Fish & Chips @ my place again

Where: my apartment, Stockholm, Swe

When: Saturday March 13, 2010

What: pollock fish & chips

This is a bit of a make up review. Shortly after the event, we moved from our apartment into our current house and then summer came and then school started. Basically loads happened and I forgot to write a review.

This time I used Jamie Oliver's recipe for the batter and it came out beautifully. I wasn't surprised that he knew his fish batter.

http://www.jamieoliver.com/recipes/seafood-recipes/fish-chips-and-mushy-peas

I give this recipe a 5 out of 5.

A friend of mine has lent me her deep fryer so hopefully I'll be able to try out more fish and chips recipes, including a packet of batter I got from work.

Henley House Pub & Restaurant

Where: Henley House Pub & Restaurant, 22478 Hwy #7, Sheet Harbour, NS
When: Thursday, July 1st, 2010
What: Two piece beer battered fish & chips, $9.95+tax or $7.95 for 1 pc (lunch menu)

I spent Canada Day driving through the Eastern Shore of Nova Scotia with my friend Lori (she had the car). It was a beautiful day and a great way to enjoy Canada Day. We made plans ahead of time to have fish and chips at Henley House Pub & Restaurant (.pdf menu) in Sheet Harbour.

Thankfully the restaurant was open, since it was a holiday after all. We were given a choice of sitting in the bar or the dining room, and chose the dining room. It felt very formal but the atmosphere still felt relaxed on that day due to the casual holiday feel perhaps. It wasn't very busy in the restaurant with there being only 2 or 3 other groups there, plus a couple sitting outside on the deck. The deck had a gorgeous view, but as there wasn't much shade we opted to sit inside.

Since the place wasn't busy we didn't have to wait long to be seated, and the service was very friendly. My friend ordered a bowl of cream of broccoli soup, but wanted to save room for my fish so I only had an iced tea. I did get a biscuit though, and it was really good. Warm, soft on the inside, with that little bit of sweetness, just like my mom might make.

Check out the Nova Scotia tartan on the table!

The fish came on a large platter with french fries, and ramekins of tartar sauce and coleslaw. I found the batter to be nicely golden and crisp. The fish was perfectly cooked, with a fresh taste and none of the mushiness I occasionally find inside a piece of fried fish. Personally I love the large wedge like fries that they served, but I know some people prefer hand cut only. I like biting into a big fry with all the warm, soft potato inside.

There wasn't anything remarkable about the tartar sauce and the coleslaw was just ok. We did have ketchup at the table, as well as malt vinegar which our waitress supplied for us.

The view behind the restaurant of the harbour.

They were serving fresh strawberry shortcake for desert but we were way too full to indulge, though I'm sure it would have been delicious. Can't think of a more perfect Canada Day treat than strawberry shortcake ;)

I really enjoyed my time at Henley House Pub & Restaurant and will stop by next time I'm in the area. It's a great place for tourists to stop and I highly recommend it.

I give Henley House Pub & Restaurant 4 little fishies out of 5.

10000!

Tasty Fish & Chips has surpassed 10000 visitors! I think that's pretty exciting. It's nice to know that people all over love fish and chips as much as we do. The 10000th visitor came to this site on Friday, July 24th via Wolfville, Nova Scotia.

I hope everyone who has visited in the past keeps visiting!

Heritage Fish & Chips, Milton, ON

Where: 840 Main Street, Milton, Ontario

When: 2 occasions during my vacation

What: halibut & chips (1st time) ½ halibut & chips (2nd time)

I was back in Canada for most of June and in that time I of course took the opportunity to indulge in some proper fish and chips.

Heritage Fish & Chips is a place by my parents' place. Apparently they're a franchise of sorts with 3 locations in Brampton and 1 in Milton. The thing that made me decide on going to this place was the fact that I heard their teapots come with tea cozies.

Unfortunately I didn't bring my camera and the camera on my cellphone is super crappy. Not to mention the fact that I don't have a way to get the pictures off my phone.

My first time, I went with friends of mine. Old fish & chips buddies. We used to go to the local fish & chips for lunch once a week when we were in high school.

I ordered a halibut & chips dinner. Dinner came with a side, I ordered mushy peas (did NOT appeal to me), and a drink. The halibut was a square piece, something I have never encountered before but it was DELICIOUS.

I went with my brother on the second occasion. I opted for the ½ halibut & chips. No side. But just as delicious as the first time.

Maybe it's the fact that I haven't had proper fish & chips for so long but this place as seriously good fish & chips. Not to mention the fact that when you order tea, they serve it in a proper tea pot that's in a cozy.

I'm giving this place 5 fishies out of 5.

John's Lunch

Where: John's Lunch, 352 Pleasant Street, Dartmouth, NS.
When: Friday, April 16, 2010.
What: Two piece fish and chips, $7.25+tax; strawberry milkshake $2.75+tax

Back in April I finally had the chance to visit John's Lunch in Dartmouth. It is probably the one place that people recommend to me all the time. Even my sister's boss in New Brunswick said I should check it out.

John's Lunch is just a quick trip across the harbour in the ferry, or easily accessible by car or bus. When we stopped by on Friday afternoon it was packed! There's not a lot of waiting room inside, but we didn't have to wait too long for a booth. We each got the 2 piece fish and chips, and I got a strawberry milkshake. I don't know what possessed me to want a milkshake with my deep fried food, but a shake is something I enjoy at diners. 

My strawberry milkshake, almost too thick to suck up the straw.

Interesting wall with bank notes from around the world. 

Despite the busy pace of the packed restaurant, a waitress took our order quickly. We also did not have to wait long for our food. Those fryers were going non-stop.  

