Mermaid’s Tail
There’s an old rule that tells us the quality of the food is inversely proportional to the view from the restaurant. If people go for the breathtaking sight, the food doesn’t have to try. When a new fish and chip restaurant opened right on Leicester Square, it seemed that a guaranteed tourist trade would stop it being any good. Indeed, we tried it to see how bad it was. It was, in fact, good, and worth going back to!
The Mermaid’s Tail has exotic pictures of mermaids in murals, mosaics and stained glass in its quite large interior. Service is good and the food comes promptly. My dining companion ordered haddock while I went for the cod. Both came with chips and the minted peas we ordered. The fish was very good, very fresh and moist, with a nice crisp batter. The peas didn’t taste minty; in fact they needed salt to make them taste of anything. But the chips were good, and not at all salty. High marks for a good value meal.
For wine we chose a Saraza Rapal Valley cabernet sauvignon rosé (13.5 percent) which had strong cherry flavours and violet tones. We didn’t feel like dessert, but we did spot deep-fried Mars Bars on the dessert menu! Now that might be worth a try on my next visit; I’ve never heard of such things outside Scotland. All in all, this was good fish, well-cooked, and reasonably priced.