This is a traditional Brasserie menu that takes good ingredients and gives them a very simple but classic treatment. Menus that change through the seasons.
The day boats and trawlers of Newlyn tie up just two miles west of here. So you’d rightly expect our menu to have plenty of fish and seafood. It does. But we don’t underestimate the quality of Cornish beef and poultry, game from local estates and cheeses from some of Britain’s best dairies.
We have built the reputation of all of our kitchens on the maxim that the best things in life are kept simple. And it’s truer than anywhere here in Mousehole.
Feeding Times
We open for breakfast, lunch and supper every day of the week, all year except 25 & 26 December and for a week or so in mid January.
So we don’t faff around when you arrive, it’s always worth booking, even if you call a few minutes before you intend to arrive.
8:00am – 10:00am
(Now bookable online)
12:00pm – 2:30pm
(Until 3:00pm on Sundays)
6:00pm – 9:00pm
(From 5:30pm in summer)
Where to eat
At scrubbed pine or oak tables on the Upper Deck and in the bar, some perfect for groups of 10 or more. Nearly all with views to St. Clement’s Isle.
Or, best of all, and more frequently than you might think, eat on the Garden Terrace looking down at the sun-dappled sea.
The Crab Shack
[now open]
Our latest addition to the garden. A tool-shed become outside bar & kitchen, aka The Crab Shack. Open everyday through the warmer months (Met Office named storms permitting) with coffee & cake from mid-morning, and drinks & plates of delicious food until the sun goes down.
This is a more relaxed side to life at The Coastguard. Open for the season from Friday 4 April. No need to book.
Our kitchen team
Head Chef, Danny Garland, joined us in the role of Sous Chef in 2022. Now he’s in charge, of both the main kitchen and The Crab Shack, and brings to our menus a genuine passion for the foraged and the sustainable, having cut his teeth in the kitchens of Yotam Ottolenghi and Theo Randall.
Danny’s always on the lookout for exceptional individuals to work in his brigade, whether they bring a pile of experience or just a fabulous attitude and desire to learn. If you or anyone you know might be seeking a new challenge, click below to find and forward our Careers page.
Mousehole has a few good restaurants now, but I’d wager this is the best. And a bargain, too
Gemma Bowes, The Guardian
LUNCH
We run two menus at lunchtime. Our ‘normal’ menu is à la carte; smaller plates through to bigger sharing dishes. Go the whole hog or treat it as a grazing menu with a little of this and a little of that. And for coffer-watching value, we have our Lunch for Less. 2 courses for £25 or 3 for £30.
Supper
Intended to be a bit more showy than lunch, a menu guided by what our suppliers bring to our back door. Fish from day boats, greenery from small growers, and poultry, game and meat from around the West Country. And, as you’d expect from a head chef with a background at Ottolenghi, plenty for non-fish or meat eaters.
2 courses : 40.00 / 3 courses : 48.00
Large Groups
We don’t mind not having a Private Room at The Coastguard. This is a democratic place and one of its beauties is the sense of continuity throughout the downstairs rooms.
But we do have lots of larger tables for families, bigger families and groups. Please contact us if you’d like to bring a large party, online restaurant booking portals tend not to be set up to find space for bigger groups.
Children
Our own (now known as lived) experience is that The Old Coastguard is a place for parents to kick back while the children amuse themselves in the protected garden running down towards the sea.
We have short children’s menus for both very little ones and the slightly older ones who prefer to steer clear of the grown-up menu. Both come with a free glass of Polgoon apple juice to keep them away from the colas.
Allergies et al.
It is now second nature for us to look after guests who have dietary requirements. Just let us know in advance when you book (via the comments box) or by talking to our team when at the table.
We’ve always taken an open approach to those who don’t eat fish or meat with plenty of plant-based and vegetarian alternatives throughout our menu.
Service Charge
We add a 12.5% discretionary service charge to all our dining guests’ bills, which will always be removed or adjusted on request, at the table or in advance when you book.
Anything received as service charge or as cash left on the table goes into a pool that is shared among our teams. If you’d like to know more about this scheme, please email Edmund.
