Best seafood restaurants in Cornwall Published 12 January 2024
Cornwall is known for its breathtaking landscapes and, of course, its abundant seafood. With its rich maritime history and thriving fishing industry due to its proximity to the Atlantic Ocean, it comes as no surprise that Cornwall boasts some of the best seafood restaurants in the country. Here are our picks.
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If you’re looking for the freshest Cornish seafood, treated with simplicity and culinary intelligence, look no further than this purpose-built, wood-clad building overlooking Newlyn’s picturesque harbour, just a few st… Read more
If you’re looking for the freshest Cornish seafood, treated with simplicity and culinary intelligence, look no further than this purpose-built, wood-clad building overlooking Newlyn’s picturesque harbour, just a few steps from the town’s famous fish market. In agreeable weather a table on the terrace is a prime spot, but the views are just as good from inside the intimate dining room. Co-owned by Rochelle Canteen's former head chef Ben Coombs and Newlyn fishmonger Richard Adams, Argoe's short menu is dictated by the day's catch. For one visitor, Sunday lunch was a masterclass in less-is-more cooking based on sustainable varieties of seafood: deep-fried whole megrim served with a punchy aïoli and grilled John Dory simply garnished with a lemon wedge were both 'cooked to perfection'. At the same meal, a superlative fish soup of deep flavour was as good as many a more famous version. Desserts are a knockout too, if a generously proportioned and beautifully baked American-style strawberry shortcake featuring ripe, flavour-packed berries and lashings of cream is anything to go by. The crème caramel-like baked custard with rum-soaked raisins is a must-order, too. Some may find the truncated list of low-intervention wines (just three whites and one each of sparkling, rosé, orange and red) a little limited, especially as they are offered on tap only, but a 500ml carafe of Mâcon Blanc 'went down a treat' – as did some well-made Negronis and a snack of homemade crisps with a butter bean dip. Add in genuinely welcoming service and a relatively modest bill and you have an irresistible, hugely enjoyable proposition.
Owned by David Gingell and Jeremie Cometto-Lingenheim, the duo behind London venues Westerns Laundry, Primeur and Jolene, this Cornish venture is built on similar foundations: simple cooking, provenance, sustainability and natural… Read more
Owned by David Gingell and Jeremie Cometto-Lingenheim, the duo behind London venues Westerns Laundry, Primeur and Jolene, this Cornish venture is built on similar foundations: simple cooking, provenance, sustainability and natural wines. Housed in a former bank, yards from Fowey's quay and waterfront, it offers a bijou menu dominated by seafood, while the petite wine list promises a selection of natural tipples from small producers. Note: Fitzroy is a seasonal restaurant, closed from October to March.
Calum and Tracey Greenhalgh's tiny, no-fuss daytime café (just round the corner from the acclaimed Outlaw’s New Road) is all about fish and shellfish. The catch from the Evan George, Calum's boat, takes centre stage a… Read more
Calum and Tracey Greenhalgh's tiny, no-fuss daytime café (just round the corner from the acclaimed Outlaw’s New Road) is all about fish and shellfish. The catch from the Evan George, Calum's boat, takes centre stage and responsible fishing is the name of the game. Visitors delight at the sight of a counter full of tempting seafood – lobsters, crabs, mackerel and much, much more. Crab sandwiches remain a firm favourite, otherwise look out for lobster salad, smoked mackerel pâté, or the feast platter, which is just that: whole lobster, dressed crab, Porthilly oysters. Drink house wine, Prosecco or local beers. Seasonal opening.
Plumb in the middle of Newlyn, Mackerel Sky comprises two venues, a couple of doors apart. The Shack has a weekly-changing menu during the busy holiday season, but the principal action goes on at the Seafood Bar. There are no rese… Read more
Plumb in the middle of Newlyn, Mackerel Sky comprises two venues, a couple of doors apart. The Shack has a weekly-changing menu during the busy holiday season, but the principal action goes on at the Seafood Bar. There are no reservations. Turn up early, and be prepared to queue on the street at busy times. People do. What they keep coming back for is a roll call of simple but appealing fish cookery, presented as plates that are a fair bit larger than 'small'. Tick a couple of options using a marker pen on the laminate menu, and see how you go. We enjoyed two breadcrumbed fillets of lemon sole with a tangle of pickled red cabbage and a pot of katsu curry sauce, as well as a hefty whole mackerel, browned all over, with samphire and pickled cucumber. Otherwise, there might be a panko-crusted monkfish burger in a brioche bun with chilli, mussels in creamy cider sauce or a crab mayo sandwich. A generous bowl of marinated anchovies (like tapas boquerones) is a good way in, while a chalkboard shows the day's special. It's all fresh and fun, with shared counter seating and a bevy of chefs crammed into an unfeasibly small kitchen area at the back. The short drinks list includes a South African blended white with plenty of fruit.
