The Padstow Fish And Chip Cafe in Cornwall, Isles of Scilly

Came in here after a rainy day hoping for a lovely fish and chips. We had fish and chips, cheesy chips and sausage and chips. The sausage was poor tasting. And there was hair imbedded in the chips. We were disappointed with our meals.

Been here many times.but have to agree with other reviewers. Tiny cod portion with more batter. Not worth £13*95 Won't visit again.

Very expensive for not very good food! Chips are rubbish and overpriced. Go to Rick Stein!

Amazing place! Fantastic coffee and rhe best fish and chips!! Highly recommended

Probably the worst fish and chips in the whole of Cornwall. Fish was greasy and chips were like rubber. Don't waste your money.

Cod and Chips twice to take out. They were shocking. Skinny fish masses of batter. The chips were obviously from a previous session re warmed up and were hard and very tough. Inedible we threw both lots in the bin. Lesson learnt.

Ordered 3 Cod & Chips reckon fish must have been frozen with no taste & wasn't flakey the fish theirself's must have been on a diet, Taste of undercooked fish very oily taste left in mouth Chips very bitty they had a oldish woman cooking the fish young woman serving seated customers never smiled once covered in tattoo's eaten there previously and that was brilliant so must have changed hands £35 Went in their bin not recommended Lunchtime disappointment approximately 1PM So still Lunchtime not that busy @ that time Worst Fish & Chips we've had in a longtime. As I've read in another review if you can't cook fish & Chips in famous fish port give up & let someone in that can cook zero rating

If I could give this zero stars, I would. Ordered cod and chips from the takeaway as no room to sit the number of people in our party. Ended up throwing away both meals. Fat dripped out of the tray all over me and the fish and chips had a stale taste. Possibly the oil needed changing, but it was tasteless, greasy and utterly revolting. Biggest waste of money ever. My advice - spend a bit more and go to Stein’s instead.

Very small portion of underwhelming Haddock accompanied by awful chips - 3 pouches of ketchup £1.80 - we felt genuinely ripped off - do yourself a favour and go elsewhere

If you can't get Fish n Chip right in a famous fishing port then pack up and let someone who knows what they are doing have a go. Tasteless Haddock with anaemia batter and chips that had clearly been reheated, £40 down and won't be back.

Words fail me. Rancid chips that tasted of pepper cooked in engine oil. Cod dried out and batter so it thick I had to pull apart by hand. All surrounding tables left piles of leftovers including sandwiches. Doors wide open with high winds blowing in. Seagulls feeding off tables indoors!!

Cold food. Staff not interested in servicing anywere neer closing time

Naff chips other food did not look much better, a lot better eateries to go to in Padstow.

Shocking, fish was greasy and horrid!!!! Chips had hair cooked in with it, and a weird piece of string cooked within the chips 😬 didn't even eat it after that, do not go here!!!

Scampi was lovely but the chips were the worst I’ve ever tasted, tasted like they were left over from lunch

Awful! Awful food and rude staff, very disappointing.

What a shocker. Served by a group of schoolboys who were more interested in when they were finishing their shift than they were in providing any kind of customer service. Left the takeaway food on the bar uncovered until some unfortunate person decided that it was actually theirs, offered nothing to actually take it away in and continued their discussion. I can't criticise the fish and chips but poor service leaves a long lasting impression. Something these lads may well learn with experience.

Husband has been vomiting all day. Terrible, really ill from eating here. Worst fish and chips ever.

The fish was okay, but the fries were more like mushed potatoes. No sauces available except for vinegar 🙄. The ordering process was a bit hard to grasp for non-english tourists.

Best takeaway fish and chips Chips are great. Batter tastes good, is a tad thick but overall are the top in town.

Great place to bring kids and dogs lovely area

Food cold bacon tasted like metal and waiters are useless

Me and my family went in here and ordered 2 full English breakfasts and banoffee waffles. Everyone could tell it was already recooked and reheated as well- absolutely awful! The full English was bad, the bacon was stringy and fatty, the egg was okay and the rest of it, you could definitely tell it was preheated and cooked. The waffles were just as bad- I couldn't get my knife in the waffles to cut it and the banana were soggy with the banoffee sauce. The waffles were not fresh and tasted like they were predone and reminded me of cheap school waffles. Definitely wouldn't recommend and finding other places to eat which are nicer!

