Ugly CarbisButterfly, Bay

Sourcing as much produce from in and around Cornwall as possible, the team at Ugly Butterfly celebrate the agricultural abundance of the region. Part of a growing group, Ugly Butterfly has earned acclaim for turning kitchen offcuts into elevated, flavourful cocktails.

Having worked in big-city bars as well as countryside destination venues, group bar director Josh Linfitt relishes the creative opportunity in closed-loop cocktail creation. “Whether it be something as easy to use as spent coffee or something trickier like carrot tops, I find it hard to ignore an ingredient’s potential. It’s that ‘lightbulb moment’ when you’ve got the ability to vent creatively.”

Some ingredients are unique to Ugly Butterfly, like its pandan liqueur, which uses leaves foraged (with permission) from the Eden Project. It’s one of Josh’s seasonal favourites. “I love our Drop Sails, Knot Nets cocktail – the pandan has so much more flavour when it’s fresh. On the palate, think popcorn banana Daiquiri with a Gimlet citrussy botanical booster.”

In the long term, chef-owner Adam Handling and executive chef Jamie Park intend to have their own farm that supplies restaurants and shops across the region. In the meantime, there is plenty to forage in the Cornish countryside. “Extracting as much flavour as possible allows us to abide by that foragers’ code: only take what you need and leave enough for the plant to flourish,” Josh confirms.