Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
The coast path between Polperro and Looe is particularly scenic, especially around the
sandy cove of
Talland Bay
- although recent landslips have made some sections inaccess-
ible, so ask for updates before setting out.
Eating & Drinking
PUB
££
Three Pilchards
( 01503-272233;
www.threepilchardspolperro.co.uk
; Quay Rd; mains £8-12)
The pick of the Polperro
pubs, a classic with whitewashed shutters and an atmospheric old bar. Sharp's and St Aus-
tell ales, plus pub grub on the blackboard.
Couch's Great House
( 01503-272554;
www.couchspolperro.com
; 3-/4-course menu £28/32)
Surprisingly swish bistro in a
low-slung cottage near the harbour, overseen by chef Richard McGeown, whose previous
gigs included working for Gordon Ramsay, Marco Pierre White and Raymond Blanc. This
is old-school fine dining - amuses-gueles, meat in wine reductions, truffled poached eggs
- so it's not a place to turn up to in shorts and a T-shirt.
BISTRO
£££
Getting There & Away
Bus 572 runs hourly Monday to Saturday to Plymouth, with stops in Looe, St Germans
and Saltash. The 573 runs a couple of times an hour to Liskeard via Looe.
TOP OF CHAPTER
Looe
Nestled in the crook of a steep-sided valley, the twin towns of East and West Looe stand
on either side of a broad river estuary, connected by a multi-arched Victorian bridge built
in 1853. There's been a settlement here since the days of the Domesday Book, and the
town thrived as a medieval port before reinventing itself as a holiday resort for well-to-do
Victorians: famously, the town installed one of the county's first 'bathing machines' be-
side
Banjo Pier
(named for its circular shape) in around 1800, and it's been a popular beach
retreat ever since.
A couple of centuries on, the town beaches of
East Looe
,
Second Beach
and
Millendreath
are
still bound to be crammed on hot summer days; things are usually quieter across the river
