously Sous Chef at Michael Caines’ The Cove has taken over the restaurant of this boutique hotel that’s set in a handsome early 19th century manor house and grounds on the outskirts of Truro’s town centre. Take a eat in the dining room for views over the hotel’s terrace and gardens and a menu of Cornish produce given a global spin in dishes such as Fowey scallops with cauliflower velouté and curry oil or seaweed-cured pollock with satay sauce, mango and bok choi.
Coombeshead Farm
Lewannick, Cornwall, PL15 7QQ
In 2016, Chef Tom Adams swapped barbecuing in the city at the acclaimed Pitt Cue Co for a life cooking in the country at this restaurant and guesthouse set on a working farm and bakery in 66 acres of meadows and woodland. Get away from it all in splendid Cornish isolation with an overnight stay and a five course menu created mostly from the farm’s own meat and vegetables. It’s served in an atmospheric stone walled dining room that’s both rustic and elegant. Some tables are available to non-staying guests who can also visit the on-site farm shop and courtyard cafe.
Crocadon
St Mellion, Saltash PL12 6RL
In 2017, Former Fera head chef Dan Cox went back to basics and opened the 120 acre organic Crocadon Farm in the Tamar Valley about 10 miles northwest of Plymouth. In February 2023, Cox launched this 25 seat fine dining restaurant in a converted barn on the property and promptly won a Michelin Green star for his uncompromising ethos of creating sustainable tasting menus based around produce from the farm that include dishes such as Arad artichoke,with scallop roe and forced lovage.
Culture
Custom House Quay, 38B Arwenack Street, Falmouth TR11 3JF
Husband and wife team Hylton and Petronella Espey have been awarded a Michelin Green star for the sustainable menu of local and seasonal Cornish produce at their recently opened quayside restaurant. The intimate space features an open kitchen and lots of natural materials including exposed stone walls and floorboards that mirror the nature-led tasting menu that features ingredients foraged by the chef and might include ‘Falmouth Hedgerow’ - chawanmushi with seasonal wild plants.
Hotel Meudon
Mawnan Smith, Falmouth, Cornwall TR11 5HT
Boasting its own private beach, this recently refurbished boutique hotel on the coast just south of Plymouth now also benefits from the talents of former Nathan Outlaw sous chef David Waters. Take a seat in the smart dining room overlooking subtropical gardens for a menu of local produce that even includes some ingredients foraged in the hotel’s own grounds. Dishes might include Cornish line caught bass with crab sauce and asparagus.
Outlaw’s New Road
6 New Road, Port Isaac PL29 3SB
There are wonderful sea views to compliment the fine local seafood served simply at celebrity chef Nathan Outlaw’s flagship restaurant. The regularly-changing six course menu served in the intimate first floor dining room and ground-floor bar reflects Outlaw’s love of using diverse seafood and an array of global influences from a classic fish soup or a tranche of turbot on the bone with lemon butter sauce to soused fillet of mackerel with chilli, walnut and courgette gazpacho. Stay the night at the neighbouring Outlaw’s Guest House for a two night ‘foodie retreat’ that also includes a meal at Outlaw’s Fish Kitchen.
Paul Ainsworth at No. 6
6 Middle Street, Padstow, Cornwall PL28 8AP
With a Michelin star and a place in the National Restaurant Awards Top 100, celebrity chef Paul Ainsworth’s flagship destination restaurant (he also runs the casual Caffe Rojano in Padstow and the stylish gastropub The Mariner’s in Rock) can easily claim to be one of the best in the country. Located in a Grade II listed Georgian townhouse in the centre of Padstow a seasonally changing tasting menu of highly sophisticated and technically dazzling dishes is delivered by a well drilled, slick front of house team. Pair dinner here with an overnight stay at Ainsworth’s boutique hotel The Townhouse for a real gastronomic treat.
More about Paul Ainsworth at No. 6
The Seafood Restaurant
Riverside, Padstow, PL28 8BY
Opened nearly half a century ago, Rick Stein’s glamorous cathedral to Cornish seafood, set on Padstow’s quayside, was a game changer for Cornwall. It not only launched an empire that includes restaurants, cafes, fish and chip shops, a pub, a bar, a cookery school, shops, a deli and rooms (see rickstein.com for details) but paved the way for the modern Cornish restaurant scene. Sit at the elegant central seafood bar to watch oysters expertly shucked or take a seat at a table to enjoy signature dishes like roast wild turbot with hollandaise sauce.
