Rockfish Exeter Quay in Exeter

I popped in for takeaway tonight after paddleboarding on the canal. I’m on a low FODMAP diet which restricts a lot of stuff and makes it very hard to eat out, but the chef was very helpful at helping me work out a meal I could have, and the waiting staff was very accommodating, gift wrapping it in a fancy paper bag with a takeaway wooden knife and fork etc. It also tasted delicious. The prices are in the high side, but you do get quality. Thank you!

Amazing experience! Been in rockfish Exeter for the first time month or so ago. It was great so now decide to bring some friends with me and we all loved it very much. Busy Tuesday evening but great service delivered by two girls working that evening. Delicious food and good vibes. Definitely will be back soon.

Dominika the host?.... What a superstar! Herself and team were a delight from entering the front door till leaving with bellys full. Great restaurant and the food was divine. All very well talked through by the waiters. My friends and I shared a seafood platter, with a tray of oysters, a few sides alongside some gorgeous prosecco. What an evening. Can't wait to return. Location is beautiful too.

Came for the first time and wow what a venue! The setting is so beautiful and the decor is wonderful. The service from the minute we came in was amazing, Dominika greeted us with a big smile and took us to a wonderful booth, we started the meal with some nibbles- my favourite being the olive, anchovy and pepper skewers and oh my god I'm still dreaming about these! The mixed seafood platter and the oysters were another highlight and the rockfish oyster sauce paired perfectly! Can't wait for our next visit!

Absolutely outstanding. Could not recommend more. The freshest seafood, unlimited chips and a banging curry sauce.

Superb fresh fish - I had a lovely big brill, my wife a smoked haddock. They do wine in carafes, which suits us. Great lunchtime atmosphere, with a lovely view across the river. And the waitresses were all very friendly and attentive.

We turned up without a reservation on the first spring-like sunday of the year, and asked to sit outside. We were told that they weren’t actually ready to seat people outside, but agreed we could - they eventually let about six parties (8 tables) sit outside, before turning people away to concentrate on bookings. This left the staff having to contend with dealing with the outside without proper workforce, which they did amazingly well! Lubna in particular. I’m so glad, because lovely food and drink (and it was) in the sun is magical. Thanks Lubna and the team at Rockfish Exeter.

Beautiful mean here with my partner, we had a share platter so we could try a bit of everything. Such a welcoming place, clean and friendly. Look forward to retuning very soon. Thank you

Excellent seafood restaurant, plenty of choice and lovely staff. Worth a visit 😃

Lovely restaurant with great food !

Delicious food and amazing service! Truly a must visit whilst in Exeter. Great experience overall!

All perfect! Delicious food and great service :)

Rockfish is our top restaurant as it enables us to enjoy great food and include our dog.

We both really enjoyed our evening. I'm terrible with names, but the person that served us in the Exeter branch was lovely, friendly and so knowledgeable of the menu, understanding your catch of the days and reciting their prices without a second thought, we also liked the fish pattern she drew on the catch of the day menu. The lighting and layout were lovely and the food was top notch. Thank you for making it a memorable first valentines dinner for my girlfriend and I.

This place rocked my world!! We had oysters and the sharing platter of fish and it was simply divine. The flavours of everything was a party in the mouth, and makes my mouth water just thinking about it. All cooked to perfection and helped down with a glass of bubbles was all too dreamy. Counting down till my next visit!

A great restaurant. The fried haddock and chips are absolutely amazing, the batter they use is delicious. The chips are 'unlimited', I was initially a little frustrated as they serve it with a small amount of chips, so I thought that I would have to catch a waiter and have a wait time just to get a decent portion of chips. However, to the restaurant's credit, the waitress came and asked if we wanted more chips, and then there was very little wait, so it was very pleasant. I was a little disappointed by the tartar sauce, it was ok but there was nothing special about it, I was a little frustrated because I ordered the jalapeno tartar sauce and it wasn't very spicy at all, when eaten with the meal you could hardly tell it was any different to the normal tartar sauce, which is sad when it's priced as an extra. I was also disappointed to see peas as a chargeable side dish to the fish and chips. Peas are a very common and integral part of the dish, and they are very cheap to sell so should not be charged as an extra. I would have liked some mushy peas. Mussels and scallops were on offer as a main course only. I would have enjoyed these as a starter, which is how it is commonly served, but this unfortunately wasn't an option. There was a minor mistake with our order, and the waitress was very polite and apologetic, and handled it very well in the moment. A minor discount to that item from the bill would have been welcome but unfortunately there was none. My biggest gripe with the whole experience was unfortunately the seating. The benches are sloped downwards at the back, and the back rests are also sloped far back. It isn't designed to be a comfortable seat at all. My fiancée (who is ~5ft) couldn't touch the floor, so she was very uncomfortable, and it caused back pain for me. It put a damper on the whole experience. My last note is that the website advertises that the restaurant sells tinned fish, and I would have liked to buy some, but I couldn't see any for sale and no one mentioned it. I forgot to ask at the time, so I wish it was mentioned somewhere if they are available. Overall I am looking forward to returning and trying some more of the dishes on offer at this restaurant.

