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Friday, August 14, 2009

SOMETHING FISHY THIS WAY COMES











Lewisham may not be the other end of the earth, but on a Saturday afternoon, when you are on a DLR train which can’t decide whether it wants to move from station to station or sit between then and catch up on its knitting, it certainly felt like it.

HP and I are going ever further in our search for decent Fish & Chips, as you will know if you have been reading of recent excursions to Finchley (the excellent Poseidon) and Fulham (HP’s fave F&C’s of the year at Fishers) Now we decided on a joint expedition to the well recommended Something Fishy in Lewisham.

I had done the journey before. It should take no more than thirty minutes from Bank station. Scumbag operators of the DLR should take note that, on a day when the other scumbag operators of the Jubilee line (all obviously deprived of oxygen at birth) had decided to close the entire line, it would be wise to put on more trains, not less.

Instead, hundreds of people fought their way onto what few trains there were as they staggered between stations while the carriages and those inside them began to slowly bake in the sunlight. It was like a scene from Hell. People fainted, babies were crying, tempers became flared and by the time we finally reached Lewisham ONE HOUR LATER, it was just as well there were no staff around or a baying lynch mob would have strung them up from the roof of the B&Q next door.

I was reminded of the recent visit to London of a friend from India who said she was looking forward to her return to Calcutta because “at least the public transport system works there”

As you can imagine, HP and I were not in the best of moods and, if it were not for the thought of another train journey, would have turned around and gone straight home. But, we had come all this way and the thought of decent fish & chips made us feel slightly less aggravated.

Something Fishy, slap bang on the Lewisham High St, was already packed as we arrived, mainly with elderly couples taking advantage of the vast portions and low cost of plates of pie & mash. We placed our standard order at the counter “Haddock & Chips twice, mushy peas and a couple of pickled onions” and went to sit down as they prepared it fresh to order.

Suitably impressive looking portions arrived a few minutes later, but on closer inspection we could see that the portions of fish were on the small side and the plate had been plumped out by the over exuberance of the chip dispenser. The batter was good, making a sound like feet on a gravel path as I cut into it and the fish in my portion steamed nicely as it broke into flakes. HP’s was less successful, the middle had turned to mush and although it was better towards the edges of the fillet, you have to wonder how two pieces cooked at the same time can vary so much. Chips and pickles were spot on, mushy peas a bit disappointing and shame on anyone who dispenses tartar sauce out of a sachet, even if the cost of the meal was £17.00 for the two of us with our drinks.

I wouldn’t put this in the top tier of London’s fish & chip offerings. If I lived in Lewisham (excuse me while I put my cup of tea down and have a good giggle at the thought) I could see myself visiting it on occasions but more for the pie, mash & liquor which definitely looked more the part than the acceptable but average fish & chips. It is certainly not worth anybody’s time to travel for.

We were in and out of Something Fishy in exactly half the time it had taken us to get there on the train and not being able to bear the thought of returning by the same method of transportation, we began a long route march towards town until we spotted a bus on The Old Kent Road that would take us all the way to Casa Hermanos. Hats off then to the 21 Bus. It arrived on schedule and dropped us off on schedule. They should tell more people about the bus service in London. It could catch on.

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5 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

Nah, you got lucky with the bus. Yesterday I was on one to Waterloo that midway changed direction to terminate at Trafalgar Square. This has happened to me several times recently and I've given up trying to get refunds out of the horrible bus drivers.

Saturday, August 15, 2009 10:29:00 am  
Anonymous Helen B said...

BUT if you get lucky you can sit on the front seat of the DLR and pretend you're the driver. Fun. Sort of.

Sorry you didn't like Something Fishy that much. As an ex-Lewishamer I feel slighted. But actually probably agree with you. And the pies are better.

If you ever, ever make the journey again, try Meze Mangal by St Johns station. Rather fine Turkish place. You could also try Thailand in New Cross if it's still going - home cooking run out of what looks like someone's front room, with a bizarrely large collection of whiskies.

Saturday, August 15, 2009 10:53:00 am  
Blogger Hollow Legs said...

I'm not sure what possessed you to get the DLR... Lewisham is 15 from London Bridge.

Shame it's not better, as I live near Lewisham. I also giggled at the thought of you guys living there.

Helen B is right - Meze Mangal is really good. Thailand is also still open, but I'm yet to try it.

Saturday, August 15, 2009 3:13:00 pm  
Anonymous Krista said...

I'm with Lizzie. Should you ever return, take the overground from London Bridge next time!

Sunday, August 16, 2009 11:01:00 am  
Blogger Cal said...

If the 21 bus takes you home then you must live near me - I shall keep my eyes peeled.

I love the 21 bus though not the person on it who walked off with my lovely orange coat instead of handing it to lost property.

Monday, August 17, 2009 12:36:00 pm  

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