FT Weekend
Hook, Lyme and Sinker by Sophy Roberts
It is a stroke of brilliance that chef Mark Hix should open his first out-of-London venture in this seaside town, which has been crying out for an alternative to deep-fried cod in paper.
There are classic Duchy Rocks, Portland Royals, and Yealm Rocks. These unusual river oysters from Devon are the smallest and fruitiest – and a revelation. For the main, we opted for the mixed grilled fish for two (£46.50) – a generous platter of skate, sole, sea bass, scallops and lobster. The textures contrast effectively: the velvety skate, the fleshy, just-cooked sea bass and the delicately scented but succulent lobster loaded with crunchy roe.
We matched the main with a well-priced Galician white (£28.50 for the bottle) and a side order of heritage tomatoes in every shade of red, purple and yellow.
We could have opted for a showier dish, like the Lyme Bay fish soup with Julian Temperley’s cider brandy (£6.50). But such exotica is limited, Hix’s menu letting the exclusively British ingredients speak seductively of themselves. A whole crab with mayonnaise (£15), mackerel with green tomato salad (£10.75), John Dory with rosemary (19.75) – nothing about these entrées fight the lure of a just-caught, well-sourced fish, cooked simply and classically. And this is where the local boy’s done good – remembering that in a Dorset seaside town, you’re catering to straight-talking folk who don’t have time for poncy cooking. Hence his pollack fish fingers with mushy peas and chips (£13.75), and for dessert, that extraordinary “Perry jelly” with berries and vanilla ice-cream (£6.75) which helped secure Hix’s success on the recent television series Great British Menu.
