GoFish Seafood, Bar & Grill, Buxton
GoFish Seafood, Bar & Grill in Buxton serves up affordable, great-tasting dishes featuring top quality seafood. After enjoying a quick lunch soon after they opened back in October 2024, last weekend I went back for dinner to try their extended menu and was impressed.
I first ate at GoFish Seafood, Bar & Grill just a few days after it opened in autumn last year. The main reason for that visit was to take a look at their fish counter. As you’d expect from the sister company of highly regarded RGM Seafood, they had a fantastic range of top quality produce to buy.
I’d got the impression from GoFish‘s social media that they were only doing takeaway for the first week or so. But I was pleased to find that the bar and restaurant were already open, serving breakfasts and a small lunch menu.
So, after stocking up on halibut, cod cheeks, bream, smoked haddock, and haggis to cook at home, partner ID and I decided to stop for lunch and a beer.
I had the large and juicy crumbed Whitby wholetail scampi. An absolute bargain at £6.
ID chose the superb, crisp-battered coley, another good buy at £5.50, plus tangy homemade tartare sauce (£1.95).
We also shared a large portion of very good chips (£4.50).
Impressed by the friendly place and the quality of what we ate, I knew I’d be coming back. So, with GoFish now open in the evenings and with an extended menu, I made a return visit.
GOFISH SEAFOOD, BAR & GRILL
As well as being rather hungry, I had another reason to be immensely glad to see the welcoming, warm glow from GoFish on Buxton’s Altar Way.
The drive from our home in the Staffordshire Moorlands over the A53 is one of the most beautiful in the daytime. But last Saturday night was completely hair-raising. The thickest mist I’ve ever seen seemed to come out of nowhere to create almost zero visibility. After being in a car crash a few years ago I’m a rather nervous passenger, so actually closed my eyes at some points while ID carefully edged on and got us safely there.
DRINKS & MENUS
Thankfully, my much-needed large glass of Sauvignon Blanc came pretty swiftly after ordering. At £11.50 it was the most expensive white wine by the glass. But worth every nerve-calming drop. ID’s £4.50 Guinness 0.0. seemed reasonable for a restaurant.
GoFish Seafood, Bar & Grill serves the same menu, albeit regularly changing, at lunchtimes and evenings. Available from 12 noon – 9.00 pm (last booking 7.45 pm), on the night I was there The Main Catch offered five starters (£5.95 – £8.99), five main courses (£13.50 – £16.90), three desserts (all £6.50), plus a cheeseboard (£9).
All but one of the starters were seafood. I’m not sure about the other, Findlaters paté of the day, which may or not have been seafood. All the main courses were seafood, although the Specials menu had slow cooked venison casserole (£12.95) as well as another seafood dish crispy Maryland soft shell crab cake (£14.25).
As I write, the Specials menu currently on GoFish’s website has one seafood and two meat choices.
Alongside the restaurant menus, they seemed to be doing a roaring trade in takeaways. Available 12 noon – 7.00 pm, the Sail Away Menu featured classic battered white fish of the day, seabass fillet, scampi, fishcake, plus chips and all the usual sides. They are also regular takeaway specials.
STARTERS
For my starter I chose salt & pepper squid (£5.95). This came as a very appetizing tangle of half a dozen or so thin squid rings in a light, crispy and crunchy coating. The squid was cooked perfectly. Soft and tender, it yielded easily to my knife.
My only criticism is that the ratio of salt and pepper was off balance. Although I do like salty foods, the coating on the squid had too much salt and, despite appearances, nowhere near enough pepper. I also happened to overhear the next table talking about the squid being too salty.
Another plus though was the little pot of Korean BBQ sauce that came with it. A pleasing combination of soy, chilli, and sesame, its sweet edge did dampen the saltiness a little. It was also nice drizzled over the accompanying fresh salad leaves.
For his starter, ID went for smoked haddock chowder (£6.50).
This was a very generous bowlful of golden soup which also came with good quality bread plus butter. The sample I tasted had a good smoky depth of flavour with little pieces of haddock. What you perhaps can’t see from the photo is the perfectly cooked poached egg suspended in it.
