A Guide To Truro: 3. The City of Truro

By CornyQuin
March 21 2006

In this third article CornyQuin gives us the low down on the highlights of the city of Truro including good pubs, restaurants, pasty shops, things to see and do and a few phrases in the local language.

The Host City:

Yes, that’s right, Truro is a city.  Because it has a cathedral and a bishop.  But it’s not a big place and no matter where you go or end up over the weekend you will find at least one other Quins fan.

General info:     The city is in a bowl – all major roads into it go downhill.  Therefore it follows that all roads out go up!  Including those to the two rugby grounds – Truro RFC and Pirates.

A lot of the streets are cobbled, so our friends in wheelchairs should take extra cushioning.  Ladies are advised to avoid high heels.  In addition, to the edges of most cobbled streets, next to the pavements, are gullies about one foot wide carrying running water.  These are “leats” – a very old (near 200 year old) method of street cleaning that is designed to carry detritus etc away from the streets and into the city’s drainage system.  A handy trap to fall into having sampled well on the local ales – you have been warned!

Some history:  

• St Keyne, the patron saint of Kenwyn church, was one of twenty four daughters of a Welsh king.  She also gave her name to Keynsham near Bristol.
• Dower Ithy (tr: The ‘fragrant river’), or Kenwyn River as it is now known, was once the outlet for one of the city’s main sewers.
• The first vicar of Kenwyn Church was Steven Haym in 1265.
• Truro is an old mill town – corn mills powered by the rivers existed from as far ago as 1300.
• Tin assaying took place in Truro each Easter and Michaelmas from the 14^th Century.
• The French tried to invade Truro during the 100 years war in the 14^th Century.
• The term “limelight” is associated with a local – Goldsworthy Gurney – who invented the intense bright lights used in theatres.  His light was said to be brighter than 300 candles when introduced into the House of Commons.
• Truro minted its own coins during the civil war of the 1640s.
• The famous explorer Richard Lander (!) was born in the town in 1804.  He is commemorated by a monument high up on Lemon Street (Lemon being the name of a famous local family – benefactors and politicians)
• Richard Vivian, a Truro Grammar schoolboy later at Harrow, played a leading role in the charge of the Light Brigade in 1854.
• Furniss Cornish Gingerbread Biscuits were first sold by Harrods in the 1930s.
• The Crown Court in Truro is built on the approximate site of the old Truro Castle built by King Stephen in Norman times.

Present Day:

Places of Interest in Cornwall that aren’t far from Truro (my own personal recommendations):

• National Maritime Museum Falmouth: nmmc.co.uk
• Barbara Hepworth Museum, St Ives:  tate.org.uk/stives
• Tate St Ives: tate.org.uk/stives
• Eden Project:  edenproject.co.uk
• The Minack Theatre (if its nice weather!):  minack.com
• Sennen Cove:  The restaurant thebeachrestaurant.com a great gallery round-house.co.uk and some of the freshest air you are likely to have ever breathed – see the beach-cam chapelidne.com
• Trebah Gardens, rated in the top 80 gardens in the world, great for kids too - trebahgarden.co.uk
• Lost Gardens of Heligan - heligan.com
• Pendennis Castle - english-heritage.org.uk
• St Mawes Castle - english-heritage.org.uk
• Anne’s Pasty Shop, Lizard - connexions.co.uk/lizardpasty
• Blue Anchor, Helston – Home of the famous Spingo Ale and one of the oldest Inns in Britain that continues to maintain a working brewery. Dating back to the 15th century, the Inn boasts 600 years of brewing!!! - spingoales.com
• Newquay Zoo.  Small and friendly and just the right size to keep kids amused without tiring them out - newquayzoo.co.uk
• Paradise Park.  Another great place to take kids.  In Hayle about 30 minutes drive from Truro - paradisepark.org.uk

 

Specifically Truro-based:

Truro RFC v St Ives – the venue for the visit of the much-hated St Ives RFC to play the heroic Truro on Saturday 25^th at 2.30pm in South West 2 is St. Clements Hill, Truro - streetmap.co.uk 

Directions – head for the large Tregolls roundabout where the police station is, as well as BBC Cornwall and Trafalgar (Shell) petrol garage.  Take the road that goes up beside the police station (to the right as you look at it) called St Clements Hill.  After about 750 metres uphill trek you’ll be there.