Lovely fish and chips right on the harbour.

We were aiming for another well known venue for fish and chips but they closed earlier, so wandered into the harbour area and this one was open! Welcomed and sat down in the window with fabulous harbour view. All food still available - and freshly cooked! Staff were extremely friendly and kind. In fact it was closing in 30mins but we were not made to feel in the way or unwelcome! Mind you we did have an ace up our sleeves - our very cute and smiley 4 month grandson! Thank you!

We had breakfast. Food was nice. The man at the counter was nice. the service staff was poor to non existent. We had a baby in a pram with us. The table was so close together. It was difficult to manoeuvre around. Staffs just stared at us as if to see if we can get in. We managed in the end. Then another lady came in with her wheelchair again no help from staff. So not ideal if you come with pram or wheelchair.

Paid £2.75 for a can of coke that had 99p printed on the tin. Food itself was not good quality, fish was greasy and of poor quality & my chips were below average.

I’ve never had chewy chips before. Absolutely disgusting, worst chips I’ve ever had including microwave versions.

Cold food very expensive I wouldn’t recommend eating here

Lovely place with affordable prices, perfect for a Friday night chips by the harbour

We found this place expecting at least average food , but it was the worst of my life restaurant experience, the manager defending himself about the dishes Avoid all the cost Scamplace Note : Avoid the toilets if you dont want any nightmares. After eating this horrible food, i went to the toilet, but it's worse. Please hire someone to clean the toilet sometimes. Sorry for the review, but it's the reality.

The view from our table of the harbour was lovely, however as soon as the meals arrived, we knew why those tables were available. The fish and chips were not only overpriced, but also woefully undercooked. The batter was limp and soggy, while the fish inside was still practically swimming. And the taste? Brace yourselves - it was entirely devoid of any flavor whatsoever. Bland, boring, and a total waste of precious calories. We've sampled fish and chips in just about every corner of the world, from the greasy spoons of London to the seaside shacks of Sydney. But these were handdown the worst we've ever had the misfortune of putting in our mouths. In fact, we sent all three meals back to the kitchen - a move that likely saved the chef from a proper lashing. But the indignities didn't stop there. When we asked the waiter to bring us some utensils, he cheerfully obliged. And then proceeded to never return with them. Just left us there, fork-less and knife-less, staring at our inedible meals in utter bewilderment. To add insult to injury, a male waiter then came over and started clearing our table. As he wiped the crumbs, he casually brushed them right into our laps. It was as if he was deliberately trying to ruin what was left of our dining experience. If you're looking for a dining experience that will leave you questioning every life decision that led you there, be sure to check out this place. But if you actually enjoy eating, I'd strongly recommend looking elsewhere. Your tastebuds (and your wallet) will thank you.

We have travel the world and this would have to be worse fish chips we have had Fish had to much batter,chips were terrible At the end of the day very over priced

Best fish ‘n’ chips in the world. I’ve been eating here for 40 years, long before Rick Stein ruined Padstow.

Trouble service. We ordered 4 fish and chips. Two lots came out. We had to repeatedly ask for the other two fish and chips. The excuse was new staff.

Went for fish & chips yesterday evening at 6.30pm staff lined up at side of counter one serving asked if we could order and was told they were finishing up and only had what was left 1 haddock 1 small fish and chicken strips food was put in boxes with little effort and charged full price for the food! Unable to shut the boxes or put salt & vinegar on as the staff were all packing up the food was awful and so was the service point to note don’t believe the opening times on the website they are not correct a truly memorable experience for all the wrong reasons

Very disappointed!! A simple bacon and egg roll was awful...egg totally overcooked all crispy and bacon re- heated was just fat and stringy bits. Half a tub of butter on the roll.

Worst chips ever! Cold, tasteless, undercooked and rotten potatoes all accompanied by a hair! Staff were ok to customers but not happy about something work related. Overpriced. Great location, shame they won't allow takeaway customers to sit outside.

We ordered 4 cod & chip meals, with drinks, 1 fish was under cooked the other 3 fish were mainly batter. We advised staff who took the undercooked fish away, & never returned to the table with a replacement Chips were sub-standard and not fresh. Ordered also a jumbo sausage, didn't arrive, we had to ask. Were told we had to pay £2 more as charged for small one. Charged altogether £65.85. We then had to ask where the 4th fish meal was& asked for 1 meal refund as waited nearly 25 mins & everyone else had eaten. Worst service, atmosphere and food we've had so far, will not recommend or return.

