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Cherie Soleil, Cornwall, Hotels, Hotels - Design, Restaurants

The Herring at Bedruthan Steps, Cornwall

August 26, 2012 by cheriecity

The Herring at Bedruthan Steps is everything a foodie visiting Cornwall could hope for. Inventive dishes, locally sourced ingredients, perfect sea views and a calm, stylish ambiance.

Bedruthan Steps is impressively family-focused, however its informal fine dining restaurant is solely for adults and supervised little darlings of 12 years old and older.

The chefs behind The Herring are Mick Smith and Ryan Venning from the renowned Porthminster Beach Cafe in St Ives. The menu is all about Cornish seafood and locally-sourced meat with an Asian twist. The sustainably caught fish reflects Bedruthan Steps’ dedicated eco philosophy.

The light wood furnishings with highlights of red are subtle and bright and the stunning views over Mawgan Porth beach make it the perfect place to enjoy a Cornish sunset.

Like the restaurant at sister hotel The Scarlet, The Herring offers a choice of two or three courses (£30/£35) for dinner. I started with Pork Cheek and Tempura Cod Cheek, pea and wasabi puree with toasted peanut, sesame dust and crispy wontons. It was an absolute delight from start to finish, with a complex combination of Asian flavours. The cod cheeks were exceptionally fresh and the pork cheeks were sticky, sweet and succulent. The sesame dust was a subtle, interesting addition and there was plenty pea and wasabi puree and crispy wontons to smother onto each bite.

Steven ordered the Confit Pork Belly, spiced honey glazed carrots and dauphinoise potato. The pork belly was soft and moist, with a crispy top layer and pieces of crunchy crackling. The dauphinoise potato was buttery and laced with garlic and the one solitary carrot was roasted and glazed, but not enough to balance the dish.

The star of the meal was my spectacular Organic Cornish Confit Duck Leg – Puy lentils, peppered spinach and roasted shallot. The duck leg was flaky, plump and tender with a layer of crackled, crispy skin. It came served on a bed of rich, slow-cooked lentil stew and topped with a ball of well-seasoned spinach and pretty, edible flowers.

Steven tried the Slow Cooked Lamb Loin – Steamed new potatoes, caponata, broad beans and peppermint. The lamb was very soft, succulent and flavoursome and was served with a scattering of broadbeans, rich caponata, tiny cubes of roasted potato, torn fresh peppermint and edible flowers. This came served with buttery, creamy mashed potatoes and a rather unseasoned creamed broccoli. There could have been more lamb offered, to be consistent with the other main of Cornish Duck.

The menu was slightly limited for vegetarians, with just one vegetable-based option per course, however for those who don’t eat seafood or fish, there are plenty of meat dishes.

For dessert, I ordered the interesting sounding Wattle Seed Meringues, Brandy caramel sauce, caramelised banana and candied hazelnuts. If you’re not familiar with wattle seed, like me at the time, it consists of the seeds of Australian Acacia and has various health benefits. The flavour is earthy and nutty, which made the perfectly light and chewy meringue even more interesting.

The bananas weren’t quite caramelised enough, but I loved the candied hazelnuts and the brandy caramel sauce worked well with the meringue.

Steven’s Hot Chocolate Fondant, Macaroon, coconut dust and avocado sorbet was exceptionally good. The molten chocolate fondant was rich with a soft cake texture and topped with home-made shortbread. The avocado ice cream was deliciously refreshing and lifted the decadent chocolate flavours. The coconut dust finished it off perfectly and brought an Asian element to a typically French dessert.

To end our meal, we shared a pot of fresh mint tea and were brought a plate of petits fours consisting of a delightful vanilla creme tasting spoon and hand-made white chocolate and pistachio Cornish fudge.

The excellent standard of food, interesting menu and friendly service makes The Herring a must when visiting Cornwall. Be sure to book ahead, as it’s a popular choice for hotel guests and visitors in the summer.

