The Fisherman's Wharf, Chennai — Restaurant in Zone 15 Sholinganallur

The Fisherman’s Wharf, Chennai – Where Hype Goes to Die

Ah, Fisherman’s Wharf – the name conjures images of fresh seafood, coastal charm, and a memorable dining experience. Well, memorable it was… just not for the reasons you’d hope.

Let’s start with the menu. A slick mobile-based menu that scrolls endlessly, full of exciting options that scream diversity—except most of it is “currently unavailable.” It felt less like browsing a menu and more like window shopping at a store that’s always out of stock. The few dishes that are available look like they belong in a 5-star magazine spread, but taste like a sad experiment from a cooking show elimination round.

And then there’s the service. Slow? Yes. Confused? Definitely. Present? Only sometimes. It’s like a game of hide and seek with the waitstaff. Want to order? Good luck. Want water? Wait 20 minutes. Want the bill? Clear your calendar.

Electricity – or the lack of it – deserves a special mention. During our two-hour ordeal, the power went off five times. Each time, the backup kicked in with the urgency of a sloth on a hot summer day. And when things got really dramatic, the staff decided that the best lighting solution was a mobile phone torch pointed at our table. Romantic, if you’re dining in a post-apocalyptic bunker.

The air-conditioning took the night off too, so we were left to marinate in our own sweat while waiting for bland food and non-existent service. Oh, and billing? That took a casual 30 minutes because apparently, their backup system also needs backup.

Now for the grand finale – the lift. As we descended into what I now consider a metaphor for the entire experience, the lift decided to throw in a loud bang and a sudden jerk for dramatic effect. I was with four kids under seven, and we were stuck with no response for five minutes despite hitting the emergency button. Eventually, I pried the doors open myself, only to be greeted by staff who looked as if we had inconvenienced them.

All in all, I paid around 12k for subpar food, snail-paced service, amateur theatrics with electricity, and a near-death experience in a lift. The ambiance may look lavish, but it’s just expensive wrapping on a hollow package. Fisherman’s Wharf promises the sea, delivers a puddle.

Save yourself the money, the time, and the trauma. There are better places in the city to be...

The ambiance is worth a special mention. It feels open, airy and has a nice coastal feel to it. I’m vegetarian, and the smell of fish at the entrance was a bit off putting, but it was just there and not strong. Fresh fish shouldn’t smell, but that’s for another day.

We were 3 couples of different age group who had come for a Sunday lunch to celebrate our anniversaries, and a quick talk to the in-charge there, and our cake was made up using some in-house option. When it was delivered to our table, it was amazing! They also allow cakes from outside it seems.

When we had been there, it was newly opened and despite the Zomato listing showing a full bar, they had only limited alcohol options- I think only beers. The in-charge had shared this note with us and that it would take a few more days to get the bar fully functional.

The service was a bit slow and catching the attention of the waiter was a bit difficult and communicating to her was also a bit difficult. Three of our requests were heard and not done, and we had waived in one of the other waiters to help us.

The food was tasty in general. Not the best, but no major complaints. There were enough choices for the vegetarians, so no worries for me. The bebinca and the cheesecake were good. The salads were fresh and lively. The tuna salad did get good movement. The mushroom soup had a nice flavour too! The fish pollichathu wasn’t 5/5 as I heard because the fish hadn’t been marinated for enough time in the masala it seems.

Along with the ordered desserts, for the cake(or something to cut) we had requested earlier, they did join two pastries and made a makeshift cake along with a greeting on the plate and that effort was worth a praise and did the job just right!

The Zomato gold discount was only applicable on the food and not the beers we had had. Maybe that gets ironed out when the bar is fully functional. The carnival slots were off times and we couldn’t avail them during our visit.

All in all, we had a good time, also because the place was relatively empty. And forgot to mention the live music that was being played up until 3pm- they rocked :) Simple and soothing English songs delivered well to enhance the ambiance. Kudos to...

Edit: Ended up with food poisoning, 4 bottles of antibiotics and saline drips in the hospital.

Went here with my husband for a Sunday lunch, we got seated immediately. I had really high expectations for this place looking at all the raving reviews but had a great disappointment and both of us ended up with upset stomachs. We ordered a Caesar's salad, this was average. Then we ordered the sea devil for starters and the prawn they served us had definitely gone bad. It was smelling even at a distance of 1-1.5ft away from the plate, I don't know how neither the chefs nor the waiters who brought it to us noticed the smell. We couldn't even take a bite without wanting to retch. We returned this dish and they apologized, removed it from the bill for us. I had picked out a red snapper and had it cooked in tandoori masala. This dish ended up very ordinary and it was nothing special. I don't know why we paid Rs.850 something for it. Next was egg fried rice which was also very weird, cooked in ghee. It was like eating a pulao. I got so desperate and ordered a plate of fries and even the fries they served especially the mayonnaise wasn't good. I don't know how one can mess up french fries, but they did. I noticed there was a magician entertaining the tables which was nice. There was also live music playing 80-90s songs, the male singer was good. We couldn't wait to pay the bill and get out because our stomachs felt so weird after the meal and neither of us enjoyed it. The toilets were unclean and stinky. The ambiance at the restaurant and service were the...