Really helpful staff, assisting with husband to be seated at a inside table with his wheelchair. Really made our day, thank you.

Worst fish and chips I ever had. Their was more batter then fish and no potatoe in the chips. Very much a tourist trap too.

Cod was pasty and tasteless with too thick oily batter , chips oily. Coffee and Tea Good

Poor quality fish and chips , Batter was soggy and under cooked fish was taste less and they clearly use a lower quality of potato as ours were damaged and blighted with black bits ! Staff were fine as was view of harbour !

Dont bother. I asked for 1 cod and chips and a portion of scampi. I was told you could only have scampi with chips. My wife did not want chips but had to buy them anyway RIP OFF. Go somewhere else.

The food was very average. Fish coated in breadcrumbs dripping with fat. The only plus is very good cider.

Lovely food prompt service. Standard prices, pleasant staff . Useful to be able to sit inside out of the midday sun and not be dive bombed by seagulls.

Visited Padstow today decided on fish and chips for lunch. Unfortunately the fish in batter was not fully cooked and the fisherman's plate was very bland no taste in the prawns, too much salt hidden under the fish salmon didn't look like salmon and the smoked mackerel lacked taste too. Service was quick but there was no ambience about the place, complained about the fried fish the chips were not that hot either we received a refund. Disappointing as it was our first time visiting Padstow.

Fish and chips x2 mushy peas x2. Chips tepid and limp, fish tasteless and batter not cooked through,.Awful meal.We did discuss this with staff but were greeted with a surly waiter who tried to say this is the way fish should be served!Will not return and we are regulars as we live in Cornwall .

£18 for cod chips and mushy peas, nothing special, tourist trap, avoid.

Dreadful chips, expensive, batter not good on the fish, try chip ahoy, much better

Chips were lukewarm, however the haddock was fresh and cooked beautifully!

We ordered our food and within 5 mins it was on the table, we had 2 cod and chips, the chips were cold and half cooked. I ordered a seafood chowder which was lukewarm, our scampi the chips were hot but the scampi was cold. We spent £92 on 6 meals worst we have had for a very long time.

Dry chips and soggy fish but very good curry sauce and quick service.

Chips were OK. The fish looked like a manufactured portion and didn't look like cod we asked for. Unfortunately wasn't that sea side special taste.

Lovely chips. Amazing service. Good tea.

We thought we would try a different chippy Very disappointed in the food my chips were nearly cold and the burger was greasy and no taste even my kids left there cheesy chips which they never do won't be going back

Called in for breakfast, lovely good quality ingredients and all cooked fresh . Coffee lovely not your usual weak cafe coffee only fault was the door kept blowing open so was cold ( weather awful so not your fault ) could maybe just need looking at

I saw the low rating too late after I put in my order. Luckily they were quiet and they cooked my chips to order, so only half of them were raw inside.

Dirty tables, sometimes unfriendly staff and the wrong food. Too expensive compared to the other restaurants. We won't visit again.

Fish was ok- however most of the chips were not cooked properly, afew were actually crunchy due to still being frozen and not cooked through. This let down the fish which delicious.

Great fish and chips and dogs are welcome

Staff unhelpful , laughing and very unproffessional. I did ask them all for some assistance, they were very dismissive. I sat down in the restaurant, the atmosphere was very cold and drafty, all the doors open. I did move table to avoid the draft, waited for someone to serve? no one came ? Staff laughing again, at other counter, they knew i was in the restaurant, no one came, only when I got up to leave someone came to restaurant counter, didn't even realise there was behind a counter? for self service, left without food.

Whilst the service was friendly and the restaurant seems clean and tidy. I'm pretty sure I paid £13.50 for a piece of tescos basics cod that was still cold in the middle and the batter was doughy. They seem to give a large portion of chips my partner had sausages and chips 2 small chippy style sausages with a big portion of chips for 9 quid. Definatly not worth the money.

Got 2 fish and peas. Fish had a bone in it and batter was so thick and stodgy we left it. Went for a pasty instead. Go to fish ahoy

Simply awful. They have completely lost the plot. Blaring radio with endless adverts. £13.75 each for probably the worst cod and chips I’ve had since the 1970s. What’s happened? Service unfriendly too. Daylight robbery. Do not even consider dining here. It’s an embarrassment.

