I love fish & chips. Some nights, I swear, no other meal will do. It's definitely a deep fried weakness of mine along with... well, pretty much anything else that's been deep fried. Some readers might already know this after a recent review I did of Harbord Fish & Chips, which was a VERY positive one by the way. But there's a new game in town kids, and it's even CLOSER to my house than Harbord! Right at the corner of Denison and Augusta facing the park now stands Somethin's Fishy Fish & Chips... a rather unfortunate choice of name, but the food could still be good, right?
Only about 2 weeks old now, this small chippie joint offers all the standard fare you'd expect from such an establishment... Halibut, Haddock, Cod, Salmon, Shrimp and even Talapia, all served over a healthy pile of Belgian style fries. Nothing wrong so far... but how does it taste?
Well, I went straight for the Halibut (as per usual) and I have to say that it was some of the tastiest and freshest fried fish I've had in this city. Meaty, moist, and perfectly cooked, with a tasty batter to top it off. Not quite as crispy as I usually like it, but you can't win 'em all, right? Oh, and the fries: simply wonderful. Somewhat thinner than I'm used to, but with great flavour and a nice little spice to them. Dip them into a little bit of their homemade tartar sauce, and you'll find there's really nothing you can complain about. Simple and delicious.
I suppose this image speaks for itself really. Having been open for only two weeks, I was expecting far less quality and a bit of insanity to be honest... but they dish out a great meal already. And as time goes on, I'm sure they'll only get better. Now about that name...
Discussion
16 Comments
Sort By Oldest First / Newest First
Subscribe
Yummy-looking pics! I'm going to have to check this place out...
I'm going to have a heart attack catching up on all the great fish-and-chips joints in Toronto, but by George, I'm going to do it! Nice review, although some more info on hours, prices, selection (say, of sides and drinks) would be handy next time if possible! I noticed they have Dad's Old Fashioned pop ... or did you get that somewhere else?
Thanks Gloria... the Halibut and the Shrimp is $11, and all other fish is $8.50. As for drinks... all standard pops, dad's rootbeer, brio, nestea, arizona iced tea, juices... they've got you covered. For sides, pretty much just fries and slaw... but damn good fries and slaw. I'm not EXACTLY sure on hours, but restaurants in kensington tend to close around 8 or 9. Hope that helps :)
Super! Thanks a lot.
I was doing a physio placement at Toronto Western and passed by during lunch. The prices seemed kinda steep compared to Harbord or Chippy's. Thoughts?
Nevermind....I didn't see your other comment. I must've read something wrong cuz when I passed by I thought it was just the halibut and chips (w/o the shrimp) that was $11.
Weren't people just slagging Chippys in this very space a couple weeks ago for being overpriced? This place is the same price, and the portions seemed to me to be smaller.
Of course there's no arguing with those fries. Those are some mighty tasty fries.
I'm going there tonight for the first time.It's hard to find a decent fish and chips restaurant so i hope it doesn't disappoint.I'll give the verdict later.
Nice review! Tried it out myself and was impressed with the tasty fries, slaw and the tangy tartar sauce and that you don't have to pay extra for the extras here! However, the batter could have been more crispier. I hope this place does well, it's good to see a fish n chips joint in kensington.
I would purchase her delicious tartar sauce by the jug if I could. SO FREAKING GOOD.
The food is good, but it is overpriced - the portions are very small. The woman who runs the place, or appears to run it anyway, is very, very unfriendly - don't even think about dining in.
I suppose if you have $8.50 to drop for a single piece of fish and a small-medium size portion of delicious fries (and tartar sauce) then it's worth a try. But she doesn't deserve your business - ask her for anything other than to take your money and you'll understand.
i'm gonna have to argue your main point there "Reviewer Of Stuff"... the owner is a very friendly woman with whom i've had many a nice conversation with. all of the regulars in the neighbourhood would attest to that as well i'm sure :)
Alas, Somethin's Fishy is no more. When did that happen? I went down there tonight in search of dinner and found a padlock on the door and a For Sale sign in the window. Boo. To reiterate my comment from a couple years ago: that place had the BEST fries.
Thank you for your pleasant comments about Somethin's Fishy in Kensington Market. We will be opening again for the weekend of July's pedestrian Sunday and remain opening for the next three months being Thursday through Sundays until the end of October 09.
We hope you have a chance to stop in for a meal.
Sincerely,
Somethin's Fishy
(Lisa)
I'm surprised no one mentioned it yet but Somethin's Fishy seems to have gone a name change to Fresco's Fish and Chips. I've only been there once but the young guy working there was friendly and I really enjoyed the fish and chips (also came with a side of coleslaw which was a nice considering that usually costs extra most other places), all for $9, btw. Not sure if it's the same owner but they have a facebook page if anyone wants to check it out.
Maybe I'm too much of a traditionalist, but I flinch when I see chips referred to as "fries", French, Belgian or otherwise. When I have fish and chips, I want real hand-filleted halibut and real English-style chips.
Chips must be thick cut along the grain from Russet Burbank potatoes (please no chintzy Yukon Gold or other inferior potatoes). They must be soaked in water until they're curled, preferably overnight. They must be fried only until limp in not-too-hot (320F) beef renderings (never ever use vegetable oil) and then allowed to cool completely to room temperature before being finished in hotter (380F) beef fat.
Fries are served in styrofoam. Chips are served in newspaper or paper cones. Fries are oily and flavorless. Chips are rich and full of beefy potato flavor and fat residue on your plate after eating solidifies upon cooling.
Sorry if I sound old-fashioned but I still remember the 1950s when there were a half dozen fish-and-chips shops in every neighborhood of Toronto and anyone serving previously frozen halibut or French/Belgian fries would be out of business really soon. Re-formed pollock portions and fries are not fish and chips.
This rant is NOT aimed at any chip shop but rather at the reviewer who perpetuates a misnomer by referring to chips as "fries" a revisionist Americanism. Oh well, at least they're not calling fries chips.