There’s definitely something fishy going on here in Kent – but only in the most delicious sense of the phrase. Here’s our pick of the best seafood eateries across the county
Fish on the Green, Bearsted
Who’d have thought it: great fish, away from the seaside and just outside our county town of Maidstone. But that’s what you can enjoy at Fish on the Green, going strong for 16 years and located in what was once the stable block to an old coaching inn, today home to its sister pub-restaurant, Shepherd Neame’s The Oak on the Green. Says head chef, Peter Baldwin, who’s been at Fish on the Green since the beginning: ‘From the Rye Bay scallops and local-landed wild turbot right down to the chocolate truffles we serve with the coffee at the end of the meal – everything has to be right from start to finish.’ This attention to detail isn’t lost on the customers, who can tuck into everything here from comforting fish pie or roasted hake to whole grilled lemon sole, served with potted shrimps, buttered new potatoes and fine green beans. There is a good-value set lunch deal, meat and vegetarian options for non-pescatarians, puddings (that strawberry parfait sounds tempting…), ice-cream and sorbets and an imaginative wine list. Add to that the option of coffee and homemade chocolates and you really can enjoy a meal that prioritises every aspect of flavour and service from start to finish. Small wonder it’s got both two AA Rosettes and a Michelin-guide mention to its name. Fishonthegreen.com
Angela’s and Dory’s, Margate
‘Our menu is not so much seasonal – it’s daily,’ says Lee Coad, the man behind both the cosy seafood restaurant Angela’s and it’s ‘little sister’, Dory’s, a seafood bar just round the corner. Both are within a stone’s throw of Margate’s waters and both champion sustainability as far as possible (with Angela’s earning itself a Michelin Green Star in the process), from ethically caught fish to a plastic-free supply chain. As for the menu, both places make the most of whatever comes off the local boat that morning, ‘so if the weather’s been rough there may be a lot of smoked fish!’ That doesn’t seem to happen too often, though – instead, at Dory’s expect smaller plates featuring soused paprika mussels, crab tart and cured trout. At Angela’s, chef Rob Cooper produces heartier fare: dishes such as Dover sole with green sauce, hake with celeriac and onion gravy and lobster with garlic butter. Puddings might include flourless chocolate cake or a junket with honeycomb, pleasing in its simplicity. Bright and breezy ensuite rooms upstairs – one featuring hand-dyed wallpaper by local print-maker Natascha Maksimovic - mean staying the night at Angela’s is an option too.
angelasofmargate.com
The Whitstable Oyster Fishery Company
Eat oysters and savour the taste of history at one and the same time at this seaside institution, which can trace its roots back to the 1400s thanks to its long, rich history of farming the famous Royal Whitstable native oyster (the ‘Royal’ comes courtesy of a royal warrant for the oysters, issued back in the 16th century). Still a family-run business, not only does the company continue to farm oyster beds, it has a hospitality portfolio that includes the restaurant bearing its name. In its cosy interior – exposed brick and white-panelled walls, twinkling fairy lights – go for a window table and you can peruse a menu as you admire the sea views in front of you. Unlike their native relatives (which are seasonal, so only to be eaten when there’s an R in the month), rock oysters can be enjoyed all year round and feature heavily on the menu here. Enjoy them as they come, fresh with lemon, or in a more exotic incarnation: ‘royale’ (with black truffle and champagne) and ‘Rockefeller’ (with spinach, cream cheese and Emmental). Local fish on offer includes Thornback ray, cod and wild seabass. Make a stay of it by booking one of the company’s nearby Fisherman’s huts or a room at its beach-chic Hotel Continental.
