St Mawes, Fish & Seafood Restaurant Guide

Olga Polizzi’s “wonderful hotel” – a whitewashed former yacht club – is the stuff of interior mag dreams, with its ultra-chic rooms and unbeatable seafront location on the edge of picturesque St. Mawes; it’s not all about show, though, with credit again this year for the “delicious food” (even if, according to one regular, “service is not what it once was”). Visitors can eat in the main dining room, with views of St Anthony’s Lighthouse, or more informal Dog’s Head bar.

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.

“A must if you’re in Falmouth” – this “hipsterish bar” from Penryn’s Verdant craft brewery “serves very hoppy cloudy beers and some seriously good seafood, in all its forms from raw to frittered”. “Knowledgeable staff” are on hand to help you pair tapas-size plates with the brews on offer. “The cheese fritters are also stunning, light but flavoursome and perfect with that edgy beer!”

A “buzzy atmosphere and great views” over Swanpool beach and nature reserve add to the charms of this cliffside venture; the “best scallops” are a feature of the menu, which has a strong focus on sustainability. Ratings for the food are a little middling overall, but the worst anyone has to say is that its popularity means some dishes soon run out – and that “starter portions were more like mains” (first-world problems, eh?).