Cornwall, Fish & Seafood Restaurant Guide

2023 Review: This “hidden gem just outside Truro” from husband-and-wife team Ben & Sam Harmer features “impressive” cooking, “exceptional service” and a “splendid outdoor eating area” for warmer weather. Ben’s classical training took in the kitchens of The Savoy and Le Gavroche – hence “the soufflé is impressive”.

2023 Review: “A gorgeous spot to eat tasty food while watching the sea”, this former Victorian lifeboat station has been transformed under Sam Sixton, who launched his local dining empire at the age of 17, back in 1988 (his son Noah is now part of the team). The “casual” menu runs from “wonderful fresh fish and seafood” to “tasty pizzas with both traditional and unusual toppings”.

It’s impossible to assess “Rick Stein’s original restaurant in the seaside town of Padstow” without viewing it through the lens of his TV fame and its place in UK food history, having opened in 1975 and having helped put ‘Padstein’ on the map as a major foodie destination. Nowadays run primarily by Rick’s ex-wife Jill and her sons, this sizable, relatively straightforward dining room near the water remains one of the top-40 most commented-on places outside London in our annual diners’ poll. Numerous diners who comment are long-term visitors, and though the verdict still tends to the positive their collective opinion waned a little this year. To its most ardent supporters it remains “as good as ever”: a “stunning restaurant in a beautiful harbour setting with an incredibly large menu mixing inventive dishes alongside all the classic fish and seafood dishes”: “the food he does best, fish in attractive ways, served without fuss and delicious”; and it “couldn’t be fresher”. Fairly, even some fans acknowledge that “these days, there are many more quality options in the town and surrounds”, but they feel “it still represents excellent value for the standard of a meal”. Inevitably, as is the case every year, there are some detractors who feel that “standards have declined since Rick handed over the reins but the prices have increased”. This year, though, saw a more marked deterioration in the mark for service in particular and more significant disappointments in general (“after 22 years visiting this restaurant, I‘m compelled to express dismay at its descent in my estimation. The mojo of the place has fallen, although we’ve given it several chances in the last year or so. I’m tempted to post a crying face emoji at this point, but maybe that would be just a little too tacky!”). Still, overall the winning view remains that it’s “always a treat coming to Padstow and sampling the freshest of fish at the Seafood Restaurant for that special occasion”.

One of the TV chef’s four venues in his flagship town, fans say this is a “marvellously run café” and tip it as a top choice for breakfast (“the freshly made kedgeree is outstanding”). On the downside, it has almost as many foes, who find it “so overpriced and disappointing”.

2023 Review: Associated with London foodie hits Primeur and Westerns Laundry, this three-year-old favourite, which occupies a former bank, continues to inspire high ratings for its food. It’s a seasonal operation, which closes each year between late Autumn and mid Spring.

“To be honest it’s hard to find fault” with Rich & Katie Toogood’s “tiny” but “so welcoming” seafood specialist (the Cornish spinoff of their London HQ) – “a template for how to run a restaurant”, with “friendly staff who guide you through the high-quality sharing-plates menu” and “a surprisingly interesting wine list”. They also run a large, semi-permanent pop-up, Barnaby’s at Trevibban Mill Vineyard, just a short drive from Padstow.

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.

Stunningly located on the seafront in St Mawes, this staple of design and travel magazines is the flagship of the Polizzi Collection, run by interiors guru Olga Polizzi and her ‘Hotel Inspector’ daughter Alex (who also oversee Hotel Endsleigh near Tavistock and, most recently, The Star in Alfriston, East Sussex). The food, which again elicited solid marks this year, can be taken in the chic dining room or more casual Dog’s Head bar.

“The food is as good as Outlaw’s New Road but half the price!” according to fans of Nathan Outlaw’s “intimate and cosy venue situated right on the harbour”, which many diners feel “is our favourite of the two excellent restaurants in the Outlaw stable”. Being only “tiny” if anything boosts its “lovely and intimate atmosphere”, “staff are highly trained, but friendly and attentive” and it delivers “incredible value for the price” (“of the mainly small plates there wasn’t one we didn’t like” and results are “superb”). “I was lucky enough to be in Cornwall when this place opened. It has never dipped in what it does. Nathan = brilliant!”

