Murrays Seafood Restaurant

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502 reviews

#4 of 46 Restaurants in Cowes₹₹ - ₹₹₹, Seafood, British, Vegetarian Friendly

+44 1983 296233+ Add website

Hours

Sun

12:00 pm - 3:00 pm6:30 pm - 10:00 pm

Mon

12:00 pm - 3:00 pm6:30 pm - 10:00 pm

Tue

12:00 pm - 3:00 pm6:30 pm - 10:00 pm

Wed

12:00 pm - 3:00 pm6:30 pm - 10:00 pm

Thu

12:00 pm - 3:00 pm6:30 pm - 10:00 pm

Fri

12:00 pm - 3:00 pm6:30 pm - 10:00 pm

Sat

12:00 pm - 3:00 pm6:30 pm - 10:00 pm

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Ratings and reviews

4.5

502 reviews

#4 of 46 Restaurants in Cowes

RATINGS

Food

Service

Value

Atmosphere

Food and ambience

Local cuisine, Seafood, British, Vegetarian Friendly, Gluten Free Options

“We had haddock filets in prawn and lobster sauce with new potatoes and mixed...”

“How much for an oyster!”

“My fillet came with a curry sauce and a few mussels in their shells.”

“Fab fresh fish menu”

Location and contact

106 High Street, Cowes PO31 7AT England

+44 1983 296233

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Is this a British restaurant?

Yes

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Details

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About

Long established, family run business, set menu, a la carte and catch of the day, fresh local seafood, steak/meat dishes, vegetarian options, special dietary needs catered for wherever possible

CUISINES

Seafood, British

Special Diets

Vegetarian Friendly, Gluten Free Options

Meals

Lunch, Dinner, After-hours

FEATURES

Reservations, Seating, Highchairs Available, Wheelchair Accessible, Serves Alcohol, Full Bar, Accepts American Express, Accepts Mastercard, Accepts Visa, Accepts Credit Cards, Table Service

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4.5

502 reviews

Excellent

290

Very good

130

Average

Poor

Terrible

Roxanne C

Surrey504 contributions

Delicious lunch!

Sept 2020 • family

We ate here for lunch having explored Cowes. We really enjoyed the fresh lobster and the steak was super yummy, though if it came with chips/potatoes or veg it would be appreciated as just a steak and few leaves at £24 seems a little steep. Very yummy though as were the puddings!! Friendly service from both staff just needed reminding of little ones menu and drink so not sure if many tots eat here but kids menu amazing value!! Would def eat here again next time we’re in Cowes.

Written 4 September 2020

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ClarkyB1977

Shefford25 contributions

We arrived in Cowes (with

Aug 2020 • none

We arrived in Cowes (with no bookings) very hungry after an early start. We called the restaurant and asked if they could accept a group of 6, we were delighted to receive a positive response. The menu choices were lovely with two options: a two or three course set menu or some really lovely fish dishes. There was also a very acceptable children’s menu. Our adults chose from the set menu and our children had the kids menu, which was a combination of fish and standard “kids” options. We had 4 very good starters (2 x smoked mackerel, smoked salmon & prawns, 1 x salt & pepper squid, 1 x meat selection). For our mains we had: 2 x pan fried cod, 2 x smoked haddock florentine with a selection of green vegetables and new potatoes. All was very well cooked, seasoned and presented and the service was added to the quaint atmosphere of the restaurant. Their fish was all locally sourced and the dishes were well constructed. I would recommend this restaurant to anyone who asks and their full restaurant would suggest they are a very popular choice for many. If you like fish then you should this place out.

Written 16 August 2020

Fabian+Georgia

130 contributions

Fantastic fish but disappointing dessert

Jun 2021 • couples

My girlfriend and I ate here for the last night of our lovely isle of wight holiday. Firstly, it was really nice to be given a basket of free bread and butter on arrival. In fact, everything about the meal was lovely and we were going to give it a 5/5 - until dessert arrived. Dessert, a creme brûlée with sorbet and short bread, was just not of restaurant standard. The brûlée was served in a small but deep pot, which resulted in a less than ideal sugar crust to custard ratio. We also noticed that there were no specs of vanilla seed in the custard at all, which is not great when you’re spending £6.50 on a small pudding. Finally, and perhaps most bizarrely, the shortbread biscuit was a shortbread round, clearly a cheap biscuit from a packet which could be bought from any supermarket - not what you’d expect from a restaurant. On top of this biscuit, there was a scoop of overly sweet and artificial tasting sorbet which just wasn’t good. It was such a shame that the creme brulee left us feeling rather disappointed, as the fish we were served (lemon soul) was cooked perfectly and couldn’t be faulted (it was so good in fact that we couldn’t justify giving this restaurant a 3) - perhaps why we were so surprised by the poor quality of the creme brulee dessert!

