What is it about Padstow and restaurant empires? The Cornish fishing village was put on the culinary map by a certain Rick Stein, who seems to own half its restaurants, but, more recently, there’s been a new kid in town (who appears to own the other half).
Said chef is Paul Ainsworth, who has a chic boutique hotel and a casual pizza restaurant in Padstow (and has also taken on a pub nearby), but who is best known for the eponymous fine dining restaurant he runs with his wife, Emma. The Michelin-starred restaurant, located in a Georgian townhouse, has built a reputation for its fun approach to fine dining, serving modern British food with a focus on Cornish produce.
Ainsworth is a playful character and someone who is keen to bring something new to the table, as it were. His 'land & river' dish of Crapaudine beetroot, with smoked eel, green apple, and caviar is one of the first to pass people's lips, and it sets the tone perfectly for the quality and precision that follows.
A former protege of Gordon Ramsay, Ainsworth has learnt lessons that he still applies to this day. As No 6 approaches its 20th birthday his dedication and ambition burn as brightly as ever. "We never stop, we never stand still, we continually strive for excellence," the chef recently wrote about his restaurant. "We didn't come this far to only come this far."
