You shouldn’t start a restaurant review [ARF!] with a comment about the quality of the music being played. But within the first five minutes of arriving at #fishfriday at the Waiting Room my ears had already been treated to B.A.D. Dobie Gray and The Jam.
Job’s a VERY good ‘un.
Time to quit whilst you’re ahead, turn around and the start the weekend with a great big musical GRIN?
Or…
Please Sir, can I have some more?
No need to call Head Chef Charlie Stocker Sir though. Yer man came to personally greet us as we arrived at the old Waiting Room early on Friday evening. If he selects his fish with the same high standards as the tunes then we were in for a treat.
Fish Friday has been slowly, slowly building down at St Botolph’s. The idea is simple - you serve up local fish from lunchtime through until early evening every Friday.
The locality is important. It would be too easy to buy a pack of Bird’s Eye fish fingers from the nearby Sainsbury’s. But keep it local though with fresh fish caught that very same day from down the road at Mersea Island.
It led to a little domestic difficulty. My dining companion doesn’t like fish.
Whoops.
Fish bones have been banished from the kitchen back at base. Hence my determination to get my fish feed down at the Waiting Room.
Don’t mind if I clean up your plate of plaice, dear?
Drinks were served at speed and with a smile. Locally sourced [NOT Sainsbury’s] blackberry and pear juice for me, and a bottle of Mersea Yo Boy for the lady.
When in Mersea, etc.
Chin chin.
And then something quite astonishing happened.
Two generous servings of plaice, cod and chips soon arrived. I attempted to make a lame joke about Thank Fish it’s Friday, but Wifey was already stuffing her face full of plaice before I even got to the punch line.
Well I never.
“This doesn’t smell like fish”
… was her rather astute observation.
And this was the tipping point to overcome her fish phobia. It turns out that it’s all about the aroma. Never mind the taste, smell the sardines.
But we couldn’t down at St Botolph’s. Such was the freshness of the day’s catch; I could swear that my cod was still slightly wriggling on the plate. This was fresh fish served up in under ten food miles. It tasted like no other fish I have tired (admittedly a low sample frame…)
The chips were the size of logs, crisp on the outside and soft within. Mint-based mushy peas added to the mix.
Much to my disappointment Wifey cleared up her plaice plate. I was left licking the bones off my cod.
The fish phobia had been overcome. DO try this at home, etc.
The Waiting Room then started to slowly fill for the evening’s entertainment. The DJ’s set up their DJ thing, and the very informal Friday night gathering was starting to escape from the shadows of the Cultural Quarter [STOP IT!]
I’d had my fishy fill and settled the bill. £21.50 all in, including the two drinks.
MR DJ couldn’t have topped B.A.D. Dobie Grey and The Jam.
I doubt if I could top Fish Friday back at base with the Bird’s Eye.
#fishfriday @stbotolphs_ YEAH pic.twitter.com/SeebLk5CTQ
— Jason_Cobb (@Jason_Cobb) March 21, 2014