More about The Seafood Restaurant
Ugly Butterfly
Carbis Bay Estate, Carbis Bay, St Ives, Cornwall, TR26 2NP
Chef Adam Handling was never going to let the small matter of jaw-droppingly stunning views of Carbis Bay overshadow his food. So an opening flurry of snacks that might include little shell-like cups of pea and eel velouté or steak tartare and kimchi rolls are served with an attention-catching display of dry ice that flows theatrically across the table. But it’s the quality of the local ingredients and the high level of cooking that really captures the imagination here. Add service that manages to be highly polished and informal and chatty at the same time and you have an unbeatable combination.
Also see...
Kota - Celebrity chef Jude Kereama brings his Maori and Chinese Malay heritage to the menu at his flagship restaurant with rooms overlooking Porthleven harbour (where he also runs the more casual Kota Kai) with dishes such as crispy kataifi wrapped monkfish.
Best seafood
Argoe
The Strand, Newlyn, Cornwall, TR18 5HW
Situated in a purpose built building right on the harbourside, Argoe is co-owned by former Rochelle Canteen head chef Ben Coombs and Newlyn fishmonger Richard Adams. The short daily changing menu really is dictated by the day's catch and is a masterclass in less is more cooking (as well as using sustainable varieties of seafood) with things like whole deep fried megrim sole served with a punchy aioli or a grilled whole John Dory simply garnished with a lemon wedge. Desserts are excellent too. Tables on the terrace are the prime spot here but the views are just as great from inside the intimate dining room.
Fitzroy
2 Fore Street, Fowey, Cornwall, PL23 1AQ
David Gingell and Jeremie Cometto-Lingenheim, the team behind Primeur, Westerns Laundry and Jolene in London headed west in 2019 to convert a former bank on the main street in the harbour town of Fowey into a casual seafood spot. The resulting restaurant wouldn’t look out of place in the capital, but the menu is resolutely Cornish, majoring on locally caught seafood simply prepared and that might include surf clams with nduja or lobster with new potatoes and garlic butter. A short stroll away, sister restaurant North Street Kitchen is open for lunch overlooking the river Fowey and is walk-ins only.
Outlaw’s Fish Kitchen
1 Middle Street, Port Isaac, Cornwall, PL29 3RH
Set in a converted 15th century fisherman’s cottage in the centre of a picturesque fishing village, a meal at chef Nathan Outlaw’s more casual sibling to his flagship Outlaw’s New Road is a delight from start to finish. The intimate room with its exposed beams and low ceiling has been whitewashed and hung with sea and fishing related objects and art to give a greater sense of space as well as place and purpose; you are on the Cornish coast and you are here to eat fish. The tasting menu draws on global influences and a wide selection of sustainable seafood.
More about Outlaw’s Fish Kitchen
The Sardine Factory
The Quay, West Looe, Looe PL13 2ES
Located in, yes - you guessed it, a former sardine factory, there are views across Looe harbour from the first-floor dining room that’s elegant in its simplicity with its bare wooden tables and ocean blue painted walls decorated with chrome fish designs. The menu centres around day boat fish from Looe market just opposite the restaurant and covers all tastes from traditional fish and chips to the more exotic Goan spiced whole seabass with saag aloo and onion bhaji.
More about The Sardine Factory
The Shore
13/14 Alverton Street, Penzance, Cornwall, TR18 2QP
Chef Bruce Rennie’s intimate restaurant in the heart of Penzance is a highly personal endeavour. In addition to cooking single handedly everything on the seafood tasting menu (served supper club style with each course served to the whole room at once), the always barefoot Rennie somehow manages to be on hand to greet his guests and pop out from the kitchen between courses to explain the often Japanese influenced dishes, all based around the freshest Cornish seafood available.
Also see...
Fish House - Located on the beach at Fistral, the menu at this casual seafood restaurant includes ‘Roasted Hotshell’, a platter of hot shellfish including mussels, crab and scallop.
