Like many things in my life, I set out with very good intensions to update this blog every week. Like many things in my life, this has not happened! 2025 has thrown many big Challenges my way this year which has meant hobbies like this have taken a step back. I am fortunate enough however to have a group of ladies in my life who never say no to foodie social and keep reminding me to post here. So thank you Foodies, you know who you are queens!
Our most recent outing took us to somewhere that has been on my list for ages, Rosa in Newquay.
Rosa first caught my eye on Instagram, with photo’s of their pizzettas, and as a pizza lover I knew I had to go and try one of those little rounds of pizza heaven!!!
The restaurant has a really nice chilled vibe, with loads of outdoor seating, perfect for catching up with friends. They even have their own mini golf course (which by the time we had eaten an obscene amount out food it was too dark to play).
The menu is small which for me is never a bad thing! They have a selection of pastas, burgers, pizzettas, fried chicken and snacks, it was like this menu had been designed specially for me. Plenty of choice for veggies and vegans too.
When I finally had to make a decision, I panicked and ordered the jumbo chicken tenders with pickles and a choice of sauce, and the pepperoni & hot honey pizzetta. Honestly though I could have ordered another 5 things, it all looked too good, I am still thinking about the deep fried lasagne today!
Against my better judgement I, of course, decided to get dessert, even though I was outrageously full. The rest of the foodies went for the donuts, which I have to admit I was pretty jealous of, but my lemon meringue pie was equally good.
The highlight has to be the chicken tenders for me, they were crispy on the outside but not too heavy on the batter, and the chicken was super tender inside.
Rosa was the perfect place for a get together. All in all, a fab evening full of great food, lots of laughs and fabulous friends. Exactly what was needed!
I can’t write a food blog without first mentioning one of my favourite places to eat in Cornwall. My mum gets yet another special mention in this post, as it was actually her who discovered this food heaven! On a bit of a cold miserable day in December, we decided to take my parents on, admittedly, a rather long and muddy walk from Mylor to Flushing and back. My mum casually mentions a pub she’s heard of in Flushing that was on the Michelin Guide called, Harbour House. Now, at this point, I feel like I need to explain that my parents live 400 miles away in York, yet somehow my mum knows more about what is happening in Cornwall than I do! I was feeling a bit dubious but agreed that, if there was a table available when we got there, we would try it. And oh my goodness I am so glad we did!
We have now become fairly regular visitors at the Harbour House, eating here for many special occasions, including wedding anniversaries and birthdays. The bar and restaurant area is super cosy, especially when the fire is lit on a drizzly winter day. I particularly love the tables for two by the window, (obviously I always get the lovely armchair). If you’re coming here for a romantic meal, there are two of these in each corner of the restaurant, I definitely recommend trying to sit at one of these, so you can watch the world go by outside whilst enjoying your food.
If you like a beer, they have a fantastic rage of beers on tap, with the majority of them being local, as well as bottled beers & ciders, an extensive wine list, spirits, softs and cocktails, my personal drink of choice. Whilst my husband usually opts for a beer on tap, I tend to go for my favourite cocktail, Lychee Martini!
Something I love about Harbour House, is that the menu is always changing, focusing on delicious Cornish seasonal ingredients, including breakfast, a main menu, Sunday Lunch and a feasting menu which we are yet to try. All their food is cooked over a charcoal grill, which I think gives the food such a unique and wonderful flavour! There is definitely something for everyone on their menu’s.
One of our most recent visits was probably one of the best yet. Every time we go out we always have the same conversation, “Just a starter or dessert and a main tonight, lets not go too mad” and as always, we fail miserably. So we started with what might be the best starter I’ve ever had, a whole burrata, with hot honey, candied pine nuts, beetroot, crispy sage and basil oil. I can’t tell you how many times I have tried to recreate this at home since, but nothing will come close to the real deal.
As I am from Yorkshire, I will find any excuse to have a pie, of course, so I was very excited to see a chicken and tarragon pie with mash on the menu. We also finally decided to try the beef burger, which we always watch with envy when other people have this, and we were not disappointed!
Finally we finished off with two, very different but equally delicious, desserts. A chocolate tart with a miso salted caramel sauce and a rhubarb & custard mille-feuille which narrowly pinched the top spot for best dessert for both of us!
