My name is X and I am a recently converted fish
fan! Yes, that would be my introduction
to fish fanciers anonymous if such an organisation existed. I should have been a lifelong fish fan but
having been born in Cape Town, I arrived in London and found that in the late
90s, the quality just wasn’t there. So,
I wandered off to pastures new [or rather chose pastures with cows in and
looked at beef as my favourite food].
However, the quality has improved and with the UK
food renaissance, some of the dishes are really lovely. Therefore, when I had to meet up with a
contact for lunch, I chose the Bonnie
Gull on Foley Street which went down well as apparently my guest comes from
‘fishing folk’. It says it’s a shack –
and in a world with Unicorns and Fairies, it may well be - but I would suggest
it is a charming bright restaurant done out in ‘faux fisherman’.
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| With thanks to www.localdatasearch.com |
We were seated by the windows [there is outside
seating but it is summer in the UK so not a hope] and we chatted away as we
perused the menu. Bonnie Gull uses only
fresh fish from British Day Boat but the menu doesn’t stick to our green and
pleasant isle – no, it veers across continents focusing on ‘what makes seafood
great’. Seafood platters and oysters are also
available for those who prefer their seafood less sophisticated.
Sipping on a very pleasant white Albarino, we finally
made our choices – starter and main course as neither of us are sweet fans. Along with some excellent bread, we were brought what is hands down one of the weirdest amuse bouches I've ever had - it looked like crisps threaded onto a skewer with marie rose sauce - not easy to eat at all.
O heck, I thought, what is next but it really did improved. My guest started with ‘Isle of Man Queen Scallops, Oak Smoked Bacon, Sweetcorn Hollandaise’
which looked very pretty indeed. Not
being a fan of sweetcorn, I didn’t taste it but the flavours were apparently
well balanced and the scallops cooked perfectly.
Instead, I chose ‘Seared
Brixham Squid, Spinach, Aioli, Black Olive Crumb’. I love squid but it isn’t a dish which less
specialist restaurants have much success with so I save it for special occasions. And this was very special indeed, the squid
was melt in your mouth tender and the Aioli was just the right side of
pungent. Now I get the need to add a
little texture but I’m not sure black olive crumb is ever going to float my
boat.
The main course arrived in a timely manner with ‘whole
Looe Lemon Sole Almondine, Dorset Cockles, Almonds, Capers, Samphire’ being
enjoyed by my guest. Samphire is
something I recently discovered and added the salty taste of the sea to a well
thought out dish.
Aware, I was about to de-carb my life shortly, I
chose Scottish Langoustine & Lobster Ravioli, Hispi Cabbage, Lobster Bisque. The pasta was good with a firm filling what was
quite obviously crustatian and the bisque was very tasty [so tasty in
fact, I sneaked a chip off my companions
side order and enjoyed it as a sauce].
Not being a cabbage connoisseur, the Hispi aspect to this brassica
passed me by but I’m sure it was an excellent example of the variety.
Finishing with coffee and a final drink in the summer
sunshine, we agreed that the food had been excellent, the staff charming and a
good polished all round experience. Would
I go back if I was in the area? Probably
but it was perhaps just a little too polished for a restaurant which bills
itself as a shack.
L xx
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