Such a beautiful night! Michael, Coline and Anna were so wonderful and kind and the food was incredible! That anchovy mayo is insane!

Fabulous Can't wait to see you in Lyme!!

A special place where I could enjoy a stunning interior and a variety of delicious seafood dishes! The staff were incredibly friendly, and every dish was absolutely delightful!

Nice staffs and good food, fresh fish and reasonable price.

Took family out for birthday lunch. Great service, fabulous food.

We had the £10 fish and chips and it was absolutely amazing as always. I have a gluten intolerance and the batter on my fish is the best I have ever tasted. The alcohol free gin was very nice

A great rendezvous point for our family meet up yesterday, to celebrate Mums'82nd birthday. Great ambience, staff & superb food, cooked to perfection. Can't remember if the plates were patterned beforehand, but they were virtually licked clean, despite being in respectable company & surroundings😆😋 I thoroughly enjoyed the chargrilled cuttlefish main/norwegian half pint of prawns as starter & our table for eight all made appreciative noises whilst tucking in. Freddie was absolutely great & went over & beyond the call of duty, as when I discovered I had lost a pewter brooch of sentimental value, potentially in the restaurant, he proceeded to pull out tables & hunt for it, despite being busy with customers. A great evening, so thankyou to all staff & the chefs! We will be back 😊

Had whitebait but came as just 5 very large fishes.. could not eat as the heads and bones far to.big! Very expensive also

Flavors are fine but the proportions are very small, so not great value. I won’t be returning.

Delicious food and great service. Highly recommend.

8 of us came for a meal and we all thoroughly enjoyed the fish and chips. Great curry sauce!

The best fish&chips ever had in Exeter, maybe in all my UK trips. Tender piece of haddock, perfectly fried, with homemade tartare sauce. Very good also the sardines and the bread with anchovies mayonnaise. Good cider. Very very gentle personnel. Quality to cost ratio in line with the class of restaurant.

Great location, lovely setting inside too. Service was excellent throughout. Good selection of fish all cooked well. Chips, while unlimited, seemed to be cooked from frozen, these used to be much better.

great place for a cosy dinner, lovely staff, delicious wine and the best chips I ever had. thank you!

Lovely selection of seafood, wonderful friendly staff, definitely recommend and will certainly be returning.

Lovely fish and chips tried the battered haddock and rockfish Both gluten free and was very nice Unlimited!!! Yes please chips we could only manage another bowl between us Wonderful service Explaining all the specials and how they where cooked

Food is superbly cooked, but portions small. Fish cooked to perfection. Views lovely but we found the place extremely noisy to the point of distraction and being uncomfortable. Not sure what could be done about that but do wish men didn’t feel the need to bellow! Great GF options though which was lovely

Fab food, friendly and knowledgeable staff. We had a lovely meal, thanks ☺️

We had a lovely a family meal, starters and main courses were cooked perfectly, hot, tasty and thoroughly enjoyed throughout. Service was extremely good and the whole experience was excellent.

