Competition on plush north coast town’s promenade is fierce, but revamped eatery off to good start
The Ice House 9 The Promenade, Portstewart Tel: 028 7053 1251
And given the attentive staff who welcomed us so warmly through the door from the get-go, I was glad I chose the Ice House.
This venue is an iteration of a previous restaurant which closed a number of years ago and also operated under the same name. Many a north coast resident has found themselves driving past as renovations got underway and wondering when the Ice House would be open again.
Ice House in Portstewart
Come summer-time, it will probably be impossible to get a table and so, we took the chance to enjoy a meal at this restaurant and bar, where the TV downstairs shows your favourite sport and diners enjoy the beautiful view upstairs.
It’s certainly easy to imagine a great atmosphere in the sizeable beer garden on those long summer nights.
Before I get to the food, a special mention must go to the staff who couldn’t have been more accommodating, showing us where to stash our pram, making a fuss of our toddler and even giving one of his teething toys a rinse under the tap when he dropped it on the floor.
Similar to the warm welcome, the menu offers a comforting array of choices, from which we first chose Korean wings for my husband and prawns for me.
The wings were a solid starter, spicy enough and a good portion with a decent side of blue cheese sauce.
It came with the mandatory finger bowl, putting paid to reams of sauce-soaked napkins sitting on the table.
My prawns were fresh and juicy, exactly what you’re looking for in this type of a starter and it set me up well for the arrival of my main.
My husband ordered fish tacos, which are becoming somewhat of a staple on the north coast.
There is certainly something nice about ordering them while looking at the harbour where some will land their catch.
His only complaint was that the batter could have been slightly crispier, but that’s a minor complaint as they really were very enjoyable.
I have to be honest and say I wasn’t wowed by my pepper chicken on its first appearance.
Fish taco
It’s a staple of the 2000s which is included on most menus around where we live, speaking only to its popularity — of course, there’s sometimes a reason why dishes remain a meal of choice.
The pepper chicken is best described as good soakage but that was obviously what I was after when I chose it.
The taste was delicious and I was suitably full afterwards, having enjoyed some absolutely delicious garlic fries as a side; after all, no carbohydrate should be left behind.
Meanwhile, my husband had salt and chilli chips he said were hot enough to give him what he wanted, but without actually drawing sweat on his brow.
The food
The rating