Conversations about St Just don’t get far before there’s mention of The Star.
The 18th century pub on Fore Street has been the heart of the town for as long as I can remember and it’s where you go to remember how a good pub was a few decades ago.
The Star, St Just on Lafrowda Day.
The closest you’ll get to a meal in The Star is a bag of crisps, or directions across the square to Jeremy’s for fish and chips.
Yes, it’s an example of that rare beast, a pub that doesn’t rely on food and accommodation to survive.
Beers are St Austell’s and not the full range, but you’ll always find Tribute, Cornish and Proper Job, a few lagers and then there’s Rattler for the brave. A decent glass of wine won’t leave you wishing you’d smuggled a bottle in from the Co-op.
But it’s not the quality or price of the drinks that draws the faithful to The Star, it’s the fabric of the place, and not just the roaring fire (sometimes two). The floors are a mix of polished bitumen and stone flags, the walls are dark reds and blacks and covered in pictures of ship wrecks, gig teams, miners, all aspects of what makes St Just the special place it is. The ceilings are decorated too, for years in the signed jerseys of teams doing the End to End jaunt, and now in flags of the Celtic nations of the world.
Come to The Star later on a Thursday or Friday evening and you’ll understand.
Thursday is open mic night and there’ll be a variety of performers with local favourites The Star Band finishing up, preceded by visitors and locals too, with anyone who’s any good being invited to join impromptu bands on the night.
I’ll update when I can remember this fellow’s name. Guitarist, percussionist, singer, dude.
Monday night is FidileeDee, the folk night, which I’ve only been to once recently, it’s a calmer affair that I enjoy even though folk isn’t my scene.
Occasionally the Cape Singers will be in having a sing song, and then you’re in for a treat.
Come for a banter, find out what’s what in the area, get a recommendation, and don’t be surprised if you find yourselves planning how you can get here more often. It has a strange addictive quality.