Not been to Rockfish for a while ..dunno why not because it's lovely, starters we had Firecracker Prawn cocktail, Cockles, Mussels.. followed by Hake, Haddock and Megrin Sole..all cooked perfectly..the atmosphere was a bit off must stress not the restaurant's fault as the whole Quay area was quiet.... But our server (sorry missed his name) was brilliant, friendly very knowledgeable on all dishes.. just a really nice chilled evening 10/10

Popped on the offchance after a busy service at the Cathedral for the enthronement of the new Bishop of Exeter (CofE). We really wanted a decent fish and chip takaway, and though this rockfish really just looks set up as a seafood restuarant they were happy to oblige with a Meal.to go. Hake and Hadddock as the mains today, and fresh steaming chips with lashings of salt and vinegar. The home-made tartar sauce is amazing as was the anchovy mayo; and I never say no to mushy peas, although fine beans or garden peas were also on offer. I really felt welcomed even thought the restaurant was heaving and booked full; they still had time for a drop-in takaway customer. Hats of to you all and thanks.

Outstanding! We had an exceptional family meal, food and service couldn’t be any better! Thank you!

It's probably the worst mussels I've ever had ! A very small amount of watery sauce that barely added flavour to the dish. Very disappointing for a "seafood" restaurant 😕

This is a lovely fish restaurant in a great spot on the Quay. Many of the dishes come with the most amazing chips which unlimited but the portions of fish are so pick you won't need them.

Booked a table for 5.30pm - Food exceptional, however the service was extremely slow and items from our order were forgotten, despite reminding staff that they had forgotten said item in the first place! We also had to wait for twenty minutes to pay our bill. The restaurant was not overly busy. The whole experience put a dampener on our evening.

Enjoyed grilled sardines, fresh fish and calamari right at the river side. A little pricey but highly recommended for all seafood lovers.

Second visit. A wide range of fish have lovely things done to them. Sides are all great and chip portions seem to be bottomless. Friendly, knowledgeable staff take you through what's available and scribble details on your tablecloth. Very enjoyable experience!

Visited Rockfish in Exeter for relative's birthday after checking previous reviews. Lived up to our expectation as staff were lovely & food really good. Had the Crab served with rocket, lemon wedges, fresh crusty bread & separate tin of crispy delicious chips. Beautifully presented & very tasty. Relatives had Hake, Norwegian fish fillets & Dover Sole, which they all enjoyed. Restaurant has indoor & outdoor seating, where views of the river are very pretty. Toilets well maintained & spotless. Highly recommend.

Expensive, but fish & chips at its best!

Fresh premium fish. Cooked right. Dover sole was magnificent. Great business lunch

The best fish ever I had at Exeter. The fish was food at the best way, tender and juicy. The staff are nice and friendly. I would definitely go back and recommend to anyone .

I’m Bly been to their Poole restaurant before, this one just as good, when considering location, decor, atmosphere, staff and particularly the food. Had a set meal, which I thought was really good value for money. Starting with Tempura Prawn with sweet chilli dip and leaves, then whole lemon sole, both really good, specifically the lemon sole, cooked to perfection and very meaty. Staff that I dealt with were efficient and friendly. I’ll be back when next in the area!!

Lovely spot. Food was pretty good. Lobster was a little overcooked. I would pass on the fried artichokes. Came a lot different than expected. It should say fried artichoke tacos on the menu. Oysters were delicious. Mussels were a good size portion and very tasty. Our server was very helpful and fast. The fries being unlimited is nice.

Super lunch. Great fish. So fresh Great service in a lovely relaxed environment overlooking the Quay. It doesn't get much better than this.

A lovely Friday night dinner date with my wife, the fish tacos are amazing and so filling. The sea bream which my wife had was beautifully balanced and the Rockfish lager tastes great too.

Great food, even better service!

Fish was great but the artisan bread for £3.50 was like a cheap burger bun. Avoid! We were waiting quite a while for drinks so we ordered a starter thinking it would be quick. The drinks took ages and came at different times and then we were presented with a burger bun! If we had just waited for the main course the review would have been 4 stars. Pay by cash as the card machine doesn’t give you the option for no tip or anything less than 10%

My partner and I recently visited Rockfish Exeter for a belated birthday celebration on Sunday the 22nd of September. We were made to feel welcome and were lucky enough to be served by a lovely waitress named Dom who was friendly, knowledgeable and attentive. My main of choice was the Gurnard which was fantastic, my partner also enjoyed the haddock. Would definitely recommend Rockfish to family and friends!!

Authentic seafood restaurant with only fresh catch being served.

Fantastic views with the perfect weather! Even though it was understaffed, the service was great. I had the Grilled Lemon Sole which was the catch of the day. It was tender, flaky, and definitely enhanced by a pinch of salt. This was a great dish! On the other hand, my sister got the Battered Hake Fish and Chips. It was decent, as you get a hefty portioned fillet! Would definitely come back for more!

