Everything you need to know about Tintagel Brewery Bar & Bistro

Having quietly built a buzz over the past 18 months for its knockout food and meticulous service, this North Cornwall bistro is one to put on your culinary radar

Melissa Stewart

Having quietly built a buzz over the past couple of years for its knockout food and meticulous service, this North Cornwall bistro is one to put on your culinary radar

Need to know

Simon Hobbs took over the reins of Tintagel Brewery Bar & Bistro in May 2021, later joined by friend and chef George Buckley in November 2022. With backgrounds in hospitality (Simon runs front of house and George heads up the kitchen), the two twenty-somethings are fast becoming the bright young things on the Cornish food scene. This year they were awarded their first AA rosette for culinary excellence and culinary heavyweights including Nathan Outlaw and Gordon Ramsey have even stopped by to check out the bistro.

What to expect

A cosy-yet-sophisticated bistro with dark wood tables, chandelier lighting and luscious green foliage. The 60-seat restaurant is open Tuesday to Sunday for lunch and à la carte dining. You can also drop into the bar for a cocktail, glass of wine or a pint of draught ale fresh from the brewery next door. During the summer months, customers can sit outdoors and swallow up the panoramic views over Bodmin Moor, St Austell and the South West coast.

What’s cooking

Provenance is the name of the game and ingredients are sourced as locally as possible, such as the Wagyu beef from a neighbouring farm and daily catch from Port Isaac. Recent popular dishes include the slow-braised pork belly Scotch egg with Thai sauce as a starter, and George’s chicken supreme – an unctuous main of chicken braised in stock, Tintagel brewery ale and a creamy Thai sauce, served with beetroot, baby leek, Chantilly carrot and seared baby onion. Sweet toothed guests can revel in the signature dessert: chocolate and stout. Chocolate and cream are folded into a homemade custard served with Tintagel Brewery stout ice cream, a chocolate tuille, brown butter crumb and blackberry gel.