Double rooms at Bedruthan Steps start at £140 per room per night, including breakfast. For more information and booking, visit: www.bedruthan.com

Advance single fares from London Paddington to Newquay start at £15 one way. To qualify for the best value tickets and offers buy your ticket in advance. Here’s how you can buy before you board: Online at www.firstgreatwestern.co.uk or telephone 08457 000 125

Photos by Chérie City (interior by Bedruthan Steps)

Chérie City was a guest of The Herring

Beach, Breakfast, Cherie Soleil, Cornwall, Hotels, Hotels - Design, Hotels - Luxury, Spa

The Scarlet Hotel – Mawgan Porth, Cornwall

August 22, 2012 by cheriecity

The Scarlet Hotel is the ultimate in stylish Cornwall spa hotels. Perched on a hill just above Mawgan Porth beach, it is the place to enjoy absolute tranquility in hip, luxurious surroundings.

We stayed for two nights at the neighbouring sister hotel Bedruthan Steps, whose family-focused philosophy is unrivalled, however, our night at The Scarlet was a more grown-up, seductive affair. The most striking difference between the two hotels is that The Scarlet is a kid-free zone, with all facilities targeted to relaxation-seeking adults.

A unique feature of The Scarlet is that the conventional hotel desk and lobby set up is replaced with a casual clip-board check-in on the stylish Missoni sofas. The benefit to this is that the staff can hear when they are needed by guests but aren’t constantly present watching over the guests, which makes the public areas feel more like home. Adjoining the reception room is a bright and airy guest lounge with glossy magazines and views over the bay.

The Scarlet is a leading eco hotel, however, there are no overbearing ethical impositions on the guests. The hotel quietly implements clever green initiatives such as solar panels, grass-covered roofs and harvested rainwater.

The hotel has 37 bedrooms ranging from the cosy and chic Just Right rooms up to the spectacular Indulgent rooms. We stayed at one of the four Indulgent rooms with a large balcony overlooking the sea. The very spacious open-plan suite included a cool circular lounge with a huge round sofa, two flat screen TVs with DVD players, a long desk, free-standing mosaic bath and no less than three full length light wood fitted wardrobes. The Scarlet also offers free wifi in all rooms, so even though we had no mobile phone reception, we were still able to do a bit of work and plan the rest of our trip on the net.

The king-size bed was very luxurious with crisp white linen, attractive blue striped cushions and handy reading lights, although the bed at Bedruthan Steps had the slight edge on all-round comfort.

The bathroom behind a pretty mosaic partition featured double sinks, a large full-length mirror, plenty of fluffy towels and the most gorgeous natural, ayurvedic bathroom amenities by Tri Dosha. A nice touch was the cotton drawstring bag for taking your soap home – another eco brownie point. On the opposite side of the room was the most spectacular walk-in shower, tucked behind an undulating wall curve.

After an outstanding lunch at Jamie Oliver’s Fifteen Cornwall in Watergate Bay, we ambled back along the rugged, hilly coastal path back to the hotel (over an hour’s hike), where a Voya Detox Seaweed outdoor bath on the top of the cliffs was waiting for us. We climbed into the appropriately scarlet log-fired hot tubs (they look like cauldrons) and let the nutrient-infused hot water relax our tired limbs, while sipping on iced water with lime – or champagne, if you wish to retox.

The spa is the highlight of a stay at The Scarlet and facilities include the stunning indoor swimming pool, sauna, hammam, rhassoul, silent treatment zone, meditation room, deep relaxation space with hanging canvas pods and an uplifting relaxation room overlooking the sea. If the weather had been warmer, we would have also tried the outdoor swimming pool filtered naturally by reeds.

The Scarlet also offers complimentary yoga, meditation and dance classes to hotel guests. I was hoping to try the meditation class, but as we soon found out in Cornwall, it takes a while to get from place to place and we didn’t arrive back on time.

For the more active guests, the hotel can arrange an impressive range of outdoor pursuits including surfing lessons, wild swimming, climbing, horse riding, deep sea fishing, kayaking and power boat trips.

Having indulged at lunch, we had a lighter bite outside of the hotel that evening, however, the restaurant at The Scarlet offers a daily-changing three course menu for £42, using seasonal, locally-sourced ingredients. If dining during the day, try the very reasonable two or three course lunch (£18/£22.50) or the decadent three course Sunday Lunch (£25).