Delicious fish! Then we were also lucky to find a fantastic sunny day and ate outside.

Excellent food and great professionals ⭐️

We all had the days special, tempura prawns followed by black bream with a glass of wine. Worked out around £25 each. Food was tasty and service friendly. Lovely location on the quay by the canal. Lots of outside seating and very dog friendly

Simple but good fish dishes. Very wide choice of fresh fish on the menu.

Amazing experience today at rockfish exeter. Served by Anna. Food and service exceptional. Beautiful to sit on the terrace in the sun, really lovely atmosphere. Thank you to the whole team!

Always good range of food. Acoustics make the place a bit noisy. Value for money for excellent fish.

Their mission of getting only the freshest seafood to your table is magnified by how good the cooking is here. Our second time and the meal was as wonderful as our first. Bravo!

Fab restaurant - beautiful decor, great location, food and staff!

Excellent food, with a choice of fresh fish caught that day. Great service. The restaurant is close to the quay and is a great setting for eating

Food was top notch , especially the Gurnard. However, if you've had tempura in Japan, the tempura at Rockfish is somewhat different.

I’ve been to rockfish in exmouth and exeter a few times and the food has generally been good. This time I had the large haddock and chips. The chips were boring, the fish was underwhelming. Whilst the meat was tasty the batter was undercooked and not very crispy. Disappointing for the price. For a fish and chips I’ll stick to greendale or darts farm.

Great well priced food and friendly staff

We called in on the off chance for a late lunch ( we hadn’t booked ) and they were able to accommodate us. Lovely setting on the Piazza Teracina on the quayside. Lovely welcoming staff. Our server was very nice too. Didn’t wait too long for our food to come, which was delicious as always. First time visiting the Exeter one and we were not disappointed.

Lovely fresh fish. We asked for some additional chips which were advertised as 'unlimited' however one of the waitresses wasn't responding at all to our request. Other than that it was lovely food.

Absolutely brilliant food, at a very fair price. Beers were lovely too. But the service from the young lady was the highlight, just very polite, knowledgeable and caring!

Fresh, very good service, great atmosphere

Fantastic food and lovely staff

such a disappointment - hadn't been for a few years we've had memorable meals in the past. opted for the set menu - whole lemon sole arrived on a plate too small to remove the flesh from the frame. and it was swamped in a lemony (?) dressing which also drowned the rocket salad. uninspiring food and poor presentation. won't be going again!

A charming riverside restaurant featuring a diverse selection of premium seafood, renowned for its exceptional food quality and excellent service.

Fantastic experience had be me and my partner, excellent food and service in the heart of Exeter. The Gunard fillets were cooked to perfection and the scallops were delicious.

Very nice fish restaurant in Exeter. Delicious fresh fish. With excellent service. Highly recommended if you visit Exeter to have dinner. Terrace outside for when the weather is nice. You can park for free in the evenings nearby.

2nd consecutive night of eating here. Came back because the first night was so enjoyable. Disappointed 2nd time around.. the dish my friend previously ordered looked amazing - so I ordered it for myself tonight .. it came on a starter plate - little embarrassing - (half the portion served the previous night). Same price! When I mentioned it to the waiter .. he apologised & said they’d run out of dinner plates - however, the restaurant was not full!! If you decide to eat here.. check what you’re getting! I came home & had cheese on toast .. so now all good🙄😁! NB: what I was served was delicious!

Lovely food and great staff but when did fish and chips become so expensive. £150 for 3 adults and 2 children, just main courses and a drink each. Disappointed and last time we will go.

This time the fish was fried to perfection and was lovely. As were the tinned cuttlefish, a truly fantastic starter. And the service was very good indeed, far superior to our last visit a few years ago. Our main gripe is the cost! One diner used to be able to order a side whilst the other the unlimited chips. The menu implied this was no longer possible. So Haddock & chips, with mushy peas was £27-20!! (that's more expensive than in Rick Stein's flagship Seafood restaurant in Padstow!). I really enjoyed the Rock, my favourite, that I hadn't had for years and years. With mushy peas, - £22-25, again top-end. So with 2 lagers; a bottle of unremarkable wine (Pescador £29), our bill came to £111, which is too much for a fish n chip chain resto. The food and service were excellent; but prices need looking at (and the all inclusives!).

