The Idle Rocks hotel in St Mawes is relaunched

The Idle Rocks hotel in St Mawes, Cornwall, has reopened following a radical transformation by its owner, David Richards, the chairman of luxury car company Aston Martin, and his wife, Karen.

Currently celebrating its centenary as a hotel, the property was bought by the Richards in 2010 with the intention of creating a viable alternative to what, until now, has been the coastal resort's most high-profile hotel: the Tresanton, owned by Olga Polizzi.

The Richards, who have owned a home in St Mawes for 10 years, intended to create a hotel that felt like staying in a friend's beautiful house.

The hotel has been remodelled, reducing the number of bedrooms from 30 to 20, with Karen Richards overseeing the eclectic design. "There is lots of colour and fabrics," she explained. "I have bought in a lot of contemporary art to add big splashes of colour on the walls as everywhere else is very light."

The general manager of the Idle Rocks is Josie Simcox, former general manager of the Malmaison in Aberdeen and an Acorn Award winner in 2010.

Head chef Peter Conlin, previously at the helm of the kitchen at the Trump International Golf Links, near Aberdeen, is overseeing the 65-seat restaurant with additional seating for 40 on the terrace overlooking the harbour.

With a strong emphasis on seafood, the menu includes Idle Rock moules with warm Cornish ale and brown bread (£9); poached lobster tail with roast leeks, macaroni and chicken wing (£24) and pineapple with coconut and passion fruit (£8).

The Richards said it was their intention to return the Idle Rocks to the former glory it had enjoyed when it first opened in 1913 as a luxury property.

"It was so sad to see it quietly fall into disrepair and yet it was a hotel that enjoyed such an incredible reputation not so many years ago," David Richards said. "It therefore seemed like an obvious project to undertake and a new challenge, which is what Karen and I thrive on."

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