Now I have a bit of a confession, I’ve been sitting on this first post for about 4 months now! After the initial excitement of choosing my site name, getting a domain, building a website, even buying a special notebook for all my foodie notes, I STILL haven’t written a thing about the food I’ve eaten recently. Honestly, the self doubt and worry about what people might think crept in, so to ease myself in gently, instead I’m going to write a little bit about me and why this space exists!
I haven’t always enjoyed food, and to be honest, I am still a fairly fussy eater according to my husband. I vividly remember at the age of 12 being told that we were off to a local Indian restaurant for my sisters birthday meal. Of course I was outraged that I would be forced to eat something well out of my comfort zone, and stubbornly declared that I would go, but I won’t be eating ANYTHING! So off we went and whilst I sat there with a sad bowl of chips as a compromise, my family ordered a variety of terrifying looking meals, which smelt strange, and were full of who knows what unsafe foods. One however did pique my interest, and I timidly asked if I could try a bit of Chicken Tikka Masala. Well, my mind was blown! But to admit that I was wrong, absolutely not! So I casually agreed that it was ‘Ok’. This was really the beginning of a much better relationship with food for me, and lead me from being a child surviving on tomato soup and billy bear ham, to me trying so many new things and really growing to love food.
My next food breakthrough came when I started my first job at a vegetarian restaurant in my home town, at the age of 15. I had already decided at this point in my life that I wanted to be a vegetarian, which I’m sure made my parents despair as, whilst my food horizons had expanded since my curry experience, my vegetable intake was minimal. Many vegetarian sausages and Quorn nuggets were consumed during those years. The owners of the vegetarian restaurant were extremely kind enough to feed me before I started work, but that meant eating actual vegetables, at a vegetarian restaurant, shocking I know. Now, being the people pleaser that I was, and still am, I felt horribly rude saying I didn’t want to try anything they gave me, so I put my brave face on and tried everything they offered, and WOW my eyes were opened to a whole new world of food. I ate courgettes, onions, beetroot, falafel, and new types cheese I didn’t even know existed, and I finally learnt that not all vegetables are like the soggy overcooked green beans on the Sunday roast, that squeak when you eat them (sorry mum). I really do owe a lot of my expanded food horizons to the wondering ladies who own the restaurant, and whilst I am no longer a vegetarian, veggie food will always have a special place in my heart because of their incredible cooking talent!
You might have noticed that I started this story by saying that I am still a fairly fussy eater, and yes, I admit that whilst I have come a very long way from the days of chicken nuggets and chips, there are a lot of things that I still won’t even entertain trying. Something that has always been a struggle for me is food textures, and I know a lot of people can relate to this. My parents did once slightly traumatise me by forcing me to sit at the table until I’d finished a plate of stewed potatoes. I would sit for what felt like hours, sobbing whilst my sister sat smugly on the sofa eating chocolate biscuits, gagging whilst forcing down the soggy grainy potatoes, smothered in tomato ketchup because my mum thought that would make it all okay. It did not. My husband finds me infuriating because I can enjoy a food for weeks, but it only takes one time when the texture feels off, and I will never eat it again. Chicken wraps, I’m looking at you!
Ironically living in Cornwall we have an abundance of seafood and fish, and this is one of the biggest things I do not like. I have tried so many times to force myself to like prawns, and I’ve just had to admit that they aren’t for me! But luckily we have so many more options living where we do. There are new and exciting restaurants, bakeries takeaways appearing all the time, and nothing brings me more joy than finding that hidden gem, and then sharing that excitement with my friends, family and colleagues. So really that’s why I wanted to create A Table by the Tide, not because I want to be a famous food reviewer or be invited to secret food openings (however I am definitely not opposed to that, so if you fancy asking me to come along email me 😉 ), but because I wanted a space to talk about the incredible food that I have tried in Cornwall and beyond.
So now I need to stop worrying about what people might think of what I write, and give up the idea that everything must be perfect before I share this, because otherwise I won’t be able to share any of my culinary adventures with anyone who just loves food like me 🙂
So without further ado, thank you for reading and welcome to my blog, A Table by the Tide.
A Table by the Tide 