When I visited Ugly Butterfly for afternoon tea in 2025, it’s safe to say I was blown away. It remains the best afternoon tea I’ve ever had, from the ‘snacks’ with their own personal stories right through from savoury to scones and the most beautiful patisserie. Not to mention stunning views over its then home at Carbis Bay to great cocktails and special little additions like caviar and champagne. (Because if you’re going to go all out, my motto is to really go all out!)
Fast forward a year or so and I’m on my way back to Ugly Butterfly – this time in its new location at the Headland Hotel in Newquay, dubbed Ugly Butterfly 2.0. Initial news of the move might have brought a few questions as to whether it would be the same as in its previous home, but it’s safe to say those have well and truly been quelled after rave reviews, and the decision by Michelin to award it a star in early 2026. Michelin stars aren’t everything, of course, but they’re a pretty good benchmark when it comes to a certain standard of food, and it’s kind of nice that that accolade now gets to be in Newquay, somewhere that’s so often looked down on compared to some other parts of Cornwall.
First Impressions: Dining by the Cornish Coast
One of the delights of Ugly Butterfly was always the never-ending vista out of the window. That reminder that you’re in Cornwall, dining literally a few steps from the beach. And thanks to the Headland Hotel’s incredible vantage point over Fistral Beach, you’ve still got that. The interior compliments it – it’s simple but pretty, with the windows ensuring the room is bathed in light on a sunny day and undoubtedly a perfect place to watch the sun go down in the evening.
It feels relaxed, from the table settings to the warm welcome you get when you walk in, and fits well with what seems to be a generally chilled out atmosphere at the Headland. Yet this relaxed approach comes with the little touches that remind you this is a special experience, from a little stool for your handbag to the slick service that’s not just friendly, but comes with faultless explanations, endless knowledge and an attention to detail that almost preempts requests before you’ve managed to find the words for them.
The Menu: What to Expect
Sustainability runs right through everything at Ugly Butterfly – including its name, which is about the suggestion that there is no such thing as an ugly butterfly, in the same way as there is no such thing as waste.
That theme is at the heart of the way the dishes are created, as is Adam Handling’s pride when it comes to British produce, distilled here into a focus on ingredients from the South West coast.
These days, you’ve got the choice between an 11-course tasting menu that will cost £175 a head, or a shorter four-course restaurant menu at £120 per person. On this menu, you can choose between several options from each course, with the option to add two different supplements. The menus change regularly, in line with the focus on local, seasonal produce, and there’s a story behind each supplier when you’re being served, reminding you that this is Cornwall through and through.
What I Ate: Highlights From the Tasting Menu
We opt for the four-course menu because, let’s face it, in a place like this it’s never just four courses is it. There are always snacks, little treats from the kitchen, a bread course. So by the time you’ve finished you’re probably talking seven lovely courses anyway.
There’s also the option to order some oysters to start, which obviously we do. A mixture of raw and crispy, with the lightest tempura batter guaranteed to convert anyone who claims not to enjoy oysters. From there, we’re on to the snacks, setting the tone instantly for Ugly Butterfly as a place that uses everything in all sorts of ways. Like the chicken wing tea – essentially roast chicken in a cup – packed with flavour, finished with chicken fat and flavours of stuffing at the table, bringing a combination of comfort and clever right there. Alongside it is a delicate profiterole-sized, cheese-filled doughnut topped with truffle sourced from UB’s truffle man Zac and his trusty labradors Freddie and Stanley. Because the devil is in the detail here, as much in terms of provenance as presentation.
The final snack is the prettiest beetroot tart with ricotta, adding a light, summery freshness to clear your palate ready for the next course.
Starters at Ugly Butterfly
Keen to sample as much as we can, and completely un-averse to passing tastes around the table, we all order something different. For mum, a warm crab tart decorated like a piece of art, with vibrant marigold adding pops of colour, blobs of brown crab emulsion laced with a bit of kimchi adding a rich kick, and the crispy case bringing a texture contrast to the sweet yielding crab meat.
It’s gorgeous as it is but since we’re going all out she adds the optional caviar – Adam Handling’s latest venture apparently and a lovely luxurious addition. There’s a choice of two and we’re led through the difference, which is an education in and of itself.
Unable to resist beef tartare whenever he spots it on a menu, Jamie has to order it. He gets the bonus of the fact its piled into a piece of fried milk bread, more reminiscent of a casual cafe than a Michelin-starred restaurant, but the perfect receptacle, especially with the golden yolk from one of their very own hens whose home is nearby at the Tartan Fox) on top. It’s simple but predictably delightful and rich, without being too unwieldy on the palate.
Unusually for me, my choice is a vegetarian option, but it’s a Handling signature dish. Created last-minute for his mother when she apparently decided just before an event that she was a vegetarian – hence the name ‘Mother’ – it’s salt-baked celeriac filled with truffled cream cheese, date and egg yolk, then topped with fresh apple for freshness and shaved egg yolk.
It’s somehow meaty, despite being vegetarian, and has an earthy, umami quality that’s worryingly moreish. I’ve seen it described somewhere as an array of flavours that combine to create a dish that is far more than the sum of its parts and I quite frankly can’t think of a better way to describe it.
Next up is the bread course. Still-warm rolls served with cultured butter with its wonderfully slightly lactic notes, and the renowned chicken skin butter that I feel I could potentially exist on if I had to. Followed by the ‘Middle’ courses, that are yet another bridge between starters and mains. Because this certainly feels more like a tasting menu than a set menu thanks to the many additions that keep appearing.
