Cornwall, British, Traditional Restaurant Guide

2023 Review: This “modern spa hotel with views out to sea” from its clifftop vantage point is fully geared-up for the eco tourist, with a solidly rated kitchen serving up sustainable meals from breakfast via lunch and afternoon tea to dinner, when there is a choice of tasting menus including vegetarian and vegan. Non-residents are now welcome to book, but it remains child-free.

2022 Review: The “lovely riverside setting” – complete with moorings and showers for passing yachties – is the main attraction at this inn, parts of which are believed to date back 800 years. But the low volume of feedback tells you something given the stunning position – it’s well-rated by reporters but doesn’t have to strive that hard given the place’s other virtues.

This “atmospheric” 15th-century pub in a “lovely village setting”, with a sprawling garden flanked by the local church, is well known for its “dependable, honest cooking” – some of which is not the usual gastropub fare. Top Menu Tip – “mouthwateringly-great smoked sirloin steak”.

2024 Review: Set within a “beautiful sculpture park” outside Penzance hosting works by art-world stars James Turrell and Richard Long amongst others, this pleasant eight-year-old restaurant offers an “excellent selection of vegetarian dishes” (but not just) and classic cream teas. Stop in for the “lovely brunch and then walk it off” in the grounds – or else grab a takeaway from their hut, and picnic on the hill with views of St Michael’s Mount.

“The owners of The Hidden Hut (a real foodie destination just the other side of Portscatho Beach) have branched out into the pub business with the Standard” – an independent freehouse with a south-facing beer garden whose history stretches back to 1793. Inside, “a lovely, cosy dining area awaits you with a log fire”, as well as a “fairly limited” but “high quality” menu including “excellent” fresh fish. Okay, so it “doesn’t have the views of ‘the Hut’, but for a great pub lunch it’s recommended” – Simon Stallard, who took on the project with his partner Jemma Glass, being a “chef whose hand you can trust”.

“Stunning” harbour views elevate a visit to this “very large and busy restaurant right on the waterfront” – a refreshingly “unpretentious” spot that was set up by local lad Benjamin Palmer in 2018. The small or big plates feature some “excellent fish cookery”, but really everything (including the Sunday roast) is just “so tasty”.

For “a quick coffee or some delicious food” (a ploughman’s lunch with local cheese, home-cooked scones and lemon drizzle cake, say) this cute venue, nearing its first decade in business, is “well worth a visit”. The café-style front area leads on to a plant-filled conservatory at the rear, and there’s an attractive garden with more seating and a pond.