Mackerel Sky - The menu at this hugely popular, diminutive seafood bar in the centre of Newlyn features tasting plates made from the best of the daily catch.
The Wheelhouse - This historic guesthouse and restaurant offers alfresco dining overlooking Mevagissey harbour and a menu of fresh Cornish seafood.
Fish & chips
Frasers Fish and Chips
Western Promenade Road, Penzance, Cornwall, TR18 4HH and 80 Godolphin Road, Helston, Cornwall, TR13 8GS
You’re in safe hands at this perennially popular, traditional chi-ppy that overlooks Penzance’s famous Promenade. The owners apprenticed at sister establishment Harbour Lights in Falmouth (see above) and have more than 20 years of frying experience. You’ll find Cornish day boat fish such as mackerel, pollock and hake alongside MSC-certified Arctic cod and haddock.
More about Frasers Fish and Chips
Harbour Lights
Arwenack Street, Falmouth, TR11 3LH
Located on the quayside looking out over the harbour, Michelin-starred restaurants would kill for the view from this award winning, family run chippy that’s been named on the ten best in the country. In addition to sustainably sourced cod and haddock, there’s Cornish hake and other locally landed, daily changing fish specials available, all battered and served with double-cooked chips to eat in or take away.
Seasmiths
Beach Road, Porthtowan, Cornwall, TR4 8AD
Just a short stroll from Porthtowan’s beautiful sandy surf beach, Seasmiths is a stylishly designed fish and chip shop with an eye-catching marlin blue frontage. Locally caught day boat fish and sustainably sourced cod and haddock is battered and fried and served up with homemade pickles and sauces including katsu and tartare in smart branded takeaway boxes.
Stein's
South Quay, Padstow, Cornwall, PL28 8BL
There’s always a queue for Rick Stein’s stylish take on a traditional chippy with its white tiled walls and simple wooden bench seating, but it’s worth the wait. A selection of fish including hake, sea bass and, of course, cod is deep-fried to perfection in beef dripping in the crispiest homemade batter and served with proper thick chips. For something a bit different try the chickpea curry or samosas with tamarind chutney supplied by two Michelin starred chef Sat Bains and his family. If you’re in a hurry, you can always get a takeaway and eat on the harbourside, a few minutes’ walk away.
The Watch House
1 The Square, St Mawes, Cornwall, TR2 5DJ
You can grab a takeaway from the punningly named ‘Watch Out’ hatch and perch on the harbour wall to enjoy your beer battered, MSC-certified Icelandic cod and chips, or take a seat in the smart dining room with its white tablecloths and wooden bistro chairs where the menu also includes platters of roasted shellfish, seafood spaghetti and whole grilled flat fish.
Also see...
Provedore - ‘Tim’s squid and chips’ is the must-order a this deli, off licence and takeaway ‘trattoria’ in Falmouth.
The Galleon - There’s sustainable deep-fried pollock (as well as cod, haddock and plaice) to eat in or take away at at this traditional village centre chippy in Mullion near Helston.
Highlanes Fish and Chips in Hayle is great if you’re really hungry; ask for the off menu, extra-large haddock at this popular and good value neighbourhood takeaway.
Casual dining
Appleton’s
19 Fore Street, Fowey, PL23 1AH
Run by husband-and-wife team Andy and Lyndsey Appleton, this smart neighbourhood Italian restaurant is set over two floors of a converted house on Fowey’s main street and includes a cocktail bar and deli. As the former head chef of Jamie Oliver’s Fifteen Cornwall restaurant, it’s no surprise to find homemade pastas and Cornish produce in dishes such as lobster ravioli with lemon and monks beard on the menu here.
Barnaby’s
Mill Vineyard, Dark Lane, Padstow, Trevibban PL27 7SE
The team behind Prawn on the Lawn in Padstow have swapped harbourside for countryside with their latest pop-up that runs until 30 September 2023. Just a ten-minute drive from Padstow, Trevibban Mill Vineyard and Orchard is an idyllic setting, surrounded by wildflower fields and vineyards and is dog friendly too. Dine indoors or al fresco on Mediterranean and middle eastern dishes such as crab toast with muhammara, walnuts and watercress, and Trevibban Mill Cornish lamb shoulder with coriander and preserved lemon marinade.