Worst cream tea we’ve ever had. Very disappointing.

Wonderful sea food restaurant fish and chips were amazing and cooked freshly to order , overlooking the lovely harbour views very nice staff very friendly and helpful excellent service and friendly atmosphere

Stopped at the takeaway for a quick lunch. Ordered: 2 battered jumbo sausages 1 standard chips 1 standard battered sausage 1 small chips Ended up with 3 meals 2 x jumbo battered sausage and chips 1 x standard battered sausage and chips Didn’t notice on the receipt until we were handed 3 meals for 2 people. Girl behind the counter was clearly on another planet after waving around a small sausage in our face asking if we ordered a large or small, as well as saying ‘yes I know!’ When I questioned there was only one jumbo sausage with my portion of chips, so I could not be bothered to try and correct the meal for a second time. Upon opening the meals, the chips and batter were anaemic, cold, soggy and dripping with grease. Needless to say, we won’t return

Probably the worst fish n chips iv ever had, 2 black hairs in food nothing done buy staff, uncooked batter, fish revolting, just got storage smile off staff when complained, absolute garbage, 37 pound of rubbish.

Awful food, including soggy chips and disgusting ‘scampi’ which was like mush. Stupid us figured it was busy so it must be good, it was actually only busy because of its location. And to top it off, they charged 65p per small packet of ketchup, which was an absolute rip off. So, don’t bother, eat anywhere else but here!

One of the worst breakfast ever picture below... > FULL CORNISH <

We love padstow but this has to be the most disappointing part of the entire place. The placement of the restaurant is perfect, the upsetting part is that the food is such a terrible contrast. I actually regretted placing an order and I don't know why I didn't take it back. Must have been the 5 hour drive making me desperate for calories. I'm never going to make the same mistake.

Fish and chips were ok but a bit greasy. The "cold" drinks are lukewarm. A bit expensive for what it is but not awful.

The staff at Padstow Fish & Chips are super friendly and very efficient and helpful. Unfortunately, the food was a major letdown. We had Fish and Chips with mushy peas and curry sauce. Although these sides were a hit the fish and chips weren’t. The chips were uncooked and I asked for mine to be changed, which the staff kindly accommodated. Sadly the fresh chips were no better and the fish was tasteless and batter was heavy. Worse fish and chips I have had in a very long time. It's such a shame as the staff are very friendly.

Worst Fish & chips I've had ever! Chips were just chip shaped potato, not crispy at all. Fish looked big, but was mostly hard batter with dry bits of fish. Also super greasy. Expensive rip off, taking advantage of tourists and not needing customers to return. These guys should be embarrassed of themselves. Avoid.

Food was okay. Drink prices are extremely overpriced! £2.95 for a bottle. Chips were nice but nothing special, nothing wanting us to go back. Mushy peas were cold, warm on top from being microwaved but not cooked properly. Very average and wouldn’t be going back

Attitude would be better and the fishcakes were left standing way to long it was really like waiting for your McDonald’s

Not nice for the money. Chips looked like the left overs and were greasy. Fish wasn’t great.

Don't repeat my mistake: trust the bad reviews. I was pretty hungry and had a whole portion of plaice and chips with gravy. So far, it's been 4 hours of heartburn and somache ache. There must have been enough oil in the dish to fuel a small trawler for a week, and I doubt it's been changed recently! Honestly, avoid....

Everyone working so very hard, and chaotic ambience was actually belied by the good hot food and helpful (if tired-looking!) staff. A smear of dried mustard on our stainless steel milk jug didn’t bode well, but we didn’t want to fuss about it at 5.30 pm on a busy, exhausting Monday. Could be the rinse program on the washing-up machine needs checking!

Takeaway fish and chips was superb, nice pieces of fish, all great sizes. Chips were really good. Bit unorganised an chaotic, but it was really busy as it was in the middle of summer. But well worth the wait as the food was great. Chips were honestly amazing. Highly recommend if staying in Padstow. Very reasonably priced too which is a bonus.

The worst fish and chips ever..... don't bother......greasy. cold chips burnt fish overpriced everywhere in restaurant greasy..

Best chips in Cornwall we stayed for 10 days and came back from lands end for these chips. Takeaway chips and curry sauce best around.