• Royal Cornwall Museum, River Street Truro: royalcornwallmuseum.org.uk
• Truro Cathedral: trurocathedral.org.uk
• Farmers Market (Saturday): truro-farmersmarket.co.uk
• The Cheese Shop: Ferris Town, Truro 01872 270742
• Lemon Street Market - truro.gov.uk/markets/lemonstreet_market
• Trelissick National Trust Gardens - nationaltrust.org.uk

Eating Out in and around Truro:

The following are restaurants that have been road-tested vigorously by your author over the years.  I’m still here to tell the tale ……

• Saffron Restaurant, Quay Street - saffronrestauranttruro.co.uk but don’t try to get in on Friday night – its fully booked!
• Trennick Mill - eatoutcornwall.com - out of town, about a twenty minute walk along the river towards Malpas
• Pierro’s - eatoutcornwall.com Italian and buzzy!  Excellent pizza by any standard.
• Stingi Lulus - stingilulus.com - fusion, trendy and not very cheap.
• Chantek - eatoutcornwall.com – fushion and a bit kinder on the pocket than Stingi’s
• Baba - bengalirestaurant.com - Truro’s best Indian by a mile.
• The Pandora Inn at Restronguet.  You’ll need a car to get there but its worth it – right on the river, 13^th Century Inn - pandorainn.com
• The Heron Inn, Malpas, Truro.  Overlooking the river and a healthy 2km walk from Truro - beerintheevening.com
• Others – some details here - eatoutcornwall.com

 

Pasties etc:

• There are plenty of bakers selling pasties in Truro.  The main 3 are Warrens, Rowes and Blewetts and I think I am right in saying that each has more than one outlet.  There is also an Oggy Oggy Pasty shop.  My personal taste would lead me to recommend you try Warrens or Rowes.  Blewetts who were the only pasty retailers in Truro when I was growing up in Truro tend to over-spice their product for my liking and the meat is either finely chopped or minced.  Oggy Oggy pasties tend to have very hard pastry.  On the other hand I find Warrens and Rowes are sparing on the salt and pepper front but not too much so, and they use ‘proper’ chuck steak and have a pastry that’s just right.
• All the bakers sell pasties with a variety of fillings.
• Also very much worth trying are saffron buns / cake and ‘heavy cakes’ – local specialties.  And of course Cornish Clotted cream which is nice on toasted saffron loaf!
• NB – if you CAN get out of Truro on a pasty expedition then I really do recommend Ann’s Pasty shop on the Lizard and Philps in Hayle and Marazion - marazion.net

Pubs in Truro:

Erm … also road-tested over many years …I don’t think I am banned from any of these:

• I humbly suggest this as the Harlequins pub of choice for the weekend - beerintheevening.com
• The Globe Inn - beerintheevening.com
• The Wig and Pen (next door to The Globe) - beerintheevening.com
• The City Inn – if you are walking to the ground up Kenwyn Road then you may feel a refresher is needed.  Then here’s the only place you’ll pass on the way - beerintheevening.com
• The ‘local’ for those staying in the Town House – The Daniel Arms: beerintheevening.com
• A pub close to the Pirates’ ground (say 1 mile ish) but past it on the road out from Truro – The Old Plough Inn beerintheevening.com
• One for the Diamond Geezers to be seen - mi-bar.co.uk - The MI Bar (Market Inn) with its outside, under-parasol drinking area.  Open until 1am Friday and Saturday, midnight Sunday. And right next door to the Royal Hotel.

 

LAST WORDS:

If you possibly can – get out and explore the coast and countryside of Cornwall.  Places like St Ives, Mousehole, Penzance, Padstow, Polperro, and Porthleven …. I could go on …. Are all places worthy of a holiday in their own right.

A walk along the beach at Perranporth or the cliffs at St Agnes or the dunes at Crantock or Cubert will leave you refreshed and ready to take on whatever lies ahead.  Or will clear your head from the night before.

And when watching the game on Sunday, remember –

FETHY PO FYLIEL AN GWARRY HA TRA NAHEN

(Win or Lose, The Game and Nothing Else)

 

AFTER THE LAST WORDS – SOME CORNISH FOR YOUR WEEKEND:

(with phonetic pronunciation in brackets)

I'm going to Truro: My a wra mos bys yn Truru (mee ah ra mawz biss in truerow)
I come from London: My a wra dos dyworth Loundres (mee ah ra doss diworth the smoke)
Pint of beer please: Un pynta coref, mar plek (een peenta coreff marr playk)
The beer's good: An coref yu marthys da (an coreff ee-oo marthiz dah)
Another pasty please: Hogen moy, mar plek (hoh-gen moy mar playk)
He's drunk: Medhow yua (med-hoe ee-oo-a)
Simon Keogh has scored a try for Harlequins: Simon Keogh re scoryas tro rak Harlequins (Simon Keogh ree score-ee-ass troh rack Har-lee-Queens)
Harlequins have beaten Pirates: Harlequins re fethas Kernewek Morladron (Har-le-Queens ree feth-ass ker-neh-weck more-lad-ron)