Category: Food and drink

Hailing from a long line of farmers, ex-chef Ross Geach certainly knows a thing or two about growing and cooking great quality seasonal produce. If you’ve eaten out in Cornwall recently, chances are the menu will have included fayre from his farm aka Padstow Kitchen Garden.

Rewind to more than 130 years ago, and you will have found Ross Geach’s grandfathers toiling the fields at Trerethern Farm on the hills above Padstow.

Fast forward to the 1990s, and sixth generation farmer Ross Geach was setting off on a different – but nevertheless related – path, swapping the fields for a kitchen as a chef at Rick Stiens down the road.

But farming roots run deep, and growing vegetables as a hobby in his spare time just didn’t cut it. In 2007, Ross gave up his career to take over Padstow Kitchen Farm full time, and hasn’t looked back.

Today, it grows a huge variety of vegetables which find their way into some of the county’s finest restaurants including Rick Steins’ restaurants, No.6 and Rojanos in Padstow, Fifteen Cornwall at Watergate Bay and Casamia in Bristol, to name but a few.

Ross is the first to admit that it hasn’t always been easy, but his farming lineage means he has been able to absorb the knowledge of his relations and master his craft.

The proximity to some of Cornwall’s top restaurants has certainly helped the success – all the salad and veg that is cut by hand first thing in the morning by Ross and his dad Ron is delivered to restaurants the same day ready for lunch service. You don’t get fresher than that.

Ross was recently very proud to be shortlisted amongst the big-guns in the category of Food Hero for the Food Magazine Reader Awards alongside the likes of Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall, Michael Caines, Nathan Outlaw (watch the video below) and Mitch Tonks.

Did you know…?
‘Tre’ is used in a lot of Cornish place names – Tregothnan, Trebetherick, Trelissick, Tregony – and means homestead.

Vegetable gardening courses

Fancy yourself as green fingered? From June to September, Ross will be running vegetable gardening courses for all abilities. Lunch cooked by Ross himself is also included in the price starting from £65 per person.

Dates are available on his website, but if your group of 8 or more friends want to get together on a particular date, give Ross a call and he’ll see what he can do.

Padstow is a 20 minute drive from our properties at Mawgan Porth and 25 minute drive from our Watergate Bay properties.

If you are staying with us this February, here’s a couple of tempting ideas for an extra special treat.

BEACH HUT BARBECUE NIGHT – FRIDAY 27 FEBRUARY

Who said you can’t have a barbecue in February? At The Beach Hut, right on the shores of Watergate Bay, you certainly can. On Friday 27 February they’re trading wintry weather for a tropical cabana, with a bonfire on the beach, a barbecue on the deck, a bit of Caribbean flare and tropical cocktails. There’ll be traditional steel-drum entertainment too, so limber up for limbo and party into the night.

Tickets cost £30 per person. Book online.

ZACRY’S OFFER

Here’s an offer you can’t refuse. Book a late table in Zacry’s, the new contemporary American restaurant at Watergate Bay Hotel, and visit their Swim Club before you eat. Work up an appetite in the 25-metre infinity pool with sea view or simply while away a couple of hours in the cliff top Canadian hot tub or beside the log fire in the ocean room lounge.

Find out more.

Angels in the Kitchen are exactly what they say on the tin. And now they’re even more angelic, offering Beach Retreats’ guests a very special offer.

We know our guests. And we know that after driving to go on holiday with a car stuffed full kids, the last thing you want to do is cook a family meal. It’s a holiday after all.

Angels in the Kitchen are Kirsten and Sarah – a unique Cornish catering company whose ethos is ‘simplicity’. They offer healthy and wholesome alternative to convenience food, sourcing fresh and local ingredients to create high quality pre-prepared meals.

They also provide a bespoke private-chef service – perfect for relaxing in your own holiday home while enjoying a restaurant experience. The Angels have put together their own set menu but are equally as happy working with you to create something special, whatever the occasion may be. Or perhaps you just want to get the kids to bed early and treat yourself? Canapes, finger food, tapas, birthday cakes, BBQs buffets and sit down meals. The best bit – no dirty dishes.

Check out our locations and retreats across West Cornwall.

Sample tapas menu

Includes marinated olives, crudites, homemade houmous, balsamic dip and fresh bread.

