| Quality of service | 4/10  |
|---|---|
| Quality of food | 6.5/10 |
| Value for Money | 4.5/10 |
| Overall rating | 5.5/10 |
By Tania
on 5th Mar 2008
| Food Type | British |
|---|---|
| Average cost per head | Not supplied |
| How often do you eat here? | First time |
| Atmosphere | Suits all |
| Quality of service | 3/10 |
| Quality of food | 4/10 |
| Value for money | 2/10 |
| Overall value | 3/10 |
 Tania's recommendation | |
Possibly the best presented fish and chips I've ever been served...
...but then who gives a monkeys about a lemon wedge and fresh parsley when the chips don't taste home made?!!
Having just returned from Padstow (a lovely weekend overall), one thing I found completely unavoidable about this quaint harbour village in Cornwall was Rick Stein. it seemed that upon every corner I turned, there was his name again! A restaurant, a seafood school, shops, a couple of cafe's, a chip shop, a gift shop... you name it.
Now I'm a foodie, and although perhaps not one of my favourite celebrity chefs, I have in the past been partial to the odd Rick Stein recipe... heck I've even watched his TV programme once or twice. I was, however, a little astounded at his somewhat distasteful takeover of an otherwise charming little place.
Despite my best efforts to not buy into celebrity hype, the need for a fish and chip lunch by the harbour on a wet day overtook my initial grievances and I headed for the only chip shop that was open that day... Yep, you guessed it: Stein's Fish And Chips.
Faced with a choice between joining a massive queue for the overcrowded cafe for a £5.50 special of fish, chips, peas, bread and butter and a cup of tea, or getting a takeaway (for a sightly heftier price of around £8.00, minus drink), I decided to opt for the latter. Still liking the idea of washing down my food with a cuppa and willing to fork out for the privilege, I asked if this was a possibility - only to be responded to with a rather stony faced 'no' from the lady behind the counter. A polite 'sorry' wouldn't have gone amiss. Still hungry, I decided not to be put off and was rather looking forward to chowing down on some quality fish and chips... after all this wasn't any old chippy, this is Rick Steins!
Lunch was served up fairly quickly in a neat little box, complete with a garnish of flat leaf parsley and a piece of fresh lemon. Nice touch. Fish (cod) was fresh but a little over battered for my liking. To my surprise and disappointment though; the chips had a texture not dissimilar to that dry powdery consistency that can only be achieved by frozen supermarket oven chips. Not that there's anything terribly wrong with supermarket oven chips, but you'd expect a little more from a restaurant endorsed by a Michelin starred chef.
Perhaps I'm being a little too particular here; but as a northern gal I take my fish and chips seriously. In my opinion you can't beat a soggy portion of home made chips and battered cod cooked in beef dripping, wrapped in paper and washed down with a milky cup of tea. As a purist I have to say that fancy packaging, garnishes and staff in uniforms just don't cut it.
Overall; the food was disappointing and over priced, matched by rather unfriendly service from staff who seemed to think that being nice to customers came secondary to having the name of a celebrity chef on your uniform. I don't know, perhaps in Cornwall they don't do the chippy thing quite like us up north, or maybe this isn't a very good example to go by... Either way; all I can say is that from now on I'll be far more appreciative of the delightfully greasy, affordable cuisine and warm service offered by my local, family run chip shop.
Rick Stein has most definitely gone down in my estimation, and I can't help thinking he's sold out by putting his name to everything he possibly can.
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