Cornwall's celebrity-owned restaurant with rooms is a foodie haven
There’s plenty of choice when it comes to the places to stay in Cornwall, but if you love hotels with Michelin-starred restaurants, have a knack for discovering the best gastropubs with rooms, or foodie trips are your favourite kind of holiday, a stay in Padstow should be on your shortlist for a Cornwall getaway. This storybook-style Cornish seaside town on the county’s dramatic and beautiful north coast has a solid reputation for being one of the very best foodie destinations in the UK.
Padstow appeared on the food-lovers map decades ago, made famous by Rick Stein and his love of Cornwall and the seafood found in the waters off the county’s cinematic coastline. What began with Stein’s flagship, The Seafood Restaurant, has swelled over the years, including a harbourside fish and chips shop, a middle-of-the-town café, and an upscale seafood bar. Just outside of Padstow in St Merryn is The Cornish Arms, a salt-of-the-earth pub, which Stein took over in 2009 without stripping it of its authentic pub-like quality. Stein’s empire (very much a family affair with his former wife and children all involved in the various enterprises) extends to accommodation, with six luxury shepherds’ huts, self-catering holiday cottages, and rooms above the restaurants to choose from – of which our favourite has to be St Petroc’s Hotel & Bistro, with an unbeatable Padstow address.
BOOK A STAY AT ST PETROC'S WITH RED
Where is Padstow?
Padstow is at the westerly end of the Atlantic Highway on Cornwall's north coast, around a five-hour drive from London. You can also fly to nearby Newquay Airport, although it helps to have a car to get out to explore the best of the sensational coastal scenery.
As you enter Padstow, the roads narrow and follow the contours of the hilly terrain, ultimately sloping down to the water's edge. If you have your windows down on a sunny day, glimpses of the Camel Estuary might come after a waft of salty sea air on the breeze.
There’s a nostalgic feel to Padstow — still a working fishing port — where echoes of its seafaring roots can be felt in the traditional pubs and fisherman cottages that sit alongside trendy cafes and art galleries.
Boutiques range from independent bookshops with beautifully illustrated children’s books and the latest bestsellers to souvenir shops selling postcards, magnets, and crab buckets. Surf shops keep experienced locals (and wannabe visitors) supplied with everything they need to tackle the incredible waves that break all along the north coast.
Down by the water, children sit on the quayside, legs dangling as they tempt crabs onto their lines. You'll feel out of place without an ice cream in hand as you walk (something from the local creamery, Roskilly's, ideally), perhaps en route to join the queue that forms for the ferry that shuttles locals and visitors to and from Rock, a little town on the other side of the estuary.
What are the rooms at St Petroc's like?
With just ten rooms, this former coaching inn is a quintessential boutique bolthole. It’s right in the middle of Padstow, making walking to the best restaurants in the town a cinch, although you've got one of the best options right downstairs. St Petroc's Hotel & Bistro has a warm, characterful feel like an upmarket B&B with a resident pantry to help yourself to drinks and snacks and cosy nooks with board games.
The styling is courtesy of Rick’s first wife, Jill, who not only has put her personal stamp on the interiors but oversaw the creation of the Porthdune amenities that are stocked in the rooms. The effect is lovely —nautically inspired without being themed, effortlessly stylish without being overdone.
Each room is slightly different from the next, as you might expect from a higgledy-piggledy 17th-century inn. They range from small and cosy rooms to a top-floor option with a fantastic view of the Camel Estuary. We love how it hasn’t been overly renovated—sloping floors, exposed beams, and the odd creak don’t betray the building's bones. But such commitment to St Petroc's history hasn’t meant skimping on luxury bathrooms and the things that help make a hotel feel plush, like smooth white linens, cosy waffle robes, and premium upholstery.
The in-room tea and coffee are Cornish, including the Nespresso pods with Helston-roasted coffee. Local goodies like Cornish fudge are available for something sweet alongside your coffee.
More about the food and drink
When you stay at St Petroc’s Hotel & Bistro, drift downstairs for an aperitif at Ruby’s Bar—try the Ruby Sunset, a gin cocktail mixed with local Tarquin’s gin (top tip: this Cornish gin distillery runs masterclasses in Padstow). Then, the lively atmosphere at St Petroc's Bistro awaits, where grilled rib-eye and fillet steaks from a local butcher take centre stage, although many will find the Cornwall seafood specialities like hake and St Ives lobster to be unmissable choices.
