Prawn on the Lawn in Cornwall, Isles of Scilly

What a sensational experience. A food taste explosion! What I love about this little gem, is that when you order these small plates, the skill is how the restaurant pairs each delightful dish so that the taste sensation evolves throughout the meal. Lovely food, a taste sensation, warm and welcoming staff and complete joy!

Rick Stein has serious competition from this establishment. My second visit to this great little eatery and I was not disappointed every dish I had was to the highest standards in quality and flavour. I just wish I had one closer to my neighbourhood!

Brilliant little spot in Padstow. Dog friendly too! Great small plates of fresh fish and seafood, good vibes and lovely staff. Highlight of our trip.

Love it here! Delicious fresh food. Cosy atmosphere. All round - brilliant!

Stumbled across this little gem and WOW it didn't disappoint! This little restaurant serves some of the best freshest seafood I have ever tasted. The guys here are really helpful with matching wine, fizz, and champagne to your choice of fish. If you come and visit Padstow give these guys a visit you won't be disappointed 🙌

I did minimal research for a day trip to Padstow during a week in Cornwall, but Prawn on the Lawn was No 1 on TripAdvisor on the day so we dropped in about an hour before lunch and booked our table for two. Lucky decision! Our seafood small plates were superb from start to finish, beginning with oysters and lovely sourdough bread and seaweed butter, followed by scallops in a Thai marinade, plus hake, fetta and pine nuts, plus sides of crispy crushed potatoes and tenderstem broccoli with almond salsa verde. Desserts were pitch-perfect too - lemon verbena mousse, sour cherry and burnt white chocolate, plus affogato - vanilla ice cream topped with espresso. Delicious manzanila sherry accompanied the oysters, a delightfully crisp, dry Muscadet (or two) for each of us with the dishes to follow. I loved the brocolli side-dish in its vivid salsa too. I'd had the same veg days earlier in a supposed 'gastropub' and it was so undercooked as to be virtually inedible. This was perfectly cooked, neither rubbery nor cooked to a mush. The timing is critical. I should add that the tall young man who was our principal waiter (sorry I didn't ask his name) was just spot-on. Affable, knowledgeable and so efficient, anticipating our every need (even curing the wobble in the table before I had a chance to ask) - an object lesson in how to do it. He did not miss a trick. As I said at the time - that was not so much a lunch as an experience. We live too far from Pastow (314 miles) to do this more often, but there's a sister restaurant in London which we'd love to try if we ever get the chance. This was a special treat for us, we are not so well off that we can often do lunch at £70 a head (including tip) but this was worth every penny.

Go on. Dare you. See if you can find a better place to relax over lunch in Padstow. In the heart of the town, big enough to have atmosphere. Small enough to be intimate. And the food. O. M. G. The food. I recommend seven portions of the crushed potatoes. Oh, and the tuna. As pictured here.

I love this place. If you like quality, tasty seafood, this is definitely worth a visit. The fish is always cooked perfectly, and the dishes are packed with flavour without overpowering the fish. I thought it was very reasonably priced for top-quality food. We ate here a few times while on holiday, if I was local I'd be eating here most weekends.

Incredible food, lots of small plate options with fresh seafood and all delicious. Service was great. Would recommend trying the cocktails. Best meal we had on holiday!

Our second visit and boy were we not disappointed!!!! Fabulous atmosphere, service and food. Thank you to all involved in the preparation and delivery of our food. We will definitely be back!

Having walked past this restaurant for many years on our annual pilgramige to Cornwall, we decided to book a table for lunch. What can I say, just sublime The whole experience was just perfect. Great venue, great staff and amazing food It will definitely be on our list as a, must visit, on future trips back.

Great service, lovely food and really great for gluten free options. Most of the menu is GF but anything that wasn’t - the team were very accommodating and helpful. Thank you :)

Seriously delicious meal here for our party of 8. The only thing that superseded the food was the service from a young lady named Chynna. Chynna was attentive and sure footed in her service and went above and beyond.

