The restaurant is very proud of the accolades it received when it opened in 2005; the evidence is all over the walls and the web site. But a lot has changed since then, including ownership and chefship. Some of opening chef Chris Svalesen’s influences remain—like his famous “green soup”—but we think the place has lost some of its luster. For starters, we had to scoop out a layer of panko breadcrumbs before we could reach the underlying lobster, spinach, and crab dip. Once we got down there, though, we found a dinky dip marred by an abundance of cream cheese, and the “toast points” offered for dipping were too soft. Fried green tomatoes were spot on, with their crisp cornmeal coating and a cool, creamy homemade ranch dressing for dunking. But why ruin a perfectly good appetizer with a half cup of wilted arugula, globbed with house-made peach jam? In a word: weird. Bouillabaisse, aka green soup, was chock-full of fish and shellfish—probably a bit of everything shipped in from the sea—in a zippy, spicy cilantro broth. We scooped out all the good stuff from its shells so we’d get a nice chunk of protein in every spoonful. Service was kind and efficient, but we were thrown when neighboring diners began to sing “Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This),” by the Eurythmics, while we contemplated dessert. I wish they would have saved it for the karaoke bar.
Update: Go Fish has changed locations and is now Go Fish Ocean Club.
