La Sepia — Restaurant in Hamburg

Quintessence:

Their grilled fish is on point, the skin is crispy, but the inside is tender and juicy. They have a lunch special where you get smaller portions, but an entree. Their self-made aioli is great!

In detail:

La Sepia is a really good restaurant if you enjoy eating fish or seafood. I usually order grilled fish as they cook it very well. The skin is crispy but the inside is tender and juicy. The fish is usually served with cooked potatoes and vegetables. The side dishes are no comparison to the fish actually, which is the highlight. Another highlight is their self-made aioli, which has a heavy garlic flavour, and is served with slices of baguette before you get your dishes.

If you eat there in the afternoon they have a lunch special menu where you can choose between a few dishes. The portions are smaller (e.g. the size of the fish), but in addition to your dish you get an entree (usually soup or a salad).

The only negative experience I have made so far was their way of seasoning their dishes. Sometimes their grilled fish is a bit salty. I only had their Zarzuela (mixed seafood platter in a sauce) once, but unfortunately that time it was way too salty.

The staff is usually friendly and polite. Their furniture is...

Finding truly delicious seafood dishes in Germany is often considered quite challenging, and locating an excellent seafood restaurant can be even more difficult. However, I recently had the pleasure of discovering a place in La Sepia (Hamburg) that serves genuinely delicious Portuguese-style seafood.

I ordered a Portuguese-style mussel dish for my main course. Before this arrived, I was first served complimentary bread alongside beer, and a simple starter accompanied by a rather special sauce, which set a very pleasant tone for the meal ahead.

The main mussel dish itself was superb. It felt quite remarkable to find seafood of such high quality in Germany. The freshness of the seafood was apparent. The octopus legs were cooked to just the right point, being tender and not at all tough, and similarly, the texture of the clams and mussels was excellent – not rubbery in the slightest. The sauce complementing the seafood was well-judged and enhanced the flavours beautifully. Even the small complimentary items given as service had a good, non-chewy texture.

This restaurant offers a truly commendable seafood dining experience, standing out in a country where finding seafood prepared to such a standard can be...

Recommended to visit?: No!

Reason for visiting? Our hotel was just around the corner.

My (subjective) takeaway of the restaurant and its crowd: It’s a pseudo seafood joint, but actually a rip-off preying on unsuspecting Germans and tourists.

Were the food and drinks delicious? The bread and boquerones were decent, but the BBQ squid was an absolute joke—it was boiled and had never been near a grill. And four pieces of sepia for €24.50? Ridiculous. The cod fillet wasn’t grilled either, despite the claim “FROM GRILL” on the menu. Don’t be fooled. NONE of the seafood under. "FROM THE GRILL" gets grilled.

The Grauburgunder “Becker” at €29 a bottle was no better than a €8.95 supermarket wine.

Service style? Friendly, no complaints there.

Price-performance ratio? Absolutely abysmal—probably the worst I’ve experienced in months. It’s a blatant money grab, with “plates” going for €45–85 per person.

Atmosphere? It’s alright, as long as you don’t mind your food being reheated in a microwave.

What did I like specifically? Umm... the bloke at the table next to us had a cracking jacket.

Would I visit again? Only over my dead body.

Comments: If my wife files for divorce because I suggested this place, I...