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Costas Fish Restaurant
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An antidote to Notting Hill flummery, this no-nonsense chippie has been deep-frying since 1981. It is cunningly disguised as a common-or-garden takeaway, but if you march past the gleaming fryer, you’ll enter a gratifyingly simple dining room furnished with caff-style wooden tables and chairs and red leatherette banquettes. There’s a Hellenic accent to the menu – the restaurant is sibling to the neighbouring Greek Cypriot Costas Grill – as evidenced by houmous in the starters, calamares among the mains, and retsina and palatable Keo lager on the drinks list. To start, a mound of pink, oniony taramasalata with toasted pitta (that could easily be shared by two) was surpassed by cod’s roe clothed in the most fragile of batters. Still more pleasing were main courses of meaty rock salmon and delicate lemon sole, as were the golden brown chips (fried in vegetable oil), bowlful of mushy peas and pickled onion (presented Damien Hirst-style in six slices by the cheerful waitress). Desserts include baklava. Local families, ravenous toddlers in tow, were tucking in with abandon: and not a media darling in sight.
Time Out Eating & Drinking Guide 2009
Time Out reviews restaurants anonymously and pays for meals. Of course, we cannot guarantee the accuracy or independence of user reviews.
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Details
- 18 Hillgate Street, Notting Hill, W8 7SR
- Area: Notting Hill
- Tel: 020 7727 4310
- Category: Fish & Chips
- Travel: Notting Hill Gate tube
- Times: Lunch served noon-2.30pm, dinner served 5.30-10.30pm Tue-Sat
- Price: Main courses £5.20-£8
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While the reviews here, including Timeout's London Cheap Eats Book gives this place a 5-star review, I found it to be quite mediocre. This place is a bit of a tourist trap due to its location. The food is NOT Amazing for what you pay. Living in London for two months, I have to say that there are many MUCH BETTER places with fish 'n chips, without paying the tourist prices.
Best Chips Ever!
We've only ever taken food away from Costa but while waiting for our fish, chips and mushy peas, have seen all sorts of happy-looking people leaving the restaurant. The man who serves us our food—is he Mr Costa?—has a quiet, friendly charm. Fish prices have been going up, yet this is still a good deal and every few weeks when we're in the vicinity we're happy to go there for our supper.
I visited Costas following the above review/ recommendation but my experience was extremely disappointing:
- for starters, we had a decent portion of tarama which was really tasty and I hoped it set a precedent for our main course, but
- we had a "double" portion of cod and chips which consisted of 2 small (and I mean herring-sized) pieces of cod in a thick oily batter served with a bowl of oily tasteless chips. The fish was not full of solid flakes but mushy
- my other companion had "fishcakes" which were really 3 small potato cakes with no taste of fish, covered in thick breadcrumbs
Our total bill including a pre-added service charge totalled £35!!! Oh and they only accept payment in cash or cheque.
This restaurant is no better and actually a lot worse than any high street chippie in any part of the UK.
Very, very disappointed.
I WAS LAST THERE IN 1986 AND I WANT IT TO BE MY FIRST STOP THIS AUGUST, AS IT IS LOCATED JUST BEYOND THE TUBE AT NOTTING HILL GATE, RUN BY A GREEK FAMILY BACK THEN AND WAS A PLACE TO FIND GREAT FOOD AT A NON LEICHESTER SQUARE PRICE, SO SKIP MAXIMS AND REUBENS AND GO THERE IF YOU HAVE HALF A BRAIN, AND I WILL SEE YOU THERE BEFORE THE PLAY STARTS.
i`m from Germany and was there in March 2008, August 2008 and Feb 2009 and I must say they serve the best cod I have ever eaten!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I was surprised by the low prices, amazing quality of food! Also service provided by eastern-european waitresses was really great!!! I recommended it to everybody!
Best Fish and Chips in London. Beats the fashionable sea shells in Lisson Grove hands down. Fish is fresh and cooked to order.
This rating is for the take-away restaurant. There is a normal restaurant too. Fish and chips is really good