Good breakfast, bacon a bit hard but that might be down to preference. Quite expensive £14 with a coffee.

We ordered the homemade fish finger sandwich, it was just air and batter, waste of money !!

First visit. Cod very expensive for what you get. A lot of batter is deceiving, you get more fish in a fish finger!! Chips were ok better than they looked. Shame as put off going back.

Why do I do this ever time I go to padstow. Decide to go here for fish and chips. Batter on fish was burnt and so hard the gull I threw it to almost choked! The chips are undercooked mushy messes more like mashed pork than chips. Everything is absolutely swimming in grease. I not going here again, I would not recommend this to anyone. Play on tourists and think the can serve up rubbish like this and get away with it. Also looks quite grim and dirty in the takeaway side.

The worst fish and chips I’ve ever had! Me and my friend visited Padstow and really wanted a tasty lunch, sadly this place was terrible. The cod fish was disgusting, very thick batter and tasteless! Chips weren’t much better and the mushy peas were like cold soup! Don’t bother! Location was nice but also found it ridiculous that you couldn’t sit on the tables outside if you had a takeaway! Avoid!!!

Went here with 7 friends, fish and chips came out within 3 minutes. £13.75 each which is a disgrace in itself Few hours later 4 of us were sick as dogs with violent vomiting and the same out the other end. Avoid like the plague.

I dont usually leave a review after i eat food at a restaurant, but this was just horrendous. The fries were cold and not fried enough, and the fish was tasteless, it literally tasted like water. It was also very pricy and you had to pay separately for the sauce. We spend 35 for 3 people

Meh! Not great for the money . Expensive at about £14 for fish and chips. Our chips came with little black flecks like burnt oil. Not great

Service and staff were pleasant enough, however the food having paid over£55.00 for was terrible for such a beautiful location. Cold chips and disgusting far too thick, greasy, stodgy batter. The owner should take note of these reviews. Go to Rick Steins place, if you take out it's also cheaper than this place.

Came here for a tea and scones because all other cafes were closed. This restaurant is trying to be too many things all at once, fish and chip shop, cafe, and a casual restaurant, I don’t think it has quite found its identity. The ordering system is slow paced and disorganised, with no real structure to it, try explaining where you’re sat to order food instead of providing a simple table number, the toilets stunk which was right next to the cakes, watching staff carry your food out on a tray wearing the same marigold gloves used to scrub the toilets is a big put off. And after a very disorganised and sloppy service, the cakes were dry and quite clearly store bought, the scones had the same texture as a bap/cob/batch, but was just missing a bit of ham and butter and the tea tasted like rain water despite leaving the tea bag in for 30 minutes. From reading the menu I thought I was ordering a selection of mini tarts/pies to have with my tea as it is in the same section as a cream tea. Instead when I placed my order the waiter told me to “help myself to the cakes” at the end of the queue- as previously stated… next to the toilet in an open fridge. These cakes were clearly standing out all day and we’re not what I was expecting… it was not a selection of tarts and pies. The treacle tart did not taste like a treacle tart and I could not eat it. The rest of the selection did not look appealing at all. Please please please get with the times and take note of the cafes you are surrounded by, where the cakes and food are authentic delightful. Wont be coming back

Rude. Not even a week into the summer hols and the staff here look like they’ve had their fill. F&C swimming in grease.

Unfortunately you pay more for the shops location rather than the quality of food. £13.95 for cod & chips and was very greasy. Would expect better from a fishing harbour. The staff were polite and friendly though.

Slow rude service. Pale and un season chips. Avoid

This place has gone downhill. Chips were brown and tasteless, fish batter soft and flavourless. Won't be going back.

Visited on Sunday very busy ordered scampi, chowder and a kids meal. Food was good chips lovely. Kids meal was HUGE. Dog friendly which was a bonus they've squeezed too many tables in making it very tight inside which is a shame. Overall for a last min unplanned visit just what i expected uncomplicated menu simple café.

Best fish and chips I've had in a while. chips were cooked perfectly. staff very friendly

The worst cold "chips", that were the tiniest bits of overcooked burnt potato that I have ever seen. If you add in the sloppiness undercooked batter, then it was an insult to call this fish and chips. All 6 servings were of the same poor, extremely overpriced quality. Looking around at other customers, not many were eating the chips. A zero rating would be too high.