Written 21 July 2021

Rosiecrit

New Forest National Park Hampshire13 contributions

FOOD GOOD BUT SMOKING WOOD-BURNER SPOILED OUR MEAL

Feb 2020 • none

the food was a good as it usually is although a little cold. They had a large table of lunch guests so didn't like to pressurizer the staff in reheating our meal. However the wood burner provided a room of smoke for the entire time we were there to the extent we left early along with other guests. We will return as we love the food but only when the problem wood burner has been dealt with.

Written 15 February 2020

Adella O

10 contributions

Very dated and highly over-rated

Aug 2020 • none

We had previously been to the Smoking Lobster in Ventnor and were hoping for a similar experience here. Reading the other reviews I can't recognise this restaurant at all. From walking in, the back room is dingy and something out of the 70's with no atmosphere. We were served by very un-enthusiastic family tag-team. We ordered the Oysters and these came out on a plate with no ice, or any accompaniments other than a sticky bottle of tabasco. No shallots or vinegar as you would expect. The oysters were not right at all and we felt uncomfortable eating them as they turned into a pink mush when we tried to take them away from the shell. We were worried we would be ill so sent them back and we paid £5 for them rather than £13.50 for them. We noticed another family also sent back their fish so we were very nervous when our mains arrived. The kids had grilled fish which was disgusting - under done and tasted off. It was still quite clear. I had half lobster but pathetic for the price paid £17.50.. My husbands cod was nice with a nice sauce but overall the oyster experience made us feel unhappy about the whole experience. My husband was ill later that day with an upset stomach. When the bill came and it was £70 we felt like we had just had a bad meal and wasted a lot of money... This is so inferior to the smoking lobster I have no idea how it received the ratings it has done on trip advisor. This was our worst meal by far on our whole week on the island.

Written 28 August 2020

Darren W

9 contributions

Not the greatest

Aug 2020 • family

Two families visited 7 in total, not the greatest welcome to start with, after ordering a bottle of wine we then had to ask for the bottle of wine again after 15min as they had forgotten to bring it over, as for the food one of us had the salt and pepper squid, (calamari) all I can say is that it tasted like it was frozen then deep fried, not the greatest. Also just to add that it was one of the hottest days of the year and even though there was an air con unit this sadly did not work so as you can imagine it was warm and uncomfortable. Two of us had the steak, one medium and one midium rare, both came out the same as eachq other, again this was not great and a disappointment, lastly one of our party had the monkfish and prawns, the prawns again tasted like they were frozen then quick fried, we all certainly expected more from this restaurant as the reviews were all pretty good, we were all sadly disappointed by what was served to us, sadly we will not be returning.

Written 11 August 2020

Dev Deepak

London619 contributions

What On Earth !?!

Jul 2020 • family

I am on a weekend holiday trip from London. We have spent our time visiting many lovely seafood restaurants in the area. I have no clue why all the reviewers are giving this spot amazing scores. The seafood is somewhat fresh but for £40 the lobster served was pathetic. It was not prepared well with garlic and butter (no flavour really) and the lobster itself lacked any subtle sweetness and it’s flesh was chewy. The prawns were tiny and quite literally reminded me of a packet of cocktail prawns easily picked up from Waitrose. The ‘reformed’ crab was also a huge miss. They took out all the meat from the crab and put it back in the shell (seems like a lot of meat was lost ?). Moreover, every dish was served with coleslaw or some weak salad and perhaps a set of baked potatoes none of which really adds the dish and instead serves as a pointless filler. However, the people are quite friendly and lovely to speak to. I can saw with full confidence that 100% you are definitely better off going to a place like the “smoking lobster” or “The hut” instead of here since you will be paying same amount for miles better food and portions. Just shocked by how highly priced these were for their quality.

Written 29 July 2020

Anna C

Chichester607 contributions

Very disappointing

Oct 2020 • none

Had read good reviews so booked a table here and we were both very disappointed, the calamari was tasteless and rubbery, the pesto mayonnaise I think was from booker, nothing like pesto or mayonnaise, when you go to a decent restaurant, simple things like mayonnaise should be either of decent quality or home made, it isn’t difficult for a decent chef. The service was poor, no ‘enjoy your meal’, or is everything ok? Nor even pouring the wine, in a restaurant like this, these are basic things, we were overcharged for drinks that were priced on the menu, we didn’t even say anything, we just paid and left, finally, agree with another comment here about zero atmosphere, a little music would go a really long way! Such a shame, don’t expect too much.... and there are a tonne of better places worth visiting.

Written 26 October 2020

helvin2001

Haverhill66 contributions

Disappointing

Sept 2020 • none

WE booked this after reading great reviews. We love fish and have worked in the catering business so do know quite a lot about food and it is so nice to be served it rather than cook it nowadays! But we were very disappointed. The restaurant is small and not very atmospheric and we were tucked in a back table which was not very comfortable. Those serving really had no personality or front of house charm and it was rather subdued. We wanted to have a treat so had salt and pepper squid to start - average and not worth the price, should melt in your mouth and not be too rubbery but it was, we then ordered a half lobster and dover sole. I actually asked if they were large sole as sometimes dover sole is served and they are more like lemon sole. Well, the half lobster was like a large prawn and for nearly £18 was not worth it at all. The king prawns we had at the garlic farm on the island were better than the lobster. The dover sole arrived and we both looked twice and asked if he was sure it was a dover sole. He told us that it was and when we said we were disappointed he said that dover sole were smaller than lemon sole on the IoW! For over £25, this was an expensive small dover sole! It was a very good flavour and well cooked but it was tiny and we were served in a rude manner with no care for what we had said. We left with a bill over £60. Not to return. .

