Sunset on Porthmeor

We arrived on Porthmeor Beach during glorious golden hour, and ascended the steps to the restaurant with the best view of the surfing beach imaginable. The coast stretched along for miles with the waves crashing against the golden sands.

We were dining at Porthmeor Cafe, a tapas restaurant that had been recommended to us. The menu looked amazing so I booked us a table. If you're heading to St Ives in the summer then I would definitely recommend booking everywhere as places fill up fast! While we were eating there was a queue of hungry people waiting to see if they could snag a space. The restaurant is super cool, clean and modern, with buckets for your cutlery and spades for your reserved sign.

The beauty of the view was faultless.

We eyed up the menu and eventually ordered way too much as Ollie had to try a bit of everything. Unfortunately the scallops were out of stock which was a shame as that was the one I picked!! But I wasn't surprised considering how busy they were.

First up was a mushroom and spinach arancini with pesto aioli. This was Ollie's favourite of the lot; crispy and delicious.

Alongside came the halloumi with crushed beetroot, orange dressing, mustard cress and cumin seeds. I was actually surprised how much I loved this one. All the flavours balanced perfectly to create an amazing dish!

Then came my choice of salmon with mango, tomato and chilli and nigella seeds. I wasn't a huge fan of the mango (but I'm really picky when it comes to sweet and savoury combos) but it was perfectly cooked and absolutely gorgeous.

The real winner had to be the mountain of crispy fried salt and pepper squid served with a gorgeously garlicy aioli dip. It was perfect. I could literally have eaten this for days as it was perfect!

Then up came desserts. Yes, we had tapas desserts!

I literally could not resist the sound of the churros with chocolate sauce and they did not disappoint. They came up freshly fried and covered in cinnamon sugar. They were incredible and perhaps some of the best I've ever tasted. Unfortunately I could not manage all three! They're deceptively filling those little churros!

Ollie went for the kiwi and watermelon salad with palm sugar and mint syrup and passion fruit. It's not my cup of tea (I swear against ordering a fruit salad in a restaurant) but Ollie really loved it!

The third (yes, third, don't judge) was definitely my favourite of the bunch. The grilled banana with gorgeously thick salted caramel and a ball of clotted cream. Do not underestimate the simplicity of this one. Ollie and I were fighting over the last bit!

As we left, our bellies full and fully satisfied, golden hour had just finished and the sun was creeping behind the cliffs. So I took the opportunity to make the most of the quietening beach and shoot some photos.