Hooked! — Restaurant in England

On special occasions we used to go to Falmouth Bay Seafood Cafe, now sadly shut. When my other half asked me where I'd like to go for lunch on St Valentine's day, I thought we'd try Hooked.

It was easy to reserve a table through their website.

It was pretty much full when we got there. Decor and ambience fine. Two days later, I can't remember the music, which means it must have been unobtrusive. Staff were friendly and polite.

We had three tapas between us as a starter - an oyster each and we shared some squid rings. I don't get to eat oysters very often - is it usual to get a loose bit of shell in the oyster (just one of those things?), or can that be prevented by the way you shuck them? We both encountered these pieces; oysters nonetheless good. The squid was beautifully tender, but I did think the batter was a bit heavy and slightly bitter.

For mains we had a shellfish platter to share. It wasn't the most elegantly presented I've ever had but it was clearly cooked by someone with a light touch because, again, it was just cooked enough. We had scallops (really excellent), two different sorts of prawn, mussels, squid - and a couple of pieces each of some white fish in batter - again, the batter wasn't my favourite.

We were full so didn't need pudding. I had a large glass of wine and my partner had a soft drink. It came...

We ordered the wild prawns as a starter which were quite big and there are three per portion. The crab nachos tasted nice but the flavour of the crab was overpowered by the sauces. For the mains, we had the half lobster special - honestly, not that special as the sauce was not particularly flavourful and there was not much lobster (mostly shell). It also doesn't come with any sides (for a £26 main dish, this is not enough food for most people). The indonesian curry was edible and there were a lot of fish chunks but the flavour was too mild and accompanied by a tiny mound of rice. The hake kiev was also fine, however, for £22, it also does not come with any sides at all. I would be happy to pay more for sides to be included instead of realising that there isn't going to be enough food after the main has arrived or at least be advised by the waitress that this will not be enough food. Finally, we ordered a fish and chips - however the batter on the fish was much too thick and therefore soggy. The lady at the front of house and most of the wait staff were very friendly and positive. Overall, I don't think we will recommend or come back for dinner as you can get better food/value elsewhere as the portion sizes seemed to suggest fine dining but not the taste. Maybe this venue is better for tapas/small bite type food...

Hooked: A Welcome Return and Delightful Dining Experience We recently revisited Hooked after a few years, and we were pleasantly surprised by the changes! The interior has been redesigned, with the open kitchen relocated to expand seating capacity. Despite the changes, the staff remain as helpful and welcoming as ever. We were particularly grateful to see the addition of a ramp at the entrance and an easily accessible disabled toilet, which was very helpful as my wife recently had foot surgery. For starters, we both enjoyed the delicious mussels. Hooked was incredibly accommodating, preparing my wife's portion with a dairy-free sauce due to her intolerance, and it was still absolutely delightful. Our main courses were the fish curry and the shellfish platter for one. Both dishes were lovely, and the shellfish platter offered a generously sized portion. My only minor quibble was the slight messiness of de-shelling the large prawns. The bread served with our meal was light and tasty, though we found the sea salt a little too prominent for our preference. Overall, it was a very enjoyable meal, and we found the prices to be reasonable. It's also worth noting that Cornwall Pard cardholders receive a 15% discount. Thank you, Hooked, for a wonderful dining...