LOCATIONThe centre of Deakin Shops under the big blue banner.
PROFILED BY DE GROOTS MEDIAIn landlocked Canberra you can certainly be excused for leaning more towards turf rather than surf. Fish and chips is a meal best savoured by the sea; shared with seagulls, spilt across your towel and (almost always) one that results in greasy fingers due to forgotten paper napkins. Whether fresh or frozen, the swell of the ocean is usually enough to quell your concerns about the quality of the fish and how far it has travelled to arrive on your plate. Having said this, there remain scatterings of seafood hot spots around our inland state and Canberra restaurant aficionados know that Cape Cod is one of them.
Appearing every bit a take-away corner shop, most likely run by a limping old gentleman with a buzzing soft drink fridge and plastic drape door, in reality Cape Cod is actually a trendy eatery in Canberra’s southern districts. With specials and wine lists scrawled across chalk boards and nautical themed posters adorning the walls, it is obvious that owner Chris Hanson knows how to have fun with the Cape Cod image. The wait staff know how to transfer this sense of fun too: the friendly service at Cape Cod is highlighted by the waiters’ knowledge of an ever-changing seasonal menu. Interesting seafood combinations like oysters with wasabi and lemon or salmon with green apple sorbet open up doors to new flavour experiences. More staple mains are generous (as can be expected at a modern Australian restaurant such as this) and focus around spiced fish – from blue eyed cod to swordfish. Our friendly rock dwellers, mussels and crabs, are also available. Again the menu is seasonal so there is no reason not to come back to see what treasures abound.
Nick Hadland, December 2009