Breaking news
STOP PRESS: Closes at Carbis Bay in St Ives on June 28th, to reopen on 9th July at The Headland hotel in Newquay, with seating in the bar or on the terrace.
Harden's says
Adam Handling is arriving in Cornwall with this August 2021 newcomer which aims to bring the creativity of his Frog in Covent Garden to this 65-cover all-day dining experience set in a luxury estate on the fringes of St Ives. With floor-to-ceiling windows, it has ocean views to entertain outside and an open kitchen within. There's also a similar capacity bar area with a more-than-incidental menu. Sustainability – for which he has better credentials than most – is key to the undertaking. Jamie Park is Head Chef, having previously been head chef at the Frog.
Harden's survey result
Summary
Adam Handling has upped sticks from Carbis Bay and in July 2025 (after our annual diners’ poll had concluded) relocated his mega-ambitious Cornish operation to this monumental hotel: a vast clifftop landmark (built in 1897) with 86 rooms in a commanding coastal position, overlooking Fistral Beach. The newly created space seats 50 covers inside, 20 on the terrace, and 30 in the bar (separate menu) and is supported by a 500-bin cellar. A three-course menu is £100 per person or there’s also a nine-course tasting menu for £175 per person (and afternoon tea for £50 per person). At his former location practically all reports acknowledged the “exceptional” cuisine although occasionally the trade-off was thought to be “ridiculous prices”, not helped by the blandness of the Carbis Bay setting: reports please!
Summary
Adam Handling scores more bouquets than brickbats for this luxurious venue overlooking Carbis Bay: part of a new luxury resort which hit the papers in 2021 when it hosted the G7 summit a few months before his dining room opened here. Fans say the ambitious cuisine is “innovative, if expensive” and “excellently sourced, fresh local and seasonal”. Not everyone is wild about the interior however (“while it has an excellent view, it can seem rather echoey due to the large expanse of glass and hard surfaces”) and one or two reporters also query value here (“a very large bill for an underwhelming meal and strange decor”). Still, no-one rates the cooking as less than good, and many say it’s exceptional.
Summary
“A seriously interesting tasting menu and a view to die for!” are helping to win ever-greater acclaim for Adam Handling’s (of London’s ‘Frog’ fame) “beautiful venue overlooking Carbis Bay” from a new luxury beachside estate on the fringes of St Ives. Menus start with a five-course selection for £110 per head, with the option to add oysters, caviar, truffles and wine matching. “It doesn’t come cheap”, but most reporters felt this year that “it’s worth every penny”: “from the brilliant cocktails to the ‘snacks’ you feed on faultless innovative courses (crab, turbot, asparagus, lamb, desserts) and some dishes are mind-blowing (e.g. sourdough muffin with brown crabmeat butter and a reveal of an exquisite crab tart)”. “Incredible to have this high-class restaurant in Cornwall”.
Summary
Celeb chef Adam Handling arrived in Cornwall in August 2021 with this 65-cover all-day dining experience set in a new, luxury beachside estate on the fringes of St Ives. Fans say it’s a “simply stunning location” with ocean views through the floor-to-ceiling windows and an open kitchen (although the impression is a fraction modern and “soulless” to some tastes). Adam is known for his sustainable focus and this continues in the tasting-menu format (5-courses for £100, 7-courses for £125). Some reporters’ best meals of the year won it generally high marks, but there were some more middling reports and complaints regarding pricing (“not a nightmare evening, but who has persuaded them they are special?”). Perhaps change will be afoot, as in July 2022 (post-survey) a new head chef, Connor Blades, was appointed..
For 34 years we've been curating reviews of the UK's most notable restaurant. In a typical year, diners submit over 50,000 reviews to create the most authoritative restaurant guide in the UK. Each year, the guide is re-written from scratch based on this survey (although for the 2021 edition, reviews are little changed from 2020 as no survey could run for that year).
Have you eaten at Ugly Butterfly, The Headland?
Fistral Beach, Headland Road, Newquay, TR7 1EW
Restaurant details
Ugly Butterfly, The Headland Restaurant Diner Reviews
"Absolutely great in every aspect "
Prices
| Availability | 2 courses | 3 courses |  |
 |
 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Always | £120.00 |  |
|
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| Cost | Availability | Courses | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Menu1 | 3 |
| Drinks |
|
|---|---|
| Wine per bottle | £30.00 |
| Filter Coffee | £4.00 |
| Extras |
|
|---|---|
| Service | 12.50% |
Fistral Beach, Headland Road, Newquay, TR7 1EW
Opening hours
| Monday | CLOSED |
| Tuesday | CLOSED |
| Wednesday | 12 pm‑2 pm, 5 pm‑ |
| Thursday | 12 pm‑2 pm, 5 pm‑ |
| Friday | 12 pm‑2 pm, 5 pm‑ |
| Saturday | 12 pm‑2 pm, 5 pm‑ |
| Sunday | CLOSED |
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