Another Sunday afternoon, another empty stomach. Brunch time. This week my foodie companion and I ventured to well known territory – The Wet Fish Cafe on West End Lane – only this time I was wearing my Reviewer’s hat. (If you’re interested, you can pick one up at all good fashion retailers.)
The Wet Fish Cafe
My dining partner suffers from the rare and debilitating illness known commonly as ‘vegetarianism’. Clearly in an effort to stop the spread of this condition, the Wet Fish Cafe has cunningly made it very difficult for a herbivore to find something suitable on the menu. Certainly they have succeeded in removing that most decadent of luxuries – choice. It would seem that almost everything on the breakfast/brunch menu has bacon in it, and though one could obviously ask for a replacement item, I imagine these plague-carrying veggies would prefer to have a few specifically meat-free options. As it was, the sautéed wild mushrooms were opted for, which were served on toast with a side salad. To give it more of a breakfasty feel, a poached egg was ordered as an added extra. Total cost: £9.60. Whilst the food was delicious, and there were no complaints on the portion size front, that’s a spectacularly dear price for some fried mushrooms and an egg on toast.
Eggsquisite! just yolking...
With the full menu at my mercy, I opted for the Eggs Benedict; two beautifully poached eggs atop some crispy bacon and an English muffin, with a generous drizzling of hollandaise sauce. Again, the food was mouth-wateringly good, but the size of the bill left me with a bitter after-taste. Also, being the growing young man that I still claim to be, the portion size failed to satiate my hunger. But I should probably put that down to my own greed rather than a particularly stingy portion. Eggs Benedict: £7.50.
Inside the Wet Fish
If you haven’t been to the Wet Fish before, it’s a lovely little cafe, warm and comfortable, with super-friendly staff and a busy yet relaxed atmosphere. The tea & coffee are excellent and the food is consistently good, but personally I prefer – nay, expect – lower prices from a Cafe brunch.