whitstableoystercompany.com
Kebbells, Broadstairs
Owners Richard and Sarah Kebbell took on totally new careers when, having enjoyed childhood holidays with family on the Kent coast, they decided to become restaurateurs there, buying Kebbells’ premises in Broadstairs back in 2019. Today, a major plus at this friendly seafood bar and restaurant overlooking lovely Viking Bay is its long wooden counter. Here, guests can sit and interact with the head chef Craig Mather and his team as they prepare a range of dishes – a great option, then, if you like to know as much as possible about your food and how it’s prepared. Elsewhere in the vintage-styled restaurant, table service brings delights including small plates of succulent gambas, tuna tartare, steamed mussels and tandoori scallops. Alternatively fill your boots with whole flame-grilled seabream with garlic, lemon, rosemary and thyme or specials such as barbecued monkfish. Gluten-free food is always an option, and a wine list celebrates Kent, with offerings from the likes of Chapel Down and Balfour. Kebbells also specialises in Friday-Sunday brunches –expect grilled kippers and kedgeree, as well as smashed avocados and Turkish eggs. In just a few years, the restaurant has earned itself a mention in the Michelin Guide and was this year named Restaurant of the Year at the Kent and Medway Food Awards, while its customers rave about not just about the food but about the enthusiastic staff, too. Sounds well worth a visit to us. kebbells.com
The Waterfront, Hythe
Glorious views, an abundance of seafood and a real sense of glamour come together at this bright, light and flower-festooned waterside restaurant. Plenty of tables on its outside terrace make it just the spot for a sunny summer’s evening, with ample room inside if the weather’s turned decidedly British. This is a place to see and be see, so begin with a cocktail or a glass or two of Kentish bubbles and see where the mood takes you – the Waterfront might even be hosting one of its regular live music evenings, so you can peruse the menu to the soothing sounds of a local singer. Food-wise, choose from fishcakes, calamari and crab bon bons for starters, moving on, perhaps, to share a seafood platter for two that includes not only crayfish, smoked salmon, mussels and king prawns but that also comes with two types of sauce (aioli and marie-rose), rustic bread and - arguably most importantly - chips. You really can’t say fairer than that. Thewaterfront.co.uk
Sankey’s Old Fishmarket and Sankey’s Pub and Restaurant, Tunbridge Wells
Sankey’s certainly lives up to its reputation as ‘an upmarket seafood bar in a striking location’: on Tunbridge Wells’ colonnaded 17h-century Pantiles, housed in what was originally, and appropriately enough, the fish market. It’s recently been awarded two AA rosettes - something owner Matthew Sankey is understandably proud of.. Sustainable fish and shelfish is carefully sourced and freshly prepared: ‘Our most popular dish is almost certainly our Cornish lobster linguine,’ says Matthew, ‘though our seafood platters are very popular too. We source our seafood from all over the UK, but my favourite people to deal with are in Newlyn, Cornwall. Here, we buy our lobsters, crab and crawfish from the same company my grandfather started using in the 1960s. Hake, John Dory, skate, monkfish and Dover sole also come right off the boats and are sent up to us directly daily.
'The winter months are great for shells like mussels and clams, but the summer months provide the perfect conditions for our crustaceans. For instance, we get crawfish from the crawfish fishery in Cornwall, flourishing again now, having been completely over fished in the 1980’s. These are fabulous creatures that have been pretty much missing form our menus for almost three decades, so it’s great to be offering them again.’
Meanwhile, Sankey’s rock oyster ‘happy hour’ runs on Fridays from 4pm to 5pm and all day on Sundays, there’s a reasonably priced three-courses set lunch and jazz nights in the summer on the Pantiles means there's live music and a buzzy atmosphere for guests to enjoy every Thursday evening.
For a different feel, head up the hill to an old Victorian manor house on Mount Ephraim, where you’ll find Sankey’s Seafood Restaurant and Pub – a cosy setting for comfort dishes including haddock in a rich leek mornay sauce and fish and chips, plus a special menu just for children.
sankeys.co.uk
Rocksalt and Little Rock Folkestone, Folkestone.
If you’ve meandered alongside Folkestone’s harbour, you really can’t have missed Rocksalt on the old fishmarket – a striking restaurant-with-rooms, opened in 2011, with its cantilevered terraces overlooking the water. Its ‘sister’ restaurant, Little Rock, meanwhile, is closer to the harbour arm, housed in a former shipping container. Both of course serve fresh, local and seasonal fish and seafood, supplied straight from The Folkestone Trawlers operating out of Folkestone Harbour and the surrounding Hythe Bay area, with Rocksalt featuring an a la carte menu (think Rye Bay hake, served with seaweed butter sauce, mussels and prawns or gilt-head bream, stuffed with lemon and herbs and served with a Simpson’s Chardonnay & caviar cream), cocktails and a set late-evening offering. At Little Rock, pinch yourself during the summer months when the sun’s shining and you could be in Florida, Ibiza - even the Caribbean, such is the relaxed vibe here. Again, expect to enjoy a fresh, local, catch of the day, weekly specials or regular favourites such as pale-ale battered cods’ cheeks or squid and chickpea stew. Weekends kick off here with brunch every Saturday and Sunday from 10am - Little Rock was voted one of the top 100 brunch and Sunday lunch locations in 2023 by OpenTable. Those looking for a boozier start to the weekend will enjoy the bottomless brunch, which offers seared Folkestone scallops on toasted docker sourdough or steamed mussels, available between 10am and 1pm. Both restaurants’ dedicated children’s menus also make them good choices for hungry families.
littlerockfolkestone.co.uk
