Seafood platters seem to be getting harder and harder to find. There have been times when we’ve had a seaside break and ended up buying pots of seafood from one of the vans parked up near the coast, finding a grassy spot and enjoying a makeshift seafood picnic.
Admittedly, Harwich isn’t exactly your traditional “seaside”, but it’s an Essex town formerly known for its fishing industry. I had seafood firmly on my mind when we stayed for the weekend.
Enter The Alma Inn, which has served up ale to local workers and overseas visitors since the 1850s. We were lucky to bag a table: it’s clearly a popular spot.
The Alma Inn in Harwich looks very much like a traditional pub from the decor. If you’re looking for a local pint, they’ve plenty of choice – and a small garden out the back to enjoy during warmer weather.
In the main bar area, though, you’ll find plenty of blackboards dotted around that describe some incredible-sounding local seafood. There was a choice of six different oyster varieties when we visited: visit between 4-5pm and you can enjoy local rock oysters for just £1.50 each!
It was the lobster-shaped board that caught our eye: the offer of a seafood platter to share for £50. This offered eight different types of seafood, along with bread, dips and optional chips – just what we were after.
In hindsight, we should have booked so that we had a table big enough! It was a bit of a squeeze (especially as we ordered chips on the side), but it was totally worth it.
The first dish that arrived featured four plump, fresh local oysters – deliciously salty and chewy. We did have shallot vinegar and lemon to add if we wanted, but there was absolutely no need. Accompanying these, a large handful of flavourful anchovies, and two juicy rollmops with their incredible vinegary tang.
Next to arrive was a weighty enamel dish packed full of fishy treats! The whole local crab was super sweet, the legs and claws filled with plenty of meat. Fresh, salty cockles were served in a halved scallop shell, and we were impressed with the generous portion of prawns which were deliciously meaty. The mackerel fillets were heavily smoked, and the gravadlax was one of the stars of the show for me: tender and beautifully cured.
The chips were tasty enough, but the bread was a little hit and miss. The slices from the larger loaf were fine, but the smaller ones tasted a little stale. The butter was rock-solid, too, and impossible to spread.
Overall, though, despite a few minor niggles, we loved our seafood platter at The Alma Inn, Harwich. £50 seemed great value and we left feeling satisfied with the food, the drinks, the atmosphere and the service we received. If you’re ever in the Harwich area and craving seafood, it’s definitely a place I’d recommend.