Jeffrey Robinson, one of the first chefs to have attained a green Michelin star, announced at the Padstow Christmas Festival that he is joining the Devon-founded business beachhouse group as executive head chef of their new Cornish outpost – harbourhouse in Flushing.
Together, in early summer 2023, the team will open their new collaborative ‘force of nature’ proposition at harbourhouse, setting a new standard in Cornish hyper-local dining and hospitality.
Tamara Costin created the original restaurant, bar and café, beachhouse, on the National Trust-protected South Milton Sands in the South Hams. Alongside her partner William Speed, she opened schoolhouse, situated at the heart of the wild and enigmatic Flete Estate, garnering food critic acclaim and a cult-like local and national following.
The couple recently announced their purchase of the former Seven Stars pub in the pretty Cornish village of Flushing. They are currently stripping and reshaping the freehouse building which is set right on the waterfront, releasing previously unmet potential space and storytelling layers as they go.
Alongside Jeffrey’s appointment, they are also announcing the evolution of the Flushing establishment’s name. harbourhouse honours the centuries-long history of marine trading Flushing, its seafaring traditions and the building’s former use as board and lodging for Dutch shipping crews. And it marries this recognition with the heritage and styling of the other beachhouse properties.
Tamara Costin says, “Cornwall has been on our instinct-list for a very long time and one of our favourite dining destinations has always been New Yard. Now with Jeffrey joining us at the rechristened harbourhouse, we’ve had an immediate meeting of minds, philosophies and passions, and our coming together is like a simple, but certain, synergy.”
Jeffrey Robinson has been executive chef of The New Yard Restaurant and The Pantry on the Lizard Peninsula in south west Cornwall since 2016. Under his tenure, it became one of the first restaurants in the UK to be awarded a green Michelin Star for gastronomy and sustainability practices, alongside a 3 rosette achievement. There are still only 23 green Michelin starred restaurants in the UK, and Jeffrey has focussed on serving his take on modern Cornish cuisine using ingredients grown in his own farm which were created using a philosophy of permaculture.
Jeffrey says, “I have been looking for the right opportunity to grow my sustainability-focussed practice and, as if by design, Tamara and William came along at this critical juncture. I’m so inspired by the opportunity to build the new harbourhouse kitchen together, to co-develop our shared passion for hyper-local sourcing and to push Cornish cuisine.”
