Fern

One of Cornwall’s most exciting new dining spots, Fern, opened in the village of Nanstallon near Bodmin at the end of 2025. Serving smart and contemporary food in rural surroundings, it has quickly become a fêted find in an area where standout restaurants are thin on the ground.

The restaurant is situated in a beautiful barn conversion at Pendewey Farm. Lush fields provide verdant views through floor-to-ceiling windows – including of the Pullman carriages of the Bodmin Railway steam train, which rattles through the grounds at regular intervals.

Fern’s smart cooking comes courtesy of executive chef Paul Welburn, who crafts modern, polished dishes on a small-plates menu built around hyper-seasonal Cornish produce. Paul achieved a Michelin star at The Oxford Kitchen in 2018, and, while the finesse of Michelin-starred cooking is in evidence at Fern, he’s shaped the menu to embody the restaurant’s rooted-in-nature vibe.

Fern’s sharing plate set-up makes it a special location for a long and lingering lunch or dinner with friends. Clash forks as you dig into the likes of melting venison lifted by quince and cauliflower. Or try the knockout dish of fresh Cornish cod, baked and brushed with garlic and herb butter, sat on a bed of octopus bolognese and finished with burnt lemon espuma, dulse, pickled lemons and seaweed powder.

Vegetables are given equal billing, and winter roots like celeriac and swede are reimagined into star turns, while what might be the world’s fanciest kebab playfully reinvents the post-pub classic. Lamb neck cooked for 24 hours with mint and garlic, served on barbecue-grilled flatbread and finished with house sriracha yoghurt, black garlic emulsion, stout-pickled onions and salted red cabbage dusted with devilled spice, is both familiar and elevated in equal measure.

Trencherman’s tip

Whatever takes your fancy on the mains line-up, don’t miss opening the dining experience by dipping into the selection of snacks. A cheesy take on custard creams with blueberry ketchup, and crisp squares of pulled pork and ham hock with burnt-leek emulsion, are exquisite. They make the perfect pairing for the restaurant’s creative cocktails and are best scoffed from a spot on the restaurant’s terrace as dusk descends.