The Oystermen is a restaurant not far from Covent Garden. We've been before, but many years ago, probably pre-pandemic. As the name suggests they specialise in oysters and henceforth we had plenty of them.

For our starter we picked a raw Jersey rock oyster each, which were fresh and delicious. However, this spot also does cooked oysters, which is more unusual, so we also enjoyed a couple of seaweed oysters which were served with a seaweed butter, and two tempura oysters.

As our arrival drink we fancied a cocktail, and we're quite keen on Martinis. We decided to have a Martini with an oyster in it, because, you know… when at an oyster restaurant! It worked even better after we added a drop of the leftover oyster juice to our cocktail. The Oyster garnish took the place of the more usual olive and added a similar salty, briny tang. Definitely one to try if you get the opportunity.

For our mains my wife ordered a mackerel, which came with a horseradish sauce. I ordered the Gurnard, curried, with a few chilli flakes. We also chose to have some fries on the side. These were crispy, with a lightly spiced coating which worked well with both main courses. We also ordered a glass of Chardonnay each.

We still fancied a digestif. My wife had a glass of the Sazerac Straight Rye, which in my opinion could have done with a bit of ice. I selected a Somerset cider brandy, which I had never had before.

We really enjoyed our time at the Oystermen. The food is excellent, the ambience is great, and on top of that they play recordings of the shipping forecast in the toilets, which are located downstairs. I think we'll be back at some point.