Then a choice of three from meat and fish dishes, including:

• • Mussels with garlic and herb crust

• • Pork meatballs in almond sauce

• • Chorizo in red wine

Then a choice of three vegetable dishes:

• • Roast pepper salad with olive and caper dressing

• • Patatas bravas

• • Courgette fritters with fiery tomato salsa

Testimonial

“We hired ‘Angels in the Kitchen’ at short notice to provide something special for a small group of our son’s friends celebrating his 18th birthday weekend. They didn’t disappoint. The two girls [Angels] came and delivered the tastiest meal that we could have hoped for – a Thai banquet, and the boys ate the lot. The Angels were engaging, fun, and knowledgeable about the design and delivery of the service, and added to the atmosphere. They left after the meal and you’d never know they’d been.”
S. Parker-Arnold, Bristol

Special winter offer

Angels are offering Beach Retreats’ guests a very special offer – 10% off any frozen ready meals over the May half from Friday 22 – Sunday 31 May.

Discover unbeatable savings and unforgettable experiences with Beach Retreats’ exclusive special offers.

Visit www.angelsinthekitchen.co.uk for more information.

Book your holiday with Beach Retreats today.

Looking for a Cornish foodie present or local ingredients to make your Christmas Day lunch extra special? It’s easy… choose Cornish on holiday this Christmas and get involved online #ChooseCornish.

From coal and logs for a roaring fire, to mince pies and mistletoe, fine wine and fantastic food – Cornish producers have everything you need for a truly local Christmas feast. Here’s our pick of local festive treats available through Cornish Food Market and Food 4 my Holiday, which many of our guests order from and have waiting for them on their arrival.

Fancy staying in a holiday retreat with a log burner? Check out our cottages with a log burner for a cosy getaway.

Cornish Cheese

Cornwall has some top notch cheeses. Lynher Dairy, just outside Truro make a great Yarg – a semi-hard cow’s milk cheese wrapped in nettle leaves. Helford White from Treveador Dairy, based on a French Reblochon, won gold at the British Cheese Awards 2011. Our pick, Cornish Blue from Knowle Farm just outside Liskeard – a soft, creamy and delightful cheese perfect for a festive fig salad.

Cornish Christmas trees

Grown locally, Noble Christmas Trees are thought to be the best variety for holding onto their needles and are available for delivery from Cornish Food Market.

Cornish Christmas Day lunch

Traditional White Turkey hand reared by Richard Banbury and his family just outside Padstow, or how about a change with roast pork, ham or bacon from Robinson’s Family Butchers in Bodmin? Every plate can be catered for.

Experience the magic of the season with festive nights at Watergate Bay.

Cornish Orchards’ Wassail Mulled Cider

Cornish Orchards products are available throughout the county including Jamie Oliver’s Fifteen Cornwall Restaurant and Rick Stein’s Seafood restaurant. Wassail is a sumptuous and aromatic brew of cider and apple juice, infused with fresh oranges and hand-blended spices. Serve warm as a simple and easy option for festive occasions.

Cornish Smoked Sea Salt

The chance discovery in 2004 of an Iron Age salt works, tucked away in a remote cove on the south coast of Cornwall, planted the idea for The Cornish Sea Salt Company. Fast forward to today, and Cornish Sea Salt is going strength to strength. We love their range of flavoured salts – the Smoked Sea Salt tastes especially great on buttered bread or pork crackling.

If you’re looking for quality Cornish produce that can be delivered to your door of your holiday accommodation – or even the actual kitchen or fridge – we recommend using The Cornish Food Market and Food 4 my Holiday.

Explore our locations and retreats across North Cornwall.

What do you get if you cross a great coffee maker, a surf-board shaper and motorbike customiser? The proprietor of a sub-cultural café on Cornwall’s Atlantic Highway, of course.

Take a trip on the Atlantic Highway – or the A39 as its less romantically known – from Newquay towards Devon and you won’t miss Strong Adolfos.

With its huge red ‘café’ sign on the roof, Strong Adolfos is Cornwall’s answer to cool Californian-cool café culture.

Mathilda and John Eldridge run the show, with the establishment recently celebrating a more than successful first year in business.

The interior is industrial but the food and drink is anything but. In addition to coffee there’s a great selection of smoothies – avocado and date had our vote – as well as a cold selection of drinks.

These images from Strong Adolfos’ Instagram.

