Cowell’s Cuisine

Lunch on the beach – with snow

Early on Sunday morning it poured with rain. Then the wind came up and it began to snow. By lunchtime the sun was shining as we sat outside the Gylly Beach Café, watching the surfers ride the waves. It was that sort of day.

With friends down from London for the weekend, I thought Gyllyngvase Beach was the best place to show them what Falmouth had to offer. The perfect beachside location. Confused by the changing weather, Mrs C donned fur hat, pointy boots and ear muffs – and ordered a large glass of Spanish Albarino. Gylly Beach Cafe is always busy, but that’s part of the charm. The beach was buzzing with the regular daily swimmers, surfers, and happy children building castles in the sand. At 1pm we were lucky to get a table and watch the fun unfold.

Gylly Beach Café is the ideal place to enjoy everything from a relaxing coffee with a homemade cake to a tasty lunchtime treat. They recently opened their own bakery on the beach, too. The café started life 16 years ago by husband and wife team Simon and Viv - who are passionate about getting the best out of Cornwall’s rich and diverse ingredients. Fish features heavily on the menu, and I sampled an excellent Cornish fish soup. Pan fried fillets of gurnard were the star of this little dish, which came with a rosemary gremolata and some freshly baked bread. Just like the weather, Mrs C finally cheered up and ordered the open fish finger sandwich served with lettuce and tomato and a lovely Caesar salad dressing. Our London friends chose the homity pie filled with creamed potato, leeks and Cornish cheddar.

What I like about this beach café is the attention to detail. The service is fast and friendly and if there is a short wait for food in busy periods, the staff will always tell you, good food takes a little longer. Head chef, Dale McIntosh makes good use of local ingredients and the menu changes with the seasons.

From 6pm, the evening menu includes Cornish scallops, pan seared mackerel fillets or steak tartare for starters. For mains you can choose from pan seared Tregothnan venison or mushroom gnocchi.

Just after lunch the wind returned, and the sky suddenly darkened. The snow arrived just as we got home. Mrs C promptly leapt out of the car and made her way towards the group of children busy building yet another snowman.

Follow Tony Cowell on Twitter: @cowelltweets