The Old Pearler Restaurant — Restaurant in Denham

Went to The Old Pearler Restaurant in Denham tonight with my love for dinner while on our 4 day trip up to Paraburdoo Wasn't sure what we were in for but I was definitely struck with curiosity as you had to book in well in advance When we got there it made sense The establishment was small quaint clean tidy and simple but very cosy and cute! I liked all the ornaments that decorated the beautiful shell encrusted walls Service was bright bubbly warm and friendly which is what you get in small communities like Denham❤❤❤ Now to the food! Seaside towns such as this should always play to their strengths especially with local produce which Wayne did amazingly well! With an extensive selection on the menu there were great choices from Steaks to Seafoods to Pastas and Vegetarian options were all catered for Me being from NZ I'm always seafood first! First up we started with a dozen natural oysters! Big fat and full of flavour! They didn't last long! Next up was the prawn cocktail An old favourite and it didn't disappoint! Yummy! Then to finish the starters was the amazing seafood chowder which after tasting I felt I should have just ordered the dish as a main with extra bread and be done! The flavours and textures of this dish were both baffling and addictive! Im used to cream based chowders so this to me was confusing cos I'm not used to the consistency but also intriguing because I'm trying to deconstruct the chowder and attempt to make it myself! I do recommend this dish to everyone! Mains were the seafood platter for 1(Me!) and the surf and turf for the mrs(Her steak was cooked perfectly med rare!) My platter had the freshest tastiest juiciest fish all simply rolled in flour and I think fried in butter that I've ever had in WA! And I don't even know what fillets they were but OMG stand outs for sure on the platter! So much so I didn't want the oysters and only ate 3/4 of the lobster tail. The squid rings were in this sauce that had me licking my lips fingers and the bowl it came in!!! Seriously not kidding lolz Garlic prawns were delish drowned in butter with I think a hint of chilli for a nice subtle kick! Lobster was nice with lots of seafood sauce to dip that tail in! Only ate the tail as we had lobster the day before in Cervantes. Wayne even brought the mains out to us whilst he was cooking. Wayne my friend...you put all that food together with amazing skill style and presentation. Thank you so much for the best dining experience we've had in a long long time and your knowledge seafood and how to serve it was astonishing especially the seafood chowder which today we woke up craving again! And for those who want to know....everything on the menu was well priced from starters to entrees to mains! Even the drinks menu was good! As for the dessert....don't ask us cos we had no room left by the end hahahahaha. Cheers to Wayne and The Old Pearler staff for the great evenings dining. We shall return one day but until then we whole heartedly recommend to everyone who passes thru Denham be it for the night like us or for the week! The Old Pearler is one such visit you've got to do while in town! And make sure to book a reservation as we saw a few turned away. And if u are turned away make sure u get that booking in! You won't regret it I promise! Thanks for...

