RUIN BEACH CAFE, TRESCO

This time last week, I was sitting with friends and family, barefoot, at The Ruin Beach Café on Tresco - a tiny island which is part of the Isles of Scilly, off the end of Cornwall. Life was good, the sun shone, there was a light refreshing breeze and laughter filled the air. My gorgeous nephew and my cousin's baby were playing on the table and we'd just ordered enough food to keep us going for the journey home. We'd spent a magical week on Tresco and though sad to leave, we finished it with a wonderful meal. I've written about the food on Tresco before but want to write a couple of posts after this holiday about the two best places to eat there, starting with The Ruin. The Ruin is where the hotel on Tresco used to be. A few years ago the hotel was replaced by holiday cottages, each with stunning views out across the rocks, towards the lighthouse, and The Ruin is now one of 3 places to eat on the island - the others being the pub and the Flying Boat Club, and in my opinion, The Ruin is the best of the 3.

We made The Ruin our home for the day and friends and family gathered. Before we knew it, it was time for lunch. I'd already tried the scallop starter earlier in the week and it was heavenly - 3 plump scallops, wood roasted in their shell, each with a different flavoured butter to go with them, and bread for dipping. These weren't for me this time, as I wanted to try something different, but I did still make sure I got a taste (we all ordered different dishes and shared a taste of each with each other).

 



Lucy, my brother's wife, ordered the fritto misto for starter, and it came beautifully presented on a wooden board (which I normally disapprove of, but in this case it worked). The fish and seafood was soft and flavoursome and so good with the garlic mayo.

My starter was crispy pork belly, polenta and salsa verde, and again as stunning as it was delicious. Despite being breaded it tasted light, and the salsa, slightly salty from anchovies and capers, cut through the thin layers of fat of the belly.

The Ruin has a wood fired oven, where they cook excellent pizzas, which lots of the table ordered and loved - shredded beef with BBQ sauce; and mozzarella, cherry tomato and jalapenos amongst others. All really good, but I definitely picked the winner - local crab and chilli linguine, covered in chopped herbs. It was amazing. The sauce was light but plentiful and the pasta just soaked up all the delicious juice from it. If you go to Tresco, go to The Ruin and order this dish, please!

A few of the table ordered pudding as well - a lemon tart with pickled rhubarb that was sweet but yummy, with the thinnest pastry crust.

And a really dense and intense chocolate slice topped with local ice cream and oranges with syrup.

 
Tresco is a magical place, and one I'm lucky enough to know really well. The Ruin, though a few years old now, is an excellent addition to the island's food scene. Not only are all the dishes I've tried there top notch and made using the freshest local produce, they're all reasonably priced (£6-9 for starters and £10-20 for mains), and the staff are fun and friendly too. You could spend hours, if not days there, moving from having cocktails on the outside terrace next to the beach, to cosying up inside for food in the evenings - though can eat and drink wherever you want. The website for The Ruin is here, and for more general information on Tresco, have a look here. And just to tempt you a little bit more, this is the beach that The Ruin is on.....