Fantastic, love the concept of this restaurant it’s all about the great food and a warm atmosphere. I dined alone and was made to feel incredibly welcomed and looked after. A return visit and I’ll be back again

This gem is AMAZING. Would be worth a detour. Incredible fish tapas

Wonderful food with friendly and helpful staff. The seafood orzetto was amazing.

Rarely do I leave a restaurant wanting to go back the next evening. The staff are super helpful, friendly and knowledgeable. And the food, if could give 10 stars I would. Was amazing, nothing I could fault, fresh, different and very tasty. They do tapas style, we had 5 dishes and that was enough for us two and it came to £104, which included 2 drinks each. Worth it!! Recommend a visit but you must book.. Enjoy

It is a relatively small venue, but has all the charm and character you would expect from a thriving business. The team are friendly, knowledgeable and welcoming and the food is excellent. Highly recommend booking to avoid disappointment. Will definitely revisit.

With so many eateries to choose from, it's refreshing to find such passion and quality and enthusiastic staff. Atmosphere is low key. Decor is reminiscent of the front of a fish shop. Menu is fresher than fresh and oferrings are slightly different if required though tradional plates are available and the service and enthusiasm is special. We had lunch. And didn't need dinner later. Not many tables and a constant flow of regulars and tourists so book to make sure if the weather is going to be nice. And the prices are fair. What more do we want?

We love POTL it never disappoints! Staff are Uber friendly and the food fresh and vibrant. This is my favourite go to when in padstow, hats off to Rob he’s a great customer focused employee, along with his team.

Had a great night in POTL was lucky enough to get a window table food was delicious and nice size portions monk fish was especially nice we went with our friends glen miller and Lisa who have been together for some time and recently got married unfortunately glen now wants to have a sex change although we are happy for him it was still a shock but lisa seems to have accepted it so we was all happy glen is going for his operation on Tuesday so being in Padstow away from our home town essex it was a good time for glen to get in touch with his feminine side we went into several dress shops and glen asked me to support him and not laugh if he was going to try a few dresses on which I agreed as he is a dear friend and I'd like to help him through his transition and I must say I was so surprised when I saw him in a lovely floral off the shoulder dress with a pair of wedges he looked so nice it really was a moment I felt so proud of him we both got quite tearful and gave each other a big hug from that moment it went shopping crazy and glen got some lovely dresses and some very pretty skirts i was surprised how nice his legs where ....thank you Padstow for a lovely weekend and letting a man become a woman with no prejudice and a very big thank you to all the staff in clothes shop's for being so understanding.

Just the best! Had the best meal ever on Saturday. My daughter and her partner have been before and recommend it. It was excellent!

Freshest fish, really cool ideas, lovely vibes!

Probably the finest quality food I’ve ever eaten (and I’ve had a few!) Superb service and food that is being expectations

Nice restaurants, all the food was nice and the fish OMG

Fabulous food and service. My first, and not my last visit. Every dish was stunning.

Utterly delicious, crispy potatoes, hake with feta and mint, anchovies, mackerel with ginger and soy, padrón peppers. Daughter and I agree the food is amongst best eaten anywhere in the world! Staff truly lovely.

I literally would travel every weekend to eat here!!! Rob and his team are phenomenal! From the local fresh oysters to the new in tuna to the margaritas!!! I could have eaten the whole menu!!! From the moment we stepped inside we had the best experience! It was a true taste sensation with the best people! Thank you Rob and team for a fabulous lunch! We WIll be back 💕👌

Every dish we had was fantastic. Great service and highly recommended.

Another amazing feast! Staff were brilliant and made the evening's experience really specially, the food was exceptional - favourites were skate, cod and feta, crab....but honestly everything was a taste explosion!! A must if you visit Padstow - you won't be disappointed!!! Also, we could bring our dog...a bonus and she loved it!! We will return.

