The Cook Book

The Cook Book is a great little cafe cum bookshop in St. Just, an ancient mining town in the far west of Cornwall near Land's End. What better means to while away a thoroughly unpleasant wet, windy and misty Sunday afternoon than munching on delicious homemade cakes whilst browsing through the secondhand books!

The cafe serves an all day breakfast, seasonal soups, lunches, cakes and scones and as far as possible source local produce. It is dog and child friendly with cheerful staff and a warm welcoming atmosphere. There are daily newspapers laid out on a communal bar and the place is crammed with an ecletic selection of books - 5,000 or so in three rooms upstairs, spilling down the stairs and in the cafe itself.

Their cream tea is a true Cornish feast – two homemade scones and a saffron bun, served with Rodda’s Cornish Clotted Cream, delicious local Strawberry Jam and a big pot of tea. Saffron buns are a traditional Cornish specialty - rich yeast buns, coloured yellow with fresh saffron and loaded with currants. They are all to scarce these days, so a rare treat indeed.

Disappointingly Dave couldn't manage his saffron bun as well as the two large scones, so he wrapped it up for breakfast next morning!

The Cook Book claims to feed body and mind, it is true but places like this are also good for the soul.

The Cook Book
4 Cape Cornwall Street, St. Just, Cornwall TR19 7JZ

This post forms part of a series about our 2010 gastro camping trip in Cornwall.