Targ Rybny, Gdansk 09-2012

Fish is abundant along the northern coast of Poland and so it makes sense to try a well reputed restaurant built from the original Gdansk fishmarket. Targ Rybny (restaurant name the same as the road it is located upon) is a well-reputed seafood place and has made itself to #2 on Tripadvisor for Gdansk. The staff did inform me that Poland has no local shellfish, whether that affects your dish selections or not.

The setting is nicely located near the riverside so sitting outside on a sunny day is a perfect idea.

For variety I selected the Tapas Plate with specialties of Fishmarkt. Although clearly designed to be shared between a few, I had it all to myself. Two steamed clams topped with cheese & diced tomato, a crispy pancake from potato & zucchini with wheat seeds topped with caviar, smoked salmon, smoked herring, smoked cod and a smoked salmon mayonnaise mix. In the end a little too much smoked flavour for my liking; I was hoping for a bit more fresh ingredients.

Despite not being local, I tried the Refined Lobster-Cream Soup with Lobster Dumpling served with a nice G (or am I seeing imaginary things in my soup?). The flavour was rich to match the orange brilliance. Thick luscious and lovely with the lobster essence seemingly stronger the deeper I went into the bowl.

I asked them to recommend me a local fish for my main and so ended up with Cod Fillet Baked (with dried tomatoes & mozzarella, served on spinach with lemon sauce). I have to admit I wasn't particularly taken with the dish. The fish quality was a bit tough and reminded me why I extremely rarely order fish dishes as a main course at any restaurant.

Prices are expensive for Poland but with most main courses costing $12-15 (with the odd one being $18 or $30) it really isn't that much in the scheme of world restaurant life.

Next time I would order the Lobster Soup again. Bouillabaise could be promising too. The Tapas Plate I'd only consider if there were a group to share it with all whom liked smoked items. I'm not sure which main to choose - one was served in a fry pan which looked ok.