Booked Tabbs months before our visit to make sure we got a spot. Very responsive on emails and organisation. Interior design nicer than online pics show, felt very smart and... read more welcoming. Nigel's cooking was as bang on as other reviewers have said - ray wing with duck sauce was a thing of beauty and the standout dish. Portions are very generous (we couldn't finish the lovely paprika coated potatoes) and the homemade bread was superb. Not sure the dessert (panna cotta) quite reached the heights of the fish cookery but that is a minor point. Pricing is very reasonable indeed for the quality and quantity of food. We had a great time and look forward to coming back.

  We enjoyed our main courses and desserts, but the food was not good enough to make up for the dark and lacklustre dining room.

  We visited on a lunchtime for a big birthday celebration so there were 12 of us. They even opened on a Monday for us. Nigel Tabb is a very talented... read more chef and the food was superb; the set menu is such good value. Debbie; front of house, was very efficient and discreet with it. They are such a good team, a winning combination. We are so lucky to have a top class restaurant like this in Truro, not a burger in sight! They deserve to do well. We were all impressed.

  A wonderful evening of fining ding in Truro. Food was presented well, and tasted fantastic. The starter of the deep fried egg was the star of the evening.
Wine... read more selection is varied and well thought out.

Thank you Tabbs restaurant for making a special day even more special.

  After originally being told they were full until mid August, we got a table on a cancellation. However, they seem to be limiting the number of tables they serve each... read more evening as there was only the two of us at one side of the restaurant and one other couple right over the other side. This resulted in a complete lack of atmosphere. The inside of the restaurant is much nicer than it looks from the outside.

The food was beautifully presented, with a delicious Amuse Bouche of mushroom soup. The portions weren’t huge but ample for us and was all cooked perfectly. Service was efficient.

Unfortunately going out for dinner is as much about the experience for us as the food so we wouldn’t return until they are fully open.

  Visited here for my birthday meal whilst spending the weekend in Truro. Absolute amazing food and great friendly professional service. Would highly recommend and looking forward to visiting again

  If you are looking for delicious fine dining at reasonable prices, with a diverse and interesting menu, go to Tabbs.We went here after the Festival of Lights Parade on a... read more cold and windy night. It was our first visit but we will definitely be back. From the warm welcome to the delicious food, it was a truly delightful find. I was going to eat from the set menu (at a very reasonable £25 for 3 courses, with good choices on offer) but was tempted instead by the fish chowder with lemongrass and ginger as a starter. Absolutely delicious with subtle but distinct 'Thai' flavours and just what was needed to warm me up. Both my husband and I had the beef fillet with accompanying 'pan' of shin of beef casserole. The beef was delicious, tender and tasty and to be highly recommended. It was onwards and upwards and after 2 fabulous courses, we felt we had to make sure the desserts lived up to the same standard - and they did. The cardamom ice-cream was a revelation which they were happy to substitute for the banana sorbet with the very rich and decadent chocolate dessert. Thank you Tabbs for welcoming us on a rather quiet night, we are so glad we found you.

  Excellent all round service. Many thanks. Could not have asked for more and will be sure to recommend you.

  Fab little restaurant. The food was delicious and beautifully presented and waitress was lovely and very helpful when our 2 year old fell off her chair. All appropriate social distancing... read more measures were taken this made us feel at ease.

I would recommend booking in advance as availability is limited.

  We visited while on holiday to the area and were so impressed. The food was incredible, a lovely atmosphere and we felt well looked after by Debbie throughout our meal.... read more We cannot recommend Tabbs enough- we will be visiting again on our next trip to Cornwall!

