ottawa foodies

I just had to share that today, I had the best meal of my LIFE! I visited Victoria, BC and went to Red Fish Blue Fish. It's a tiny fish & chips place right on the harbour.

Here is the Caesar style shrimp gazpacho that I ordered while I was waiting. So fresh, so spicy, so delicious!

And here is one BBQ wild salmon tacone with sweet smoked chili adobo with pea shoots and lemon pickled onions

and

one albacore tuna tacone with spicy spot prawn mayo with pea shoots and lemon pickled onions.

MMMMMMM

Red Fish Blue Fish is possibly my favourite restaurant in Victoria. So glad someone else from Ottawa has discovered it!

I'll be there in a couple weeks! Can't wait! Thanks Martha.

Hey, Martha--definitely add this to the Travel Wiki on the site...worthwhile knowledge!

Also, Fresh Foodie, is there anyway that we can add a section in the travel wiki for a link? Because in this case, Martha could then link to the forum discussion...just a thought.

The wiki supports full linking. Even the name of the restaurant could be a link to the forum discussion.

I grew up in Victoria, but Red Fish Blue Fish seems to be a recent newcomer to the Inner Harbour strip. I'll definitely have to try it next time I visit the family there.

For waterfront fish and chips, I've typically gone to Barb's on Fisherman's Wharf: www.barbsplace.ca/

The most authentically British fish and chips in Victoria are to be had at the Willows Galley on Estevan Street. Less than 1 km from the house where I grew up, and a frequent destination for after school snacks of chips-in-newspaper. Prices have gone up a little since the early 80's... I remember a small order of chips being 45 cents and a large being 75 cents.

I sent the 'rents there based on good reviews from chowhound and they were most impressed. The only complaint was it's only outdoor seating and they were there when the weather was lousy.

I think my father had a Fanny Bay oyster sandwich. Don't recall what my mother ate.

I have been tossing the idea of a "Ceasar" soup around my head for a while.

Martha , was it cold or hot? Any notable elements you'd describe?

Let's do a sub-thread...best fish and chips, locally and internationally.

I'll start, locally...hhhhhhhmmmmmmm not sure (anybody tried that place in Kemptville) locally there aren't many to chose from. Southern Ontario seems to have more...there's a great place in Picton we go to.
Internationally: Brighton, East Sussex...closed know, but used to be run by an old guy who opened when he felt like it as a hobby to suppliment his holidays...wonderful!

malt vinegar or tartar?

I can get behind this sub-thread.

Locally I've actually enjoyed Joey's Only and The Glen, but it's been a while since I've had either so they may have taken a turn for the worse. I dunno.

Southern Ontario: When I was in London I was a three-minute-walk from Kipps Lane Fish and Chips, which was *awesome*. All made fresh, right before your eyes, by a kind Dutchman who was probably eight hundred years old.

The place in Picton is Schooner's Fish and Chips. Excellent cod and halibut there!

In Brockville there are two Fish and Chip take away places downtown (Don's and Manoll's I believe). I've been to both and they are very good and very reasonable price-wise. You can order out and go down to the park by the river to eat.

In Belleville, the Boathouse is good. It's expensive compared to other places but I was happy with it.

Locally the Glen Scottish Pub, Merivale Fish Market and the Pelican are good. Lapointes has been expanding their selection of fish; I recently had Grouper and Chips that was very good and I had smelt and chips there too.

Ahh Schooner's! Memories! When in Kingston, go to the Pilot House - they still deep fry things in beef tallow.

re: other locations for best meals, middle of nowhere Mexico and my turkey w/ mole sauce and a nopales salad with a tamarind margarita. Mindblowing. Also puerco pibil in the middle of nowhere somewhere in Quintana Roo after picking up from freshly made corn tortillas from a nearby villager. Perhaps the assorted jerk grill with plantains I had in the BVI's also tops that list.

The best fish and chips is MY fish and chips. I worked at the City of Bath YMCA for several months and they all the Brits claimed it was the best. They were annoyed that the best fish and chips they ever had was made by a Canadian until I told them the recipe was my immigrant Great Grandma Oliver's Recipe. Family lore has it that she ran a chip shop in Toronto Harbourfront right through the Depression. When they sold the business a condition was that she come back on Fridays to help make the fish and chips!

It is the addition of the vinegar that does it. It helps cut the fat from frying in a way that dumping it on after doesn't do.

Great Grandma Olivers Fish Batter
1 cup flour
2 level tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
2 tsp malt vinegar
* enough water to get a fairly thick but smooth batter, just a little thicker than pancake batter.Or beer if you prefer

4 fresh or thawed fillets of your favourite cod/halibut/pollack/haddock ideally not thicker than 1/2 an inch.

Dust fillets with flour and dip in batter. Your batter should be thick enough that when you Carefully dangle the fillet into the 375 degree oil and submerge 1/3 to 1/2 the fillet into the oil without letting go (how deep depends on how brave you are. If it starts to slip LET GO!) Hold until you see the batter puff up 10 - 20 seconds and gently let go. (I like to give it a little swish so it swims over to a corner and I can start the next piece. But don't over load the fryer you'll drop the temp of the oil and get greasy fish). The batter will now support the weight and you won't have gobs of batter stuck to the bottom of the fryer or fish with chunks of batter missing.

Fry 2-3 mins and flip over 3-4 more mins.

Drain on paper towel.

Serve with lemon, coleslaw or peas or mushy peas and fresh cut fries.

Darn near every meal I have is the best one of my life - you're doing something wrong if that ain't happening for you :-)

Tracinho - the soup was a quite literally a cold sort of chunky caesar. I am also going to attempt to make it myself. Perhaps we can share recipes!

Nice, I'll get back to you at the end of June when I can finally get my hands on some gazpacho-quality summer tomatoes

I like the fish and chips at Merivale Fish Market. Lapointe's isn't bad... but for the love of all that is good, avoid the Fish Market in the Byward Market. I used to have fish and chips take out from the Pilot House growing up =)

Best Fish & Chips that I've locally would be The Glen - The Glen Scottish Restaurant

To be honest, I'm not a big fan of Fish & Chips - probably because I was spoiled as a kid back in Montreal where the local "chippie" was run by a Brit, they even gave you your meal in newspaper just like in the old country. Best Fish & Chips I've ever ate... light, flavourful... perfect.

Lady Who Brunches - When I set up the OF Travel Wiki I didn't incorporate links (although indeed I could have) I just wanted to make the Wiki as easy to maintain as possible (also why there are no Reviews)... it is strictly a list of "Recommendations" for more info Users are encouraged to contact the one who made the Recommendation.