Taylor’s Seafood Restaurant and Wine Bar

5-7 Huddersfield Road, Holmfirth

Rating

VenueTaylor’s Seafood Restaurant and Wine Bar

Tel01484 687900

Website www.coachandhorsesbistro.co.uk and click on news and events for the full Taylor’s menu and www.taylorsseafood.co.uk up and running soon

Opening hoursFood served Tues-Sat 6pm to 10pm and Sunday 5pm to 9pm. The bar is open an hour longer every night.

ChildrenYes

Disabled accessNo

The bill£56.10

THERE’S something fishy going on in Holmfirth – a wine bar that’s also a restaurant.

Taylor’s fish restaurant opened just over a month ago in a terraced row of cottages in the same block as Ashley Jackson’s landmark – and landscape – studio.

It’s a two-pronged bid to lure in both Holme Valley folk and tourists by combining a wine bar with a cosy restaurant.

Time will tell if such a culinary marriage will work, but the signs seem good so far.

Obviously the restaurant does what it says on the sign. If you don’t like fish don’t wander through the internal archway from the wine bar into the restaurant.

Conversely if you do, then make those few steps.

I’m no fish connoisseur. As a pupil at Oakes Junior School so long ago the school no longer exists, I thought the round ‘fish’ in batter they served for lunch was so great I went back one day for seconds, thirds and then fourths.

It was only then that someone broke the bad news it wasn’t fish I was gorging myself on, it was the dreaded spam fritters.

I instantly felt sick and haven’t touched one from that day to this. In my defence, I was only seven, but I suppose ignorance is no excuse.

No chance of a fritter foul-up at Taylor’s. Spam wouldn’t be seen dead on that menu, if you know what I mean.

It’s not a massive menu with seven starters and seven mains plus a sprinkling of others on the specials board, but that’s no bad sign. Quality not quantity should be the motto for any restaurant worth its sea salt.

I don’t get mussels at home – nor do I expect them – so it had to be Taylor’s moules (£7) – fresh mussels in cream and Chardonnay sauce with chorizo – for starters.

A real taste of the sea but it was a big bowlful.

In fact, I ended up with more mussels than Arnie has muscles.

The sauce just begged to be mopped up with Taylor’s homemade tomato bread, so it would seem rude not to, although the tiny pieces of chorizo struggled to make a cameo appearance.

Ruth’s crab and salmon cakes with homemade chilli jam had the texture more of a terrine, but it really was melt-in-the mouth time.

Her main course was rainbow trout (£14) hooked from the specials board.

The last time she’d had that was when she was around eight – and had bad memories of it arriving complete with head.

This did too, but it was wrapped in a shroud of silver foil. We soon discovered why.

Try unwrapping it while keeping it in one piece and you’d win the Generation Game. Tender to the point of sublime.

The signature dish Taylor’s pie (£13.50) includes seafood such as prawns plus fish topped with buttered mash potato and Gruyere. Not a big dish, but more than filling and that’s a fine combination they’ve got going on there.

Vegetables included new potatoes baby carrots, green beans – firm and crisp and leaving you with a feeling you’d eaten healthily.

With cream walls, minimalist artworks and comfortable chairs (apart from the silver ones next to the window) the restaurant has a relaxed, cosy feel to it.

The only gripe would be that it’s pricey for a combined wine bar and restaurant with Taylor’s giant fish and chips (£14), fillet of Scottish salmon (£14) and tuna steak over Merguez sausage cassoulet (£16).

For vegetarians there is a beetroot humous, olives and homemade tomato bread (£4.50) and Mediterranean vegetables and spinach frittata with dressed house salad (£9.50).

Puddings are £4.50 and include chocolate and cointreau expresso mouse – looks small but sure is rich – poached pear in spiced Merlot wine and Bailey’s cheese cake.

Owned by Andrew Taylor from the Coach and Horses Bistro in Honley – it’s good to see a fresh idea brought into the Holme Valley.