EVERETT You’re not going to visit Waterfront Fish and Chips for the candlelight, white linens or extensive wine list. It’s a walk-up window where a variety of seafood selections are enjoyed in your car, back at the office or eaten at one of two outdoor tables.
The Saturday we visited, the heat wave was history so I wanted to eat in the car, but my Pacific Northwest native and late-lunch buddy wanted to sit outside and enjoy the wind off the water and cool weather. He selected the table closest to the take-out window and settled in.
The view from the tables is a mixed one. You’ll see a union hall, tavern, welding shop, lots of chain-link fencing and eventually, when you get above all that, Navy ships docked at the pier, Possession Sound and Hat and Camano islands.
By the time we’d misidentified the islands and corrected ourselves, our order was ready at the pick-up window. My friend ordered three pieces of cod and chips ($6.95), which comes with coleslaw. I had the daily special grilled sockeye salmon with mango salsa and roasted red potatoes ($8.95). We added a bottled lemonade ($1.39) and a bottled water (99 cents) to complete our meal.
In fact, I had the last daily special, which was served in a brown paper box along with plastic flatware and an ample supply of napkins. My roasted potatoes were coated with just enough salt to give them the flavor boost they needed. The sockeye salmon, served skin-on, was expertly grilled. The wind cooled my fish to the point where the last two or three bites didn’t have any heat but the potatoes were still a little warm. Heat or not, I finished the fish because it was very good and skipped a potato or two because I was full.
My friend’s cod was covered with golden-brown panko – a Japanese coating for fish. He didn’t like the panko as much as the more traditional flour-based coating, but he liked the freshness of the fish and how well it was cooked. His waffle-cut fries were a true taste treat because they’re prepared and cooked on site. The one disappointment was the coleslaw because it had a predictable taste and was limp.
Waterfront Fish and Chips is attached to a popular fish market. The take-out side may be a small, walk-up window but the menu looks like a large restaurant’s. In addition to cod, there’s salmon, halibut, oysters, crab cakes, prawns and clam strips with chips ($6.95 to $9.95). The shellfish choices include steamed clams or mussels, chilled peel-and-eat shrimp or a chilled one-half of a steamed crab ($7.95 to $9.95). If you like clam chowder ($2.99 for a cup), cioppino ($6.99) or fish tacos ($7.95), they’re on the menu.
With prices that don’t break the budget and tasty selections, who cares if the tables are naked?
Herald restaurant reviewers accept no invitations to review, but readers’ suggestions are always welcome. Reviewers arrive unannounced, and The Herald pays their tabs.
Contact Anna Poole at features@heraldnet.com.
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