It goes without saying the food here is just unreal - their menu is based on catch of the day. What pushes this eatery into the stratosphere is the service. Highly recommended A+++

Nice and relaxed atmosphere, tasty food

AMAZING - great recommendation and well worth eating early to get the last table for 2 on the day. Fab food that was well thought out and cooked. Great service and decent wine Go if you can - booking essential

Food was absolutely lovely. There was a diverse selection, perfectly cooked and well presented. The staff were friendly, helpful and knowledgeable about the food. We (2 adults, 2 kids) went at lunchtime and had a delightful feast. Booking very much recommended but highly worth it. Would definitely go back!

Not the best location, Fresh food , A bit difficult to understand the menu , overall pricey you can find better for value

Excellent service and the food was out of this world. Highly recommend POTL.

We went on a rainy Friday and there was a great buzz inside. We were at the high table looking into the kitchen and this is clearly a high prep kitchen and has to be clever with the space. The food was all delicious, fresh and packed full off flavour. Yes it is a tiny bit on the pricey side but worth it. The bombay potatoes were unreal and the oysters delicious. Great food, friendly relaxed service 👍

So great! Absolutely loved it here. Really fun atmosphere with an amazing team and incredible food. Loved the’Harlyn’ wine. Do not hesitate to book. Early booking advised.

The Prawn was really on a lawn on our last visit – a rain-lashed marquee on a farm, to be precise. The food then was lovely, but the most memorable dish was the spiced potatoes. Today, packed into the buzzing Padstow restaurant, it was good to see them on the menu. No disappointment in the cooking: potatoes, crisper than the crispest crisp, in a spiced coat with coriander and spring onions for freshness. With that, a fillet of Dover sole, creamy, beautifully cooked, a tomato salad and fried kale. A feast. Great service, too.

Absolutely amazing. 5*. Had been recommended by a friend and was not disappointed. The quality of the food and service was impeccable. We ordered a whole Turbot which was served with North African spices and was perfectly cooked. The sides ordered were also delicious and full of flavour. I would 100% recommend visiting, book in advance to avoid disappointment as it fills up quick. Well done team POTL.

excellent oysters, tapis, etc. unfortunately small tables

Wow wow wow. Don’t be fooled by the size of this place and moss out. Absolutely amazing food and service. Would def eat here again as there was so much flavour in all the dishes we had. The best and largest oysters we have had too. Make sure you book to secure your space as it fill very quickly. We had gurnard, scallops, squid oysters, crushed potatoes. Every dish was full of flavour and overall enough for 2 sharing. Thank you again for a lovely afternoon

Trying a bit too hard for what it is…

Excellent best restaurant in Padstow

A party of four, we ordered all 9 of the small plates and a side or two. We are fans of tapas so imagined this would suit our needs. Our expectations may have been raised after looking at previous reviews but we were left feeling a little disappointed overall. The service was excellent and the dishes served at a nice pace but the flavours of some plates were a bit lacking. Overall we didn’t feel it was good value.

Very good, Food was brilliant, quite interesting concept. Staff explained very well how it all worked.

A good friend had recommended two places for a meal in Padstow-Prawn on the Lawn and Prideaux Gardens. Our plan was to go to the latter since we have a big dog and we hadn't made reservations. However Prideaux Gardens was unexpectedly closed and so we decided to try our luck at Prawn on the Lawn. Fortunately we got a table even with our big dog :) The food is simply awesome - we had 4 platters to share (thanks to the advice of the young man serving us) and each platter was exquisite. The combinations are unique and I couldn't pick a favorite. Definitely worth a visit or two or more...

Just fantastic - every dish, the service and ambience. We were very grateful to get a table for an hour without having a booking!

