Fishworks (Islington)

Took a party of 6 friends here last week and it was really excellent. The staff, particularly the manager, were the best. Some of the other restaurants nearby should watch out because he makes you want to come back. Wasn't too busy on a Wednesday night but it didn't matter. The food was really tasty, such fresh fish is hard to find, it is often either smothered with some rich sauce or has suffered from being frozen, not so here though apparently and I enjoyed a piece of pollack from Brixham in Devon (as local as you can get for fish in the UK) and the Brixham sauteed squid to start, perfectly cooked. And if that doesn't do it for you, then just go for the sticky toffee pudding, which is possible to manage after the sort of starters and main courses that don't give you that over full feeling. I'm in Christchurch next month and looking forward to trying the Fishworks here.
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Sooki H
Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 8
Tuesday, March 27, 2007

Not great. We ordered the seafood platter and several of the items looked a bit dodgy and couldn't be eaten. They were out of lots of things as well, which was disappointing. Had the feel of a fast food restaurant attempting to be above its station. If it's seafood you want, I'd look elsewhere.
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KL
Overall rating
Food 2 | Service 5 | Atmosphere 0 | Value for money 0
Monday, March 05, 2007

Very very poor indeed. We were so disappointed. King prawns were not cooked and was worried we would suffer as a result. Main course fish was expensive and not particularly tasty. Service was fantastic but not enough to make up for the lacklustre food. Restaurants that should have so much going for them and fail to deliver really make me cross.
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Lucy - View all reviews by this user
Overall rating
Food 3 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 2
Monday, February 12, 2007

Wow, just stummbled into this eatery in hungry desperration last night, to discover a hidden gem in culinary terms. Am glad I had not read the reviews as we ran out of superlatives to discribe my personal holy grail "fish stew". I"ve long sort out a Boulabaise type confection worth eating in London and have found it here! Granted the decore is sparton and a little too blue for my taste, but this was ampley rewarded with warm efficient and helpful service, as well as superb food.It was pricey, but the quality lived up to it. Have booked to return next week!
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Cynthia Persaud
Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 5 | Value for money 9
Monday, October 30, 2006

This is London eating at its most cynical. Fishworks Islington is an overpriced and soulless outpost of a corporate chain masquerading as the vanguard of plain, unfussy 'market cooking'. Sure, fresh fish comes at a price, but this is not where you'll get stung: dishes come unaccompanied and so a handful of new potatoes or a tiny portion of boiled spinach will add three extra quid to main dishes that hover around the fifteen quid mark. The cheapest wine on the list is just shy of twenty pounds. With a starter thrown in, you're looking at a total of over fifty quid a head which, even in London, can buy you a Michelin-starred meal in more professional and welcoming establishments.

Yet what I experienced on a relatively quiet Saturday evening was this: an hour's wait for a 500g of severely undercooked (as in translucent) langoustines which had followed another forty-five minutes worth of 'chilling' in a drafty, noisy space not unlike an Ikea cafe by night. All for the privilege of a few razor clams with wine and parsley.

If you've got more money than sense, this is the place for you. Anyone else looking for fish in this part of the world, I'd recommend you give Fishworks a very wide berth and continue up the Highbury way to the local chippie.
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Alex
Overall rating
Food 1 | Service 4 | Atmosphere 2 | Value for money 1
Sunday, October 15, 2006

Fishworks in Islington was the perfect place for a post theatre dinner and it was absolutely great. The simply cooked fish was fantastic and the service was very good. It was friendly and informal without getting in your space. I would recommend it, interesting experience.
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Joy
Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 9
Sunday, July 16, 2006

We go to Fishworks on a regular basis and have never been disappointed! It's a great place!
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Kev
Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 7
Thursday, June 22, 2006

Wouldn't recommend - I too found it overpriced and the staff were hopeless - too busy chatting to one another. Felt like eating in a cafe but with very un-cafe like prices. We had dinner booked quite late (9.30) but when we arrived there was pretty much nothing left that we wanted to eat! All of the items on the specials board had gone which must be down to bad planning. Ended up eating not much at all.....very good taramasalata, very average crab salad, couple of glasses of wine and 1 chocolate pudding between us and the bill was still £60! Wouldn't go back.
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Alex
Overall rating
Food 5 | Service 2 | Atmosphere 2 | Value for money 1
Thursday, April 13, 2006

Fishworks is sadly not a statement that can be used for this restaurant – Four of us endured one of the most overpriced, overrated meals we’ve encountered in a long while. We’re all passionate about fish being keen advocates of Toffs, Two Brothers and Zilli Fish. Sadly Fishworks was lacking in service, the waiters tending to be more interested in looking out the window than being attentive to the many customers trying to get their attention. Would we go back, the simple answer is sadly no.
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Nik Nak
Overall rating
Food 3 | Service 1 | Atmosphere 4 | Value for money 1
Monday, March 27, 2006

What a pity. I had so wanted the restaurant side of Fishworks to be great. Unfortunately it isn't. Instead it is a rather tacky, stuffy, overpriced chain restaurant with printed menus and shoddy service. Why oh why can't it be real, and nice, and everything I had hoped it would be?

We have been using the fishmonger section of Fishworks for a few months now, and have found it to be really good - the range of fish has always been good, and the fact that it is open until 10pm means you can get fresh fish to cook at home after you finish work - such an obvious, but clever idea!

But the best thing about Fishworks fish counter has been the service - friendly and knowledgeable. You know what it is like with traditional fishmongers - staffed by geezers who make you feel like a right pratt for asking for cooking advice (Steve Hatt, just down on Essex Road is a classic example) - here at Fishworks we bought some Bream - they told us how to cook it (roasted on salt) and gave us the roasted garlic and herbs to stuff it with for free. We took it home, cooked it as they suggested and can only say that it was the best fish I have ever eaten.

Which brings me onto the restaurant.

We went on a saturday night and found the design of the space rather spartan and bare, with pale laminate tables and no sense of warmth and charm. The printed menu immediately brings the feeling of a chain, but the specials boards don't give much indication of what else is on offer. As a result I ordered whole herring which came with nothing else - and the waitress never suggested side dishes when she took the order.

Blah blah blah - i could go on, but now that i sit here none of the little niggles seem important enough to go into detail. Suffice to say that the service was really disinterested, the food not as good as i could cook at home and the wine was really pricey. The place was hot as hell and rather uncomfortable and the whole thing feels like a sell out chain, instead of a lovely little discovery.

On the other hand, the couple next to us had a lovely looking seafood roast, so maybe we just made the wrong choice.

The problem is we'll never know, because we won't be going back. There are far too many other great restaurants in town to visit, and i wish someone had told me not to bother before i went - that's £100 down the pan.

O well - I'll probably stil use the fishmonger.
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Matthew
Overall rating
Food 6 | Service 3 | Atmosphere 4 | Value for money 4
Saturday, February 11, 2006