2 Fore Street
2 Fore Street Mousehole, Cornwall TR19 6QU
This contemporary, intimate bistro is set on Mousehole harbour with views of Mount's Bay from the bright and attractive dining room. The regularly changing menu features local, seasonal produce in dishes such as handpicked Newlyn crab with chilli and samphire linguine. In good weather ask for a table in the secluded garden. The restaurant also runs the nearby No.1 Millpool Deli/Store and offers accommodation in two apartments in Mousehole.
Mine
4 The Old Brewery Yard, Falmouth, TR11 2BY
You can dine alfresco in an atmospheric, cobbled courtyard setting that’s tucked away off Falmouth’s high street at this charming neighbourhood restaurant. From his open kitchen, Le Gavroche-trained chef Angus Bell champions the best of Cornish produce on a menu that might include pan roasted fillet of hake with salt hake fish cake, hollandaise, hazelnuts and brown shrimp.
The Pig at Harlyn Bay
Harlyn Bay, Padstow, Cornwall, PL28 8SQ
Part of legendary hotelier Robin Hutson’s group of luxurious yet casual hotels that are dotted around the south of England, The Pig at Harlyn Bay occupies an enviable spot on the north Cornwall coast, a 10-minute drive from Padstow and overlooking Harlyn Bay. Dine alfresco on whole grilled Cornish lobster at The Lobster Shed in the hotel grounds or in the beautiful wood panelled dining room in the main house that dates back to the 15th century where the ‘25-mile menu’ celebrates produce from the kitchen garden and local farmers and other producers in dishes such as Cured Port Isaac monkfish with garden mangetout, smoked yoghurt and kaffir lime vinegar.
More about The Pig at Harlyn Bay
Temple
10 Granville Terrace, Bude EX23 8JZ
Head to the rooftop terrace (the only one in Bude) of this casual cafe restaurant to watch the sun set over the River Neet while sipping on a cocktail and enjoying the menu of small plates. Downstairs, during the day there’s a short menu of lunch dishes and cakes, then in the evening, the great value set two course menu celebrates local Cornish produce with dishes such as line caught pollack with beetroot, hazelnuts and brown butter.
Verbena
Cribbar Yard, Bank Street, Newquay, Cornwall, TR7 1EP
Former head chef of Jamie Oliver’s Fifteen Cornwall restaurant Adam Banks has brought his love of all things Italian to this intimate restaurant in central Newquay that he runs with partner Mariana Chaves. Using produce from Cornish farmers, growers and dayboat fishermen, the short seasonal menu features the likes of Trerethern Farm Cornish black pig agnolotti and brodo.
Also see...
Edie’s Kitchen - Former Le Manoir chef Nigel Brown serves a menu of local and seasonal produce at this charming neighbourhood bistro in St Austell.
Indidog - There are views over Falmouth Harbour from the terrace of this smart but casual brasserie that is open all day for breakfast, lunch and dinner.
Potters - Chef Oly Clarke and wife Nikki serve ‘Cornish tapas’ at their elegant town centre restaurant in Bude. Dishes might include breaded Cornish sole with katsu sauce.
Best sea views
The Cove
Maenporth, Falmouth TR11 5HN
Michelin-starred celeb chef Michael Caines brings his classical French training to bear on a menu of Cornish produce at this smart restaurant on the shore at Maenporth Beach. There are uninterrupted views across Falmouth Bay from the terrace or through floor to ceiling windows in the contemporary dining room. Choose from sophisticated dishes such as flame-grilled Cornish mackerel with spiced aubergine, tomato and fennel salad or herb crusted rump of lamb with dukka hazelnut crumb.
Driftwood
Rosevine, Portscatho, Cornwall, TR2 5EW
This fine dining restaurant with sea views is part of the stylish Driftwood boutique hotel that’s set in six acres on the South West Coastal Path close to St Mawes overlooking Gerrans Bay and boasts its own beach. Chef Aaron McNamara is in charge of the kitchen where he maintains the stylish restaurant’s long-held reputation as a food destination with dishes such as Cornish turbot with Jersey Royal Potatoes dressed with brown shrimp and whipped roe, warm tar-tar sauce and sea herbs.
