Go Fish

Yes, Eamonn's lives up to the hype. The tiny (20 seats!) little restaurant in Old Town Alexandria, brought to us from the Restaurant Eve folks, was highly anticipated by the area food community. Greasy comfort food with an excellent pedigree that those of us who don't earn tasting menu salaries could actually afford? It seemed almost too good to be true.

And while Eamonn's isn't a perfect entrant into the new restaurant market, it certainly has plenty of charms. The menu is limited - a couple types of fried fish, served regular or large, two sizes of chips, a handful of other items such as battered burgers, a variety of dipping sauces, and their guilty-pleasure desserts, including fried dough, fried Snickers bars, fried Milky Ways...if you're on a diet, there is no reason to step foot into the tiny restaurant.

The atmosphere is casual - even more so than I expected. Your seating options are a handful of tables with benches, and a couple bar stools. This is an in-and-out kind of place, rather than somewhere you linger (though the $5 Guinesses may cause you to extend your stay a little longer, and are the best beverage bet, as lesser bottled beers also run $5).

The portions here are not gigantic by any stretch of the imagination, but do you really need to clog your arteries with large quantities of fried food? The large piece of cod runs about $6.50, which seems a little much for just a piece of fish, but then you actually taste the thing. The meat is delicate and flavorful - the batter is hearty and delcious. Chips are twice fried, and even better when accented with malt vinegar or a bit of one of the sauces.

It is in the sauces that Eamonn's shows a bit of its high-end restaurant roots - would you have thought that curry sauce would make an excellent accompaniment to fish? My friend and I found it incredible, though we still enjoyed the "Fronch" mustard sauce as well (though it was creamier than I usually like my dijon) - you can choose one sauce out of about 6, or pick a couple for 50 cents each.

I'm not a chocolate fan, but I think those out there will be more than willing to sample the fried candybars for themselves. My friend and I shared a $2.50 order of fried dough balls, which were heartier than I expected, and addictive -they're coated in sugar and cinammon, and they made a convert out of me, when I tend to usually skip dessert. Even if you think you've had your fill of the fried by meal's end, don't miss these.

While you'll ultimately walk out of Eamon's paying a little more than you'd expect for a low-key, easily-inhaled meal of fish and chips, the quality of the ingredients will have you reassured that it was money well-spent.

Eamonn's
728 King St.
Alexandria, Va 22314
703/299-8384