The kitchen serves freshly cooked breakfast and lunches with influence taken from around the globe. We spotted burgers, lentil dhal and tasty salads on the day that we visited with vegetarian, gluten-free and meat eaters all catered for across the menu.

Although the sandwiches and cakes here go against the grain, make sure to take a look at the daily-changing specials board for where it’s really at for lunches. For an idea of what to expect, check out a previous special’s board.

With its roots firmly planted in the art, surf and motorcycle scenes, you can also expect regular events along this theme; rallies for any number of wheeled machines, film nights and art exhibitions to name just a few.

Here, it’s the Strong Adolfos’ way, or the highway.

www.strongadolfos.com

There is always something to do in Cornwall, and there is certainly always something to eat. Throughout Autumn The Beach Hut, Watergate Bay, is hosting a series of foodie events that you won’t want to miss.

Check them out…

LOBSTER FRIDAY

Friday 19 September

To mark the end of the lobster season and for one night only, The Beach Hut is going lobster crazy. Work your way through a whole lobster with a four course feast. Expect cerviche, linguine and grilled lobster.

7pm – £50 per person.

BOOK ONLINE

Say goodbye to summer barbecue

Friday 17 October

Barbecues, bonfires and a beach-side vibe, that’s what autumn evenings at The Beach Hut are all about. Join them to say goodbye to summer with the first of their famous barbecues. There’ll be music, laughter and plenty of delicious barbecue food.

7pm – £30 per person.

BOOK ONLINE

Welcoming the Winter

Friday 14 November

To celebrate the arrival of winter The Beach Hut will be cooking up food which to make you feel warm inside. A bonfire on the beach will get the evening off with a bang and the barbecue will feature some ‘cowboy style’ cooking.

There will be a South American theme: grilled meats, vegetables and lesser known cuts slowly cooked, pulled belly pork and BBQ sauce, five spice honey chicken, grilled leg of lamb with flat bread and mint raita. Baked potatoes will be in the fire and cowboy beans will be served with Asian slaw and corn fritters. And Hennessey brandy along with big, bold reds.

Expect sparklers, American music and line dancing, don’t forget your cowboy hats!

7pm – £30 per person.

BOOK ONLINE

Christmas

12/13/19/20 December

Celebrate the Christmas season at The Beach Hut with a beach bonfire and evening acoustic set and DJ.

MORE DETAILS

Cornwall’s next generation of cooking talent have been in competition to win the title of Top Chef across Cornwall and the winner has a could be part of the in-house catering team at a Beach Retreats property!

Merryn McCluskie, age 12, from Mawgan Porth was announced the overall winner at the final cook-off at Treviglas School on June 28th. Coming through a series of heats, Merryn was crowned overall winner across all age groups after a ‘masterchef’ style cook off in front of a respected judges including two from Fifteen Cornwall. The prize includes a Fifteen Cornwall apron and day at the restaurant in Watergate Bay.

Merryn is the daughter of Pippa and James who run Blue Bay House in Mawgan Porth. They provide an in-house catering service for guests – everything from a grand banquet to picnic baskets, so it’s easy to see where Merryn picked up her cooking skills.

Merryn cooked her favourite food – asparagus – as part of the two courses in the final:

Tregassow Asparagus wrapped in pancetta served with wild leaves and flowers, parmesan shavings and drizzled with French dressing.

Fresh fillet of Cod with a herb crust, baked and served with a lemon butter sauce, seasonal vegetables and Cornish new potatoes.

Read more about Blue Bay House and their personalised in-house catering options for guests.

New to Newquay town centre is the Surf Diner. Serving 100% Cornish burgers, steaks and seafood with authentic american flavours, this is the new place to hang out.

‘At our diner your food is sourced locally for the best in freshness and provenance. The meats we use are procured from Cornish farmers, hung for 28 days and all traceable. Our chefs hand-make your burgers, hand-cut your steaks and take pride in every dish we serve, even those that are meat free’.

As you walk up the stairs you know this is the real deal, massive pop culture artwork is hung on the walls, the juke box is hooked up with classic songs and genuine coca-cola memorabilia brings the whole restaurant together.

But, the pièce de résistance has got to be the view. The jewel in this diner’s crown is the commanding view it owns over the Atlantic. If you’re looking for alfresco dining we suggest you head to Surf Diner, you won’t be disappointed.