2023 Review: “A quirky hotel and restaurant serving excellent local fish” – this whitewashed, seventeenth-century hotel in a coastal bay is “always outstanding”. Chef James Lean (appointed in 2015) oversees a menu that’s naturally fish-focused. “Friendly service and great Cornish ales” complete the picture.

“Always, always perfection… fish and seafood never tasted this good: Nathan Outlaw shows utter mastery of his beloved ingredients” at his stunning harbourside HQ, which continues to inspire dizzying levels of customer satisfaction in our annual diners’ poll: a high volume of reviews (it’s one of the top-50 most commented-on venues outside London) contains barely a word of disappointment. Most especially, it’s “a go-to place for outstanding seafood and fish” – the cuisine “is simple, it’s clean, it’s elegant, it’s just right, it has that wow factor!…”; and as an overall operation it is also an outstanding all-rounder with “stunning service, stunning views and a stunningly well priced (but short) wine list”. (“Several visits each year and this place never fails to deliver. Each time we go we feel that we’ve eaten the best meal they’ve ever given us. The staff are pretty awesome too, providing a great balance between perfect service and a gentle, warm approach”).

“You could look at the view forever” from this brilliantly situated and cosy ancient pub, right by the Helford estuary and its foot ferry across the river. “While the menu doesn’t vary year on year, they seem to have found a format that works for the varied audience that visits. Food is hearty and tasty, good quality and feels like a safe pair of hands”.

“Amazing ramen” is just one highlight of the “lovely menu” at chef Jude Kereama’s second venue, sister to nearby Kota. There’s plenty of seafood, along with dishes inspired by Jude’s New Zealand and Asian heritage. “Fab views over the harbour just across the road” are another reason to visit.

A “great view of the beach” (particularly from the deck) and across the bay to Godrevy Lighthouse in the distance has long been the major draw to this seaside café; while the food isn’t quite what it once was (breakfast is take-away only these days), it does its job, with dishes like crab linguine and fish ‘n’ chips playing up the local catch. PS – if you’re making a day of it, they also rent out 36 brightly coloured beachside ‘pods’ or shacks, allowing you to store your beach kit and refuel at this restaurant without the hassle of carting your valuables with you.

2022 Review: “Great views from the beachside terrace and an interesting fishy menu” have made this tapas-style venture “a definite must-go”, especially when visiting the nearby Tate. (As of 2019, they also run seasonal spin-off West Beach Bakery, on the western side of Porthmeor Beach, and serving up “great pizzas”, deli-style lunches and “even better views” than the original… and it's “less busy” too).

“Exquisite cooking, with fish straight from the Atlantic” again wins very high ratings for Bruce Rennie’s very personal 14-seater, where service is by the man himself. Seafood is the speciality here and there are lots of Japanese accents used in the preparation of the six-course tasting menu. No walk-ins, as the fish is purchased in the morning for the number of reservations.

Right by Newlyn’s sea wall, Ben Tunnicliffe’s beamed 1800s pub with an appealing terrace specialises in “very good fish”, with the chalkboard menu changing to reflect what’s come in on the boats that day. Ratings slipped slightly this year on a couple of less enthusiastic reports (particularly regarding service), and the setting remains “fairly basic”, but for the majority it’s all about the “utterly delicious” catch – “spanking fresh and not fussed with, so the flavours can shine”.

2022 Review: A family-run café whose “terraced garden is in a gorgeous location overlooking the Gannel Estuary and Crantock Beach in Newquay” (you approach via a footbridge at low tide, or a paid ferry at other times). It's “the best place for Cornish crab and lobster sourced the same day from their own fishing boat” and then “eaten on-site at picnic-style tables (best served with a side of chips and cold beer!)”.

A “bustling” harbourside restaurant with a booth-lined ground-floor dining area and bright upstairs dining room that looks across the bay to the National Trust-run St Anthony Head. The “lovely food” comes at “reasonable prices”, with “good seafood dishes and pizzas as well as brunch”. If you’d rather cart it away to dine al fresco, they also do a swift trade in fish ‘n’ chips.