Seven Seasonally Led Cornish Restaurants To Book This Summer

From forage-focused eateries to “sea-to-spoon” spots on the shoreline, we’ve picked the county’s finest addresses for local, seasonal dining

Heading down to Cornwall this summer? The county has never lacked fresh, locally sourced or multiculturally influenced seafood dishes, but its restaurant scene has never looked fresher. Grab quick seafood bites from beachside shacks and dine on harbourfront terraces with our pick of the county's best places to eat.

Seven restaurants in Cornwall to book this summer

One Fish Street, St Ives, Cornwall

restaurant

One Fish Street

St Ives

Part of St Ives' growing roster of hipsterfied food and drink spots (wine bars Little Palais and St Eia are straight out of Hackney), One Fish Street takes diners on a globetrotting food tour from the comfort of its diminutive first-floor dining room. The tasting menu might start with turbot and brill aguachile loaded onto tiny tacos, before sriracha-doused tempura kale and Indian-inspired tandoori gurnard arrive at your table. Despite Chef Bradley Monk's wide-ranging culinary influences, the heart of the matter is fresh fish sourced from small, inshore dayboats. Sommelier Charlotte ensures each course is perfectly paired, whether with some English sparkling wine by Gusbourne, a cucumber martini or umeshu plum sake. A simpler grillhouse menu is served on selected weeknights, too.

Address

1 Fish St, St Ives TR26 1LT

Crabs, The Hidden Hut, Cornwall, UK
Photo credit: Danny North

restaurant

The Hidden Hut

Portscatho

Not a restaurant per se, this gourmet update on the beach shack is a foodie mecca for seafood savants. Follow the coastal footpath out of Portscatho to reach the buttery sands of Porthcurnick. There, you'll find a pale green hut where walkers are rewarded with hearty, seasonal soups (say, a smoked haddock, bacon and clam chowder topped with sourdough croutons and dill), pasties and tempting cakes. From May to September, it also hosts phenomenally popular Feast Nights - firelit, al fresco supperclubs where diners tuck into vats of seafood paella or barbecued lobster as the wine flows.

Address

Porthcurnick Beach, Portscatho, Truro TR2 5EW

Emily Scott Restaurant, Watergate Bay Hotel, Cornwall
Photo credit: Daniel Scott

restaurant

Emily Scott Food

Watergate Bay

Step aside, Rick Stein; there's a new star on the Cornish food scene. Emily Scott's nostalgic, unpretentious flavours are a breath of fresh Atlantic air, served in a light-flooded dining room atop Watergate Bay Hotel's seawall. Dishes such as ray wing with brown crab hollandaise, truffle-laced scallops and a "seaside days" dessert of toasted-hay soft-serve and rhubarb sorbet are pure crowd-pleasing perfection. Around running this wildly successful restaurant, the chef has also managed to pen two beautifully illustrated cookbooks and cater private events, from the G7 summit in 2021 to a new wellness retreat at nearby Atlanta Trevone.

Address

Watergate Bay Hotel, Newquay TR8 4AA

Terrace, The Idle Rocks, St Mawes, Cornwall

hotel

The Idle Rocks

St Mawes

After a tenure at Raymond Blanc's Le Manoir aux Quat'Saisons, Cornishman Dorian Janmaat has gone back to his roots and taken up a coveted spot on St Mawes' harbourfront. His sustainability-focused, hyperseasonal menu shows that one needn't look far afield for opulent ingredients, such as a touch of Cornish saffron on Newlyn cod, or the Exmoor caviar adorning distilled gin-cured local trout, with plenty of delicacies foraged from the seashore or Roseland woodland. Riviera chic ripples through the dining room, especially come summertime, when the French windows are flung open onto the terrace and yachts gently bob beside the tables.

Address

Harbourside, Tredenham Rd, St Mawes TR2 5AN

Dining room, Ugly Butterfly, St Ives, Cornwall, UK
Photo credit: John Hersey

restaurant

Ugly Butterfly

St Ives

Talk about a sea view… Adam Handling's food waste-fighting, fine-dining restaurant seemingly floats above Carbis Bay, floor-to-ceiling windows flooding the space with St Ives' famous, artist-attracting light. Each item on the tasting menu is a miniature masterpiece, too. Take the enigmatically named "all about the crab", which sees dainty tartlets of white crab meat and horseradish nestled in a pebble-filled shell alongside a quenelle of brown crab butter for slathering onto sourdough crumpets - a seafood classic taken to new heights. An Asian or Italian accent is often discernible, in dishes such as nori-wrapped cod or barbecued squash agnolotti in a dashi broth. Be sure to sample one of the fiendishly creative cocktails, which make use of seeds, peels and pulps from the kitchen.

Address

Carbis Bay Estate, Carbis Bay, St Ives TR26 2NP

Falmouth, Cornwall, UK

bar

Verdant Seafood Bar

Falmouth

Linger in the cosy taproom of this quayside brewery to sample just how well craft beer pairs with seafood. There are eight brews on taps, but the small plates served by the talented team are no mere sideshow to the drinks. Instead, they dexterously dip between Middle Eastern, Mexican and Asian influences to bring big flavours to the freshest catch. Think pulled skate wing with romesco and dukkah, southern fried monkfish with corn queso, or katsu skate wing with sesame and pickles, plus some veggie and vegan options, too. Walk-ins only.

Address

Quay St, Falmouth TR11 3HH

BBQ, The Standard Inn, Portscatho, Cornwall, UK

bar

The Standard Inn

Portscatho

Don't let the name fool you - there's nothing run-of-the-mill about this hilltop gastropub, whether you're holed up beside the fire or grazing the outdoor buffet barbecues in summertime. Live-fire cooking is The Standard's speciality, imparting wonderfully woody, smoky flavours to everything from Roseland Peninsula padrón peppers to cod with crispy leeks. Its legendary Sunday lunches, recently named one of the UK's best by The Guardian, arrive topped with Yorkshire puds the size of your head and family-style sides of cauliflower cheese and seasonal greens. You'll likely see locals hoovering up leftover roast tatties alongside their pints - a sure sign that, despite its current incarnation and ownership only starting in 2021, this 800-year-old inn remains a village stalwart.

Address

​​Treloan Ln, Gerrans, Portscatho TR2 5EB

Main photo credit: The Hidden Hut / Ed Schofield. This article contains affiliate links, which means SUITCASE may earn a small commission if you click through and book.

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