The 10 Best UK Seafood Hidden Gems Worth Travelling To
Quite why the British don’t consistently and noisily shout about the quality of our seafood and shellfish is something of a mystery. Indeed, in my various travels around the world, my enthusiasm for the crustaceans and bivalves of the United Kingdom has often been met with a mixture of surprise, bemusement and mild disbelief; it’s either a PR message that got lost somewhere in the English Channel across the decades, or a by-product of the long-outdated notion that English cuisine simply isn’t worth celebrating.
And yet, and yet. British seafood isn’t just good – it’s right up there with the very best in the world. There’s something about the icy waters of the North Sea that allows our most prized specimens to grow slowly and beautifully, allowing for sublime flavours and generous portion sizes. For those who know (and if you don’t, where have you been?) there are few gastronomic pleasures more satisfying than the briny kiss of a plump, fresh oyster, few foodie delights more thrilling than the sweetness of a fire-grilled razor clam, and few suppers more comforting than thickly-slathered crabmeat on hunks of brown toast.
British seafood, finest in the world.
Where can I eat the best shellfish in the UK?
There’s a misunderstanding at play amongst the British, and it’s one that causes me no end of frustration. For some reason, seafood and shellfish are considered posh – that is, somewhat inaccessible, rather on the pricey side, or reserved only for special occasions. It’s a particular annoyance of mine that’s also present in the realm of game meats (as a nation, we should all be eating more venison; a lean, wild, organic meat that’s important for permaculture and nowhere near as expensive as most people think) – there are affordable places to get your hands on absolutely spectacular seafood up and down the country, and many of them are well worth travelling for.
The Last Concierge, as our name suggests, is all about seeking out such hidden gems; those places where you’re guaranteed quality, hospitality and a memorable experience. Here, then, are our 10 must-visit seafood eateries, where the very best of British shellfish is served with a commitment to freshness, to excellence, and to showcasing the kind of local produce we should all be shouting about from the rooftops.
Atlantic prawns at the exceptional Noah’s, Bristol
We all have our favourite local chippy, but I’m willing to bet my local chippy is up there with the best of them. Noah’s has only been open for a couple of years, but they’ve rocketed their way onto the list of best British fish and chip restaurants on the back of their stunning attention to detail and meticulous attitude to sourcing the best ingredients.
OK – it’s not a seafood restaurant in the way everything else on this list is, but their monkfish tail with Brixham mussels is one of my favourite dishes around, their menu is based on the best catch from down the road in Devon, and their ‘Lock Keeper’s Lunch’ value menu (featuring battered haddock, chips and tartare sauce served in a scallop shell) makes me happy to be alive.
The most generous portion of langoustines, Harbour Inn
The Harbour Inn, Islay
If you’re visiting the windswept Scottish island of Islay, the chances are you’re there for the whisky. There’s nothing wrong with this – some of the best single malts on Earth are to be found on this peaty outcrop, and I’d never not recommend spending some serious time hanging around The Bowmore distillery and tasting room. However, just down the road from The Bowmore is The Harbour Inn, where uber-local shellfish is served in gargantuan portions for thrillingly affordable prices.
The dish of langoustines I was served was genuinely breathtaking – a mountain of the hugely underrated crustaceans, steamed to perfection and served with a pile of hot chips – was one of the best things I ate all year. A similarly massive heap of fat scallops almost tipped me over the edge, and with the view of the raging sea from the warm and peaceful dining room? It really doesn’t get much better. Hop on a Loganair flight from Glasgow airport and see (and taste) for yourself.
Spectacular Lovecraftian cookery, Angela’s
Margate is one of those corners of the UK where you just know you’re going to eat well. As soon as you step onto the long and winding promenade, you’re likely to catch a whiff of grilled seafood from one of the many restaurants offering up freshly caught-and-cooked shellfish, and there are many local eateries that could have made this list. Angela’s, however, is arguably the best and more than worth celebrating.
Angela’s (and its sister restaurant Dory’s) has a daily changing menu, based on whatever is hauled in from the Kentish coast that particular morning. That’s the first green flag to keep to mind. More come in the form of the menu’s mainstays and big-hitters – poached oysters with trout roe, fresh scallops with lentils, mackerel with sweetcorn and lobster with garlic butter, to name but a few. This is seafood handled with real love and care, and yet still with plenty of flair and passion for big-hitting flavours and winning combinations.
What more could you wish for? Fresh from the Sea
Fresh From the Sea, Port Isaac, Cornwall
You’ve got to love the Ronseal approach to the naming of this tiny seafood joint in pretty Port Isaac in Cornwall. The directness doesn’t end with the moniker, either – this is a place to drop by, sit down and tuck into a seriously impressive and achingly fresh shellfish menu, which again, changes depending on whatever fisherman Calum has managed to drag from the sea that day.
Calum’s wife Tracey takes the catch and cooks it simply, knowing that you really can’t mess about too much with nature’s perfection. The result is freshly-shucked oysters, hand-picked lobster and the best crab sandwiches I’ve ever had the pleasure of eating, alongside sustainably-caught fish including sensational Cornish mackerel and pollock. It’s utterly unpretentious, and a fabulous testament to the quality of local produce and a heritage of catching and cooking seafood that deserves your attention.