MAIN COURSES
For my main course, I’d been tempted by the soft shell crab special. But, seeing it had been made into a fish cake rather than being served whole and crunchy, I went for pan roasted bream fillet (£16.50). When it arrived, any niggling disappointment immediately disappeared.
The large fillet had been cooked until the skin had become wonderfully golden and deeply crispy. Exactly how I like it. Underneath, the gleaming white flesh was perfect too. Fresh, moist and sweet, it had been flawlessly filleted without a single bone.
The menu had described the accompaniment as warm Greek salad, anchovies and black olives. Personally, I wouldn’t have called it Greek salad. But that isn’t a criticism of what I ate. Because I loved it.
There were halved, lightly browned potatoes plus tomatoes warmed but still keeping their structure without any mushiness. I was very pleased to see that the anchovies were delicately flavoured white ones rather than the strong, salt-cured type. The dressing and cubes of feta gave a lovely tangy, acidic edge: just right for cutting through the rich bream flesh and skin.
I admit that Kalamata olives instead of the unremarkable black ones would have made me even happier. But being served fish of this quality, cooked really well and giving so much enjoyment for just £16.50, I’m not about to complain.
For his main course, ID chose seafood and squid ink risotto (£13.50).
This was the blackest squid ink risotto we’d ever seen. In fact, we had to laugh as it even turned ID’s lips black! But the flavour was good and there was a range of seafood: prawns, squid, and octopus, with rather more of the latter in ID’s portion.
Although I didn’t try it with the accompanying pesto or Parmesan shavings, ID said that, stirred through, they really brought the risotto to life.
Not realising how generous the portions would be, we’d also ordered regular chips (£3.50) to share. But we barely managed half of those.
DESSERT
When I go to a seafood restaurant, for me it really is all about the seafood. So I certainly wasn’t bothered that GoFish had just three very simple desserts.
I went for the apple crumble (£6.50) and chose to have it with ice cream. Although the apple had spread a bit, presumably on reheating, it had the right balance of sweet and tart.
The crumble had a good texture and the ice cream tasted like decent quality. As it turned out, I think this was a better apple crumble than some where they make more of a thing of pudding.
ID had the chocolate torte (£6.50) with cream. I’m afraid he’d already scoffed it before either of us thought to take a photo. Which should tell you all you need to know, I guess.
GOFISH SEAFOOD, BAR & GRILL: QUALITY AT A REASONABLE PRICE
Being a lover of seafood but living in the landlocked Moorlands, I was really excited to learn that GoFish was opening. I had visions of huge, hot and cold seafood platters, luxury dinners of exorbitantly priced lobsters, mountains of fat scallops etc. But, probably much more sensibly given the times, that isn’t what I found at all.
Because what they do offer are extremely reasonably priced and accessible dishes. Interestingly, the most expensive main course was classic fish and chips at £16.90. Which is quite something when, as we should all know, quality seafood like this doesn’t come cheap. Amazingly, my starter and main came to just £22.45, ID’s were an even more incredible £20.
Putting aside the imbalance of the salt and pepper on the squid, there wasn’t a foot put wrong. I thought the pan roasted bream fillet in particular was exceptional. With almost equally great-tasting accompaniments, a fillet of fish was turned into a hugely enjoyable plate of food that felt quite special. And for just £16.50.
If GoFish Seafood, Bar & Grill do start serving the luxury platters of my dreams, I’ll be first through the door. But, if not, I’m still very happy to go back and try more of their affordable, tasty dishes.
GoFish Seafood Bar & Grill Unit B3, Altar Way, Ashbourne Rd, Buxton SK17 9UT. Bookings: 01298 72458
MENUS & PRICES CORRECT AT TIME OF WRITING
UNLESS INDICATED OTHERWISE, ALL PHOTOS © MOORLANDS EATER & NOT TO BE REPRODUCED WITHOUT PERMISSION
MORE EATING OUT RECOMMENDATIONS