The Bar at The Scarlet has a handy 24-hour ‘anytime anywhere’ menu, offering home-made sandwiches, tarts, Welsh Rarebit, Cornish Cream Teas and cakes anytime you feel peckish. We ordered two Indulgent Hot Chocolates which were shortly brought up to our room and drank them on the balcony, watching the waves rolling towards the shore.

While the breakfast at Bedruthan Steps is all about convenience and top quality self-service, The Scarlet breakfast is served to your table over three courses. We enjoyed toast with home-made preserves and a large pain au chocolat, followed by scrumptious Eggs Benedict. The English Breakfast tea and glass bottle of fresh, cloudy Cornish apple juice were the perfect additions, and of course, that perfect floor to ceiling sea view.

The Scarlet Hotel is the perfect weekend break for getting away from it all, whether it’s for an action-packed beach adventure, romantic hideaway or a deeply relaxing spa retreat. With so many excellent facilities, it’s very easy to spend every moment cocooned in The Scarlet… and why not.

Double rooms at The Scarlet start at £190 per room per night, including breakfast and VAT. A Voya Detox Seaweed bath is priced at £35 per bath (for couple or individual) for 45 minutes. For more information and booking, visit: www.scarlethotel.co.uk

Chérie City was a guest of The Scarlet Hotel and First Great Western

Photos by Chérie City and The Scarlet Hotel

Cherie Soleil, Cornwall, Restaurants

Fifteen Cornwall – Watergate Bay

August 14, 2012 by cheriecity

Jamie Oliver’s Fifteen Cornwall is the South West coast’s best-known restaurant, with foodies flocking from all over the world to eat there, but it’s not just another fine dining restaurant.

Opened in 2006, Fifteen Cornwall is nestled between Newquay and Padstow in North Cornwall’s cool design-led resort, Watergate Bay. Following Fifteen restaurants in Amsterdam and the original London flagship, Fifteen Cornwall is a social enterprise that provides a brighter future for disadvantaged young people in Cornwall.

Every year, Fifteen Cornwall takes on a group of carefully selected 16-24 year-olds to undergo rigorous apprenticeships, equipping them with the training and skills to pursue a career in catering. The apprentices work alongside professional chefs in the open kitchen and many have gone on to work their way up the ranks of top restaurants across the UK and beyond.

To keep the crowds coming through the door, Fifteen Cornwall runs a tight ship and there is nothing amateur or apologetic about the restaurant. Just like Jamie, it’s slick, energetic and a little bit cheeky (some of our dishes were quite rightly described as ‘amazing’ and ‘fantastic’), but the food is taken seriously.

Each day the menu changes, based on the best local produce of the day and seasonal ingredients. Guests can choose between the five course tasting menu at dinner (£60 per person) and a 3 course set lunch menu with three options per course (£28 per person).

It was top of our list for an indulgent lunch, as we were staying nearby in Mawgan Porth at colourful design hotel Bedruthan Steps and then luxury spa resort, The Scarlet.

The restaurant design is rustic and beachy with splashes of urban street art – very Cornwall. It’s bright, breezy, with plenty of natural daylight and gorgeous views of the beach. We had a great table at the front of the restaurant overlooking the sea, where we watched surfers and families having a fun day out at the beach.

Our friendly, laid-back yet attentive waiter (as you can imagine all of Jamie’s staff are) welcomed us and brought a bowl of ciabatta bread from local baker De Barra and poured some extra virgin olive oil from Chianti into a dish at the table. The bread was good, not the best I’ve ever tasted, however it was a nice touch to mention the origin of the bread and oil, as much effort is taken to do this on the main menu.

Drinks are a real strength at Fifteen Cornwall. There is a focus on Italian wines, however handpicked bottles from all over the world also feature. The juices and non-alcoholic cocktails all sounded delicious and we loved the refreshing Watergate Cooler – fresh orange and Cornish apple juice, grenadine and homemade ginger syrup.

I started with a fresh, summery Insalata of char grilled Italian nectarine, mozarella di bufala, rocket and toasted almonds. The cool, creamy mozarella went very well with the heavenly soft and juicy nectarines and they were topped with peppery rocket, delicious toasted almonds and drizzles of olive oil and balsamic vinegar.