Great fresh seafood on the 'taster menu'. Nice vibe and staff. A very popular restaurant albiet slightly on the pricy side

One of the best seafood restaurants I've ever been to. Very relaxed setting and attentive staff. However, you should like Asian influences, as the cuisine is full of them. Special recommendation: Rays, although the menu changes very regularly depending on what's on offer. Drinks menu small but nice - try the sherry (not just with the oysters)! If I had known it was that good, I would have visited their London branch long ago! Due to the small size of the store, the acoustics are naturally somewhat livelier and reservations are strongly recommended!

This might be our favourite restaurant anywhere. It’s certainly the best one in Padstow having tried them all. Our latest visit was as good as our previous 3. Particular main dish highlights this time were the seared tuna and the gurnard ceviche. The sides were as fantastic as always, don’t visit without having the potatoes but the baby gem, isle of white tomato’s and sourdough are must haves too. POTL has it all right, the location is small but cosy, the staff are all fantastic and the food is as good as you’ll get. When you consider cost v value it definitely stacks up too, it’s not cheap but it’s quality, particularly when you compare it to the nearby overrated fish restaurant. Make POTL the priority booking when visiting Padstow, you won’t be disappointed.

Excellent food, drinks and kind helpful service, will definitely be coming back!

Amazing food and friendly service. Our monkfish and potatoes were out of this world. And the basil panacotta for dessert blew our tiny minds. Look out Rick Stein!

Food were tasting just okay. Exciting menu, rarely seen ingredients such as courgette flower. However the seared tuna we had was favourless, only the side ingredient eg chili and soya sauce was tasting something. Great tapas style dining experience, but we ended up paying £120+ for 2. We found it very pricey given the tiny portion of food.(We are well noted that it’s gonna be tapas style)

Enjoyed a great seafood lunch, friendly and knowledgeable staff! Every dish was cooked to perfection, if only the restaurant was larger and more comfortable

A nice restaurant with a friendly and accommodating service. A bit on the loud and hectic side, talking about the menu or asking for additions was challenging through the noise. We (a group of three) felt that the food was a bit uneven in quality. We focused on the tapas-like dishes - tuna, mussels, and the fried red mullet were great, the scallops and the crab dishes were less liked by us.

Definitely 5 star for everything. It was a highlight on our long weekend Cornwall trip. Very attentive services and fabulous food. Exquisite !!

Best seafood restaurant in cornwall or even the whole UK! Oyster had sweet aftertaste and the deep fried one was very fun. Scallops were great as well(loved the sauce.) We also had grilled monkfish which had amazing texture. You can tell how fresh the fish was. It was on the expensive side for non-london restaurant but I would say it was worth every penny.

Great little restaurant. Anniversary celebration lunch was excellent. Staff were very friendly and gave excellent explanation of the dishes. Oysters and small plates of mackerel, Scallops, monk fish and crab filled courgette flower all beautifully cooked and presented

Delicious food and wonderful experience packed into a tiny square footage. They are magicians!

Absolutely amazing experience on a sunny Saturday lunch time. Everything was perfect. The vibe, food, atmosphere and service was top notch. Couldn’t fault it! 100% will be returning when I’m next in the area.

Outstanding food and so glad we decided on going here instead of anywhere else in Padstow. Lovely staff and a brilliant menu all expertly cooked. Seared tuna literally melted in the mouth! I love the Japanese influence on the menu and would love to return.

Amazing experience, if you’re in Padstow you have to visit here. We were lucky enough to secure the walk in table (which is sometimes available). The food, service, everything was exceptional. Looking forward to visiting their London restaurant soon

A little different if you go for the smaller plates, a bit like the tapas concept. All the plates we had were beautiful and packed with flavour. My daughter had the fish in tempora and absolutely loved them. Will absolutely be going back

We enjoyed a fantastic meal which proved to be a fresh and modern take on seafood. The raw wild prawns were exquisite.

Amazing little restaurant in Padstow. Our favourite food in the town by far. We ordered all of the small plates to share which were a good size for 4 people. There was also larger fish dishes available to share. The restaurant allows only 2 dogs at a time and the staff made us feel so welcome with the dog. Long story short, food was fantastic! Don’t miss it.

