The story
The Barley Sheaf at Gorran, on Gorran Churchtown, PL26 6HN, is a modern British pub kitchen in St Austell that the Good Food Guide rated Good in 2026. The pub sits beside the church and dates to 1837, and it is also listed as Recommended by Michelin for 2026.
Dan Hyams, head chef and general manager, leads the kitchen. The team serves sustainable British pub food under the name "Barley Twist", built on produce from in and around Cornwall. The garden behind the pub supplies herbs and other vegetables to the kitchen. The menus run from bar snacks and a children's menu to an à la carte, a pub and specials menu, and Sunday lunch.
The Good Food Guide singled out a ham hock croquette with celeriac rémoulade and truffle mayo, and plaice in chicken jus with chestnuts and cavolo nero. Its reviewer also praised wild mushroom ravioli in a tomato ragù. Steak and ale pie, fish and chips, and sticky toffee pudding with clotted cream keep the traditional side of the menu in place.
The interior is light and clean, with a black slate floor and local seascape artworks on the walls, many of them for sale. The dining room sits comfortably between a village local and a restaurant, which suits a lunch or a long evening.
Recognition
Ambience
Details
History
Gorran is apparently a thing of many parts – Haven, High Lanes and Churchtown – but they are essentially one. Just by the titular church is the Barley Sheaf pub, which has stood since Queen Victoria's accession but has been sensitively freshened and spruced into the modern era, with a clean light look, a black slate floor and many local artworks on a seascape theme for sale. The cooking keeps its feet firmly in the pub ethos, rather than pitching into pretension, so there are steak and ale pies, fish and chips, and sausage and mash for the traditionalists, but some more cutting-edge dishes too. A hefty ham hock croquette in golden crumb is crammed to capacity with bright pink meat, and accompanied by a warm serving of celeriac rémoulade bristling with mustard seeds and a dollop of truffle mayo. That could be followed by plaice in chicken jus with chestnuts and cavolo nero. Veggie dishes lack nothing for substance and richness, if our wild mushroom ravioli with capers and celery in a thickly memorable tomato ragù is any indicator. Finish with sticky toffee pudding and clotted cream, or an inspired cheese selection. A simple wine list just about does the job, but could afford to be a little more adventurous in the context.
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