Cape Town Fish Market

I was recommended this place by a friend and I'm glad I took his word. We went at lunchtime and just had mains, but the fish was absolutely divine. Everything on the plates just seemed to complement each other perfectly. T

he service was friendly and efficient, and the venue itself is contemporary and stylish. We managed to get a booth which lent some intimacy and privacy to the meal.

Impressions usually change when you go in the evenings, but I certainly couldn't fault it for lunch.

Pricewise, you're looking at £11 to £17 for a main course, which is the sort of scale you would expect from any fish restaurant.

Overall, well worth a visit.
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Steve R - View all reviews by this user
Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 7
Thursday, May 15, 2008

We went to CTFM on a Saturday night. I called Friday evening to make a reservation only to be told to call back between 11 and 5. Sorry?? Anyway, I made reservation online and received confirmation the following morning. No problems there.

For a saturday night the restaurant was not terribly busy, which the "waitron" confirmed, however, service was slow. Not so much the waitress (pardon me, waitron) but I think more the kitchen's fault.

Food did all arrive eventually and was of good quality, some dishes I would even rate as excellent. Salmon teriyaki, altough a simply dish, was great, and all the seafood on the Kalkbay platter tasted great and fresh.

However, all courses did take forever to arrive and having a window seat and then seeing all of the kitchen staff standing outside having a crafty one and a pint, whilst waving to their mate behind the sushi counter did not help our appreciation of the waitron's explanation.

In time we received the dessert, albeit after being served our coffees. These were all great and must have been home made. The dessert of the day, creme brulee was especially good.

With the bill coming in at £175 for 4, it's not as affordable as we expected, but thats likely to be the 12.5% services. I find that steep, more so when you have to wait fairly long for your food and the "waitron's" English could and should be better (for a South African restaurant!!!!)

Wines are, as far as I tasted them, great and obviously South African. The unoaked chardonay was nice and crisp.

Overall, I'd say it's a good enough place and would come back. Perhaps not soon but still..... Maybe a 7 out of 10...

Almost forgot, they ran out of vanilla icecream. The only have one flavour, and they ran out! On a saturday night! Not sure who does the ordering but shame on you.
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Jurriaan
Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 5 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 6
Monday, February 25, 2008

The food was nice enough but portions are extremely small. A salad arrived in a bowl with a diameter of no more than 5 inches - laughable! Prices are too expensive for such small portions.

The waiting staff act as if they are on commission. After taking our order they weren't happy with the amount we had ordered (5 main course melas!) and gave me a frustrated look. Not worth the 12.5% tip they add on.

General restaurant is fine but don't sit near the water wall - you will not be able to hear over the noise!

Overpriced and not worth it. Avoid!
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Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 6 | Atmosphere 4 | Value for money 1
Friday, February 22, 2008

The place where I spent the St. Valentine's Day last week. Definetely would recommend if are you keen on fine food and superb qulity.

Food

Deserves a high mark, however squid was a bit bland taste, maybe some sweet soy souce would be proper addition.

Service

Indeed covers the 12.5% service charge (keep this in mind too, when ordering the half of menu). Waiter is kind and delevery won't keep you waiting long.

Atmosphere

A great disegn in the the best of marine spirit. Waterfall glass and aquariums with giggling lobsters won't leave you indifferent.

Overall

Nice place in the heart of London.
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Alexander T - View all reviews by this user
Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 9
Monday, February 18, 2008

I was being taken to see a show at the London Palladium and was in charge of booking a restaurant for my Girlfriend and her Parents. The Cape Town Fish Market look perfect as it was only next door and sounded very good. The decor was great and starters very pleasant, but then the main course was brought out warm/cold. This was the case for all 5 main dishes. We sent the food back only for it to be brought back out warm/cold again. This happened on 3 occasions until finally we got hot food. I can not fault the food once it had been served properly, but you just do not expect this kind of thing from any restaurant let alone an advertised high rated one. Bad show I am afraid and the service was not impressive to say the least. If you are looking to impress the in-laws then this restaurant is not recommended.
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Matty G
Overall rating
Food 5 | Service 3 | Atmosphere 6 | Value for money 4
Tuesday, January 22, 2008

We ate here with colleagues as "christmas celebration". The selection of fish was not as wide as hoped and other than some nice langoustines it could have been more varied.

Service was slow and when the main meals arrived unfortunately the waiter dropped an entire surf & turf all over two of our party which covered them in mess and following apologies from the management team the replacement food still took a full 25 minutes to arrive which meant everyone else had finished their food and one poor colleague had to starve.

Overall a modern looking establishment but I wouldnt set your expectation as anything above average....
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Alex M
Overall rating
Food 7 | Service 3 | Atmosphere 6 | Value for money 5
Friday, January 11, 2008

Went for dinner with friends and was not impressed. Service was slow, food was OK but not amazing and the presentation was appalling. One of us always had to wait for our food whilst rest of the table had theirs. Only redeeming feature was that the teppanyaki chef was fun to watch. Worth a visit but won't go back
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Overall rating
Food 6 | Service 6 | Atmosphere 4 | Value for money 5
Monday, November 12, 2007

Big thumbs up!! I could hardly fault the place. Wide variety of food, I felt spoilt for choice. I even had a choice of steak knives to choose from :) I ordered the surf and turf for main which was delish! The special sauce (ragota?) is amazing!

Anyways, I recommend it to everyone and anyone. Competitive prices too!
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Paolo
Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 9
Wednesday, November 07, 2007

Really good food, wide choice, great service and very reasonably priced. The interior is great, and there is a good atmosphere here. I will return and would strongly recommend this place to anyone.
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David W
Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 8
Wednesday, October 10, 2007