The fried cod platter at the Sea Bright Fish Company. Below, Kim Cognata, one of the owners. (Photo by Susan Ericson. Click to enlarge)
By SUSAN ERICSON
“Our mission is to be hyperlocal,” Kim Cognata says of the two-month-old Sea Bright Fish Company. Working together with her father, Paul Diomede, and her brothers Paul and Justin, this restaurant, with a view of the Atlantic Ocean is a family affair.
An eat-in or take-out menu offers the expected fish sandwiches, platters and chowders, as well as some unexpected, upscale items.
The Sea Bright Fish Co. offers seating for a few or many. (Photo by Susan Ericson. Click to enlarge)
The fish and chips platter ($13) was filled with three large pieces of fresh cod, fried crisply with a bread crumb coating, giving it more texture than the usual batter-fried fish. A generous portion of flaky fish, it is served with a heap of fried potatoes, coleslaw, and your choice of tartar or cocktail sauce.
The menu lists roasted mussels with garlic, oil and wine for $7.75, with roasted clams prepared the same way for $8.50.
Cognata moved recently to the Sea Bright area from Maine, where she was raising her five children to be a partner in the family business. “I fell in love with the New England area and its food, like the Ipswich clams, which are the whole-belly clams that we use instead of fried clam strips.”
A five-course prix fixe dinner will be available in October, by reservation only, Cognata said. The price will be based on what is in season and local.
Also on deck: “We are planning to offer cooking classes in the winter to teach people how to prepare a three-course meal,” Cognata said. “All made with local ingredients.”
Open from noon to 9 p.m. for lunch and dinner every day, this new addition to Sea Bright is well worth a trip over the bridge. Bring your own bottle, enjoy the well-prepared seafood, then have a walk on the beach. It doesn’t get better than that.
