friday night on the southbank

On Friday evening, the London weather finally calmed down after a tumultuous, rainy week and the sun shone through the clouds. Rather than head home (lean mince defrosting in the fridge for burgers), we headed out for a stroll along the Southbank. Starting at Waterloo, passing the NFT, the Antony Gormley figures topping the Hayward Gallery, Waterloo Bridge and almost any other building the sight, we kept walking. Tate Modern, Globe Theatre, peppered with tantalising restaurants in between.

By the time we reached London Bridge, our mouths watering, a righthand glance as we prepared to pass Southwark Cathedral reminded us of a restaurant at Borough Market we had always wanted to try: Fish! Restaurant.

Serving, presumably, Billingsgate's finest, Fish! offers all seafood dishes, though at the bottom corner it reassures staunch carnivores and strict vegetarians that it offers one steak, one chicken and one vegetarian option.

Starters were rustic but inviting: a dressed crab with rustic bread and salad and warm octopus and borlotti bean salad. The more mundane fishcakes also listed.

Mains offered a good mix - fish and chips, swordfish club, dressed lobster. But most impressive was the long list of fresh fish available, either grilled or steamed, with a choice of sauces. Lemon sole, monkfish, sardines, John Dory, skate, salmon - there were only a few that weren't available that day.

Side dishes included mixed salad, mash, mushy peas - all reassuringly English, according to the menu.

Unfortunately, when it came to order, the warm octopus and borlotti bean salad was sold out. And when I tried to order skate, the server had to check whether they were out, which bode well for the taste and popularity of the dishes. Pete ordered the swordfish club with chunky chips.

Although it took nearly 40 minutes to arrive(!), the meals were excellent. The skate, grilled to a soft perfection, slid easily off of the scales onto my fork. Served a soft vegetable bed of sauteed fennel, celery, onion and carrot and a salsa verde (though I didn't end up using any of the sauce), this meal made an excellent, yet decadent healthy option. It was washed down with Fish!'s house white and we headed back to London Bridge to walk the rest of the way back to Hackney as the sun set around 9 pm.

calories: approximately 550
half of a bottle of white wine - 250 calories
125 g grilled skate - 100 calories
fennel, carrots, celery, onion and olive oil - 180 calories