Do yourself a favour, order the anchovies. St Eia
We love St. Eia at The Last Concierge. It’s a Michelin-recommended restaurant in the ever-popular and often painfully-overcrowded St. Ives, and yet coming across it – tucked away as it is down some of the town’s more higgledy-piggledy streets – always feels like revealing a precious secret. Their fantastically affordable lunch menu is something I’ll return to again and again, as the kitchen staff truly recognise the importance of letting superior ingredients speak for themselves, whether that’s the Isle of Wight tomatoes, the local peas tossed with sheep’s curd and mint, or the Newlyn crab on toast that’s a real taste of Cornish excellence.
Again, St Eia probably doesn’t count as a seafood restaurant per se, but it does champion local fish and shellfish in a way I can’t help shouting about. It’s also the place where I discovered that anchovies were so much more than those curled brown things you find on pizza, and for that revelation alone they deserve to be celebrated with the greatest zeal.
Fritto Misto by the Sea. Divine.
Gower Seafood Hut
Simple, honest, utterly unpretentious – the Gower Seafood Hut on Swansea’s iconic Mumbles strip is British seafood at its most immediate and most utterly satisfying. The name tells you everything you need to know about this small and beloved business; it’s just a hut, serving seafood caught in and around the Gower just along the coast.
The team behind Gower Seafood Hut have struck gold with their offering, identifying a kind of street food-meets-seafood combo that’s perfect for casual dining and snacking while wandering along the beach. We loved the popcorn cockles served with a punchy aioli, and the fresh Gower cockles (with vinegar and white pepper) are a stark reminder of the kind of shellfish dish adored by our grandparents and well worth revisiting today. The calamari is excellent, the fritto misto brings together sardines, samphire and calamari in crispy, crunchy, zippy perfection, and the breaded whitebait is another British classic that never fails to hit the spot.
Decadent, delicious and yet utterly unpretentious
We’re back up to Scotland for this entry, and while I’m understandably hesitant about restaurants with a view, this seaside eatery in Fife is a wonderful exception I’d urge you to travel to. The view is as breathtakingly stunning as the dishes on offer, which brilliantly showcase the best of the regions seafood and shellfish – their roof terrace is exactly the kind of place I’d happily sit for hour upon hour, working my way through piles of crustaceans and more, safe in the knowledge I’m in for a truly wonderful time.
The local lobster with tarragon mayonnaise is the real star of the menu (and a steal at £38), but the big hits keep on coming. Crab croquetas are sweet and zingy with a red pepper sauce, the char-grilled octopus hits the high notes and the smoked prawns are a revelation. I’d also urge visitors to round things off with the cullen skink; one of Scotland’s great gifts to the culinary world, and the quintessential ‘hug in a bowl’ that I just can’t get enough of.
Craster kippers deserve their iconic status
It doesn’t get much more low-key than the Pipers Pitch in Craster, and nor does it get much more satisfying. Craster is known up and down the country – and worldwide, if you know where to look – for the quality of its kippers. Those smoked herrings are an icon of British culinary history and Craster does them like nowhere else on Earth, thanks to a handful of ancestral smokeries and family-run fishing businesses bringing heritage and depth of flavour by the bucketload.
The Pipers Pitch is a hole in the wall in the car park at the entrance to Craster, and it serves kippers in a bun. That’s it. While humble, it delivers up a profound taste sensation that literally and metaphorically lingers long after you’ve swallowed the last morsel. It’s a taste of English culture that deserves to be protected and celebrated, and while far from fancy, it’s more than worthy of a pilgrimage to the North East.
Coming out of my shell, feeling just fine
Anyone who tells you that you have to be on the coast in order to get the best in British seafood clearly hasn’t spent enough time in the capital, or is being deliberately obtuse and contrary. Likewise, anyone who tells you that you have to spend a lot of money to get good seafood in the capital clearly hasn’t looked hard enough, and not least because Oystermen is smack bang in the middle of Covent Garden and – while not a cheap eat – won’t break the bank.
Oystermen is one of those places where everything just works, and nothing is served that doesn’t meet the team’s exacting standards. That means the plumpest, freshest seasonal shucked oysters from Loch Fyne, Loch Ryan, Jersey and Carlingford, treated with the respect they deserve and dressed with flavour combos that have been designed to elevate each and every mouthful. There’s also a stunning array of cooked oysters (we especially loved the dulse butter and sherry vinegar iteration) and treats like whisky-cured trout, crab thermidor and tried-and-tested favourites like moules mariniere. What’s not to love?
Fire, char and impeccable seafood
Overlooking Brownsea Island and Poole Harbour, Shell Bay Restaurant is beautifully positioned in one of England’s most picturesque stretches of ancient coastline. Michelin-recommended and beloved by locals and visitors alike, it’s a restaurant in which the very best of British seafood is brought to life by chefs who know their way around the harbour’s spectacular daily haul.
It’s hard to overstate just how good Shell Bay is – it’s the kind of place you almost want to keep to yourself, lest the queues build up or the meticulous commitment to quality slips. The Michelin inspectors have probably more than proven that would never be the case, and it’s hard to imagine the team missing a beat; just order a big plate of their Poole Bay oysters with shallot vinegar, a whole local gurnard (cooked over fire for a charred and smoky finish) or their Keralan seafood curry and see for yourself.