Hot-smoked Cornish lobster would be a delight at any time, but when it’s been doused in beef fat while its cooking, adding a savoury, meaty indulgence to the sweet lobster meat, it’s heavenly. So much so that Jamie declares he won’t be eating lobster any other way ever again.
My scallop is a work of art – one of those dishes you can’t help but gaze at thanks to the sheer artistry in assembling it. Seared to perfection to give that sweetness on the outside, it’s lifted with the freshness of a lemon ‘condiment’ that almost tastes like it’s verging on lemon curd, yet somehow doesn’t detract from the scallop itself. As with many of the dishes we enjoy at Ugly Butterfly, the elements on the plate are brought together with a silky sauce that you kind of want to scoop up with a spoon even when the scallop’s long gone.
A venison ravioli is another picture-perfect dish, delicately stacked with ricotta adding creaminess and a peppercorn sauce not only adding an artistic element, but another dimension of flavour to the plate. It’s topped with fresh radish from the garden at the Tartan Fox – always a handy reminder that there’s another Adam Handling venue nearby to add to the list for when you get withdrawals.
Mains at Ugly Butterfly
When starters and middle dishes are this good, there’s always a concern that the mains might not be able to continue a rapidly rising trajectory of happiness at a meal like this. Not so here. Nor are they disappointing in terms of portion size or heartiness. Beef fillet is a fantastically chunky hunk of meat, served with another one of those now addictive Ugly Butterfly sauces and mushroom ketchup – which we learn from restaurant manager Stephanie (an utter legend with neverending patience from my endless questions, photos and videos, plus a cracking sense of humour) was actually the traditional way of making it before tomatoes were readily available.
It doesn’t stop there. There’s a bowl of clotted cream mash that is as indulgent as it comes, yet balanced by another side of chicory salad dressed with a piquant truffle vinaigrette.
I briefly have FOMO, then realise my duck dish is an easy rival. A pink fillet, cooked perfectly with the fat rendered through it and that gloriously crispy skin. A pumpkin puree that’s sweet and robust enough to stand up to the richness of the duck. Pickled crosnes – ornamental-looking root vegetables a bit like a cross between radish and artichoke, with a bit of crunch and a slight nuttiness. Then the duck sandwich – a textbook Handling bit of fun that also happens to get you right in the feels when it comes to flavour and indulgence. By this point my notes are sparse, but I’ve written: ‘STUNNING’ in capitals, so that pretty much says it all.
A red mullet dish is the delicate one of the gang, served with a saffron and squid stew that my mum assures me is an equal lead role on the plate alongside the fish – sweet, fresh and airy and the perfect dish to enjoy with crashing waves galloping towards Fistral Beach as the backdrop.
Desserts at Ugly Butterfly
There’s the option to add cheese, but we know we’re flagging, so it’s a Cornish apple tart to share. Its arrival is two fingers up to anyone who might suggest that you’ll leave a meal like this hungry – and we look on with delight as it’s portioned up from the pan onto our plates, then showered in a rich, sweet caramel sauce before a scoop of clotted cream is perched on top, soon melting into the fruity, caramel-covered delight below.
It’s simple, but brilliant. Which is basically the running theme of the day. No, we don’t finish it all, but a takeaway box is rustled up with zero fuss or judgement, along with the advice that this will easily taste just as good later on, and should be enjoyed there in the same way we’ve feasted on it here – with unmitigated delight and general joy.
Since Adam Handling also happens to have his own exquisite chocolate range, we’re offered one of these with coffee as the final full stop of a fabulous meal. Not only a great final sweet moment, but brilliant advertising that would probably have seen us try to buy a box – if I hadn’t already ordered one ahead of time when I booked the table, because why wouldn’t you.
Service & Overall Experience
We leave on a high – from sugar, good wine, great food and the delight that comes with a wonderful dining experience where not a single foot has been put wrong.
From the minute we walked into Ugly Butterfly to when we left, there wasn’t a single mistake, low point, or moment that was off the mark. The pace of the meal, the knowledge of the staff, the careful balance of a fine dining experience that has earned a Michelin star with the relaxed atmosphere that reflects its home in Cornwall, where things move that little bit slower, time is taken to enjoy where you are, and the view sustains you as much as the food.
Is Ugly Butterfly Worth the Price?
Yes, it absolutely is. Any food of this quality, with this imagination and execution, is always going to command a certain price tag – especially given the cost of ingredients these days and rising prices that come with running a restaurant.
But it’s also worth remembering that while this is billed as a four-course meal for £120 per person, it’s actually more like six or seven by the time you add the many little extras. From the optional extras to the little treats that appear from the kitchen. I’d certainly defy anyone to claim they left here hungry after this.
Yes, it’s probably one for a special occasion for most of us mere mortals, but it certainly does add the ‘special’ to that occasion, and a memorable meal you’ll be talking about for a long time to come.
Final Verdict: Would I Go Back?
When it comes to fine dining experiences, this is up there with one of my favourite. A special, memorable meal yet an experience that was equally relaxing and easy to settle into – exactly as it should be these days. To me, Ugly Butterfly feels like a real love letter to Cornwall – embracing not only the ingredients around it, but that ‘something’ that makes Cornwall so very special. Maybe that’s just me being biased, but if you’re nearby and looking for a pretty flawless dining experience, I guarantee you won’t be disappointed.