The portion size was very generous, particularly the mozarella and it was a real joy to eat.

Steven tested Fifteen’s fish credentials and went for the Grilled Cornish mackerel, Fifteen’s amazing potato salad, Amalfi lemon oil. The warm mackerel was succulent, full-bodied and very fresh. The potato salad was incredibly delicious – thick slices of red skin potatoes smothered in a dill, olive oil and fresh herb dressing, served cold.

I’ve always enjoyed Jamie Oliver’s pasta, whether it was an authentic Italian sauce made at home from one of his many cookbooks in my collection, or at Jamie’s Italian in London, so I went for the Tortelini of smashed pea, broad bean and prosciutto in a lemon butter sauce.

It was the most artistic, beautifully constructed pasta I’ve ever seen. The tortellini looked so elegant and handmade, covered with just the right amount of parmesan and greenery. The pasta was perfectly cooked, the filling was flavoursome and not overly dense and the sage butter sauce made the pasta all silky. It was easy to wolf them down in one as they were so delicious, but the portion size was quite small (a sentiment echoed by nearby diners who ordered the same dish), so I cut the tortellini in half to really savour the flavours.

Steven’s main course was the star of the meal – Slow cooked shoulder of Ballardsfield pork with lenticchie di Castelluccio, rainbow chard and crispy sage. The char grilled pork was so tender, lean and succulent and the lentil stew was rich and slow-cooked, with a balsamic zing and aromatic crispy sage.

The portion size and rich flavours dwarfed my tortellini, so I couldn’t help having serious food envy (luckily Steven was in a caring sharing kind of mood). The lentils were very filling and there was a big hunk of mouth-watering meat, so this made for a more satisfying dish.

For dessert, I went with the classic Fifteen’s fantastic treacle tart, vanilla and gooseberry compote and clotted cream. Far from being sickly-sweet or stodgy , this treacle tart was smooth, elegant and topped with a deliciously grainy caramelised crunch. The accompanying gooseberry compote was sharp and fragrant and of course nowhere does clotted cream better than Cornwall.

If I hadn’t already enjoyed nectarines as a starter, I might have ordered Steven’s Puglian apricots, with zabaglione, crushed amaretti and frangipane ice cream. The peaches were sweet and bursting with juiciness and were a perfect match for the subtle frangipane ice cream and authentic Italian zabaglione. The dessert was finished with roughly crumbled amaretti biscuits and crushed pistachio – a perfect taste of the Med in Cornwall.

Fifteen Cornwall is an absolute delight to visit and should be top of the itinerary for a visit to Cornwall. The ambiance is chilled out and family-focused and the food is outstanding yet unpretentious.

If you’re staying in nearby Mawgan Porth like we did, take the coastal path back and walk off lunch. Just be sure to leave over an hour and wear suitable shoes – it’s a real hike with plenty of uphill trekking and steep declines, but the breathtaking views over the bay will reward your efforts.

All food images by Chérie City

Cherie Soleil, Cornwall, Hotels, Hotels - Design, Spa

Bedruthan Steps, Mawgan Porth, Cornwall

July 26, 2012 by cheriecity

Bedruthan Steps is a Cornwall spa hotel like no other. It’s stylish and calm yet family-focused, with outstanding facilities and spectacular views over Mawgan Porth Bay.

Opened in the 1960s, Bedruthan Steps has always been a family-run business and now the managing trio of sisters also own nearby hotel The Scarlet. Both hotels are located just five miles from Newquay and a short drive away from Watergate Bay and Jamie Oliver’s casual fine dining restaurant Fifteen.

We travelled by train in First Class from London Paddington to Newquay with First Great Western. The journey time of approximately five hours flew by with the help of the beautiful scenery, comfy leather seats and plenty tea and snacks. From Newquay Station, it was a 15 minute taxi ride to the front door of Bedruthan Steps – it couldn’t be easier!

The sprawling white exterior of Bedruthan Steps resembles a nostalgic seaside resort, but inside is a colourful array of contemporary and retro interiors – think Orla Kiely and Missoni-style furnishings. The collection of vibrant artwork throughout the hotel is also suitably eye-catching.