I really liked the meal for the most part. You could tell the fish was fresh, but I found the batter was a tiny bit soggy on the inside. You could see the food being fried behind the counter and I think the fish was partially cooked, set aside, and then dropped back into the fryer as orders came up. This seemed like a good way to keep up with the orders, but maybe results in a not-so-crisp batter. It's a minor complaint though as I definitely think the fish and chips met my expectations. We got Kraft tartar sauce with our food, along with ketchup.

I hear John's Lunch is known for their fried clams, which isn't something I normally go for. I would like to try their poutine and the chicken fingers though. I will for sure go back to this place.

I give John's Lunch 4 little fishies out of 5.

Favourite local breakfast spot closes

Spartan Restaurant on Quinpool Road, will close it's doors on Monday, April 13th after over 40 years.

Here's a few news articles:

Spartan Closes, Louly’s opens (The Coast)

Spartan changes hands (The Chronicle Herald)

Submit your links!

Do you have a favourite food review blog you think should be list on Tasty Fish & Chips? Leave a comment and I will add it to the side bar (I've added a few new links already).

I'm also thinking of adding a separate section on the side bar for cooking blogs. You can send along recommendations for you favourite cooking blogs too!

Good Friday 2010

Every year my family goes to William's Seafood in Fredericton. Good Friday is probably the busiest day of the year. I usually just get a medium fish and chips because it is a lot of food. It's so good!

Take Out Fish & Chips

I got some fish and chips delivered from Freeman's Little New York back in December. They're pretty good for delivery. I have reviewed them before here. I really like the fries and the tartar sauce.

Ardmore Tea Room

Where: Ardmore Tea Room, 6499 Quinpool Road, Halifax, NS.
When: Monday, October 19, 2009.
What: Fish and chips, $8.49+tax.

The Ardmore Tea Room is another one of those local favourites, popular with the young and old. Ardmore serves all day breakfast, and good, homemade style comfort food. Plus it's cheap! The Ardmore has also won many awards in The Coast's Best Of Food, including Best Fish Cakes in 2009.

My friend ordered a veggie burger platter and I got the fish and chips (you can read her veggie burger review here).

As you can see from the picture below, the portions are huge! It comes with handcut fries, two pieces of haddock in a dark, crispy batter, and a side of cole slaw. Our food came quickly and was nice and hot. I was a little bit shocked at the dark colour of the bater on the fish. It looks like they either cooked it too long or maybe the oil hadn't been changed in a while. The fish was good though, with lots of flavour. I liked the cole slaw too. Of course the fries, as always were great!

It was a lot of food though and I didn't eat all the fries. Next time I will just get a half order.

I give Adrmore Tea Room 3.8 little fishies out of 5.

LOL from I Can Has Cheezburger

see more Lolcats and funny pictures

Save Fish, Eat Chips

I came across this really cool t-shirt tonight. Check it out! (Click on the image below, then navigate to Objects and then Save Fish / Eat chips.)

(via Apartment Therapy Kitchn)

Fish & chips of my own

Where: my apartment, Stockholm, Swe

When: Saturday January 30, 2010

What: halibut & chips + shrimps

Ahhh.... the halibut and chips combination. How delicious it is. Unfortunately it's not something I can get here in Stockholm. I usually try to get my fix when I'm visiting in Canada but the last time I was there, I ran out of time and didn't get any fish'n'chips. My plan is to have it TWICE in the upcoming visit.

I used Good Eat's Alton Brown's recipe for beer batter fish and chips. As you can see, the batter is a bit brown. I used Murphy's Irish Stout instead of Guinness.

The fish was not as crispy as what you get at the shops but still delicious. I wish I could say that I will do this more often but halibut here is not cheap. But I can say that this will not be my last attempt at fish and chips.

I give myself 4 out of 5 fishies. ;-D

--Wendy (http://messmor.wordpress.com)

Kungs grillen, Stockholm, Swe

Where: Holländargatan, Stockholm (beside The Dubliner Pub)

When: January 25, 2010

What: Fish & chips, 67 kr (including taxes)

Here's a better example of fish'n'chips in Stockholm. Despite it not being in proper beer batter, the fish is thick cut and the chips are nice and thick.

The "dollop" of sauce would be remoulade. It just makes me think of my friend Denise who does NOT eat any cream sauces or mayo. This would be lunch in her nightmares. I, on the other hand, was ok with it up till the end when I couldn't quite make out which bits in my mouth were fish and which bits were remoulade.

I give this place a 3.5 out of 5 fishies.

--Wendy (http://messmor.wordpress.com)

Half Way Inn, Stockholm, Swe

Where: Swedenborgsgatan 6, Stockholm, Sweden

When: January 11, 2010

What: fish & chips, 125 kr (including taxes)

I had wanted to get fish and chips at Southside Pub at Zinkensdamm but they weren't open till 4 and Fredrik and I were really hungry. The Half Way Inn is the first pub we found after circling the streets trying to avoid Hornsgatan.

The fish is... I really have no idea what kind but it was good. It's not the proper fish'n'chips batter but the Swedish fish'n'chips bread crumb coating. The yellow mush is curry flavoured tartar? sauce. I ate my fish with ketchup. Didn't get into the curry flavoured mystery mush.

I'm not saying that the fish was bad or anything but it just doesn't satisfy that need for proper fish'n'chips. The fish was actually quite good and would've been great if I was craving for a piece of fried fish. But alas, I wanted proper fish'n'chips.

Half Way Inn gets a 3 out of 5 fishes.

--Wendy (http://messmor.wordpress.com)