J Sheekey

J Sheekey a historic London restaurant in the heart of Covent Garden, offers the best seafood, fish, shellfish and oysters with al fresco dining on the terrace.

J Sheekey | Seafood & Fish Restaurant Leicester Square

Tucked away on St Martin’s Court between Covent Garden and Leicester Square, J Sheekey is an iconic London restaurant which has been serving the finest fish and shellfish for over 100 years.

The restaurant is a stone’s throw from many of the vibrant quarters of Soho.

The National Gallery, National Portrait Gallery, St-Martin-in-the-Fields and the cinemas of Leicester Square are just around the corner.

The Royal Opera House and Coliseum, Palace Theatre, Donmar Warehouse, Wyndham's, Duke of York’s and Noel Coward Theatres are close by, making the theatre restaurant perfect for pre- and post-theatre dining.

https://www.j-sheekey.co.uk

J Sheekey - London Restaurant Reviews | Hardens

J Sheekey Atlantic Bar & Terrace: Review

In Theatreland, the best seat in the house is still at the J Sheekey Atlantic Bar Recognisable by its vibrant canopies and centuries-old signage, J Sheekey is a London institution famed for its scintillating seafood dishes.

The Covent Garden stalwart is made up of three parts: the original restaurant, the buzzy Atlantic Bar and an al fresco terrace.

I visit to test out the newly revamped terrace but owing to the British weather, I decamp inside to a cosy corner of the Atlantic Bar.

The mood-lit Atlantic Bar was subtly spruced up in 2016 and features a central, marble-topped oyster bar and bustling backroom of tables, alongside an air of old worldly glamour.

The Atlantic Bar specialises in small plates of superb seafood and shellfish, with a few contemporary surprises thrown in.

J. Sheekey restaurant review 2007 December London | British ...

The last time I came here I was sat next to Liv Tyler, and tonight we were graced with the presence of actor Christian Slater and fashion designer Matthew Williamson (no doubt amongst many others who I was not trendy enough to recognise), so the pulling power of this place for the well-heeled is not in doubt.

My haddock and chips featured a large piece of good quality haddock, in a batter that was cooked a fraction too hard in the fryer, but still perfectly pleasant.

Also good were French beans with onions as a side dish.

For dessert rhubarb crumble was enjoyable, with the tartness of the rhubarb not overwhelming, the crumble having good texture (14/20).

I can see why this place does well; the habits of celebrities are a mystery to me, so I have no idea why it seems a media hang-out, but I suspect the unobtrusive and careful service is at the heart of this.

J Sheekey - London Restaurant Reviews | Hardens

“Well deserving its status as a West End Institution”, Richard Caring’s “very classy” Theatreland Icon (est 1896) offers “plenty of star gazing after the theatre”, and remains both the survey’s most talked-about destination, and its No. 1 tip for fish (eclipsing its stablemate Scott’s for nominations as London’s best).

Sitting in a narrow, Dickensian alleyway off St Martin’s Lane, you pass its doorman and etched-glass façade to enter a series of snug (“poky”) panelled chambers, where “white-aproned waiters deliver whip-sharp service and a menu that sings of the sea: from shellfish platters and superior classics (eg lobster thermidor) to creamy, comforting fish pie”.

2018 Guest Chef Series | J Sheekey Atlantic Bar

Kicking off the series are three fantastic chefs, each of whom will cook in the Atlantic Bar kitchen alongside our Executive Head Chef Andrew McLay, bringing their unique flavours and styles to a series of ticketed dinner events.

The 2018 guest chef series starts in February and will continue throughout the year.

Based on a minimum of three courses, each chef will create a menu of delicious sharing plates, in keeping with the J Sheekey Atlantic Bar style.

Bar Manager, Giuseppe Masala, has worked closely with Plymouth Gin to present a stand out cocktail list for each event, including a gin cocktail paired to each chef’s signature dish.

For those who are not able to book tickets to the supper itself, each chefs’ signature dish will feature on the J Sheekey Atlantic Bar menu, alongside a Plymouth Gin cocktail pairing, for several weeks after the dinner.

J Sheekey: Good for another century | London Evening Standard

En route to the newly revamped J Sheekey, I decided that the environs of Leicester Square station at around 7pm on a hectic late summer evening could be the very worst place on earth.

The Oyster Bar portion of the restaurant now goes by the title J Sheekey Atlantic Bar.

Sheekey’s Atlantic Bar is also proud to have Quentin Blake’s blessing; the artist has doodled some sea-inspired images all over the front windows and designed some heart-meltingly pretty plates, which were positively pleading to be snaffled to Leyton in a Stella McCartney tote and cherished at leisure.

This former plain old Oyster Bar now serves a more diverse range of small plates such as cod cheek gyoza, squid tempura, slip sole with samphire, and even lamb tenderloin with couscous.

The pudding menu offered, on our visit, an excellent gooseberry pie with elderflower ice cream.

J Sheekey | Restaurants in Covent Garden, London

After well over a century of service, Sheekey’s status as a West End institution is assured.

With its monochrome photos of stars of stage and screen, wooden panelling and cream crackle walls, and array of silver dishes atop thick white tablecloths, it oozes old-fashioned glamour.

The white-aproned, black-waistcoated staff are charm incarnate, if alarmingly numerous – half a dozen greeted us between door and table.

The menu, an ode to the bounty of the sea, runs from super-fresh oysters and shellfish via old-fashioned snacks (herring roe on toast) to upmarket classics (dover sole, lobster thermidor).

You can feast on crustacea (and some dishes from Sheekey’s main menu) at the Oyster Bar next door – it’s also easier to book.