Three Cornwall restaurants listed in the UK’s top 100

Three Cornwall restaurants have made it into the top 100 best places to eat in the UK at the National Restaurant Awards – one narrowly missing out on a top 20 place.

No.6 Paul Ainsworth in Padstow, Ugly Butterfly in St Ives and Crocadon in St Mellion were all named among the UK’s best restaurants at the prestigious Estrella Damm National Restaurant Awards this week, standing out as the pride of Cornwall on a list in which over half the entries were from London.

And Paul Ainsworth seems to have surpassed even his former mentor, celebrity chef and restaurateur Gordon Ramsay, as number 6 placed an impressive 22 out of 100 on the list – while Ramsay’s flagship restaurant, Restaurant Gordon Ramsay, where Ainsworth has spent three years working in the early 2000s, ranked only 59th.

Refined restaurant no. 6, which has held its Michelin star status for 11 consecutive years, has been hailed by the Estrella Damm National Restaurant Awards as “dealing with fun as well as fine dining”, with its dining room located in a “beautiful” Georgian house.

Ainsworth, who has run the restaurant with his wife Emma since 2009, describes it as “my life’s work” and states on website no. 6: “I’ve never been happier than I am now to showcase my love of food and my personality through the best ingredients on the planet. We look forward to welcoming you.”

The menu offers modern British cuisine with an emphasis on locally grown produce and Cornish seafood, from wild turbot or cod caught in Cornish waters to a ‘land and river’ smoked eel starter served with Crapaudine beetroot, green apple and caviar – while the wine list also includes local offerings such as a Chardonnay Brut from Bodmin’s Camel Valley Vineyard.

And while the menu offerings are more expensive, No. 6 has earned a five-star rating on TripAdvisor, with customers describing the food as “out of this world” and the restaurant itself as having the “wow factor”.

Speaking about their top 100 ranking, the restaurant shared on their Facebook page: “We are delighted to have been voted 22nd in the UK’s top 100 restaurants this year at the National Restaurant Awards.

“We would like to sincerely thank the hospitality judges who voted for us, our wonderful guests for your continued support and our incredible team from Paul Ainsworth at No6 who strive, day in and day out, to deliver the best dining experience possible. for our guests We’re so excited for what’s to come this year at No6!”

Meanwhile, joining at number 6 on the National Restaurant Awards list is Ugly Butterfly in St Ives, which came in at number 55 – also beating Gordon Ramsay’s Chelsea restaurant.

The restaurant was opened in August 2021 by renowned chef Adam Handling – who also has another top 100 entry with his flagship restaurant Frog in London’s Covent Garden coming in at number 40.

And it quickly became one of the top 10 most booked restaurants in Cornwall, according to online restaurant reservation site OpenTable.

Located in the luxurious five-star Carbis Bay Hotel & Estate on St Ives Bay, the Michelin-starred Ugly Butterfly offers spectacular views over one of the world’s most beautiful coastlines.

The restaurant prides itself on its sustainability and zero waste ethos, working with local Cornish growers, farmers and fishermen and using the whole animal in its meat dishes.

From a crab and apple starter, to scallops or Tregullus lamb on its main menu, and even a choice of oyster dish, consisting of fresh oysters from the north coast of Cornwall, it’s not hard to see why Ugly Butterfly has achieved a five star rating on OpenTable.

Past customers have raved about this facility, writing, “Fabulously incredible experience from the moment I walked in the door. The food is simply amazing! I have never tasted food like it. This team are food magicians.

“We will never forget the evening – a fabulous way to spend our wedding anniversary. Everything was perfect. Thank you.”

And another added praise, commenting: “This is not a dinner, it’s an experience! Fabulous in every way.”

Following its recognition at the National Restaurant Awards, the Ugly Butterfly team took to social media to share that they are “super over the moon” at the news.

In a Facebook post, the restaurant wrote: “We are over the moon to have been ranked 55th in the National Restaurant Awards 2024.

“This list is full of incredible talent, beautiful food and amazing restaurants, so to be recognized among them is a huge accomplishment for us, especially as newcomers to the list. Time for some bubbles!”

And last but not least, farm restaurant Crocadon is one of the newest additions to the top 100, coming in at number 61 just a year after it first opened its doors in 2023.

The cozy restaurant, with enough seating for just 25 customers, is set in the heart of 120 acres of farmland taken over by chef Dan Cox in 2017 in St Mellion, close to the Cornish border with Devon.

But although the Crocadon Farm restaurant has only been open for a few months, it has quickly become a success – winning a Michelin star in February this year.

The Michelin Guide praised the restaurant, commenting: “This is the epitome of ‘forked field’, with the farm – which is run on regenerative principles – supplying much of the produce and the rest sourced from like-minded local suppliers.

“The cooking is assured and original, with dishes that offer wonderfully pure flavors.”

And as such, Estrella Damm recognized Crocadon as “one of the UK’s most exciting farm-to-table restaurants” at the National Restaurant Awards – with the restaurant sharing the accolade on its own Instagram page, describing its place in the top 100 as being “such an honor”.

Posting on Instagram earlier this week after the awards night, Crocadon wrote: “Such an honor to be ranked 61st at this year’s National Restaurant Awards amongst such excellent company. It is amazing that the ethos and values ​​of a farm restaurant have been appreciated. in this way.”

To see the full list of the UK’s 100 best restaurants from the National Restaurant Awards – which also includes two entrants from Devon, one from Somerset and one from Bristol – visit here.