  A Culinary Oasis in a desert of mediocrity in the Truro area - I found it difficult to recommend anywhere for a fine dining experience in West Cornwall until we visited Tabb’s on Thursday 14th September. Small menu (always a good sign) with... read more just 5 or 6 starters, mains and desserts, I was excited by the menu representing local, seasonal produce. Faultless service, with a complimentary amuse bouche of mushroom soup with garlic oil and lovely homemade bread. The starters of bream on black pasta with artichoke cream was outstanding, whilst my other half really enjoyed a lightly spiced Thai soup. Beef short rib and duck main courses were cooked to perfection and had outstanding sides including pig cheeks with chick peas. Dessert of chocolate marquis with black treacle ice cream and salted caramel sauce was one if the best desserts we have ever had-so much so we licked the plates! Decent wine list at reasonable prices and complimentary iced tap water. This place is an absolute gem and we will be returning on a regular basis.

  First visit to Tabbs since the first lockdown.
A warm welcome from front of house star Debs and a delicious three courses from Nigel. As someone who lost their sense... read more of taste and smell for 6 months following Covid I was delighted to return to my favourite restaurant.
The Sun Dried Tomato soup with poached egg, blue cheese and spring onions was a real treat and I savoured every mouthful. The Seared Fillet of Smoked Beef melted in the mouth and I could taste the gentle smokiness without it overpowering the dish. The cardamom ice cream that accompanied the Nougat Glacé was delicious.
A big thank you to Nigel and Debs for providing a safe environment without losing the atmosphere that makes Tabbs such a special place to enjoy excellent food.

  Absolutely superb!

Food was truly delicious and service was fab from our host.

There was limited vegetarian choice, but the option on offer was fabulous.

Don’t... read more believe the 4 ££££s! Really reasonably priced, considering the place’s status on the Michelin guide. Would recommend to anyone staying near Truro.

  So good to have Tabbs back open and to be treated to some superb food and great service. COVID issues have reduced the number of covers (so book early!) but... read more it hasn’t affected the quality one iota. The mushroom and truffle oil starter with fresh bread was delicious, the hake and wing of ray were superb. The cheeseboard and Nigel’s homemade chocolates rounded the meal off beautifully. I’d you haven’t been yet, you’re missing out, if you have, you’ll be back.

  OK, hands up; I’ll admit it. Mrs Reviewer and I do like really good food. And that is exactly what Tabbs gave us on our visit.

The dishes were... read more all thoughtful, but without trying to be too “clever”. This was cooking focussed on what is great to eat, rather than just looks pretty or shows off about some weird culinary process that comes with a health and safety warning saying you shouldn’t try it at home. Don’t get me wrong. It did look great on the plate, and considerable cooking skill had gone into preparing the dishes. But this was food that was great to eat.

And Tabb’s was a nice place to be for dinner. Friendly, efficient but relaxed service works for me every time.

Any regrets? Only that Truro is a long way from home, and I am not sure when I will get a chance to eat at Tabb’s again.

  What a superb restaurant. It is so long since we were last able to enjoy a fabulous restaurant and Tabbs was a real fine dining establishment that we visited whilst... read more on holiday nearby. The food was outstanding and the service friendly and excellent. The price too was very reasonable for the wonderful meal we had.

  I had looked at the menu on line unfortunately when we arrived and looked at the menu all the starters were the same except 1 had been changed which was... read more the one I wanted. I asked if it was possible to have a goat cheese salad as there wasnt anything else there to my liking. I was told a they could a goats cheese salad which was great but then was told , did I not want the soup but unfortunately it had blue cheese in it which I dont like I asked if I could have a minute to think she came back and suggested goats cheese beetroot and mushrooms stew which again was not to my liking I wasnt trying to be difficult but she clearly wasn’t happy as her food suggestions didn’t work for me as I don’t like mushrooms when she walked back to take our order she said are you staying!!! Wow she needs some customer service skills! Part of working in a restaurant is that from time to time there will be a few fussy customers and how you deal with the person and the situation is key to your success. Service is very important.

Add insult to injury she said gave us some sort of mushroom soup palette cleanser and said directly to me will you like that to which i replied YES she replied I wasn’t trying to insult u. Just saying that is an insult. The food was nice not suited to me tho.

  Having moved to Cornwall 8 years ago, and only just getting to Tabb's is a mistake. Having rectified the mistake and visited last night I now realise how big this... read more mistake was, but I won't be making it again.

