Falmouth’s New Dining Scene

Quick Bites

Oriental Touch opens on the site of Ash Hill Inn, Torquay. . .Imperial Chef in Exeter gives way to Golden Palace specializing in Chinese, Thai and Malaysian cuisine. . .ExeShed in Princesshay Exeter, sister to SevernShed in Bristol launches new al-fresco area. . .The Rosevine opens with new owners, Tim & Hazel Brocklebank who were at Fowey Hall, a new look and new menus. . .South in Mannacan re-opens after kitchen re-work. . .Hot young chef Rory Taber joins Idle Rocks in St Mawes as head chef having come from Maxims of Paris. . .New 2-4-1 Menu at Bistro One; 2 courses for 2 people, only £30 (Mon-Sat Lunch & Wed-Fri Supper). . .Change of concept for The Bywater restaurant in Looe - now The Little Pizza House. . .Revival in Charlestown gives way to Wreckers Bar and Restaurant from the owners of Quay West and The Wheelhouse in Mevagissey. . .The Tolman Café, Bar & Restaurant opens in Old Town St Marys offering all day menus plus evening A La Carte in a contemporary setting. . .The Bishop & Wolf pub on St Marys is now run by James and Chris Le Friec of St Marys Hall Hotel; plans are afoot to re-work as a gastro pub. . .Combe House Hotel takes Silver at ‘Tourism Oscars’. . .ODE Restaurant in Shaldon, was named as one of the top three certified organic restaurants in the UK at the Natural & Organic Awards 2008. . .Chantek in Truro in collaboration with Callestick Farm has launched a range of Thai-flavoured ice creams. . .The Elephant in Torquay is holding a Gold Medal dinner with wine April 4 to celebrate the kitchen team's recent successes in the British Open Cookery Championships. £65 for 5 courses, coffee and petit fours, glass of champagne and wine. . .Fancy being one of the diners for the fourth series of Gordon Ramsay’s F Word on Channel 4? If so, just fill in a diner application form. . .Pizza Express has opened a branch in Barnstaple. . .The Lime Tree in Penzance is open for Easter Sunday lunch and all day Bank Holiday Monday. . .Get set for Exeter Festival of South West Food & Drink (Apr 11-13) at Northernhay Gardens. . .Seafood chef Mitch Tonks opens The Seahorse this April in Dartmouth. . .New chef owner Keith Palmer at C3 Café Bistro in Helston specializing in Free Range ingredients. . .April events at Bistro One in Plymouth -- Ben Hartley art exhibition launch and Parisian Supper. 4 courses plus coffee and wine, £27.50 (Apr 3); Shiraz wine tasting. 6 wines plus one course supper and coffee, £35 (Apr 8); Poetry for Supper Festival, £27.50 (Apr 16). . .Rumours abound about Rick Stein opening in Newquay and Gordon Ramsay in St Ives. . .Pizza Express open in Barnstaple. . .Prezzo open in the Old Post Office in Falmouth. . .The Tanner Brothers' Barbican Kitchen closes after fire rips through The Plymouth Gin Distillery. . .The Hubb in Wadebridge re-opens as The Raj Indian Bar & Restaurant. . .New Management at The Pity Me Inn at Rock. . .Exciting developments for St Ives and Falmouth as The Greenbank Hotel welcomes Head Chef Sanjay Kumar (ex-Hotel Du Vin and Raymond Blanc) and The Carbis Bay Hotel takes on Keith Brooksbank (ex-Alverton Manor and The Greenbank). Both chefs are set to make a big impact on the locality. Other moves see Neil Slade go to The Old Coastguard Hotel as GM and Michelin-starred chef Ben Tunnicliffe (ex-The Abbey) is now consultant to The Old Coastguard Hotel in Mousehole amongst others. . .Yukisan in Plymouth have been nominated for the UK Customer Excellence Awards 2008. . .Bizarre Michelin turnarounds -- John Burton Race buys back The New Angel and is set to reopen next month and Paul Ripley in St Merryn keeps his restaurant open with Head Chef Zane Rosel managing whilst he concentrates on his deli across the road rebranded as Ripleys Fine Foods. . .Slow Food Devon has a great new monthly market at Matthews Hall, Totnes runninf from 11pm-3pm, next dates Mar 30 and Apr 20. . .Nineteen Bar & Bistro at the Lanhydrock Hotel near Bodmin have appointed new Operations Manager Stuart Moir (ex-food driven Springer Spaniel in Launceston). . .Rick Stein’s Seafood Restaurant reopened last weekend after a £2.5million refit that sees a new larger restaurant with a seafood bar at its centre where you can pitch up for seafood platters, sushi and sashimi. To celebrate, a 3-course lunch menu will run from Feb 3-Mar 16 and costs £28.50. . .New restaurant venture opens in Feb in Port Isaac. The Harbour Restaurant has local fisherman John Brown and wife/chef Emily filling a gap in the market for exciting and affordable cuisine with local produce and fish menus taking inspiration from French, Italian and British dishes. . .Restaurant Nathan Outlaw at the Marina Villa Hotel in Fowey has been awarded a Michelin star with a recommendation for two stars rising. Tean Restaurant at St Martin's On The Isle in Scilly, home to chef Kenny Atkinson, also received a star. A Michelin Bib Gourmand goes to Matt