* At lunchtime, guests can now order individually priced dishes in addition to the 'Fish Kitchen to Share' tasting menu. *
‘I saved the best till last,’ commented a visitor to this ‘remarkable small restaurant&r… Read more
* At lunchtime, guests can now order individually priced dishes in addition to the 'Fish Kitchen to Share' tasting menu. *
‘I saved the best till last,’ commented a visitor to this ‘remarkable small restaurant’ overlooking the slipway. Housed in the oldest building in the fishing village where Doc Martin was filmed, it’s all ancient, gnarled ships’ timbers, a very low ceiling and the definite feeling of pouring a quart into a half-pint pot (the tiny bathroom requires a determined effort at self-compression). The whole place is run with great enthusiasm, with the six-course tasting menu – ‘lovely, simple, brief’ – moving along at a reassuring pace. It’s another string to Nathan Outlaw’s bow, a local, seasonal and sustainable commitment filtering down from parent Outlaw’s New Road at the top of the village. Here, the offerings might take in diced cured bass, dressed in spiced pumpkin ketchup and served on a crisp blue corn tostado (so popular it’s fast achieving cult status); a lobster dumpling in seafood broth, which comes with a piece of sensational sesame toast; and crisply breadcrumbed megrim sole, with pickled slaw and jalapeño mayonnaise. Elsewhere, John Dory was excellent at inspection, big enough in flavour to stand up to an old-school creamy mushroom sauce. With the bounty of the seas getting star billing, you might expect dessert to be a perfunctory offering, but not so. A dome of browned Italian meringue contains seductively tangy passion fruit and lime parfait on a coconut shortbread biscuit base. There are some aristocratic wines on the short list, with both Cornwall and the classic French regions showing up well. Note, the tiny dimensions mean that the Fish Kitchen gets booked up way ahead.
While Nathan Outlaw's Fish Kitchen is deeply embedded in the tight little streets of Port Isaac, New Road sits proud at the top of the approach. Its windows have salty sea vistas, and a gull's-eye view of the car park from the fro… Read more
While Nathan Outlaw's Fish Kitchen is deeply embedded in the tight little streets of Port Isaac, New Road sits proud at the top of the approach. Its windows have salty sea vistas, and a gull's-eye view of the car park from the front tables, but the ambience is pleasingly informal. The tablecloths are gone these days, and the number of courses on the taster has grown from nine to eleven, but when regulars are on first-name terms with the staff, it's clear that the titular chef inspires as much tenacious loyalty as he ever did. These are seafood dishes that respect their prime materials, both gastronomically and ecologically, and don't hide their light under a bushel of extraneous accompaniments. The sweet scallops with smoked roe mayo are free-dived off Salcombe by Jamie Kirkcaldy, who can hold his breath for five minutes – longer than it might take you to eat them. They are anointed with judicious applications of lemon juice, olive oil and salt. Simples. Smart acidity is often the key to successful fish dishes, and so it is with the cured horse mackerel that comes layered with crumbled pistachio and basil oil, while its cooked counterpart is sharpened with a green sauce of tarragon and mint. As the menu progresses, dishes become gradually, subtly richer – witness the velvet crab potion that sauces a serving of sea bass (partnered by springy-textured Cheddar and rosemary bread for mopping up the gorgeous liquor) or the regal piece of turbot that appears in a late-summer vegetable nage, the whole lifted with pink peppercorns and cumin. A gooey chocolate ganache bar with biscuit base is enough to win over any choco-sceptic – especially as it comes with whopping raspberries doused in elderflower syrup and minted yoghurt sorbet. Drink pairings are admirably ingenious, from a palate-priming Japanese shochu with the treacle bread to a rare Portuguese Viognier and a daring punt on a silky-light Morgon with that turbot. It's a more compact list than New Road used to offer, but that's no bad thing, and most selections are available by the glass.
If you’re looking for a casual, cut-price take on the 'Padstein' experience, this all-purpose eatery in the frenetic hinterland of downtown Padstow should fit the bill. Drop by for breakfast or a cup of coffee, feed the kids… Read more
If you’re looking for a casual, cut-price take on the 'Padstein' experience, this all-purpose eatery in the frenetic hinterland of downtown Padstow should fit the bill. Drop by for breakfast or a cup of coffee, feed the kids at lunchtime or book in for a ‘very enjoyable evening’ against a backdrop of bright colours, white walls and light-wood furniture – there are even three bedrooms upstairs if you fancy staying over. As you might expect, the kitchen majors in seafood from the Padstow boats, so dip into an assortment of Rick Stein’s greatest hits at user-friendly prices. Briny freshness and globetrotting flavours collide in classics such as Thai fishcakes, mussels with black beans, garlic and ginger or grilled hake with spring onion mash and soy butter. The kitchen is also happy to go off-piste, offering chargrilled rump steak with peppery rocket, thin-cut chips and béarnaise sauce, as well as a veggie stew of tomatoes, aubergines and tamarind – plus sourdough for dunking. For afters, sticky toffee pud with clotted cream is the go-to option. A cluster of fish-friendly wines (from £23) provide suitable refreshment.
Sitting majestically at one end of Padstow, Rick Stein's family-run flagship is truly one of the heritage addresses of British gastronomy. In business continuously since 1975, it has played a major role in overcoming what was the … Read more
Sitting majestically at one end of Padstow, Rick Stein's family-run flagship is truly one of the heritage addresses of British gastronomy. In business continuously since 1975, it has played a major role in overcoming what was the national ambivalence about seafood. Those who always claimed they liked fish but didn't know what to do with it have been inspired by a range of dishes that has never shied away from stepping off the straight and narrow – witness the likes of Indonesian fish curry with green bean and coconut salad, or vigorously spiced monkfish with roasted butternut squash and crispy chicken skin.
At heart, though, it's sterling tradition that is celebrated most fulsomely here, producing hearty Provençal-style fish soup with rouille and croûtons, platters of cold or hot fruits de mer, and main courses such as casseroled hake, chargrilled sea bass with tomato, butter and vanilla vinaigrette, or the show-stopping lobster thermidor in cream and Noilly Prat, served with skinny chips. People appreciate the bright, relaxing atmosphere and the first-class service, and even if the cost of it all can mount up formidably, it is usually felt to be worth the outlay.
Bistro-style desserts round things off with classics such as lemon tart, chocolate fondant or passion-fruit pavlova. Wines by the glass open with a quality Muscadet Sur Lie, the kind of seafood-friendly white that has all but disappeared from other lists. The quality throughout is highly commendable, but markups may well be found too hot to handle.
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