The COVID-19 based precautions that are being taken are sensible and should give confidence to all planning a visit, an email before we arrived, telling us what we can expect and what we should do was a great touch.

The welcome itself was lovely and warm and at no point were we rushed or made to feel anything but welcome. Excellent!

The food, well, it was excellent. The pre-starter soup shot was amazing, the scallops to start were cooked perfectly and served on a delicious slice of local drakes pudding, the duck breast was full of flavour and cooked perfectly with a delicious beetroot stir-fry, the accompanying veg great, the cheesecake dessert was so light and delicious and the wine selection was very good.

We were extremely full, content and happy after a really clever and well executed meal and enjoyable experience.

I have found my new favourite restaurant, and will not be waiting anywhere near the 8 years it took me to book up before returning.

Thank you Nigel and Debbie.

  ....better than all the rest. Nigel Tabb's restaurant is still the top fine dining experience to be had in West Cornwall. For those who know their wines, it has one... read more of the best , well balanced and value for money wine lists around. Service is impeccable and supports the intimate atmosphere that has been created in this former pub just a relatively short walk from the centre of Truro. For a special celebration or one of Nigel’s occasional Sunday roasts (check the website) it is well worth seeking out. Booking is essential.

  Just had a lovely 2 courses of delicious food at Tabb’s. The mushroom soup served before the starter was a lovely touch. We had the chowder and pilaff starters and... read more both had the hake main (never had deep fried cauliflower before) all served with an excellent house recommended Pinot. The speed of service was just right for us. Loved it and we will definitely come back again when we return to Cornwall in Feb 2021.

  Sunday Fine Dining - This is undoubtedly the top restaurant in Truro. We have now visited many times, both in the evening and for Sunday roast. It is always top notch fine dining with... read more super presentation, taste and texture, all at a very reasonable price for this very high standard of food. We came for the Sunday roast this time, with a delightful four courses that we enjoyed until late afternoon: Excellent and personal service at all times. Highly recommended.

  One of the best restaurants in Cornwall - The hidden Gem in Truro, Cornwall !!! we have lived in Truro for 18 months and have been meaning to try this superb restaurant and we are so glad we... read more did. From the minute we walked in, it was faultless, the greeting was welcoming and very informative on both the food and wine. Then came the food presented beautifully and tasted even better than it looked ( we eat with our eyes). We had the set menu because it had everything we wanted and at £36 for 3 courses it was Michelin star food and a great price. It had a great wine list again quality at a good price we chose a Spanish Albariño and at just £42 it was one of the best we have had in all our years visiting Spain. We have eaten at all the big named restaurants old and new in Cornwall and this is one if not the best. We will be going back very soon for dinner and have already booked the Sunday lunch which I have been told is an experience in its self.

  To be honest I am not reviewing the food as we did not get through the front door, but I want to share our treatment experience as I feel this... read more is just as important as the food itself. My partner booked a table a week ago and called tonight to request an email confirmation, which a professionally run restaurant would have done already. The request was met with a very rude and curt response from the lady on the phone saying that we will get something next week to which my partner replied that she felt we should have received this at the time of booking, as there is nothing worst than arriving at a restaurant to find your booking is no where to be found. We then received a call from a man saying that the booking had been cancelled by them.
Looking at the reviews it appears other customers have received similar treatment so we probably dodged a bullet. I am sure the food is fine but as said at the start it is not just about the food but the whole experience .
Bon appetit

  Outstanding - Outstanding meal. Superb range of textures and flavours, and unique combinations of quality ingredients. I started with bream and black pasta - beautifully fresh and flavoursome. Mains was a perfectly... read more cooked duck breast fillet on a bed of creamy celeriac with a pot of cassoulet (nice texture, not mush!). Veg side was a real treat - courgette slices deep fried in an exceptionally light batter and served piping hot, and really tasty new potatoes with a paprika coating. For dessert the baked cheesecake had a creme brulee type caramel cover and was served with apple sorbet and an orange sauce - definitely never come across that combination before and it worked a treat. All in all best restaurant I've eaten at in Cornwall.