Level access via a side entrance (no longer steps!) onto a narrow busy corridor, so larger wheelchair users may struggle here. The tables are reasonably packed in but I did have an easy table as it was only for 2 of us. The food was good, although it was very busy and the wait staff were rushed off their feet so service was slow. Staff were friendly and apologised for how manic it seemed to be.

Thank you for a lovely meal! We arrived with no booking and two tired hungry toddlers. Although I can't recommend this approach, but the staff made us so welcome and the food is really, really good.

Very nice place and very good and fresh food

Amazingly fresh seafood. Service is a bit hit and miss

I've visited Rockfish at various locations, all near the sea or Quay. The food is fresh, and the staff always introduces the day's catch. The set menu offers great value. I especially love their crab dishes—they're delicious!

Stunning food, as fresh a fish as I've ever eaten, plus the staff are great

Great friendly staff Dog friendly 😁

Great. Get there early or they sell out of lots of items

Insanely fresh-caught and beautifully simply cooked to let the quality of the fish to speak for itself…. we had Ray Wing, Dover Sole on the Bone and Halibut. Enthusiastic, attentive and well-informed service. Super ambience in a low key, understated setting.

My thoughts of the place: The good, the bad & the ugly 🤔 The good: The restaurants moto is “tomorrow’s fish is still in the sea”, you can be sure that you’re enjoying the freshest, least-travelled fish possible!!! The food was really tasty, fresh & very well-balanced flavours. I had the tinned Mackerel to start & the Mussels for main. They were both splendid 😊 What is also great about the place is that my other half is Veggie & although there are not many options (as expected), what was available was amazing! (Vegetable Tempura & Middle Eastern Style Fried Halloumi) By the way the Unlimited Fresh Cut Chips were amazing too! 🥳 The bad: That the Unlimited Fresh Cut Chips were amazing 🤭 The ugly: Nothing! 🎉 Will we go back, definitely 👍 Score: 9/10

Fabulous celebratory meal here. The waiter took time to find out what we were celebrating & then congratulated our son on his degree when he turned up 🥰 The food was beautiful as we had expected & it was a relaxing experience to eat here by the river. Just a hugely loud group near us made it hard to chat comfortably. Apart from that was perfect 👌🐟👏

We had a dinner here, it’s a nice restaurant with a great outdoor seating area overlooking the quay. The food was well cooked however the service was a little erratic and we were left for quite sometime between courses - not a problem as such as we were enjoying the surroundings but more than you might have expected. I had the haddock and chips - this was ok but nothing exceptional and the whole bottomless chips piece was a bit odd, I wasn’t asked if would like some more until I had finished my dish and even then they never turned up. My wife had tacos which were good. All in all I would say that it’s a nice place however the menu cost are top end for what is served - I guess you are paying for the location.

Amazing food, and really helpful staff. We had an issue with the portion size of one special and they were understanding and offered a resolution. Highly recommend!

If you like quality sea food then this is the place to go. Food and service were excellent. Extra staff on hand as restaurant busy.

Had a fantastic fish dinner outside by the quay. Our Devon Crab and Hake was delicious.

2 of us ate here last night (12th July). Food v good, lovely fresh fish expertly cooked. The service was exceptional, so big thanks to Leticia and Anna

Our first visit, recommended by our friends who accompanied us. Excellent location, and wonderful service ( special shout out to Leticia ) and on the whole a really very good seafood lunch. The only negative, that the venue couldn’t do anything about, was a large family group with a couple of toddlers, who screeched loudly most of the time we were there; the acoustics are so appalling we could hardly hear ourselves talk. Just bad luck - but avoid if you’re looking for a quiet lunch.

Always slightly dubious about going to franchise restraunts and to be honest it was exactly as I thought. Quite bland atmosphere. No real personal attention from staff. On the other hand the food was delicious, and the wine, the Vinho Pescador from Portugal, on the Atlantic coast, was exquisite.

Very friendly staff and marvellous fish selection. Everything can be made gluten-free. They even have gluten-free vinegar. Also loved the design of the toilets. Further servings of chips are free.

Lovely food for a birthday meal. Our kids are a bit quirky and the staff were tolerant and friendly. Particularly Ash who was doing an inaugural shift.