Mariner Restaurant Cnr of Marine Parade and Brighton Mall Phone 887-591 B.Y.O.

Press, 10 March 1982, Page 17

Mariner Restaurant Cnr of Marine Parade and Brighton Mall Phone 887-591 B.Y.O.

(By DEIDRE ORCHARD) The Mariner Restaurant may be found at the corner of Marine Parade and Brighton Mall, and if you like sea food do find it. i Our evening got off to an ! excellent start with complimentary glasses of sherry. It ; may be my Scots antecedents coming to the fore but I suspect that everyone gets a warm glow when getting something for nothing. The glow would have been even warmer if there had - been a choice of sherries. I think all of us would have preferred dry sherry to the cream sherry with which we were presented. The menu was a blackboard menu and not extensive, but that was justified by the uniformly high standard of the dishes offered. The only criticism T would make is that virtually all of them are very rich. A light appetiser or entree would be a welcome addition. There was a choice of two soups, cream of seafood and I pumpkin ($1.80). One of our I friends sampled the cream of ( seafood and one tried the ; pumpkin. Both were pro- ’ nounced to be very good I indeed and I can vouch for i the seafood soup having i stolen a sip: it was very j creamy with a base which ; may have ben related to the pumpkin soup and was enlivened with a little curry. The chef had not stinted the seafood. | Two entrees were offered: Fish pate and Calamari Americane ($4.00). We did not • try the pate but I had the calamari and it was delicious — very tender and served in a spicy sauce. There was a selection of four main courses: Veal Portuguese ($9.00) for the anti-fish lobny represented by my spouse, lobster with cream and tarragon ($10.50), scallop and crab kebab ($9.50) and terakihi coulibiac ($9.00). They were all beautifully and imaginatively presented — carnations were used as a garnish to great effect — and they met with universal acclaim. The terakihi coulibiac, in particular, was very striking. A fillet of terakihi was topped with a white sauce and mushrooms and wrapped in pastry to form a fish, complete with pastry tail. The fish was blowing a carnation from its mouth. The recipient of this piece of culinary artistry told me that it tasted as good as it looked. All of the main courses were served with courgettes, a grilled tomato topped with

cheese, and a duchesse t potato. All were cooked just • as they ought to be, particu- ■ larly the courgettes, i The desserts offered were creme caramel and Moroci can delight ($7.50) for two people. I wrestled with my : conscience, lost as usual and succumbed to the temptation : of a creme caramel. It was i perfect. i No one sampled the Moroccan delight, but it was served at another table and looked quite splendid. It was fruit salad served in half a hollow water melon, the edges of which had been scalloped. The service was quick and thoughtful, and the surroundings pleasant, light pink and dark brown being the predominant colours. The restaurant has only been open for three months and this, perhaps, explains . why it had an air of being not quite finished, and a little bare. One part of the restaurant was imperfectly screened by a rattan blind and the tables on the other side were not set. This did not add to the atmosphere of the restaurant. The same criticism of being a little bare applied to the tables, which- were covered attractively with

brown table cloths. The napkins were a cream colour of the same fabric. This was a good start, but the addition

make all the difference. Dinner for four came to $51.40. A reasonable price for an excellent meal.

of flowers would have added a charm which was lacking. A few such extra touches about the restaurant would

The. Mariner is open from 6.30 p.m. Tuesdays to Sundays, and also from 12 midday on Saturdays.