Emily Scott Food
On the Sea Wall, Watergate Bay, Cornwall, TR8 4AA
You’ll know chef Emily Scott from her appearances on Great British Menu, as one of the chefs that catered for the G7 at Carbis Bay in 2021. Now she has opened a modern, stylish restaurant with panoramic views of Watergate Bay and a deck covered by a retractable glass canopy. According to Scott’s Instagram account @emilyscottfood, the restaurant’s recently launched six course tasting menu includes ‘local fish and seafood from Cornish waters, something sweet, galettes, tarts, vanilla seeded panna cotta with the perfect wobble, soft serve ice cream and puddings with all the nostalgia’
Hooked on the Rocks
Swanpool, Falmouth, Cornwall, TR11 5BG
Sit on the terrace (or in the stylish dining room) of this seafood restaurant and bar and take in the stunning views of Swanpool beach and the Falmouth coastline while you feast on Falmouth Bay lobsters or crabs landed virtually outside the restaurant’s front door. There’s a more casual menu available from the Seahorse Bar on the terrace that features oysters, prawns and mussels.
More about Hooked on the Rocks
Idle Rocks
Harbourside, St. Mawes, Cornwall, TR2 5AN
In the restaurant of this boutique hotel you can dine on the daily catch of Cornish seafood beside the harbour where it was landed. Watch the boats sail past from the suntrap terrace and tuck into butterflied mackerel with dashi, spring onion, yuzu, radish and cucumber relish followed by roasted Newlyn cod with spiced yellow pea, cauliflower, lemon and yoghurt.
The Square
7 Fore Street, Porthleven, Cornwall TR13 9HQ
Dine harbourside at this family friendly brassiere in one of Cornwall’s most picturesque villages. The Square has been awarded a Bib Gourmand from the Michelin Guide for its affordable, daily changing menu full of fine Cornish and West Country produce including traditionally reared Primrose Herd pork from nearby Redruth and locally landed seafood including Cornish monkfish that might be served with garlic, parsley and anchovies.
Also see...
The St Enodoc Brasserie - There are stunning views of the Camel Estuary from the terrace at St Enodoc Hotel in Rock.
Walters On the Beach - The casual yet glamorous restaurant is the latest addition to the portfolio of restaurants at the luxury Carbis Bay hotel with unrivalled sea views.
Beach cafés
Hidden Hut
Porthcurnick Beach, Portscatho, Truro, Cornwall, TR2 5EW
This beach-hut café is set on an unspoilt and secluded beach on Cornwall's Roseland Peninsula. In addition to freshly baked Cornish pasties and salads made with produce from the hut’s own allotment to eat on the beach, you can bring your own plates, cutlery and wine to the famous feast nights, where the menu highlights local ingredients, such local lobster grilled over oak and served with rosemary salted chips.
Sam’s on the Beach
14 Polkerris, Par, St Austell, PL24 2TL
Set in a restored and converted RNLI lifeboat station right on the beautiful, secluded beach at Polkerris on Cornwall’s south coast, this is the most casual of the Sam’s of Cornwall group that also includes restaurants in Truro, Fowey and Par. Expect pizza from the wood burning oven along with simply prepared fresh local seafood and a glorious sea view.
Porthminster Beach Cafe
Porthminster Beach, Carbis Bay, Saint Ives TR26 2EB
A short stroll from St Ives town centre you’ll find this long-established restaurant housed in a white washed building overlooking the sandy expanse of one of Cornwall’s best beaches and the vivid blue waters of St Ives Bay beyond. The food is as much of an attraction as the location with locally-sourced produce, some from the restaurant’s own kitchen garden skilfully transformed into modern Mediterranean and Asian-influenced dishes that might include Cornish mussels cooked in Cornish pilsner with black beans, spring onions, bok choy and ginger.
More about Porthminster Beach Cafe
Porthmeor Beach Cafe
Porthmeor Beach, St Ives, Cornwall TR26 1JZ
This all-day, fully alfresco café is set on the golden sands of Porthmeor Beach, just below the Tate art gallery. Enjoy the sea views from the terrace and try the eclectic menu that might include Butterflied mackerel with romesco and lemon.
