"Opened on April 4 this year by Joe Wardell (ex-Raymond Blanc) and Kerry Donnelly, 2 Fore Street has already caused a bit of a stir. On a recent visit to a friend who lives in Mousehole, I decided to sample the atmosphere and food for myself.
Upon arrival, the décor promotes a feeling of spaciousness; the neutral colours and whitewashed wood complement the clean, fresh flavours and unfussy approach taken towards the food. Although not a large restaurant, there is a secluded garden at the rear ideal for use on those increasingly rare sunny days, while the large windows and carefully decorated interior prevent any sense of clutter.
The menu was of an ideal length, as it provided us with an exciting range of options tempered with a commitment to fresh, local produce. We decided that we would take it easy to begin, as we were both keen to sample the desserts. We therefore opted for a side-order of home-made bread (baked fresh every morning) with olives, which we requested as a starter.
For my main course, I chose the mixed seafood risotto, while my friend opted for the rib-eye steak with hand cut chips ad béarnaise sauce, accompanied by the house white. After a short wait, our food arrived; the seafood risotto making a real impact with its king prawns and an array of mussels in their shells. This was the highlight of my meal; I was later to discover from the chef that its secret is a base of his own home-made lobster stock. That, along with a flash of white wine, a generous helping of crab, parmesan and king prawns combined to make this one of the most delicious risottos I have ever tasted.
My friend enjoyed the flavour of her rib-eye steak, but wondered if it could have been a little more tender. is, however, is a case in point of the issues that can be encountered when opening a restaurant. Joe has recently addressed this by asking his local organic supplier to hang the meat for longer. On the other hand, the chips and béarnaise sauce were faultless.
Having savoured our mains we moved onto the dessert menu, which listed such delights as Eton Mess and locally sourced Momaid of Zennor ice cream. After much deliberation, I chose the vanilla crème brulée with rhubarb compote, while Joanna went for the chocolate and orange torte with clotted cream. While other puddings were served up around us, we began to question whether we were missing out on some other delicious creations; we weren't disappointed.
The chocolate and orange torte tasted like liquid chocolate and was perfectly complemented by a crunchy ginger fairing bas and blackcurrant sauce. Joe makes the Cornish ginger-nut fairings himself, crushing them to make the base. Demonstrating mastery of flavours, he uses honey in the torte to work with the accompanying flavours of orange and ginger. This was pudding so good that we resorted to a good-humoured fight over the last mouthful. The other pudding equalled the first as I savoured each creamy mouthful accompanied by rhubarb compote, which had a hint of a gingery fire.
Also on the dessert menu was a carefully chosen selection of pudding wines, and for those with a slightly less sweet-tooth, a selection of Cornish cheeses, characteristic of this restaurant which sources all of its food locally. Joe and Kerry have built up a rapport with members of the village who supply them with vegetables grown in their Mousehole allotments. Joe grows all his own herbs and, apart from the ice-cream, everything else is home-made. Despite this locality, however, they are continental and flexible as regards mealtimes, with no set times for food having been arranged.
This is typical of their approach, which, despite being laid-back, has an attention to detail and finesse which means that it is possible to dress up or down and is evident in the quality and taste of their food."

The above review was published in 'CORNWALL today' magazine, October 2007.