The Camborne café that’s a bit different

Stuart Cobb knows a thing or two about food. As former head chef of the award-winning Porthminster Beach Café in St Ives, he’s spent more than 25 years whipping up culinary delights and being part of a team that maintained Michelin and AA Rosette status.

Stuart now runs his own highly rated café, The Cog and Wheel in Camborne. Located at the entrance to The Camborne Small Business Hub in Trelowarren Street, the small, intimate eatery was designed and hand-built by landlords Andy and Louise Bassett , it’s an Aladdin’s cave of quirky décor – from the impressive Steampunk Kraken when you first walk in, to a tree with a face and a canopy of leaves  that stretch upwards to the ceiling and, fittingly given the café’s name, an array of cogs and wheels on the walls.

The sense of originality and conviviality is strong and a perfect combination for the extraordinary street food created there. My choice from the all-day breakfast menu was Turkish eggs. Described as ‘poached eggs served over a bed of garlicky yoghurt and drizzled with a spiced chilli butter sauce, served with tiger bread toast’, they tasted mouth-wateringly divine. What’s more, costing just £8.50, it felt like eating the best at a fraction of the normal price tag.

According to Stuart, street food is all about informality and sharing. Eat it with your hands, on the go, or around a table with family – there’s no protocol, no fine dining rigidity and no compromise on quality.

“It’s about bringing people together and having fun,” he said. “I wanted a café that does things a bit differently. A place for customers to relax, make friends and have fun.”

Stuart opened The Cog and Wheel in April 2025 and as his first business venture, it’s been a steep learning curve. 

“I do as much as I can myself and soon realised the massive menu I started out with wasn’t sustainable. Wastage is an issue, so I’ve limited the choices available and learnt not to mind if a dish sells out – better that than throwing stuff away.”

Besides a range of tempting pancakes and burgers, the all-day selection includes a cream tea inspired French toast (scones cooked in a French toast style with strawberry compote and clotted cream) and Shakshuka (slow cooked onion and tomato, in aromatic spices with baked eggs and fresh tiger bread toast).

“Food is what I’m good at and I like to be different,” said Stuart.

He’s certainly that and is winning rave reviews on Google. Tik Toker Jess Eats Cornwall is a big fan, as is everyone who has so far commented on the café’s Facebook page: “The full English breakfast was superb, the coffee superb, the atmosphere superb, the chef/owner superb and the price superb. Anyone looking for a cafe in Camborne has to visit it.”

Stuart’s journey from fine dining head chef to street food café entrepreneur hasn’t always been easy and he’s relishing a change in work life balance that means he gets to see his family more.

“I wanted to be more of a dad to my two sons and feelings of guilt led to a breakdown that took two years of recovery.”

Stuart sought help from Man Down, a locally founded community interest company that supports men with mental health challenges. Now the group holds regular get togethers in The Cog and Wheel.

“A lot of us struggle but giving back is good,” said Stuart. “We’re there for each other.”

As well as running the café from 8.30am to 3pm Tuesdays to Fridays and 9am to 3pm on Saturdays, Stuart collaborates with Bev from Camborne’s CocoaBean Hub Café on occasional themed evenings, sponsors Holman’s under 9 football team and a local pool player and provides school holiday meals for the nearby Steren School of Ballet.

Originally from Aberdeen, he moved to Cornwall more than twenty years ago and has been living in Camborne for the last three with his fiancée Kirstin.

“There’s a strong sense of community here and I think the town is really on the up. Younger families are moving in, structural improvements are underway, anti-social issues are much less of a problem, and a mining re-start at South Crofty is looking more and more likely. It’s a great place to be.”

Stuart says his aim is to keep the café open whilst also expanding into summer festivals, and a possible Cog on Wheels in the future. In the meantime, there’s Trevithick Day to look forward to on 25 April.

“It’s an amazing event that brings in big crowds. I expect to be very busy.”

Camborne first achieved Business Improvement District status in 2011 and has been working hard to enhance local trade ever since.

“The Cog and Wheel Cafe is one of our foodie gems and I congratulate Stuart on achieving such a glowing reputation for wonderful dishes in the 12 months since he opened,” said Anna Pascoe, BID Camborne manager.

“If you haven’t tried his cooking, you’re missing out. It’s honestly outstanding.”