There’s nothing fishy about
restaurants in Manchester… by that, I mean that since Sole cast away its nets
and became burger slinging SoLita and Livebait died, there has been no
dedicated fish restaurant of note.
A while back (at least 2 or 3 years),
The
Easy Fish Co. in Heaton Moor opened a small café in the back of their
fishmongers (which my brother in law has been telling me to check out); then, at
the end of last year, they have extended the number of covers and opening hours
to finally give Manchester a “proper” fish restaurant.
Not only is it a proper fish
restaurant… it’s a proper good one too!
My main of Roasted cod with smoked
Applewood & bacon hash, served with silver skin onions and a red wine sauce was an imaginative dish,
beautifully cooked with well balanced flavours. The same could be said of the Salmon scotch egg starter.
With my love of all things pickled,
the ‘Pickled Board’ was delightful.
I’d have liked it if the cucumber strips had been pickled too but the sweet
pickled herring was so, so good that I’ve not stopped thinking about it since.
What I liked about is were the
simple things done well – good Whitebait,
well presented; Oysters served with classic
accompaniments and a subtle horseradish crème fraiche for those wanting
something a little different.
‘Pickled Board’ –
pickled clams, sweet pickled herring,
pickled crayfish,
gherkins & soda bread
Oysters – natural, shallot & red wine vinegar,
horseradish crème fraiche
A cone of whitebait
with garlic lemon & parsley mayo
Salmon scotch egg,
pickled beetroot & saffron crème fraiche
Roasted cod, smoked Applewood & bacon hash
with silver skin & red wine sauce
Chocolate orange pot
with berries & brandy snap
With decent desserts too, even after
one visit The Easy Fish Co. has made its way onto my figurative list of favourite
Manchester restaurants.