Corner at The View in Torpoint. Ripleys in St Merryn loses its star. . .Upcoming events at The Vanilla Pod At The Cridford Inn -- Valentines Menu (Feb 14), 4 courses, £35. Mothers day lunch menu £17.95 for 3 courses. Wine and Dine evening (Mar 13), 4 courses, £39 to include wine with each course and a talk from Regency Wines. St Patricks night (Mar 17), Bar menu, 3 courses for £19.95. Easter Sunday (Mar 23), £17.95 for 3 courses. . .Famous food pub the Nobody Inn near Exeter has sold. The new owners are Andy and Rowena from the award-winning Harris Arms near Okehampton. . .Rosewarne Manor near Hayle opens as bar and restaurant from the same owners of food driven pub The Lamb & Flag. . .Ben and Kinga Tunnicliffe have sold the Michelin-starred Abbey Restaurant in Penzance. . .Michell Tonks fish cookery writer & restaurateur has bought Pizzazz restaurant next door to the troubled New Angel in Dartmouth. . . The Quay in Ilfracombe is closed for refurbishments from January 1st to 24th and will reopen with an exciting new single menu throughout the building, covering every dining option. The only choice then will be which of the beautiful dining rooms to enjoy. . .Stingi Lulus in Truro has had a face lift and is now Panama Jakes featuring Tex-Mex and Soul Food. . .The Orange Tree in Torquay has new owners. Chef patron Bernd Wolf brings a wealth of experience from Ooop North. . .New to Porthleven, The Corner Deli brings loads of Cornish specialities and a wood fired pizza oven to town. . .L’Ex-Cargot French restaurant opens on The Quays in Exeter. . . Padbrook Park Hotel & Golf Club announce plans to extend the course to 18 holes. . .Bistro St Michaels opens in Penzance for all day food and drink with a French twist -- Moules Frites, Steak Frites and more. . .Tiger Bills Bar, Wok & Grill opens on North Street Exeter for Thai food and American grill dishes. . .TQ5 wine bar & restaurant opens in Brixham. . .The Riverbank is a stylish conversion of the Barley Sheaf in Truro. . . Feast vegetarian restaurant in Truro has been relaunched as Lettuce and Lovage. . . Taste of the West Awards 2007: Overall Southwest Restaurant of the Year is Ode True Food, Shaldon. Gold awards for Victoria Inn, Perranuthanoe; Trawlers, Looe; Jack In The Green, Exeter; Ode True Food, Shaldon. Silver awards for Springer Spaniel, Launceston; The Grove Inn, Kings Nympton; The Merry Harriers, Clayhidon Cullompton; Combe House Hotel, Gittisham. . . Austells in Carlyon Bay have been awarded two AA rosettes within 8 months of opening. . . Kubes in Plymouth becomes Cafe Mez offering great value British and World cuisine. . . New boulangerie La P'tite France opens on Frankfort Gate in Plymouth. . . Odds The Restaurant opens in Cubert for fine dining using ultra-local produce. . . Tuga is a new authentic Portuguese restaurant that has opened in Plymouth. . . 22 Mill St in Chagford has new owners and is now fully open under new Head Chef John Hooker. . . New deli Provedore opens in Falmouth. . .Cocos in Penzance announce new ‘Totally Cornish Sunday lunch’ menu plus bespoke Sunday lunch menus by prior arrangement for that personal touch. . . Feast vegetarian restaurant in Truro has new owners and is looking forward to a refurb soon. . . Bristol and Bath restaurants move in to Exeter with the opening of Chandos Deli and ExeShed on Princesshay. . . The Cornish Arms in Pendoggett has been awarded 4 Stars for its accommodation by Visit Britain. . . The latest cool and stylish opening in Falmouth is Harveys Wharf Restaurant and Bar on Discovery Quay. . . New retro-styled bar opens in ever-growing and trendy Penryn, No 20 features designer flock wallpaper and dandy furnishings. . . Ode True Food in Shaldon announces new ‘Beyond Breakfast’ brunch menus on Saturdays and Sundays (11am-2pm). Also Cheese & Wine evenings every Tuesday (5pm-9pm) with fine artisanal cheeses and organic wines. The also now have their own beer brewed at Ringmore Craft Brewery in Shaldon which has been created to complement their cuisine. Called ODE Ale it is in the style of a Belgian fruit beer with lots of raspberries and loganberries. . . Four new openings in Falmouth – Pizza Express on Discovery Quay over two floors with alfresco and a downstairs café and new concept Gelateria with authentic Italian ice creams. Pippas Steakhouse gives way to new Mexican Steak restaurant 3 Amigos. New North Italian style café and restaurant Caffe Veneto offering authentic Venetian dishes all day. Ratho wine bar & restaurant offering French fine dining using local produce. . .Tate St Ives launches new Sunset Café for delicious Tapas. . . Restaurant Two Ten 200 in Falmouth has started high-quality Sunday lunches. . . @Angelas, a new family run restaurant offering affordable cuisine using local produce opens on the site of Sundogs in Exeter. . . South Cafe in Manaccan has launched a new wine club with mixed cases at wholesale prices. . .