Fishmonger — Restaurant in Atlanta

Very Good Seafood, but a Tad Hyped

Setup -- been wanting to try this for quite some time now. Had a fun ATL adventure planned and this was first on the list. Heard rave reviews from many on how good the good was and it recently received a Michelin Bib Gourmand.

Food -- had hard time deciding between the blackened grouper sandwich and the lobster roll. Tough call, but went with grouper to split, as it was something they were well known for in reviews. The grouper sandwich was blackened and cooked very well. The sandwich was good and tasty for sure. It has lettuce, tomato, and sauce and came with a pickle.

Sandwich was very good. Could've used a little more sauce and it lacked just a touch of flavor. The homemade hot sauce bottles added a needed jolt to the mix. Again, very very good, just not otherworldly. Got a half dozen oysters and they were pretty good for the price ($18). Some were definitely on the small side, but better then some we've had considering the price (Grand Central Oyster to name one).

Oysters came pretty basic with cocktail sauce and vinegar mix. No horseradish or crackers I'd you want (no longer need them, going straight from the shell, but didn't seem available if you would). Definitely clean with no grit and the hot sauce matched with them extremely well. The hot sauce seems to be a local mix and was excellent.

Also ordered a side of gumbo. Gumbo was good. Definitely on traditional side and had some good flavor to it. It certainly had a strong flavor profile (almost like an Indian food spice) that dominated much of it. Very soupy in nature and when I added a shot of hot sauce on the spoon directly, it made it much more tasty. The bread was a perfect match to dip in the gumbo. Very strong gumbo, but not the best I've had (even outside New Orleans).

Drinks -- if you're looking to grab a beer to wash down the seafood with, you're out of luck. Was expecting even a basic selection, but only soda and sparking water cans.

Scene/Vibe -- it was a cold day and it was freezing inside. I get the concept of it, giving the real authenticity of a fish spot right off the boat, but it was hard to enjoy the food it was so cold. Also, when you see limited space in reviews, thats an understatement. There are literally 9 chairs available. Luckily we had a spot, but the space does not lend itself to dining in.

Service -- counter service and they bring your food out to you. Friendly and prompt.

Value -- like most everything else these days, a little on pricey side. Split a sandwich, side of gumbo, and 6 oysters came to $55. If you take away the oysters, it would not have been that bad, but still not cheap, especially for the taste by comparison.

Summary -- I'll certainly own my bias on this one. I've heard and read about this spot for a long time and seen nothing short of amazing from reviews and word of mouth, so I had high expectations (probably too high). The food was very good, but not heavenly and some of that is on me for pushing up too much hype perhaps.

Very good food, but a touch on...

Looking for a place to eat on a Saturday night visiting from Charlotte, we decided to visit the Virginia Highland area. After scoping out a few spots in the area, I chose the Fishmonger.

I ordered the hot fish sandwich and my wife ordered the blackened grouper. This location was a small little place with a few spots to eat inside and a few more tables on the sidewalk, where we ended up eating.

After my first bite of the hot fish sandwich, which consists of Mississippi catfish and some accompaniments, I thought to myself, "This is really good." After the second bite, I told my wife, "I am going to remember this sandwich." There are a lot of places where I think the food is good, but there are very few where I remember what I ate, and salivate every time I think about it, no matter how long it has been since it touched my lips.

I happen to be a foodie, but my wife is one of those, "eat to live" people. If she didn't have to eat, she wouldn't. She raved about her blackened grouper sandwich, which was completely unlike her. I took a bite and enjoyed it too, though I liked my sandwich better.

Previously, I was doing food reviews in Charlotte before the pandemic, so I think I generally have pretty good taste. I can't tell you how many times in the past month since we visited, I have thought about that sandwich.

My only regret is the next day before we left to drive back to Charlotte, we didn't stop back there to eat. I could kick myself for that, as I don't know when I am going to taste such exquisite fish again. There isn't a restaurant in Charlotte that specializes in fish that has affected me this way. Not even close.

While at the restaurant, I talked to one of the people working there and said though I loved the food, I wouldn't be back and explained why. I mentioned I wish they had a place like this in Charlotte. He told me they were talking about expanding. I begged him to tell the people making the decision that Charlotte is a great food town and they would make a killing there, as it seems all of the restaurants are busy all the time.

Are you listening Fishmonger? OPEN A FISHMONGER IN CHARLOTTE!!! PLEASE!! PRETTY PLEASE! I guarantee you will do a lot of business, and I will definitely be a regular and tell everyone about it. As the line from Clint Eastwood in one of the Dirty Harry movies said, "Make my Day." If that day comes, it will be one...

We had us a very Atlanta #foodiefridays while at @atlantafishmonger, and we have to say it was much more than we expected.

The restaurant is small, so be prepared to be in tight quarters, but this definitely didn't take away from the amazing customer service, attention to detail, and the amazing fresh seafood. I am talking. You can watch your oysters being chucked and your fish breaded fresh!!

As always, our system is 1♥️ which is the lowest meaning we hated it to 5♥️ plus, meaning we absolutely adored the dish.

So here is what we had at Fishmonger on Friday:

Smoked Fish Dip (pic2) ♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️ House cured and smoked whitefish, house pickled, and everything bagel chips. We definitely started off with a hit!!

Rock Shrimp Ceviche (pic3 &4) ♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️ Florida rock shrimp, lime, habanero, mango, avocado, and tostados. Extra bonus points for being a spicy, flavorful ceviche. This definitely hit our top 5 in Atlanta at the first bite! We would literally go back just to have ceviche!

Thai Curry Mussels (pic 5) ♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️ Green curry, coconut dashi, lime leaf. This is so delicious, if you love green curry, it's a must!! And you get a tub of mussels, it was a lot.

Lobster Roll (pic 7) ♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️ Warm split top bun, drawn butter, coleslaw, and pickle. The coleslaw was passable, but the actual roll was pretty dang good!!

Hot Fish Sandwich (pic 6) ♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️ Mississippi catfish with cornmeal crust, chili oil, celery salad, and buttermilk dressing. The crust and heat on this sandwich were amazing!!

Key Lime Pie (Pic 9) ♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️

Don't walk, run!!

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