Contact & booking details

Please note, that as of 2009 this restaurant is no longer known as Catch and is now called Canteen. It offers a different style of menu but it is still owned and run by the same chef proprietors, so this review has been retained for general information only.

Catch is one half of the 2006 metamorphosis of the old Thyme restaurant, the other half of the transformation being Artisan, which is downstairs from Catch. Both establishments are managed by the top Sheffield chef duo, Richard Smith and Adrian Cooling.

Catch is described as a 'modern and lively seafood cafe' and it does have a lovely informal atmosphere. It took us a little by surprise, as we'd expected something swanky like Thyme, but things are decidedly more chilled and relaxed at Catch and though you probably wouldn't want to go in with your gardening togs on, you wouldn't feel out of place in a pair of smart jeans.

Although it's a laid back environment, it's luxuriously casual, rather than cheap - the tables are laid with good quality cutlery and fine glasses and there is a trendy wurlitzer juke box in the corner if you want to pick a tune or two to go with your meal.

As Catch source their fish each day, the menu changes according to seasonal and daily availability and it's consequently a chalk board arrangement, rather than a printed card. It's not the easiest menu to read, so remember to take your spectacles if you need them... we gave up trying to read it from our seats and wandered a little closer to have a look, as many other people did during our visit.

Once we'd read the menu though, we were pleased with the choices on offer. The dishes range from staples such as fish and chips, through to oysters and fruits de mer, which is a spectacular seafood platter complete with lobster and a range of other fine shell fish. That's the most expensive item on the menu and it was priced in the region of £30 during our visit. Standard main courses ranged in price from £10 to about £16 and a number of dishes were available as either a starter or a main course.

To start things off, we selected soft shell deep fried crabs and a tuna salad. Being a new comer to soft shell crabs, there was a moment or two of hesitation whilst I tried to decide whether the etiquette is to eat the whole thing or not. A tentative taste revealed it all as edible so I tucked in and polished off the lot. It was superb, meltingly soft inside with the perfect complement of a lightly crisp outside. This would be a definite recommendation if you like to try something new and a little different. The tuna went down well enough, but as the crab was so good, there was a little bit of envy too.

For main courses, we opted for hake with chorizo and anchovies and the fish cakes. The hake was a Spanish style dish and the fish was very delicately flavoured, so the little bursts of chorizo and anchovy added a nice depth to it. The fish cakes were true comfort food, served with great big chunky chips of the old fashioned variety. The portions were generous and we felt that both meals were value for money.

The only thing we could really fault was the proximity of other tables, which made it difficult to have a conversation without feeling as if you were sharing it with the next table... a small quibble though and possibly less noticeable when the place is packed, as the noise levels would be much higher.

Finally, we'll let you in on a little secret.... we both ate a starter and a main course and we only paid for one of each! How? We used our Hi-Life Card of course.

August 2006

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