The Mystery Diner: INDIdog, Falmouth

But this visit was carried out a number of weeks ago, before terms such as 'social distancing' and 'self-isolation' replaced 'fancy a pint?' and 'let's grab some lunch' in our collective consciousness - and serves as a reminder that these places do still exist and will need all our support when this is over.

INDIdog, overlooking Falmouth's Fish Strand Quay on the site of the former Watermans pub, was opened by Simon and Vanessa Clark of award-winning B&B Highcliffe in July last year.

Just eight months later they have been forced to close, for the foreseeable future, describing it as "the safest route" as coronavirus sweeps the country.

In the between period, however, they created something pretty special: a relaxed, open-plan restaurant where it was as easy to grab a quick breakfast as it was a leisurely dinner, which you could watch being cooked (should your dining partner really be boring you) in the eight-metre kitchen set to one side.

I'll be straight; knowing something of the owners' background, as former London media types, I was expecting craft beer and hipsters, but while avocado does make an appearance on the menu it's not 'smashed' and the decor is more classic wood and tasteful lighting that industrial steel pipework.

We popped in for brunch and were met with attentive service that gave us space to choose, but the moment we set down the menu the waitress was straight over. Impressive.

Sadly, despite pushing lunchtime, the restaurant's special own-blend orange juice had not yet been made up for the day. This was a shame, as I was intrigued to try the mix of carrot, orange, ginger and turmeric.

There appeared to be some form of photo shoot taking place throughout our visit, which may have been the cause of the delay.

However, owner Simon was so disarmingly open about the "fail" as he called it, and the 'standard' orange juice that arrived was clearly of good quality, so I couldn't disappointed for long.

We also shared a carafe of their special 'batch brew' coffee, which was promised to hold its own against more fashionable espresso machine variations. It yielded roughly two small cups each - fine if you're having it with other drinks, probably not enough if it's your only beverage.

I opted for the pancake stack with crispy bacon and maple syrup - a brunch classic. The three American-style pancakes, layered with streaky bacon, were more than filling enough and kept me going all the way through to the evening.

My partner went with the INDIdog full English of smoked streaky bacon, pork sausage, field mushroom, slow roasted tomato, sautéed sea salt potatoes, black pudding, hogs pudding, INDIdog smoky beans, fried bread and egg cooked to his liking (poached on this occasion).

While it arrived with a lot of white space on the plate, he again said it was perfectly sufficient to satisfy him and he raved about the beans, which were cooked with a bite, with the quality of all the ingredients clear to see and taste.

Our experience left me wanting to try more from a menu that also features dishes such as broad bean falafel flatbread and chickpea and coconut dahl - and that's just the daytime menu.

A quick special mention for the toilets, a fascinating mix of punk paint splatter and William Morris style wallpaper.

I suppose the message here is simple: when this all passes (and it will pass) it is imperative that we go out and support places such as INDIdog and all the other wonderful, hard-working eateries like them all over Cornwall, as much as we can afford - because we need them back.

Our cost (two people, including drinks): £25.05

Address: 28 Market Street, Falmouth, Cornwall, TR11 3AT

Normal hours: Food served 9am to 5.30pm and 6pm to 9pm

Phone: 01326 450699

Ratings

Atmosphere: 5/5

Décor: 5/5

Food: 5/5

Service: 5/5

Overall: 5/5

Food Standards Agency Food Hygiene Rating: 4/5

In order to ensure objective reviews, the Mystery Diner is carried out on an independent basis without the prior knowledge of the establishment.