A really lovely night out! Great atmosphere and the staff make this restaurant very special! The oysters to start were fresh and delicious! We had several small tapas plates ( highlight the seared tuna and the scallops!) which were all unique and beautifully prepared , the wine suggestions were perfect! If you have room the after dinner cocktails ( espresso martini and after eight martini ) are an absolute must!! Thank you all!!!

Great night, fantastic food, wonderful staff,. Highly recommended. So many great dishes you won’t go wrong.

We have visited POTL in Padstow many times. It never disappoints..

Food is incredible, service is impeccable and they remembered my birthday that I’d mentioned at the start of the meal (that wasn’t for another 2 days) can’t wait to go back!

Wonderful food. Fresh seafood and delightful flavours. Have visited each time we come to padstow over the last 4 years and each time they surpass expectations.

This is truly fabulous food. A small venue, but a nice ambiance. It’s quite pricey, however if you have one expensive meal in Padstow, then would highly recommend you come here. The food was delicious

Great seafood tapas in the tiniest of restaurants but super chilled out, lovely people and good music. I would highly recommend compared to the usual Cornish offering!!!!

My son wanted some nice fishy bits and this place certainly delivered. It’s not the biggest of venues but the staff were amazingly friendly and attentive. It’s not the cheapest of eateries but it clearly goes for quality and taste and if fish is your thing this is the place for you!

We had a wonderful family meal here on Wednesday evening. Really loved the decor and vibe inside - staff were friendly and attentive, suggesting adaptations to the main menu for our 2 young children who loved it here. Exceptional value for money given the quality of the food on offer here - stand outs were the hake and the scallops. Would happily spread that seaweed butter on my toast every morning!! Lovely to be able to sample local ales from Padstow Brewing Company across the road. Really special evening, thank you!

I came to restaurant 5 years ago on my first trip to Cornwall. We had to come back again this time. We loved it and can’t fault anything. We ordered most of menu and everything was perfection on a plate. The service was on point, food was perfect. Atmosphere amazing one of the best restaurants we have ever been too.

Nice food, not cheap, super busy (maybe because of Easter)

Torn between 4 or 5 stars. Food crazy good, seriously well executed, beautiful flavours in every dish (tapas style we went for). Portions small but balanced. Wine mark up a bit high (£17 retail vs £49 in restaurant). Overall, we would definitely return. One of the best tasting seafood experiences to date.

A compact and bijou space, attentive service and some great food partnering using fresh produce. Wine prices are on the hefty side, so ordering by the glass is a relief.

BEAUTIFUL food. We had 5 of the small plates and each one was incredible. The staff were incredibly attentive, topping up wine and water glasses throughout the meal. All seafood is locally and ethically sourced. Will be returning when we are down in Padstow again!

This is my favourite restaurant ever Make sure padstow have a table before I even book our hotel The staff are amazing rob and china are amazing so passionate love seeing their faces every time we visit and they make us feel so welcome We live in Dorset and it defo needs a Prawn on the Lawn x

Booked here by default due to the closure of The Mussel Box, and so very glad we did. Tucked away in quiet Duke St, this has a casual ambience but there is nothing casual about the quality of the food. Delicious small plates from start to finish. Highlights have to be the: - Deep fried oysters, light as a cloud - Thai Scallops, rich in flavour and cooked to perfection - Red Gurnard Efficient, knowledgeable and friendly service, with a special mention for China. Highly recommended. Can’t wait to return.

I love this restaurant. Really welcoming and great food and wine. Can recommend the Picpoul de Pinet, if you like a good white wine. Tonight the seared tuna and crevettes in wild garlic were fantastic and the potatoes are always great. Never had a bad meal here

One of the best sea food restaurants in the uk, all staff make you feel welcome.

