This month we visited The Quarterdeck restaurant at The Nare Hotel overlooking Carne Bay, Veryan for a fine dining treat. Not quite as contemporary as some of its local competitors, both the hotel and The Quarterdeck offer a more classic take on luxury which perfectly suits its many loyal and high profile customers.

We arrived just in time to join warm and welcoming owner Toby Ashworth at his monthly residents champagne reception before being ushered swiftly and professionally to our table. Starters featured fine flavour combinations as well as some more traditional favourites such as Wild Mushroom Ravioli and Chicken Liver Foie Gras Parfait. My husband gave rave reviews of his roasted wood pigeon with pickled mushroom, spelt salad, beet root and watercress emulsion, describing it as perfectly cooked and deliciously tender. My choice of Cornish scallops with parsnip purée, black pudding, quince and caramelis

ed sherry was an absolute triumph and possibly one of the most melt in the mouth dishes I’ve ever had the pleasure to enjoy.

For my main course I went with a recommendation of loin of venison which I was told had received excellent feedback from other diners. I have to say that whilst this course was tasty and beautifully presented, I found the meat to be a little tougher than I’d hoped and overall a bit heavy with girolles and a big serving of potato gnocchi. The butternut squash purée was the ideal compliment but I would have preferred a little more of it to offset the very generous portion of venison. That said, it was enjoyable nonetheless. My husband was delighted with his choice of Turbot featuring oxtail hash,purple sprouting broccoli and horseradish cream and found the blend of flavours very complimentary.

Desserts erred on the side of predictable including dark chocolate mousse, apple tartin and cheese and biscuits. I chose the citrus panacotta which again was flawlessly presented and tasted delicious. My husband’s cheese and biscuits were generous and full of flavour but the chutney was not so popular.

Theres no doubting that that the team at The Quarterdeck are talented and work to impeccably high standards and the service was attentive and professional. Those are just some of the reasons the hotel and restaurant attract a lot of regular customers each year. However, with so many creative and talented young chefs, restaurateurs and hoteliers emerging on the Roseland, The Quarterdeck will need to ensure that classic and traditional doesn’t prevent them from moving with the times.

A new spring/summer menu is available now. Prices at The Quarterdeck start from around £15 for a main course. For more information or to make a booking call 01872 501 111 or log on to www.thenarehotel.co.uk for more information.