What an unexpected treasure. In the 100-plus times I’ve driven past Dutton Park’s Fish Kitchen, I’ve taken note but never made the move to step inside.

Fish and chips are not a meal I travel for, but this is so much more than the usual suburban fish and chip shop.

There’s a fresh seafood market to the rear and a smallish casual restaurant fronting Annerley Rd with an attractive, shaded patio to the side. It’s licensed and sells a small range of beers, soft drinks and fairly basic wines. The range could do with a heap more funk, but – for a fish and chip joint – getting any cold beer is a luxury.

Service works on the same three-quarter scale as plenty of pubs and the casual end of restaurants: order at the counter and the staff bring the food and drinks.

In my head, I envisaged a menu of cod, whiting, snapper plus a few exotics; chips of course, potato scallops, prawn cutlets, crumbed scallops and perhaps some badly treated oysters. Salad? Maybe. But at some point these guys decided to do something a little different.

Sure, there are burgers and all of the expected basics. There’s even a section on the menu headed “Old School Chippery”, featuring dagwood dogs, pineapple fritters, dim sims, kabana and seafood sticks. And I have no doubt that they’ll be pretty good renditions of the old-school deep-fry favourites.

Every fish and chip joint has packs, but how about Governor’s – English ale-battered cod with chips, mushy peas and malt vinegar – or a simple dish of salmon with garden salad ($16.50)? For me, though, it’s the stuff beyond the usual that makes this place tick.

Tempura fish tacos for example ($18, inset) came as a trio with a salad of mint, coriander and sprouts crowning each of them, avocado, sour cream and chipotle below and the fish component a really good, fat fillet. I’ve had better, finer tempura batters (this was more everyday fish batter) but who cares? It was delicious, fresh and generous.

There was also seafood chowder ($23) with baguette; 1kg of mussels ($27) in the standard format of white wine, garlic, tomato and chilli, and an alluring offer of grilled Moreton Bay bugs with garlic and herb butter, chips and salad.

Perhaps the crowning glory was the barramundi burger: a terrific piece of fish wedged on a brioche bun with an Asian salad ($17).

Fish Kitchen is a thought-driven place. It caters to traditionalists and culinary vamps in equal measure, and it does both equally well. Its ingredients are simple: top-notch seafood and a little imagination.

Originally published on courermail.com.au