6:00am Sunday 1st March 2009
By Gavin Haines
Storm Fish Restaurant, 16 High Street, Poole
LIKE the sea breeze that blows down Poole High Street, the menu at Storm restaurant offers diners a breath of fresh air. Indeed it is as changeable as the sea that most of its dishes come from, as it
largely depends on what the day's catch has brought in.
"Storm is the only restaurant in the area for which the owner catches his own fish," reads the menu. "If he doesn't catch the fish, he knows a man who can."
Happily, however it seems fisherman and restaurant owner, Pete Miles, has had a successful day. So much so that my girlfriend and I were completely spoilt for choice as we perused this evening's menu.
To help us decide what to have we ordered a beer and a glass of white wine, which was brought over by the cheery waitress, along with some delicious home-made chilli bread and olives.
With so much on offer we decided a starter was necessary. I was unable to resist the whole cracked crab (£8.50), while my girlfriend was drawn to the spicy prawn cakes with lemon, ginger and coriander salad (£8.50).
What to order for main course was a more arduous decision, although we weren't the only ones struggling. For a wet and windy Monday the place was busy, and everyone in the restaurant had their heads in a menu.
Aware that supplies might be limited, my girlfriend and I made our decision before the rest of the diners, ordering a whole roast Dover sole with root vegetables (£21) for me, and a fried fillet of sea bass on sautéed new potatoes (£18) for my girlfriend.
Both fish had been caught locally by Pete and his friends.
As we waited for our food, we took in the restaurant's character. The panelling, rustic wooden tables and smattering of nautical paraphernalia made it feel like you were in a fisherman's establishment, but at the same time the candlelight, friendly service and delicious aromas brought an intimate and cosy feel to the place.
After a brief wait, our impressive-looking starters arrived. My dressed crab full of rich red colours, offset perfectly by the green salad and lemon mayonnaise that came with it, the prawn cakes equally well presented and both as appetising as they looked. They tasted fresh and wholesome, but while the natural flavours did most of the talking, the chefs had worked a certain amount of magic on them. This was evident in the crab dressing and the delicious prawn cakes.
But the bulk of our praise has to go to the mains, both of which were exquisite.
The sea bass was succulent, fresh and full of natural flavours, which were only complimented by the way it had been cooked. The potatoes, olives and cherry tomatoes it was served with brought a Mediterranean taste to the dish, and it proved to be the perfect antidote to a cold and wet evening.
Yet good as it was, it couldn't match the quality of the Dover sole. This was culinary excellence, so much so that it will now be the yardstick by which I measure all fish dishes.
While it had the natural flavours you expect from such fresh fish, the chefs had sprinkled their magic on it and produced something divine. The root vegetables that accompanied it also tasted superb with delicious hints of tandoori flavour.
It was dangerous ordering dessert, not just for our waistlines but because anything less delicious would have been an anti climax. Nevertheless we opted for the platter of three small desserts (£9.50) which we shared. This came in the form of warm lemon drizzle cake with ice cream, raspberry and amaretti semifredo and chocolate tart with cream.
As we scraped the plate clear we both agreed it was the perfect end to what had become a red-letter day for dining.
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