In the first round, the entrants were tasked with designing a four course menu using Cornish seasonal ingredients.  According to the judges, the standard was very high, making the job more difficult than ever, but the six teams that stood out to secure their place in the final were: 

• Bustophers Bar Bistro, Truro
• The Ferryboat Inn, Helford Passage
• Harbourside Restaurant at the Greenbank, Falmouth
• The Rosevine, Portscatho
• Rosewarne Manor, Connor Downs, and
• Silks Bistro at The Atlantic Hotel, Newquay.

The Mill House at Trebarwith also deserve a mention as they just missed out on a place but have been given the first reserve place.  

Now, the six teams will be perfecting their chosen menus, which they will serve to tables of invited guests and the judges on the night of the final, to be held on 6th February at Cornwall College.    

View the video clip to see some of the action from the 2011 final:

The Cornish Challenge is a Cornwall Catering Excellence initiative, created by a group of Cornish businesses with links to the hospitality industry. Its aim is to encourage and reward good local restaurants and cafes who make the best of Cornwall’s fantastic produce. Of course, an essential element of every restaurant is its presentation and customer service and the Challenge tests this too.

Cornwall College is part of the Cornwall Catering Excellence group and plays a big part in the Challenge. Students of the college get the chance to learn from some of the best local restaurants and chefs by helping out and seeing the finalists in action on the night. Taking part in ‘real’ occasions such as this is valuable experience for them and is intended to show them that jobs in the restaurant trade can be really rewarding – and good fun too.

The partners of Cornwall Catering Excellence are -

Roddas, Abbotts, St Austell Brewery, Proper Cornish, Cornwall College, Doble Quality Foods, Chaffins Country Range Foodservice & Newquay Fruit Sales