The Dock House

*Restaurant is now closed*

Have you ever continually passed by a restaurant and for some reason or another never have eaten there? Well, this is the case with the Dock House restaurant. In fact, I've avoided this place for so long, it has changed owners and name in the mean time. It used to be known as the Sea Shanty. Finally, I decided to try it out. Well, to be honest, there are not many choices out in North Delta left. So I really had no choice! The Dock House is your typical fish 'n chip joint, where everything is cooked in the deep fryer. Healthy eating this is not. Not being particularly hungry (which is a rare occurrence), I decided on the 1 piece Halibut and Chips. While waiting for my order, the students from the nearby high school descended on the place like a pack of hungry wolves. You see, they have a $2.00 special here that consists of a massive mound of fries. The place was completely taken over by the students to the point where they began sitting at my table without asking. They even reached over me to use the condiments on my table! Manners anyone?

Anyways, much like the time I went to Asian Spice, they left as fast as they arrived once they ravaged their fried potatoes. Good thing too, I'm not sure how I would've taken my pictures otherwise. They were taking invading personal space to a whole new level. As the restaurant was clearing out, a decent sized piece of halibut rested on a ridiculously large bed of crispy fries arrived. The batter was neither really thin nor thick, it resided somewhere in the middle. It was moderately crispy and not oily. The halibut itself was quite fresh and flaky. I thought it was cooked quite well. The fries are very much like White Spot fries being crisp and very starchy at the same time.

I was a bit indifferent with the homemade tartar sauce. I really wanted more zing. Rather, it was quite creamy and seemed more like mayo than tartar sauce. I did like the coleslaw, it was simple, tart and crunchy. Overall, for $9.00, it was a fair price for some decent fish n chips. I've heard and seen some negative reviews of this place; but I'm not sure if they've been fair. Sure, there are better fish n chip places; but it was more than acceptable.

The Good:
- Fish was fresh
- Not oily
- Reasonably-priced

The Bad:
- Tartar sauce needs more flavour
- Don't come during lunch on weekdays, the place gets taken over by high school students