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How Cornwall is leading the way in sustainable dining

Cornwall's local producers provide everything from goat to gooseberries and seaweed to snails -
Cornwall's local producers provide everything from goat to gooseberries and seaweed to snails -

As soon as I drive past the “Welcome to Cornwall” sign on the A30, as I have done many times in the past 25 years, I crave a pasty. But on my most recent trip, a whistle-stop tour of west Cornwall and the north coast, the first thing that passed my lips was Cornish pastis.

Made in Wadebridge and served 40 miles away on the terrace of the Mount Haven hotel in Marazion, it formed part of a liquorice and elderflower Collins cocktail that also featured gin from the same distillery.

Although there is an undeniable irony in making a round trip of more than 600 miles from my Brighton home in order to “eat and drink local”, it is what keeps drawing me back to Cornwall (well, that and the characterful fishing villages, sandy beaches, dramatic seascapes and the unique quality of light).

The food and drink scene in the county has become noticeably more sophisticated and more self-consciously Cornish, perhaps due to the sheer number of local producers (foodfromcornwall.co.uk lists about 330, covering everything from goat to gooseberries and seaweed to snails).

Take our meal in the newly refurbished dining room at Mount Haven that knitted together meat from the 5,000-acre St Aubyn Estate on which the hotel sits, seafood from nearby Newlyn and ingredients foraged from the Lizard in dishes such as lobster with fermented wild garlic and tomato broth and pork loin with sea succulents.

Mount Haven
The view from Mount Haven isn't bad either

“Self-consciously Cornish” doesn’t mean insular, however. In Penzance, thanks to a tip-off from the town’s top chef, Bruce Rennie of The Shore, we breakfasted Mexican-style at the tiny Pica Rico restaurant on Market Place, with generous bowls of chilaquiles; crispy corn tortillas in a hot sauce made with organic tomatoes from a farm less than two miles from the restaurant, free range eggs from a community farm in nearby Bosavern and pork carnitas with meat from Primrose Herd in Redruth.

I’d be lying if I said provenance was at the forefront of my mind as I ate, but there is nevertheless something special about eating food that’s been cultivated nearby; it evidences real care on behalf of the restaurant about from where they source produce.

That’s also true of the chic yet cosy 20-odd cover The Shore, where we ate a staggeringly good tasting menu of the finest Cornish seafood delivered direct from Newlyn fish market, a mile west of Penzance. The produce may be local but Rennie imports his culinary influences from all over the globe, with Thai-style hot and sour lobster soup, Chinese-inflected char sui monkfish and pollack with Indian dal, the disparate flavours deftly handled so that the six courses segue seamlessly on the palate.

No 6 Cornish Tamworth pig’s head transformed into rissole
Cornish Tamworth pig’s head transformed into rissole at Paul Ainsworth’s Michelin-starred No 6 restaurant

But it was at chef Paul Ainsworth’s The Mariners in Rock where we found the ultimate expression of “hyper local” food. Even on a typically wet and windy Cornish summer’s day, the view of the Camel estuary from our first-floor table in the glamorously refurbished pub was compelling, and we could see the beds of Porthilly oysters listed on the menu under the heading of “500 yards that way”. The historically good Cornish haddock fish and chips made the half mile slog in the rain and wind along Rock’s sandy beach to catch the ferry back to Padstow more than worth it.

Like many foodies, my first trip to Padstow in the Nineties was inspired by Rick Stein’s TV series, and his importance in the town remains undiminished. We enjoyed drinks at his latest opening, Ruby’s Bar – where the strength of “Rick’s margarita” nearly made me forget how uncomfortable the narrow banquet seating was – and a pleasant breakfast at his café on Middle Street.

On this visit, however, the big draw was Ainsworth’s Michelin-starred No 6 restaurant. Cornish Tamworth pig’s head transformed into rissole was accompanied by a braised onion of depthless flavour and a precise square of smoked eel. Along with such gastronomic delights as Tamar Valley hogget loin with a hogget steamed pudding and Cornish chicken tournedos, it was a world-class meal, and a perfect illustration of Cornwall’s gastronomic journey from pasty to pastis.

Read more of Andy’s articles at telegraph.co.uk/tt-andylynes. Follow him on Twitter @andylynes

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