On arrival, the atmosphere felt chilled out and informal and the friendly staff glided around in posh yoga wear, looking ready to strike a pose at any moment.

Bedruthan Steps offers a range of hotel bedrooms, villas for a family of four and apartments for up to six guests. We spent two nights in a villa on the ground floor with French doors leading out onto our own private patio overlooking the sea.

The spacious villa was designed in a neutral colour scheme with pink and orange highlights and filled with lots of natural daylight. It featured a double bedroom and an area with bunk beds that can be partitioned off to make a separate bedroom for children. Room facilities include two TVs, fridge, tea and coffee making facilities and complimentary internet access (using a cable).

The double bed was extremely comfortable and luxurious with crisp, fine linen and supportive pillows, making for a peaceful night’s sleep. There is no air-conditioning in the rooms, which takes some getting used to, however guests can open the door or use the electrical fans provided.

The bathroom was petite but attractive and the shower had very good pressure. I wasn’t keen on the natural shampoo soap bar, which made my hair feel rough and unmanageable, nor the lack of conditioner, although the body soap bar was absolutely fine. This was clearly an eco initiative, however wall-mounted products with little packaging waste or a selection of affordable natural products by Weleda or A’kin might have been better.

There are three eateries (and room service) at Bedruthan Steps – the fine dining restaurant The Herring, the informal Wild Cafe and a summer cafe in the grounds serving coffee, pastries and lighter snacks. The buffet breakfast, served in the Wild Cafe, is a real treat, with everything you could possibly want to start the day, whether you’re keeping it light and healthy or filling up for an action-packed day.

We made up our own Full English breakfasts with excellent quality local sausages, Old Spot bacon and farm-fresh eggs. We also loved the stewed fruit compotes served with plain yogurt, the fresh cloudy apple juice and the home-baked strawberry and banana bran muffins. The morning staff were all chirpy and efficient, swiftly bringing us toast and pots of tea with Orla Kiely mugs.

The hotel’s Ocean Spa is a sleek, tranquil haven designed in deep purple and neutral shades with pebble walls, irridescent mosaics and stone floors. Start with an energising swim in the 12.2m indoor heated swimming pool and then move on to the Ocean Spa with a panoramic view of the sea. Then, detox in the cedar sauna, eucalyptus steam room and lavendar caldarium.

My favourite part of the spa journey was the enormous mosaicked infinity jacuzzi with various whirlpool and massage jet settings. Continue the relaxation and recline on a lounger with a magazine or book and watch the waves.

To really unwind, the spa offers treatments such as a traditional hammam bathing ritual, bespoke facials and hot poultice body massage using natural products by REN, Voya and Mama Mio.

In the warmer months, guests can use the three outdoor pools with colourful loungers, cabanas and outdoor hot tub or relax in the coastal garden, which encourages natural wildlife.

Bedruthan Steps has its own surf school, so it’s the perfect place to come and learn how to surf or brush up skills with a few lessons. Other exhilarating activities include cycling, kite-surfing and tennis on the hotel’s own courts.

Impressively, Bedruthan Steps manages to cater for families with children of all ages without sacrificing the liberty of adult guests. There is a separate family dining room at the Wild Cafe, adult-only swimming sessions, relaxation room and a stylish adult-only bar. When parents want a bit of time to themselves, Bedruthan Steps provides baby sitters, a baby listening service and a daytime and evening Children’s Club.

Bedruthan Steps has so much charm and soul and is an ideal retreat for all ages in Cornwall. The excellent staff always asked about our day and remembered where we had been, making us feel like locals.

To get the most out of a stay at Bedruthan Steps, try one of their themed breaks with tuition. Learn various skills including bread making, knitting, bee keeping, yoga and pilates or shoe making.

Cornwall isn’t always the easiest region to navigate by foot, so having such wonderful facilities on the doorstep at Bedruthan Steps was very convenient. With the rolling waves, fresh sea air and restorative spa, you might not want to leave.

Double rooms at Bedruthan Steps start at £140 per room per night, including breakfast. For more information and booking, visit: www.bedruthan.com

Photos by Chérie City (spa by Bedruthan Steps)

Chérie City was a guest of Bedruthan Steps and First Great Western.