The Oyster & Fish House in Ards

While on holiday in Lyme Regis we went to The Oyster and Fish House for our wedding Anniversary meal. Having booked in advance after seeing the restaurant recommended in The Times we were expecting a top class experience. However the food was good but the service left a lot to be desired. We arrived slightly early and were shown to a table which was ok but there were tables with a better view, so we asked to move. Every time during the meal we asked a question the waitress said she would have to ask, which proved very frustrating. The waitress who collected our main course plates managed to spill the contents over the table, floor, my clothes and glass case. She then proceeded to try and mop it up with our linen serviette and a quick ‘sorry’. There was no offer of a goodwill gesture. We removed the service charge and spoke to the supervisor but we just had another sorry. The food was nice but the service spoilt a special occasion. I would expect the staff to be better trained in a restaurant of this quality. What a shame!

A terrible letdown, we should have taken note of other reviews. The menu was very small: Wishy-washy tasteless bisque, overcooked grilled fish for 2 served on a cold platter + cold plates. An insult to and ruination of the brill, silver mullet and bass, and the fish skin tasted unpleasant from the artificial grill. The Portuguese Tonnix white wine was excellent. The restaurant does not live up to being in the Michelin Guide. The Hive was also very disappointing.

Sticky tables, and uninformed, badly trained staff seemed to be the consequence of a maitre’d who didn’t know the basics. We waited a long time for service, were never checked back on and not offered another drink, meanwhile other guests left unattended at the door, all this should not have happened on a quiet night. While we enjoyed the sole from the mixed grilled fish, the rest of the food was let down by inaccurate cooking, bland sauces and stale bread. I would expect this level of cooking from a basic cafe, but this restaurant definitely devalues the Hix brand, as evidenced here by many recent bad reviews. More fool me for not checking!

Good but there was room for improvement baring in mind it isn't cheap! Staff were charming but a bit all over the place - felt like no one was overseeing things? Food was great really delicious fresh fish and lovely fresh green vegetables. The Glassware had a real budget feel to it which was a shame given that the drinks were expensive and wines high end - the beer was served in a half pint old fashioned "jug" and my wife's £13 cocktail in a cheap thick glass tumbler the wine glasses also felt decidedly "budget" too which the wine definitely isn't and the table water was served in a bizarre old jug that looked like it had been found in a charity shop. The desert was devine - credit crunch ice cream with warm chocolate sauce - highly recommend this! Overall a great meal and would def recommend however a few easy tweaks could make a big difference imo

We had a fantastic meal here while on holiday in Lyme Regis. We’d visited a few years ago and loved it but this meal was even better. We had some incredible oysters to start, plus the cockle popcorn, which is a must eat! We then had the shellfish soup and chalk stream trout, which were amazing. For our main course, we had the platter of grilled fish to share, which came with both hollandaise and green sauces. Some of the best fish both of us have ever eaten! Very surprised by the recent negative reviews, as our experience couldn’t have been any better!

Having holidayed in Lyme Regis for many years, we returned for our Christmas break. We’ve always visited Hix on our trips, something of a little treat to ourselves, so made sure we booked way in advance to enjoy a visit. Unfortunately, we didn’t visit this time around after all. Walking our dog through the garden on Christmas Day we had a good look through the window and in the broad daylight we could see just how unclean the place looked. The table edges and legs looked ingrained with years of filth, the same old IKEA glasses being used from years ago that had seen too many dishwasher cycles. Basically, no monies reinvested in the restaurant in years, just a really run down looking cafe, not a high end restaurant charging the prices they do. Then I saw the owner throwing back cocktails elsewhere in Lyme. First thought was “less bloody Mary’s mate, and a bit more bleach spray”……even the sign on the road is covered in green mould, 5 mins once a month with some anti bacterial wipes would sort that out. It’s been a few years since our last visit, granted, but just don’t understand why this place has gone so badly downhill, it used to be such a treat, now it very much isnt. So glad we cancelled, I’d have been furious to spend that amount of money to sit in somewhere that now resembles a bus station cafe.