Travels

 We hadn't had a holiday for a couple of years but the gift of having two places we call home means we don't miss it as much as we might otherwise do.

We're keen on holidaying by public transport - travelling light but knowing there are decent facilities at the other end.  As a result we decided on Falmouth.

We had some knowledge of town from previous visits but we couldn't say we were familiar with it in any detail.

On our last visit we discovered two pubs:  Beerwolf Books and The 'front.  The former trendy and different, the latter a proper pub.  Both were due a revisit.

Our journey down was a little disrupted, but not so badly that we were seriously inconvenienced.  It's such a lovely journey from Bristol with only one change - in Truro - that it's a very stress-free affair...even when the train was 16 minutes late into Truro...and our change-over period was 15 minutes (sigh). Still, the trains to Falmouth were every half an hour and the weather was dry - if a little chilly.

From the train station, the place we were staying was a good half hour walk through the "front" area and up quite a hill.  So we went straight to the apartment, unloaded, took a good look at the lovely river view and headed to the nearest pub - The Boathouse. It was nice but clearly more food-focussed so tables in the main area were booked out.  We realised we wouldn't be able to eat there so we had a pint (Treens - very nice) and decided to find Beerwolf.

It was as fabulous as we remembered it.  Lively with all sorts of people - lots of students and lots of seating options.  We nabbed a nice table and grabbed a couple of beers - 4 or 5 cask offers and about 6 keg ones. We were on holiday.

When we came to leave, we weren't quite sure where to go and find food but we'd seen a tiny indian restaurant in the same yard as Beerwolf so we thought we'd just ask...

...they fitted us in.  What an absolute delight! Interesting food, decent wine and not stupidly expensive.  The couple that owned it were lovely and the young members of staff friendly and seemed genuinely to enjoy their jobs.

I've never been anywhere quite like it and would happily spend way more time there.  Actually - we went again on Thursday -  this time booking to make sure of a table.  The short menu had completely changed (except the dhal and cumin rice, thankfully).  The staff also seemed to remember us.

We went back to the flat full and happy.

Sunday the weather was really grotty so we hunkered down inside but at lunchtime we braved the rain to grab a pasty, take a walk down the high street (busy, despite the weather) and then went to the 'front where bringing your own food in is positively encouraged. It's a lively place - right on the quayside and typically has about 6 cask beers and 2 keg ones.  It's certainly basic, but enjoyed by a wide range of people. We played cards (Regicide) and enjoyed a few beers before deciding that we weren't sufficiently hungry to seek a restaurant so we went back via a shop with some wine, soup, pate and bread.  It did the job.

I guess the other highlights of the week were The Moth and Moon which was lovely - if a little chilly.  Again with great staff and excellent beer, and the Verdant Seafood bar.  I'd been really keen to go there but had expected somewhere...well, bigger! It was in a tiny lane and was two small rooms.  No prebooking so you really take your chances.  We stuck our head in and asked if there was room for us, we were greeted enthusiastically and quickly settled in the back room.  Obviously the beer is tremendous (and available in 2/3rds measures) but the menu was a real revelation.  It's all small plates and lots of things I might not usually order but was amazing. 

We ate at another indian (/Nepalese) restaurant, ate more pasties, fish and chips and a little independent seafood restaurant and I have to say we didn't even come close to exhausting the available food options (butcher, fishmonger, and a huge range of restuarants).  One day we took the ferry to St Mawes, did a walk and ended up at the St Mawes hotel (I'd stayed there about 20 years ago) and they had good cask beer on.

We even went to a lovely cafe-bar on our way back to the station for the journey home for a brunch and noticed they had local real ale on (the same one we'd had at St Mawes) - whilst we drank coffee...

On the journey home we mused that we might have expected to have to drink St Austell and Sharps beers but that we had drunk Treens, Penzance, Tintagel, Forebird, St Ives, Verdant and beers from a little further afield and hadn't set foot in any of the tied pubs - not that they would have been bad, but they'd never be a first choice.

In a town of less than 22,000 residents (clearly boosted by second-homers, holidaymakers and students) the range and quality of places to drink and eat is absolutely astonishing - especially given the apparent demographics of the locals.

All the places we went, most of the punters were drinking beer.  Pubs always had a mix of working locals (builders, fishermen, bar staff, etc - footwear = functional walking boots); posh locals (check out the Musto outerwear, Timberland boots or deck shoes), visitors (like us) and families (some posh, some hippy). 

I got the feeling I could live there and enjoy the place in a completely different way - so much so I wondered how they're doing for digital inclusion...