Seafood is the champion of the menus in all the Stein outposts, although nowhere quite so much as at The Seafood Restaurant, set on the harbourfront and just a couple of minutes walk from St Petroc’s. There’s a special occasion feeling here and a jovial atmosphere. Those who love all things fruits de mer won’t be disappointed with the majestic, eye-popping platters of seafood, spilling over with selections of Cornish crab and scallops and Padstow lobster. But diners who prefer food from land and fields aren't disappointed — despite the name, it's not exclusively seafood. Whatever you order, the wines are excellent: hand-selected by Charlie Stein, Rick’s son and wine aficionado, who expertly oversees the bar menus at all the restaurants.
At the other end of the fanciness spectrum from The Seafood Restaurant is Stein’s Fish & Chips, a classic takeaway where you can walk along the harbourfront with battered cod and perfect chips in hand – just watch out for the circling gulls.
The dedication to Cornish produce across the restaurants is impressive, but why wouldn’t they honour the local bounty with quality this good? Across the portfolio, seafood is sourced from local fishermen wherever possible, the meat from a renowned Cornish butcher, vegetables from the local Trerethern Farm, and there's wine from Cornwall’s Camel Valley, one of the loveliest English vineyards, although at The Seafood Restaurant, we sipped on the Rick Stein white burgundy, a blend overseen by Charlie Stein.
How to spend the weekend around Padstow
Between seafood feasts, you can spend your days strolling around Padstow, popping into nautically inspired interiors shops, eating ice cream and ordering coffee and cake at Stein’s Café, or checking what classes are at Rick Stein’s Cookery School. But don’t let the town steal all your time—Padstow is surrounded by some of the UK's most incredible beaches and coastline.
Bring a car to make exploring the glorious north coast easier. Visit the wide beaches (try Treyarnon, if you don’t mind a bit of courtesy reversing along the single-track road that leads to the beach) or set off on a clifftop walk to see waves crashing on sea stacks at Carnewas. If you’re keen to continue a food-inspired weekend trip with gusto, pop into The Pig at Harlyn Bay to devour more shellfish at The Lobster Shed, or venture to picture-perfect Port Isaac, where Nathan Outlaw’s Michelin-starred restaurant waits to dazzle you.
If you feel inclined to burn off some of the calories in the unmissable puddings at St Petroc’s Bistro, visit Harlyn Bay to try a surf lesson – the staff at St Petroc’s Hotel & Bistro can help make all the arrangements – or take a dip in the sea pool at Trevone for a spot of wild swimming.
If you fly to Newquay or take the train from Paddington to Bodmin and then arrive in Padstow by taxi, you can still enjoy the fantastic scenery. If you find yourself without a car, you can walk to the secret Tregirls Beach from Padstow in around 20 minutes and see where scenes in Poldark were shot.
What about children? And dogs?
We think St Petroc’s Hotel & Bistro makes the perfect couples retreat, with evenings beginning in Ruby’s Bar sipping negronis in the speakeasy-inspired surroundings before mooching to the bistro for an evening feasting on steak and seafood in a buzzy atmosphere. But there are rooms ideal for families if you’re thinking about a family holiday to Cornwall. If you book a stay with your kids, ask for St Pirans, a spacious room where children sleep on a sofa bed, but there’s ample space. Otherwise, adjoining rooms are an option if you want them in a proper bed. Cots are available on request, too.
Kids are warmly welcomed at all the Stein restaurants, including the flagship The Seafood Restaurant, where they can have their first taste of shellfish for free, including whelks and cockles, helping inspire the next generation of seafood lovers.
With fabulous cliff walks and wide-open beaches, Cornwall is a dog’s dreamland — just check the dates and times they're allowed on the sand. St Petroc’s is one of a growing number of dog-friendly hotels, and the extra £60 fee includes a blanket, bowl, and a toy, which can be taken home after your stay. The Cornish Arms pub welcomes dogs inside and out, and at St Petroc’s, you can dine outside with your pup.
Red has an exclusive offer at Rick Stein’s St Petroc’s Hotel & Bistro. Stay in a beautifully appointed room, enjoy a set lunch in the bistro, an à la carte feast at The Seafood Restaurant, cheese and wine in Ruby’s Bar, and receive a signed copy of Rick Stein’s Simple Suppers to take home.
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