Lunch Cruise w/ London Shell Co.
I went on a lunchtime seafood cruise in Central London, hosted by London Shell Co. on a lovely canal boat moored in Paddington.
Where the heck did I find this? Airbnb. Yeah, that’s right, I said Airbnb.
Seriously, if you don’t know about it, Airbnb now does ‘experiences’ such as private or group photoshoots (posts coming soon on those!), dining experiences, tours, and more! I found this experience while browsing around, looking for ideas on things to do as solo activities, and I was so intrigued, I had to book!
Quick company introduction: London Shell Co. was launched in December 2016 by Harry and Leah (siblings) and head chef Stuart. They serve AMAZING British seafood while cruising the lovely Regent’s Canal. It’s all on a canal boat named "The Prince Regent.” and holy cow, was it beautiful.
The main dining area was full of tables for four, and there was also a stunning copper bar, which is where I sat. Depending on how full the cruise is there may be room to sit at one of the traditional tables, but as a solo diner, I really enjoyed sitting by myself at the bar. It also allowed me the opportunity to take my photos, take some notes, and chat with Lucy, our wonderful host for the afternoon.
Onto the actual experience! I was met and welcomed by Lucy, and while she showed guests to their seats, I hung out in the bar area, as the only solo guest that day. She explained to me how the five courses would work over the 2.5-hour cruise as well as our overall agenda and route. Everyone was given a welcome drink of Kingston Black Apple Aperitif - a blend of Somerset Cider Brandy and apple juice made from British apples. It was similar to a sherry almost, but it was very strong, so enjoy it!
Once the rest of the guests were seated, I settled into the bar area and I even had my own little viewing window. Lucy introduced us to the whole crew including the magic-makers in the galley, her other half on the dining floor, and our captain, of course! We had a quick but important safety briefing, but instead of recapping that, I’ll give you a quick outline of what’s going on. The experience was about $67 per person for the day and time I booked, but it may vary. That includes a FIVE-course seafood meal on the water, during a relaxing 2.5-hour cruise from Paddington to Camden Town and back. It may seem a little steep, but I was on that boat for 3 hours, and if you keep reading, you’ll see why I think it was 150000% worth it.
In typical English fashion, it started to rain just after we set off, but the boat itself was nice and dry and wonderfully warm. Our first course arrived smelling heavenly, and it was a classic: “Fish ‘n’ Chips, but make it fancy” - my words, not theirs. Deep-fried cod and some angel hair type fries, a slice of bread, and some salsa topped…something. I’m honestly not entirely sure what it was, but it was scrumptious. The fish was perfectly hot and crispy but not dry. To be honest, the fries were difficult to eat because they were so small, but they were so delicious, the struggle was worth it.
According to Lucy, most of the boats on the canal are residential, though there are a few commercial ones as well. London Shell Co. started in November 2016 and just added another boat (this one more stationary) called The Grand Duchess that serves the area as more of a general restaurant than the destination type experience than The Prince Regent is.
By now the second course had arrived and when I thought things were going to be good, they completely blew me away. You can see the picture of how beautifully plated this was, but it was torched mackerel, in a blood orange emulsion with monk’s beard (a type of green I’d never heard of before). It was a small portion but it was perfection, so rich and also refined. I think if there was any more on the plate, I wouldn’t have had room for anything else!
Before the third course, we had a bit of a break and many of the guests went to the front deck to enjoy the sun. There were quite a lot of people wandering along the canals (something I’m going to try and do my next time in the city) and we got to see some African hunting dogs when we rolled by the London Zoo.
Then, the third course. Words cannot even describe to you how wonderful and just mouthwatering this was, but I’ll at least tell you WHAT it was. Smoked haddock, saffron potatoes, a curried cauliflower velouté, and a teeny tiny quail’s egg. I’d never had anything like this before, and I was not the only one. You know something is delicious when multiple people ask for bread to sop up what they can and not waste a bit! Keep in mind, I’ve had three amazing courses by now, and we were only just halfway done. It was around this time that we turned around the boat and started heading back toward Paddington as well.
Course four - more substantial, and oh so delicious. How many times have I said delicious or some synonym in this post? Probably a lot. This dish was Cornish hake, crushed new potatoes (as opposed to old? unsure.), purple sprouting broccoli, and salsa verde. HOLY SCHNITZEL was this something that surprised me. Just thinking about it now is making my mouth water. I like eating fish, but this was unlike anything else I’ve ever tried: moist but not mushy, rich but not heavy… I really cannot describe it.
Finally, when we were nearing the mooring once more, we had our fifth and final course. This was my favorite, because dessert. Dessert was a Yorkshire rhubarb fool with toasted almonds and a palmier biscuit. If you’re like me and have NO idea what a fool is - besides an insult by Disney villains - I’ll enlighten you. According to the ever-reliable internet: A fool is an English dessert, traditionally made by folding puréed stewed fruit into a sweet custard, but modern recipes substitute the custard with whipped cream. It was basically fruit and cream, but again… so. fancy.
Rounding up my giant rant about how delicious all this food was, a couple of things I want to mention. I’m clearly not a food expert by any means, but I was pleased as punch. I will also say... if you don’t like seafood, don’t do this. If you do, I reallllly recommend giving London Shell Co. a try! The atmosphere was so relaxing and everyone was absolutely wonderful, it made my experience so magical. If you’re looking for a little more romance or something a little more special for an evening, they also offer a dinner cruise! Finally, this is something I paid for with my own dollars, and am not being compensated for this post. Everything is 100% my own opinion and you can tell because I have no idea how to review food or dining experiences.
I had an absolutely amazing time and can’t wait for another opportunity to do this again. Thanks to Lucy and London Shell Co. for such a great experience!
