After 2 hours slogging round the Royal Academy looking at the Summer Exhibition, we needed some serious sustenance nearby. With our friends M&P we head to Swallow Street and Fishworks. There is a branch in Richmond that we’d been to before and liked, so we’re pretty hopeful about this one.
Fish is laid out on ice on the slab by the door, and the whole feel is of somewhere serious about its fish. It’s not too busy so we get a nice table easily enough. I order a Viognier off the “Reserve List”, only to be told they don’t have it, and am offered a more expensive one (£24) instead.
As well as an extensive range of choices on the menu - most mains at around £15, though some up at nearer £20 - there is a specials board with options at £24, and we are also shown some fish for sharing, including a huge sea bass.
But we stick with our standard selections. P has whitebait to start, which disappears without trace, so I assume they were good. M and I have the fish soup which I think is a bit disappointing – not peppery enough and the rouille doesn’t have any real kick; it also goes cold quickly.
For mains, M&P both have filleted sea bass which they say is very good, accompanied by a red onion salad and chips. B has yellow fin tuna with black pepper and a rocket salad, which is cooked beautifully rare, and is very tasty. I have the Dover ray with capers, which must originally have been a huge fish, as my sizeable portion looks to be about one tenth of the whole thing. It’s a little overcooked on the thin end, but the flavour of the thick side is very good.
Service is OK rather than anything special, but at a bit over £40 a head overall, it’s very good value – though you could easily be tempted into spending more.
No comments:
Post a Comment