What the experts recommend

The Shore 13-14 Alverton Street, Penzance, Cornwall (01736-362444)

The decor at this first-rate Penzance fish restaurant is a touch limp, says Keith Miller in The Daily Telegraph – the “stark, pallid room only weakly enlivened by a few maritime touches” (driftwood, a soothing shorescape painting, and so on). But the food! Oh, my. All three starters we tried were “impeccable”: lobster in a Thaiaccented chowder; cured pollack with ponzu sauce and ginger; and lightly cured mackerel with lemon, fennel and dill. The generously sized mains were excellent, too: monkfish with dashi, kale, daikon radish and shimeji mushrooms; and “chunky, juicy” hake on beetroot risotto. The only mild misfire was plaice with pig’s cheek (the menu’s “only foray onto dry land”). Both were delicious, but they didn’t quite work together. Overall, though, I loved this place. Chef-proprietor Bruce Rennie is clearly one of those restaurateurs who simply wants to “surprise and delight” his diners, and make sure they leave happier than when they arrived. We certainly did. Dinner for two, £90. Riley’s Fish Shack King Edward’s Bay, Tynemouth (0191-257 1371, no bookings) “Call off the search. Close down the web browser and put away the guide books. I have found the eating experience of the year,” says Jay Rayner in The Observer. Chef Adam Riley’s “bloody fantastic” Fish Shack – two full-sized shipping containers splendidly kitted out in dark wood and rusted steel, set on the beach half an hour’s drive from Newcastle – is “every boho, middle-class food fantasy made real”. Fat fillets of fresh mackerel, grill-seared until the skin is blackened and bubbled, sit on a pile of crisp-roasted garlicky potatoes, and come with both a fennel and a green salad, as well as a freshly made, lightly charred flatbread. Fillets of plaice “so white and virginal the Vatican would probably write them a glowing letter of recommendation” are cooked en papillote in a wood-fired oven, and served with nutty-brown shrimps, samphire and mussels. This is the sort of fish cookery you always hope to find in London “but rarely do”. And then there are the skewers of succulent squid, and empanadas (beef and oyster; spicy salmon) “so chunky you could sleep on them”. “Oh, my dear, sweet darlings, I think I’m in love.” Meal for two, including drinks, £45.

The Laughing Heart 277 Hackney Road, London E2 (020-7686 9535)

This marvellous new restaurant, wine bar and off-licence in Hackney is open some evenings until 2am – and has rapidly become a favourite with the capital’s “night owls”, says Fay Maschler in the London Evening Standard. It’s easy to see why: it has a stupendously good and varied wine list; exciting, gorgeous food; and a thoroughly convivial atmosphere encouraged by its “big, burly, genial” Australian owner, Charlie Mellor. The daily changing dinner menu is a “compelling” blend of Mediterranean cooking with Japanese influences, while the Sunday set menu is modelled on a Chinese banquet (and why not?). We especially loved an “immaculately cooked” stone bass on the bone with rice wine and (we suspect, based on its “tingling friskiness”) Szechuan pepper. This is cooking with “poetry” in its soul. Meal for two, with wine, about £110.