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Seafood Restaurant

Address:	Riverside, Padstow, Cornwall PL28 8BY
Tel:	01841 532 700
Email:	reservations@rickstein.com
Website:	Visit Seafood Restaurant website
Price: £78.00	Wine: £16.00	Champagne: £32.00
Opening Hours:	Mon-Sun 12N-1.30pm 7-10.30pm

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Thirty years ago, when Rick Stein opened a restaurant the likes of which north Cornwall had never seen before, he little thought he was creating an empire. Now you can eat your way around a plethora of Stein establishments in Padstow, but the Seafood Restaurant remains the jewel in the crown. The decor is as simple as the cooking on offer, & there’s quality running through the entire operation, although execution is not always as consistent as the high prices demand. Kick off with oysters, perhaps teamed with hot spicy sausages, a shared tureen of fish & shellfish soup, or even a platter of fruits de mer, before progressing to Singapore chilli crab, Dover sole with sea salt & lime, or perhaps a classic cod, chips & tartare sauce. Lots of white, unsurprisingly, on the wine list, which has plenty at under £35, & plenty for bigger spenders.

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Reader reviews of Seafood Restaurant:

Squaremale ( 40s, Male, London )

The following is the substance of a letter I wrote to the restaurant after my visit. I have since received in response a patronising, standard letter, which addressed not a single one of my observations and instead informed me that my experience – all of it! – was a one-off…
From the moment we entered the reception area of the Seafood Restaurant it felt as though we had walked onto a conveyor belt, with the main aim of the staff being to get us to the end and back out of the door as quickly as possible to free up the table for another sitting.
We arrived about half an hour early so we could have a drink before going to our table. However, on arrival we were asked by staff if we would we like to go to our table immediately, and it was clear that was their preference. We chose instead to sit in the conservatory area to have drinks and look at the menus. A pre-starter of tempura sea bass arrived. This was delicious; what a shame it turned out to be the best course of the evening.
We were shortly shown to our table, or rather two seats on a table for six. Closer examination did reveal three tables for two, but only just. It was not possible, even for my slim companion, to get between the tables. We have all been subject to close table grouping, although usually in capitals where rents are sky-high, but even then not to this severity. The six of us joked about the ridiculousness of it all. It really is unpleasant to be forced to hear other people’s conversations so clearly, and to know that your own conversation, however muted, is entirely audible to your neighbours.
Some nice olives arrived, although our waitress attempted to remove them not many moments later, presumably in anticipation of our first course arriving. We asked for them to be allowed to stay. They were then removed after our first course – I was bored of the tug-of-war by then and let them go.
I was asked three times by different waiting staff if I had chosen some wine, and three times I said I’d like to speak to the sommelier before choosing. Given the delay in ordering wine our first course inevitably arrived before the wine, which just shouldn’t be allowed to happen. Tap water arrived after the third time of asking.
The food….
“Special” lobster, foie gras and green bean salad – the few small… More

Permanent link to this reviewNovember 2008

Overall:	2
Food and Drink:	2
Service:	5
Atmosphere:	5
Value for Money:	1

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Sarah R. ( 30s, Female, United Kingdom )

I don't think I've ever been so let down by a restaurant before. We travelled down to Padstow from London especially for our booking at the Seafood Restaurant which was made 3 months ago as I'm sure quite a few of their other diners do. Our booking was quite late at 10pm – we phoned ahead to ask if we could arrive early for drinks & were told not to arrive more than 15 minutes before our booking.
Because of this warning, we arrived at 10pm & we were seated in the conservatory for drinks & our order was taken. We got to our table at 10.30pm & waited for another 30 minutes for our starters – which were lovely (turbot cheeks & tuna). The manager apologised for the late arrival of the starter & offered a discount for the meal. However, rather than keeping an eye on the food to our table, we were forgotten again!! This time our main course took nearly 45 minutes after our starters were cleared…AND were wrong when they arrived! We sent them back to the kitchen & given it was now nearly midnight, we felt it was too late to wait for the correct food & then eat given the time it had taken for our other dishes. So we went all the way to Padstow for starters!! In the whole it cost us, £100 in fuel then £250 for our hotel room, plus we took half a day’s holiday on Friday – all that just to eat starters.
To top off this disappointing experience, after informing the staff of a food allergy I have to shellfish, I woke-up at 6.30am with a reaction to the food. I'll spare you the details about it, but it wasn't pleasant. I've never had this reaction at any other fish restaurant that I've been to as I always inform them, in case the stock they are using contains the offending shellfish. I did taste the other starter so perhaps that’s what caused it but I would’ve expected to be informed about any dishes that contained a food that any of the diners on my table were allergic to.
It was a special treat for us to celebrate our birthdays earlier this year which we do every year – last year going to Gordon Ramsey at Claridges which was lovely. I wouldn't recommend going all the way to Padstow given my experience as it isn’t worth the risk when there are so many outstanding restaurants closer to home for many people wherever you are in the UK.
Next time we'll be popping to J Sheekey… More

Permanent link to this reviewOctober 2008

Overall:	2
Food and Drink:	7
Service:	1
Atmosphere:	5
Value for Money:	1

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