Celebrity chef's new café brings zest to Devon seaside

Its menu changes according to the fresh catch that day

When it comes to finding the right location to expand his seafood chain, celebrity chef Mitch Tonks certainly has a good eye for a beautiful setting. But what he isn't blinded by is being open to what might work best there.

When long-established venue Longboat Café along Budleigh Salterton seafront came up for sale, it was snapped up by Mitch and his Rockfish brand team. But instead of being turned into another one of its restaurants, the vision was to create the first Rockfish Seafood Café to offer a more casual dining experience but with the same high-quality food.

It opened its doors at the beginning of August and has received a positive response from locals and visitors alike. Unsurprisingly, its menu is seafood themed, as is its decor with paintings, mugs and menus designed by Mitch's talented wife Pen.

Its core menu is complimented by daily specials from main meals to lighter bites created from the fresh catch of that day in nearby Brixham. A big part of the Rockfish ethos is sustainable seafood and educating people about the different types of seasonal fish they can enjoy, hence its specials board.

Its menu will expand once issues are resolved to supply the café with gas. Although everything is in place, the final hurdle remains waiting for its 'third-party utilities provider'.

For now it can serve hot food, just not fried food. It is the only Rockfish establishment to serve breakfasts. The only more unusual offering is a smoked haddock dish with egg and roasted tomatoes.

Customers can either tuck into its food in its covered seating area or outdoors tables or have it to take away. Its indoor section has been fitted with a log burner to keep it cosy in the warmer months.

The plan is to replace it with a conservatory that has a retractable roof to enjoy the most of the warmer months and provide protection on wetter and colder days. Works were initially said to be starting in October but it is yet to be confirmed when they will begin.

Although some changes are already in place, one thing that has stayed the same is its general manager. Karen Saunders worked for the previous Longboat owners for around four years.

When Rockfish took over, Karen, along with the rest of the former café team, were given the opportunity to stay on.

Karen recalled: "When I first heard it would become Rockfish, I thought it would be really good as Budleigh doesn't have one. The general day-to-day running of the business has not changed at all.

"We offer more casual dining. It's not waitress service to order, but that's the only thing that differs from Rockfish restaurants.

"The quality of fish and service is exactly the same. We can't do fried food yet, but we can serve hot grilled fish called landings of the day.

"The café is very similar to how Rockfish restaurants operate. The fish comes fresh from Brixham every morning and our chefs know what is coming.

"It's usually here by 7.45am and being served by lunchtime. Our bestsellers from the core menu are the prawn tacos with chilli, fresh lime and coriander, and Lyme Bay mussels.

"On a clear day, you can even see one of the boats out there so you can be eating your mussels and look across the water where they are roping them in. The quality and taste of the mussels always get fantastic feedback."

To see if they live up to the hype, I sampled its larger portion of 1 1/2 lb mussels, priced £24. It arrived served up in a large covered pot along with a plate of warm bread and a bowl of water to clean your fingers in afterwards.

As soon I lifted the lid off, I was greeted by the sight of a huge helping of steaming hot plump mussels sitting in a white wine and garlicky sauce. The rope-grown mussels are harvested from Lyme Bay and tasted very fresh with no grit compared to ones I have had in other restaurants.

The seemingly never-ending pot of mussels were perfectly seasoned, had a good helping of garlic and not one shell was unopened. The flavours were superb and the addition of the bread was welcomed to soak up the tasty but not overpowering sauce. The spacious lid was also very handy to put all the discarded shells into.

A smaller helping of 3/4 lb is available for £12 which might be better for smaller appetites because despite my best efforts, I just couldn't finish the larger portion.

My dining companion tucked into a special of the day - smoked haddock with mash potato and kedegree butter, priced £22. Although the fish was the obvious star of the plate, the butter is what is said to have raised the dish to a whole new level.

What has also received high praise is how Rockfish has brought something different to the seaside town of Budleigh.

Karen said: "The feedback has been positive and people have said to me it's a real asset to Budleigh. We still have great customers and our regulars who get the same service. The biggest change has been opening in the evenings.

"A lot of the old team have transferred over from the old café which is nice. What I love about working here is the atmosphere, the customers and with a location like that why would you not come to work every day? It beats an office block in Islington, hands down.

"Even on a windy day, customers come out to see what the sea is doing."

When Rockfish arrived in the seaside town, it pledged to become part of the community by supporting Budleigh in Bloom, the cricket club and SeaChange. It has also added to the list the Christmas lights appeal in Budleigh by donating £1,000.

Rockfish Seafood Café is open seven days a week from 9am to 9pm. Its opening hours are currently under review ahead of the winter season.