This meal was gifted in exchange for my review (which is always honest and as unbiased as my brain allows)
Food TV has always been a huge part of my life, from watching the old BBC food and wine shows with my parents to the formative experience of stumbling across Nigella Bites when I was twelve years old and having my life changed forever. A lot has changed in tv cookery since then, but my delight in sitting on the sofa with a glass of wine watching people whip up dishes that get me salivating sure hasn’t – it’s just that now a lot of the content I consume is people travelling the world trying regional things I’ve never seen before.
One of the places that I will never skip a video on is Hong Kong, with such an interesting and diverse range of cultures in the region you get such variety, especially in the street food scene. Being so different to here in the UK where street stalls are pretty rarely seen other than at special events, having a whole world of different super quick food options on my doorstep seems like a bit of a dream. That’s why I was so thrilled to hear about The Seafood Guy.
When it first opened in my home town of Loughborough under the name 1998 Cafe, I had been intrigued but never ended up going, partly out of nerves as the content I saw online was in Chinese and I didn’t want to roll in and be a nightmare of a customer for the staff, needing them to guide me through every step of the order. Well, after speaking to Jonny the owner, I now understand this completely – in a rare and I feel very clever move, they purposefully started out this way so they could fine tune making their dishes authentically in a new country with access to different produce and also get used to how the English dine out – which as it turns out is more different from Hong Kong than I ever understood. We’re not really used to vast menus here and we expect a different kind of service. We also tend to drink alcohol with our meals which is a big no-no in China where you can’t have even a drop of booze before driving a car.
After a few years they decided to make the move to Nottingham to a bigger space where they now reside on Castle Boulevard, and having made the changes they felt were needed are promoting to locals like me – and let me tell you, we are very lucky to have them here!
We arrived on a soggy Friday night and were very lucky to get a parking space just across the road, kicking the piles of Autumn leaves aside as we headed towards the welcoming black and yellow exterior. As you walk in you enter the shop part of the business – shelves of sake and snacks and ingredients are in front of you as well as racks of sparkling mementos, jewellery and other goodies. But I’ll be back to peruse those later. We’re welcomed by one of the team and taken up a little step and around a corner to our table. The main focal point is a faux plant wall with a bright neon sign, showering you in light as you sit and stare around at the other artwork on the walls and the books along the back of the banquettes.
Menus are brought to us and this is when we meet Jonny, the very lovely owner who runs the place with his family. In fact, there are children sat doing homework and playing Minecraft at a table by the waiters station and it gives the place a cosy, homely feel. Jonny guides us through the menu pointing out their star dishes, the things you really don’t tend to see anywhere else, and explains that the tv screen in the corner is showing videos by creators that came from China over to the UK to visit them to showcase their team of chefs. It’s an all star cast apparently, with famous cooks from the different regions of Hong Kong who have brought with them the quintessential dishes from their area. For example the omelette is from Kowloon Bay and the Hong Kong French Toast originated in the cha chaan tengs found in the inner city during the British colonial era. Both of these things I’m ecstatic to see on offer after watching many a YouTuber expound about their deliciousness.
We grab a bottle of beer to sip while choosing what to order, which is a feat even after they’ve shrunk the menu down as everything sounds like a blooming delight, and Jonny takes our order before bringing over a bottle of sake for us to try with him. They’ve recently expanded their alcohol offering in the shop and they do indeed have a great array of bottles to try, a lot of which I’ve never seen before despite my haunting Asian supermarkets and restaurants for years. We try a junmai sake made from rice that has been polished down to 40% of its original size, done to ensure correct fermentation and change the flavour of the final drink. It’s absolutely delicious, soft and super smooth on your tongue but with the familiar warmth and strength of a good sake. What a treat!
Our first order arrives and it’s the one I’ve been waiting for – the fried oyster omelette. Each one has fifteen oysters and is deep fried in special pans to create an delightful crispy exterior and ethereally fluffy inside. Honestly, this is on my list as one of the best bites in the city right now – a real must try. There are other additions in there with the oysters like green onion, but when you get a bit with a whole oyster boy is it good – not overcooked at all, giving it a delicate lovely chew and filling your mouth with salt and sweet.
On the side are little dishes of Hong Kong style sriracha and fish sauce to add heat and more salt if you wish. I do wish, and they make each bite even more heavenly. This is a big boy dish too – the omelette itself about the size of a good dinner plate – but despite this it disappears quickly as it’s so light and incredibly moreish.
Next is my second most anticipated plate, the Hong Kong style french toast. It looks just stunning glistening with melted butter and honey and Jonny shows us the proper way to eat it – grab a knife and poke lots of holes so the butter soaks into the bread even more. My husband later said he thought I was a bit mad for ordering this as a starter, but he soon changed his tune when he tasted it. Fluffy yet crispy bread filled with peanut butter and topped with buttery honey? What’s not to like?! It was actually a great thing to have on the side for the whole meal as shockingly it wasn’t overly sweet – a lovely foil to the umami of the other plates. Another definite must try!
Our final starter was the Japanese street food, takoyaki. These are crisp on the outside and gooey on the inside balls of tender dough, filled with a piece of octopus and topped with mayo, savoury bulldog sauce and bonito flakes – sometimes other toppings too. I love a takoyaki and these were no exception, perfectly cooked and a real journey of flavours as you eat one and taste the different sauces intermingled with a smokey fishy hit from the bonito calmed by the mellow soft batter.
We were also brought a small portion of rice to try (which I was thrilled about as a self confessed rice fiend) and it really was wonderful. A Japanese variety that they chose carefully, cooked perfectly so it’s a little sticky while still allowing you to see and enjoy the texture of each grain. Beautiful stuff.
The first main dish to arrive was the beef and potatoes in honey pepper sauce. This was both familiar but different – reminiscent of the stir fried beef dishes you are used to but undoubtedly elevated with excellent quality meat and a superbly balanced sauce. The potatoes were tender, the peppers left a little crisp and the meat was in satisfying sized chunks that fell apart as you ate them. Again what could have been an overly sweet dish wasn’t, with the honey perfectly complemented by big chunks of black pepper and that salty note that only soy sauce brings. A bite of this with some of the glorious rice was indeed a perfect mouthful of food.
And then my prawns arrived, golden and glistening. Batter and fried in their shells (minus heads and legs!) then tossed in a salted egg yolk butter. Salted egg yolk – another flavour I’d been desperate to try for myself and one I’ll definitely go back for. These babies were just, well, wonderful.
I’m sure we’ve all experienced the disappointment of a deep fried prawn that has just lost all of its tenderness, but these were absolutely not that. Huge, juicy prawns in a light batter, so satisfying to bite through with the cooked thin shell that almost shattered before your teeth hit the tender meat. Your mouth is filled with the sweet prawny juice and then the salted egg hits and takes it to another level. Use some rice to mop up the buttery eggy sauce that’s left and then basque in the glow of a fabulous meal.
We were sadly too full for dessert (although I’ll be back for black sesame ice cream soon for sure) but I’m never too full for a browse of a food shop and came away with a nice little selection of ingredients, a new sake to try and some intensely cute stocking fillers for my friends. A good dinner and a chance to shop? What an absolute dream.
If you’re on the lookout for a new dining experience in Nottingham I think The Seafood Guy really is the one right now. Bring some friends, drink some beers, fill your belly and have a wonderful evening!
The Seafood Guy
1 Castle Boulevard
Nottingham
NG7 1FE
Open from Thursday to Monday from midday to 9pm (closed on Tuesday and Wednesday)
xxx