Written 10 October 2020

FatMum

London15 contributions

Disappointed overall

Aug 2020 • none

We booked to eat here on a Saturday evening and although the food was good, the overall experience was disappointing. Service was minimal to say the least and we had a very small, cramped corner bench table for two which did spoil the experience. Service staff seemed more interested in chatting amongst themselves at the bar than anything else. The food was good, in fact the whole grilled bass was excellent however this was no choice of side dish and our potatoes and vegetables arrived quite a while after the fish itself. Maybe it was just an off night but I left feeling that the reality did not live up to the hype and there are definitely friendlier, more comfortable places to eat.

Written 10 August 2020

Biztwig

Romsey103 contributions

Cracking little place with fantastic food, again!

Sept 2020 • friends

Don’t be fooled by the small frontage, this restaurant expands throughout the back. This was our second visit, the first being three years ago and the food was just as good. Fantastic menu with lots to choose from for both fish eaters and non-fish eaters. They are super flexible and happy to mix & match meals to accommodate fussy eaters. Everything was well cooked and tasty. Great wine menu with something for everyone. I just wish we lived closer!!!!

Written 3 September 2020

corrie_clan

Oxford114 contributions

Beautifully cooked

Oct 2020 • couples

This was what I always hope for in a seafood restaurant. Great quality, cooked superbly. Our cod was chunky yet delicate - proper melt in your mouth fish. The rest of the meal was just as good. The choice of puddings was great too.

Written 4 October 2020

Clive

Isle of Wight57 contributions

Perfect evening for a celebration

Aug 2020 • none

I had booked a week prior to secure our reservation. Brian the owner responded in good time via email to confirm our arrangements. The occasion was to celebrate my Wife, Alice's birthday and the East Out to Help Out scheme was an added bonus. That said, I would have still booked Murrays regardless of the scheme as we had heard many good things since our move to Cowes at the end of 2019. We were greeted warmly and ensured we adhered to the Covid regulations put in place by Murrays. The restaurant is a small venue, but that is what we like. Cosy with ambience. That said, I think we wouldn't like to be in the back room but that is a personal preference. We were seated at one of two window tables which was perfect for us. Diners have a choice of a 2 or 3 course menu or an alternative Catch of The Day menu. All offer a very good choice and we could have picked most things on either menu. I went for the Local Dover Sole whilst my Wife had the Seas Bass Filet with Dijon Mustard Sauce. Both were exceptional. It goes without saying, that we both tasted each other's dish. Dessert was too tempting to resist and we had Creme Brulee with Raspberry Sorbet and Hand Made Blueberry Meringue with Blackberry and Clotted Ice Cream. Both were what we had hoped for. Murrays is a family run business and upon leaving, we expressed our satisfaction with Fran and Declan. We also learned a bit about the building and struck up a nice conversation. This was our first time at Murrays and we will return and can recommend with confidence. We have an Air Bnb and will be adding Murrays to our list of recommendations for dining. Thanks to all at Murrays for a lovely evening celebrating my Wife's birthday. Clive and Alice

Written 19 August 2020

memberiow

30 contributions

Highly recommended

Dec 2020 • family

We visited Murrays for lunch and both of us really enjoyed it. The Covid measures they have in place made us feel very relaxed. The staff were friendly, welcoming and efficient. They made sure that we had everything we wanted and checked that we were happy with our meals. We both had the smoked salmon, prawn and smoked mackerel starter which was beautifully presented and tasty, served with fresh bread rolls. We then had the fish pie and salmon fillet. Both were beautifully cooked and delicious accompanied by new potatoes, courgettes and green beans. The restaurant is very cosy and nicely decorated with a high standard of cleanliness. I would definitely recommend a visit to Murrays!

Written 16 December 2020

Maria T

London361 contributions

Fabulous fish

Oct 2020 • couples

We were the first people in on a Sunday evening but it soon filled up. It's a small restaurant but very COVID aware and safe, with perspex screens between tables. Two delightful young waiters who were very polite and helpful. We had scallops and whitebait to start - the scallops were the best I've ever had, perfectly caramelised and the whitebait was a huge portion and apparently lovely. We both had sea bass on beans and chirizo which was beautifully cooked and came with a side of beans and courgette plus new potatoes. Desserts were delicious too - brownie with salted caramel ice cream and new york cheesecake both great. We thoroughly enjoyed it, so much so we booked to go back later in the week before we have to go home. Highly recommended.

Written 19 October 2020

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MURRAYS SEAFOOD RESTAURANT, Cowes - Menu, Prices & Restaurant Reviews - Tripadvisor