Action Nan: Potluck Cornwall, discovering the best of Cornwall’s hidden foodie delights


Group of adults and children gathered around an open fire learning about Cornish food.

My daughter in law, Ruth invited me to sample one of Potluck Cornwall’s get togethers at The  Waymarker during the summer and since then I have sampled two more venues and am now absolutely hooked!

Potluck Cornwall www.potluckcornwall.co.uk is a food club run by Taor Morris, where members  can learn to cook or just get to chat and eat the best food at some of Cornwall’s smaller food establishments. These are often hidden away, quirky, family-run eateries, run by people with a passion for what they do (something common to many small businesses in Cornwall).

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The Waymarker, Constantine

My first evening was at The Waymarker café at Constantine, run by the exuberant  (and Mary Berry contender for cake baker extraordinaire) Rhiannon Mann and her partner. In the middle of nowhere on her Dad’s farm,  Rhiannon has created a lovely space where she makes and serves wonderful food. We sampled a cream tea special and it was absolutely top notch. Debates over cream or jam first were compulsory and I loved every minute. thewaymarker.co.uk

The COurtyard Deli with Potluck Cornwall

Courtyard Deli and Kitchen in Falmouth

The second evening was a tapas selection at Courtyard Deli and Kitchen in Falmouth www.courtyarddeli.co.uk  This quirky little restaurant is family run and tucked in behind the main street in Falmouth in Bells Court. They have a well stocked exciting delicatessen and offer food every day in the summer. Evening meals for groups are by request. We enjoyed an amazing array of small plates of Spanish specialities, so much that most of us had to have doggy bags to take the delicious pudding cake home! My favourite was Manchego with quince cheese, a classic but the flavours were out of this world. At 11pm we were queuing to stock up on their smoky paprika and chorizo sausages to take home. Put this restaurant on your to visit list when you are in Falmouth, you will not be disappointed.

Matt Vernon of 7th rise with Potluck Cornwall

7th Rise, Tregothnan

My third outing was to a really secret location in the middle of nowhere on the Tregothnan Estate on the banks of the River Fal to experience wild food foraging with 7th Rise www.7thrise.co.uk  Stuart Woodman, Matt Vernon and Thom Hunt have created a magical venue for people to harvest, cook and sample wild food. The visit involved a trip across the river on the King Harry ferry and a hike across four fields to stumble upon an old charcoal burners cottage, the nucleus of their site. It truly is a magical place, running down to the river and surrounded by woodland. We went on a foraging foray, learning about the culinary delights of herb bennett,  sea arrow grass and spear head orache to name but a few. The boys then whisked up a paella on the open fire with mussels and shrimps they had caught themselves and a wonderful cocktail of brandy infused with wild herbs and roots, followed by blackberry posset. It was all scrumptious, served by the fire in the dark and very, very special. 7th rise  run wild cookery classes, foraging sessions and stag parties, they even have a tree house for guests to stay in, information is all on their website. They also serve wild food on Saturday lunchtime at the Dynamite Café Ponsanooth which may be a little easier to find!!

www.dynamitevalley.com

A big thank you to Taor for sharing the love of wonderful locally sourced food and introducing us to some lovely people and food venues that I would never have known about. Looking forward to whatever she will surprise us with next!

Read more about Action Nan here

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