Jamie Rhodes
As an avid lover of seafood, I felt it appropriate that my first review for Taste of Manchester should be a seafood restaurant by the name of Livebait. My partner and I arrived on a Saturday night in high spirits, nostalgic at being back in our beloved Manchester after a long time away. Having visited Livebait a few years back for a special occasion whilst studying in Manchester (though as you might imagine, on a student budget my experience then was a pretty diluted version of what Livebait has to offer), I was keen to sample the full richness of Livebaitâs extensive roster of marine delights.
We arrived a little early to have drinks at the bar and have a good scour over the menu and wine list. The bar area is modern and flanked by an impressive display fridge in which Livebaitâs âMarket Fishâ stare up at you from their bed of ice. I would definitely recommend asking the staff to talk you through what is on offer in the Market; the selection changes regularly and the staff are so knowledgeable about their stock that you will come away feeling somewhat enlightened by the whole exchange. Here is what I learnt from the Market that nightâ¦
In the late 1800s to early 1900s Britainâs native oyster stocks were becoming severely depleted, but the demand for oysters was ever growing. To solve this problem, huge amounts of rock oyster seeds were imported from Portugal and scattered all around Britainâs coastline. One of the best habitats for the new species of oyster proved to be the coast near Colchester where the rock oysters flourished. This is where Livebait get their oysters from today.
They were stocking Guernet, which is a fish that lives deep at the bottom of the sea, and because of this it has quite an earthy flavour with delicate flaky texture. They also had freshwater Pike, Deep Sea Hake, Wild Sea Bass, Black Sea Bream, Nova Scotia Lobster and Whitby Crab. Any of the fish can be selected and the chef will grill it for you with your choice of side order and sauce.
We ordered our food and asked a member of staff for their recommendation regarding wine to accompany our meal. Again the staff proved to be knowledgeable and helpful, explaining â without pretention â that the best wine to compliment my main course seafood platter would be the Muscadet (£22). True enough, it was a very nice wine, though there is a large enough wine selection to satisfy any wine enthusiast.
The homemade anchovy butter brought out with a bread basket while we waited for our starters was delicious, and a really nice little touch. I had ordered the Chargrilled squid (£8.50) for starter and my partner the King scallops (£10.50); two dishes that I thought might challenge the chefâs culinary dexterity given that a moment too long on the heat would result in textures akin to rubber. I was delighted that both were cooked absolutely perfectly. I have found that squid can be a bit hit or miss for me, but with its beautiful chargrilled flavour, the squid at Livebait was very much a hit. My partner too was delighted with her scallops and sweet balsamic cherry tomatoes.
For the main course I had asked which dishes best reflected Livebaitâs approach to seafood. My partner settled on the special, which was a Trio of fish (£17.95); three grilled fish fillets from that dayâs Market Fish selection, with a side of Rocket and parmesan salad (£3.75). I was told that the Seafood platter (£29.50) was something of a signature dish at Livebait, so I went for it. I wasnât disappointed; the platter was truly a sight to behold.
A regiment of prawns and winkles surrounded the base of an ice mountain, the sides of which were peppered with mussels, oysters and cockles, topped off by an enormous king crab keeping watch over the smaller shellfish below. All were beautifully fresh, and I gleefully tucked into the feast.
My partnerâs main course was equally impressive though for different reasons; the three decent-sized cuts of grilled fish were arranged in order of delicacy and again the well-informed waiter told us the names of each one, starting with a delicate piece of Turbot, flaky Deep Sea Hake, and meatier Wild Sea Bass. Apparently the Deep Sea variety of hake is less common and not usually served, and though sea bass is quite a delicate fish, the wild sea bass is much meatier.
After all that seafood we were both feeling pretty full, and so asked for some time to rest before ordering our dessert. During the break my partner pointed out that everything we had eaten that night was incredibly healthy, and that often fine dining is quite the opposite. It is perhaps worth noting that if you are watching your waistline, but still want to have an evening out dining luxuriously, seafood restaurants like Livebait are the perfect solution.
Desserts, however, were a bit of a letdown. After all that effort spent on superb starters and main courses, the desserts were distinctly lacking in enthusiasm and inspiration. My partner had the Lemon drizzle cake with biscotti ice cream (£5.75) and I opted for the Cheese selection (£7.50). A staff member, who was not nearly so informed, brought them; I asked what the different cheeses were and she told me it was Scottish cheese and that I also had celery, a slice of strawberry, and some crackers on my plate. I was in good humour and saw the funny side, though was gravely disappointed at the cheese selection.
It appeared to have been plonked on the plate, there were only three pieces of cheese (one of which was a large lump of ordinary cheddar, another a chunk of generic blue cheese, and the final a very small block of something smoked), some old dry celery, a small slice of strawberry skin and some crackers. My partnerâs dessert was equally as lacklustre in presentation, and the drizzle cake was a little light on the lemon, though my partner assured me that the biscotti ice cream was lovely.
Overall we had a brilliant night; the atmosphere was relaxed, the staff were fantastic and their knowledge of seafood much appreciated. Our starters and main course were very impressive, complimented by a very good wine. It was just a shame that the desserts werenât up to the standard of the rest of the meal.
Livebait, 22 Lloyd Street, Manchester, M2 5WA.
T: 0161 817 4110
W: www.livebaitrestaurants.co.uk/manchester