The Mermaid — Restaurant in Barmouth

Disappointing and Overpriced – Not Worth the Hype

I recently visited the Mermaid Chip Shop in Barmouth while on holiday with my partner. We were staying in nearby Tal-y-Bont at a friend’s cottage that’s currently being renovated and decided to head into town for some traditional seaside fish and chips. Unfortunately, what we experienced was far from the quality or value you’d expect from a coastal chippy.

First off, we were overcharged. The prices on the board didn’t seem to match what we were actually charged at the till. When I politely queried it, I was brushed off with vague explanations and a tone that suggested I was being difficult. There was no breakdown offered, just a flat total that seemed to change based on the mood of the person serving.

As for the food – extremely underwhelming. The chips were pale, soggy, and tasted like they’d been sitting in the hot box far too long. The batter on the fish was greasy and bland, lacking any real crispness or seasoning. The fish itself was dry and didn’t taste especially fresh – not something you expect this close to the sea.

We also ordered a side of curry sauce, which arrived lukewarm and watery, with a texture more like dishwater than something appetising. My partner barely touched her meal, and to be honest, I only ate mine because we’d already paid far too much for it.

The service was cold and disinterested. There was no friendliness, no “hello,” no “thank you” – just an apathetic transaction that left us feeling like we were an inconvenience rather than customers. For a place that seems to get a lot of tourist traffic, you’d think they’d at least pretend to care.

Honestly, I don’t understand the positive reviews. Maybe it used to be good, or maybe we caught them on a bad day, but based on our experience, I wouldn’t recommend Mermaid to anyone. There are far better options in the area where you’ll get tastier food and be treated with a bit of basic respect.

Save your money and your appetite – give this...

Waited in line for over 45 minutes Saturay 8pm before managing to order large fish & chips times two, I'd been talking to a guy behind in the queue & took my eye off the youngish blond girl serving, turned back & had missed her box the first one, now the portions here are small the polystyrene trays are only slightly larger than a mini fish meal deal tray you'd find most places but maybe when on holiday it doesn't seem so bad even at £22. 5 minutes before they had fished out a batch of large fish from the frier which made me feel better for waiting so long, all that had been ready before were old crispy looking mini fish which I didn't fancy (they're literally not much bigger than a kfc fillet) Anyway after a 15 minute drive to go eat them I open the first box & sitting inside are 2 crispy old mini fillets barely 4 bites worth, lol a classic bait & switch scam from a chippy, chips were terrible too. I've visited this part of the coast on average once a year for over 40 years if you want a fresh from the sea taste fish just drive to Towyn opposite the Essar garage on...

Incredibly long wait time if you go when I did, (tea time on a bank holiday weekend with gorgeous weather) but well worth the wait. Social distancing measures means you can only have 3 people queuing up inside at a time whilst a fourth is served. Cash and card/contactless payments accepted.

Menu offerings what you would expect for a seaside chippy. Despite notices on the menu board that certain items (noticeably chicken nuggets and the like) had to be cooked in advance I noticed that there was a good stockpile of these ready to go.

Well worth picking up bottle of vinegar (£1.50) if you like your chips with a good soaking as the top layer and your main take the brunt of the shop applied helping...this is compounded by the cardboard serving tray (A+ for not using polystyrene or plastic) being fairly narrow. That said you get a generous serving. Traditional wooden forks supplied (another tick for not using plastic)

Having tried a few of the other take out establishments serving fish and chips on past visits I can safely say The Mermaid's offerings are...