We decided to go to The Old Pearler for a special family dinner whilst in Denham. No restriction on what we ordered as it was a special night out for the family.......this is about where the good times all ended…at the front door. We were bought in to a quaint little restaurant- little and cute - by a very loud woman. Our first thought was that she may have been drinking but we laughed that off- who comes to run a restaurant drunk? -until we heard her tell another patron that she was “half cut and didn’t care”!! We arrived at 6pm and were served our food at 740!!! We thought we had been rather patient but had at least been entertained - for want of a better word - by the “half cut” woman running the show. Her antics around the restaurant were embarrassing. We saw other patrons have their bills literally thrown at them on their table. The “half cut” waitress was so rude to other diners and those trying to get a table at the door it almost made us think we were dining with Faulty Towers.... however there was nothing funny about any of this. When our food finally came, the seafood platter looked sad. The bug tails were grey and tepid, the fish cold and soggy, the grilled prawns missing, the oysters kilpatrick barely warm were covered lightly in what looked like store bought diced bacon that had barely been cooked and had been topped with cheese!!! Not a drop of wostershire sauce to be seen. The chilli squid was swimming in a cold gluggy creamy sauce and actually tasted rank. The only redeeming feature on this $60 plus seafood platter for 1 was a small bowl of garlic prawns that were actually hot. We said nothing at this stage. Then we were served our whole crayfish mornay......it was barely luke warm at best. After being served the platter the way it was and the antics above this was the last straw. I decided I needed to let them know about the cold crayfish. I sent the crayfish back with a young waitress and said politely not to bother serving another. I was told that it was ok and that they were reheating our crayfish. I advised I didn’t wish to have reheated crayfish to which she shrugged and went in to the kitchen. Then the real fun began. The chef came out and asked what my problem was. I told him we didn’t want reheated crayfish, he told me it wasn’t being reheated but he would grill it more! Conversation went round and round and he stormed off to the kitchen......returning about 5 minutes later with our crayfish that had been regrilled. I again told him we didn’t want it as it had been reheated. His mannerisms were aggressive, he glared at me and told me he would eat it for dinner if I didn’t!!!! We again said we didn’t want it. All this time I was polite and keeping my cool but feeling very intimidated non the less. He then started aggressively removing our plates from around us while we sat there and told us to please leave his restaurant. My husband asked for the bill and we were told to just leave!!!!! I would NEVER recommend this restaurant to anyone visiting Denham!!!! Such a shame our special family night out was spoilt so badly by poor food and bad service. A simple apology would have...

I love small coastal towns and the type of seafood they have to offer. Tonight that's what I was looking forward to most. I saw the seafood platter and knew I was choosing the best thing on the menu. I ordered the seafood platter and what was brought to my table was something more.

Let's start with the bugtails. There was no sauce so we are going to expect a fresh sweet taste. No. They had a flour coat on the top of them and were warm.

The snapper. Extremely dry and chewy. Clearly overcooked. Not the delicate sweet and fresh taste you would expect from such a beautiful fish.

The prawns. Should be moist and full of a sweet delicate flavour. Mine were in what you could guess to look like a bile looking liquid (no, not a beautiful freshly made stock either) and they were also chewy, like rubber.

Last but not the least. The oysters kilpatrick. My favourite meal above all. Well it was oysters with a rubbery grated cheese with store sliced bacon. Kilpatrick is a worchestire based sauce with bacon with hints of Tabasco and at times blended with a tomato sauce for a more complex bite of flavour into the dish. Not cheap melted cheese and bacon.

I didn't want to complain by the way. I was asked how the meal was by the server (very polite and attentive lady) and I was honest. I wasn't happy with it however happy to pay and end my evening. She had requested if I wanted to speak with the chef. I advised no. I don't wish to complain just pay and end my evening. Well. The chef came out anyway. With a condescending smug smirk on his face saying to me 'so what ls your problem' I advised my interpretation of the meal tonight and was told I was wrong. That 9000 platters have been sold and are world best. He is unsure to what's wrong with me because everyone else advised best in the world. Also he has a interpretation of kilpatrick with a moray feel, then it's mornay and not kilpatrick. But again he told me I was wrong. Just an FYI my voice never wavered and I was not rude.

Well if making your customers feel like they are being shamed is your thing. Then it has been succeeded. If letting them know that they have to pay for slop is your intention again, succeeded. If embarrassing them infront of an audience, ding ding ding you done it.

So let me tell you something. That chef is no chef. His a kitchen hand at best and even then kitchen hands know the basics of cooking a good meal. I come from a coastal town in Europe. Dalmatia. Best seafood you can get that isn't overcomplicated with unneeded ingredients and flavours. I was raised in restaurants and not for the basis of my feedback. For real. I was cooked for by chefs since the age of 2. I am a very good cook myself and have been surrounded by good cooks and amazing chefs my whole life. You have a kitchen hand. A arrogant kitchen hand at that. If you can't take feedback you cannot improve yourself. That is the basis of any good thriving successful business.

I paid for my meal. I paid for my right to give this feedback now. How this feedback is responded to is going to be a reflection of what the owner of the business wishes for their...