More about Porthmeor Beach Cafe
The Beach Hut
On The Beach, Watergate Bay, Cornwall, TR8 4AA
This upmarket yet family-friendly take on a beach cafe is part of the stylish Watergate Bay Hotel that’s set on one of Cornwall’s best-loved surfing beaches. Whether you bag a walk-in-only table on the deck or a seat in the spacious, contemporary wood-clad dining room, you are assured of a great sea view and a casual dining menu that celebrates local seafood in dishes such as Cornish crab bucatini with chilli, lemon and parsley.
Also see...
The Rockpool - There’s pizza fresh from the pizza oven and a signature southern fried chicken and bacon burger on offer at this cafe overlooking Godrevy beach on St Ives Bay.
Sandbar at Praa Sands set between Penzance and Helston offers stone baked pizzas, gourmet burgers and panoramic ocean views.
Fistral Beach Bar in Newquay is set on one Cornwall’s top surfing beaches and is open for breakfast and an all-day menu of pizza, nachos and burgers.
Pubs
Gurnard’s Head
Near Zennor, St. Ives, TR26 3DE
This restaurant and pub with rooms (sister to The Old Coastguard in Mousehole) boasts a dramatic isolated Atlantic coast setting. Bare wood tables and chairs against the flagstone floors of the bar area give way to the bright blue and terracotta painted restaurant. The short, regularly changing menu features quality local seafood including whole plaice, brown shrimp, lemon and caper butter and new potatoes.
The Mexico Inn
4 Riverside, Longrock, Penzance TR20 8JD
This family friendly 200-year-old stone-built pub, set on the main road halfway between Penzance and Marazion, is run by husband-and-wife team Tom and Amy Symonds who previously worked in some of Cornwall’s top culinary spots before taking over the reins here. Since then, they’ve gained national recognition for their local and seasonal menu that includes wood-fired pizzas and small plates such as slow-cooked squid and tomato stew as well as main courses that might include Newlyn hake with coriander rice, courgettes and curried mussels.
St Kew Inn
St Kew, Bodmin, Cornwall, PL30 3HB
This traditional 15th-century village pub boasts four cosy and inviting indoor dining areas and what must be the best beer garden in Cornwall. Secluded and shaded by trees, it’s the perfect spot to enjoy ales brewed nearby and food by chef Andrew Tuck, a contestant in the 2023 series of Great British Menu. Locally landed day boat fish and high quality meats are expertly cooked over a wood fire. Dishes might include monkfish on the bone with roasted chicken and sand dune morel sauce.
Tolcarne Inn
Tolcarne Place, Newlyn, Penzance, Cornwall TR18 5PR
Chef Ben Tunnicliffe (who also runs the nearby The Packet Inn in Rosudgeon offers a daily-changing blackboard menu based around day boat fish from Newlyn Harbour in this 18th-century harbourside pub. Inside there are low ceilings, flagstone floors and a wood-burning stove. In the summer, head to the terrace for sea views and Mediterranean-inflected dishes such as Hake with a pancetta and fagioli bean stew and salsa verde.
The Standard Inn
Treloan Lane, Gerrans, Portscatho, Cornwall TR2 5EB
Husband and wife team chef Simon Stallard and Jemma Glass have opened this charming and characterful village pub that’s about a mile walk from their famous beachside restaurant the Hidden Hut. Drinkers are welcome but how could you resist a daily changing menu stuffed full of big flavours in dishes such as wood fired Cull Yaw mutton shoulder with saffron potatoes, rose harissa and zhoug? On Sundays, there’s a barbecue in the secluded garden.
Also see...
Port Gaverne - There’s day boat fish on the menu at this atmospheric 17th-century inn set in a tiny fishing village in a secluded cove close to Port Isaac.
The Barley Sheaf - Enjoy a pint of Cornish ale in the spacious beer garden of this historic village pub where the menu features produce from across the South West.
Lifeboat Inn - This smart harbourside pub with rooms in St Ives offers an eclectic menu that features both fish and chips and Malaysian laksa.
Best of Cornwall - mapped
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