Fabulous food, & great service,

Really delicious food, extremely helpful and accommodating staff with our young baby. Highly recommend!

Beautiful fresh seafood! Highly recommend the oysters, the deep fried were my favourite. Very kind attentive service. The menu changes daily but we had oyster, scallops with porchini, cornish langoustines, gurnard cevice and bream. All were very good. Plus lots of interesting cocktails

Taken by Sister and Husband as a treat! delicious food and superb staff! First time to get in and really loved it …. Thank you ❤️❤️

A warm welcome and an excellent selection of delicious fish and shellfish. You'll want to go back.

Really good food and concept restaurant. Staff were helpful and made it a memorable experience

This cosy little dining spot is a diamond in all there is to negotiate in The Padstow food offer . Staff are positive welcoming and enthusiastic and looked after us attentively on a busy night . Food is freshly prepared and you can choose from a selection of nibbles small plates ( where you choose 2-3 per person ) or there are some mains . We started with a bottle of of delicious mucadet flinty dry mineral perfect for the seafood to follow . Anchovies in olive oil, gordal olives , and succulent freshly toasted sourdough served with whipped butter . Small plates all excellent but must mention Hake with Jerusalem artichoke and walnut butter and apple , this went perfectly with the little gem truffle oil and Parmesan little gem we had ordered as a side . Talking of sides the crispy spiced potatoes sounded innocent but were the most delicious thing we have tasted for some time , the cardomum spice mix and crisp bits wa wa woo . Seared tuna with chilli and dipping sauce Devine . Slipper Dover sole with nutty butter cooked to perfection. Scallops served in their shells with Thai butter on point . Mussels sweet succulent and super tasty broth . Coconut rice pudding with toasted pineapple and lime was a dreamy Thailand journey not to be missed . chocolate mousse with caramel popcorn was playful and delicious .

Really enjoyed the relaxed atmosphere and small plates. Service great. Food great. Wine list interesting. Small venue which is nice. Only slightest criticism of the food was the Thai sauce with the scallops overpowered the flavour of the scallops.

Super delicious cocktails at POTL. Every dish was absolutely fantastic. Highlight was the chilli margarita!

Was recommended POTL by a friend so had to try it, even if it wasn’t on our “list” before coming to Padstow. Needless to say we will be coming again. Great food Great service Lovely atmosphere Great wine selection

We were walk-ins on a Thursday evening and were greeted beautifully and found a table. We chose the small plates option and each one was different and delicious. The atmosphere was bubbly without being loud and the staff were funny and friendly. A lovely experience all round - a real treat.

After a rather unfortunate start to our evening where we turned up to Barnabys for our reservation to find all lights off and restaurant closed - POTL saved the night and gave us a stellar evening. Fantastic food, fantastic service. I think the stars aligned with the earlier mishap and we forgot about it having happened with the first delicious sip of Billecart Salmon champagne. All agreed the highlight was the orzetto sharing dish - so full of flavour and delicious prawns, mussels, monk fish etc. Special mention to the fried oysters which never disappoint. Can’t wait to come back

This is great restaurant, it’s very popular and need to book in advance. The food was delicious and fresh. The staff were friendly. It’s definitely a must try when in padstow. Although the food was outstanding the space was an issue for us . The small tables for couples are squeezed in and made the experience of dinning not so outstanding. When you pay £220 you want a good overall experience. I guess this is a personal preference and it is certainly not a dig at the quality of the food that we were served.

Beautiful food. All cooked to perfection with amazing flavours. Service was lovely as well, and we loved the cosy feeing to the restaurant.

Amazing food. Amazing service. Not one complaint. We ordered all the small dishes. Everyone was quality. Staff were amazing

We go to Cornwall every New Year and ALWAYS have a meal at Prawn on the Lawn. Today's was the best yet! Exceptional food. The most warm welcome. Dog friendly. Delicious wine. Can't fault it. Already looking to visiting next New Year!