Adam Handling’s Newquay Christmas: Krug, caviar and marshmallows

Lobster macaroni on Christmas Day. Marshmallows toasting over an open fire in a pub garden. A glass of Krug while the waves crash below the window at Fistral.

Chef Adam Handling MBE has set out his festive plans for Newquay, where the Adam Handling Collection runs two venues: the Michelin-starred Ugly Butterfly on the Headland at Fistral Beach, and The Tartan Fox, a luxury British pub in the Cornish countryside.

Between them they cover festive afternoon tea, fireside feasts with live music, Christmas Day lunches and two quite different ways to see in 2027.

Ugly Butterfly at Fistral

Ugly Butterfly sits on the cliffs above Fistral, and the restaurant describes itself as all about romance, theatre and the best of the South West larder.

Diners can pick their own dishes from the 4×4 menu, book the festive afternoon tea, or go for the signature tasting menu.

For Christmas parties, the restaurant and bar can seat up to 60 guests for a sit-down meal, or hold up to 150 standing. Private hire enquiries are taken seven days a week.

Festive afternoon tea

The festive afternoon tea is served in four courses. It starts with the Collection’s Snacks, then moves on to the likes of ‘Roast turkey & cranberry’ sandwiches, a ‘Hog’s pudding sausage roll’ and ‘Roast apple & blackberry crumble’.

Then come Cornish scones with Rodda’s clotted cream and Kea Plum jam from the fields of Tregothnan, which the restaurant describes as the birthplace of British tea.

It runs from Tuesday 1 December to Saturday 2 January and costs £55 per person, or £65 with bubbles.

Christmas Day and New Year’s Eve at Ugly Butterfly

The sample Christmas Day menu leans on local surroundings, with dishes such as ‘Venison tartare, elderberries, caviar’, ‘Lobster macaroni, BBQ lobster sauce’ and ‘Pigeon, caramelised cream, roasted red pepper’.

Classic Christmas desserts get the same treatment. One example is a ‘Warm chocolate & Christmas pudding tart, Brandy cream’.

Adam’s Champagne of choice, Krug, will be offered at a special reduced price on the day.

On New Year’s Eve the menu turns to British produce with Cornish influences and plenty from the sea, including ‘Oyster, seaweed, verbena’ and ‘Bluefin tuna, elderflower vinegar, lightly roasted green chilli’.

After that comes ‘Venison, girolles, sweet & sour tomato’, and the night finishes with a course simply called ‘Final sweets’.

The Tartan Fox in the countryside

Out in the Cornish countryside, The Tartan Fox at Carvynick Farm is pitching itself as a warm retreat for families and groups of friends, with roaring fireplaces and mulled wine.

Guests can sit out in the pub’s winter garden and toast marshmallows on the open fire, or stay inside by the hearth.

The December menu, served in the run-up to Christmas, includes ‘Beef and ale suet pudding, pickled red cabbage, champ’ and ‘Venison, celeriac, pickled blackberries’. For dessert there is a ‘Warm mince pie tart, clotted cream’ or a ‘Mulled Tartan Fox trifle’.

Fireside feasts in the tipi

The pub’s garden tipi, lit with fairy lights, candles and a fire, will host festive feasts with live music on Friday 4, Friday 11 and Friday 18 December, from 7pm.

Each one includes sharing sides, mains and sweets, and tickets are £55 per person through the Tartan Fox fireside feasts booking page.

If those sell out, the barn, tipi and private dining spaces can be hired seven days a week, with standing bowl food for up to 100 guests or sit-down dinners for up to 65.

Christmas Day and New Year’s Eve at The Tartan Fox

Christmas Day at the pub opens with snacks and starters, including ‘125g Ahrelia caviar, hash browns, crème fraîche’.

Mains include ‘Hot-smoked stuffed turkey, cranberry’ and ‘Roast dry-aged rib of beef’, both with all the trimmings. After dessert there is a ‘Free-flowing cheese and Port station’.

New Year’s Eve brings live music and a five-course feast for £75. The sample menu lists winter specials such as ‘Chicken liver parfait, truffle, pear, hazelnuts’, ‘Hot-smoked curried cauliflower, almond, coriander’ and ‘BBQ cheesecake, spiced apple, rum’.

Opening times over Christmas

Ugly Butterfly

The Headland, Fistral Beach, Headland Road, Newquay, TR7 1EW

From 1 to 21 December, the restaurant is open Wednesday to Saturday, 12pm to 2pm and 5pm to 10pm. Afternoon tea runs Wednesday to Saturday, 12pm to 4pm.

From 22 December to 2 January, the restaurant is open Tuesday to Saturday, 12pm to 2pm and 5pm to 10pm, with afternoon tea Tuesday to Saturday, 12pm to 4pm.

The Tartan Fox

Carvynick Farm, A3058, Newquay, TR8 5AF

From 3 to 21 December, the pub is open Thursday to Saturday, 12pm to 2.30pm and 5pm to 10pm, and Sunday 12pm to 7pm.

From 22 December to 3 January, it is open Monday to Saturday, 12pm to 2.30pm and 5pm to 10pm, and Sunday 12pm to 7pm.

The Collection’s full festive programme and its festive gifts are on the Adam Handling website.

Ugly Butterfly is then closed from 3 to 18 January 2027.