New Beginnings

This year will see the reopening of Kota Restaurant with a refurbishment, rebrand and a change of concept. Words by Jude Kereama

It’s hard to believe that by the end of April we will be entering our 20th year of opening. I remember the day we met up with Steve and Jo Critchard who owned the building before us when it was Critchard’s Seafood Restaurant. They were a lovely couple who wanted to sell up as they had been there for a while and I asked them how long they had had the restaurant. When they said 16 years, I thought that was an incredibly long time to be in the same place, but now I have surpassed it! So, with the 20th year in mind, it only felt right to jazz things up and start the year with a big bang.

People have asked me why we are changing, as they love Kota the way it is. My response is, that I think a change has been coming for a while and a reinvigoration of our offering is needed to move forward. When I had a chat with my management team late last year with a plan to go in a new direction, it was also met with slight hesitation as we have been happy doing ‘our thing’ for a while. With that in mind, we needed to be sure of the new concept before we announced and executed it. It’s been hard to let go of some of the things that I have loved about Kota, such as the branding and feel, but I know our new concept will be exciting for everyone.

Kota will become a restaurant with wine bar. It means we will be open for lunch and dinner, whilst the bar will also be used as a shop and tasting room for our wines. The menus will be made up of small dishes which we have coined ‘Cornish Pinxos’. Each dish will be mini courses on their own right, matched with wine expertly picked by our excellent team. It means there will be more flexibility in how many dishes you choose to order. We will also be including a Chef’s Menu that will be made up of the best ingredients from the Cornish Pinxos plates and specials, as well as offering a selection of exciting bar snacks and dishes to choose from if you only fancy a quick bite. For those who may like something a bit bigger to share, we will have a large cut of either beef T-bone steak, saddle of lamb, rack of venison or a fish dish, all designed to share. 

Eventually we will be launching the Kota Wine Club. You will be able to choose from an amazing case of wine or individual bottles each month, accompanied by a recipe card matching the wines with food you can cook at home. In order to fully embrace this new concept, we will be unveiling new branding, uniforms, interior design and furniture at Kota. We are very excited for our opening on the 13th February with our ‘Wine and Dine’ experience.

As exciting as the reopening of Kota is, I couldn’t not touch on some of the fabulous produce that is around at the moment. Even in late winter, there is an abundance of ingredients to cook with. Brassicas and root vegetables are still in season and we are now starting to see purple spouting broccoli, salsify, rhubarb, and chicory making an appearance. It’s a great time to utilise mussels, clams, scallops, oysters, which love the colder weather. There’s plenty of fishing to be had at this time of year, as long as the boats can get out in the stormy weather. There’s nothing like a seafood chowder with crusty bread on a cold evening to warm you up. Apart from our usual meats, we still have wonderful game to be eaten such as teal, venison, pheasant, partridge, and woodcock. They really are a seasonal treat and a great source of lean healthy protein – buy them while you can as the season is nearing its end.

Blueberry American-style pancakes

While there’s still plenty of roasts and warming stews to be had as we await the start of spring, we’ll also be celebrating Shrove Tuesday when we all go crazy for a pancake. There are many different recipes and styles to choose from so I thought I would add my own blueberry pancake recipe for you to enjoy!

Serves 2 

INGREDIENTS
2 cups plain flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
50gms sugar
2 cups buttermilk
¼ teaspoon of salt
2 eggs separated yolks and whites (egg whites whisked to soft peak)
Butter for frying the pancakes
Frozen blueberries
Fresh blueberries
Chantilly cream
Maple syrup

METHOD

Add all the dry ingredients together and then whisk in the yolks and buttermilk. Fold in the egg whites. Add a little butter in a pan on a medium heat. Fold some frozen blueberries through the pancake mix and some to a pan and cook on one side before flipping the pancake and finishing on the other side. Drizzle with maple syrup and a dollop of Chantilly cream. Top with fresh blueberries and eat while warm.

Kota & Kota Kai
Harbour Head, Porthleven TR13 9JY
01326 562407 / 01326 727707
www.kotarestaurant.co.uk
www.kotakai.co.uk