It’s an unusual experience to be in a restaurant and yet remain almost oblivious to its decor. But at River Quay Fish at South Bank it’s hard to take to look away from the outstanding view across lush lawn and the chocolate ribbon of the river to the city.

The newly rebadged restaurant, formerly Cove Bar and Dining, is at the very appealing Stokehouse Q end of the precinct and its doors peel back to take in the splendour of city high-rises glittering in the early evening, the freeway flowing brightly at its feet. We were at a table at the front of the restaurant in prime position to also take in the foreground parade of strolling tourists, rollerskaters and joggers. Behind us was an attractive bar and a low-key fitout of concrete floors, a variety of seating including blond wood tables and chairs and hanging baskets of plants.

The menu, as you’d expect from the restaurant’s name, is laden with a bounty of seafood, with oysters and seafood entrees, a mains repertoire of fish, scallop risotto and seafood linguine as well as a couple of steaks for the unreconstructed carnivore, which can, however, be topped with bug tail or prawns. Singapore-style blue swimmer crab and Moreton Bay bugs are share plate options. For those wanting to picnic on the lawns opposite, a takeaway menu is replete with the likes of oysters, fish of the day with salad and fries ($16.50), a prawn and avocado baguette or salt and pepper calamari.

Back indoors, entrees run to beetroot-cured Huon Valley salmon, twice-cooked octopus and crab gazpacho soup. We opted to share a duo of whiting tacos with red cabbage slaw and jalapeño ($16) but were disappointed to find the fish battered, however we should have asked to be sure.

Our alarm was probably exacerbated by the simultaneous arrival of our main courses — we’d been experiencing communication difficulties with our waiter — one of which was tempura flathead ($25), covered not in the ethereal crispy coating of the best Japanese restaurants but a thick batter that buried the fillet’s flavour.

Pan-fried Spanish mackerel ($25) was a decent-sized serve and both mains came with watercress, fried capers and pickled radish. Chips ($9) and sides are extra.

The drinks list was a one-pager but managed to cover most bases required for a casual riverside dining. There were six festive sparkling and champagne choices, a slew of Australian mid-priced wines with some global additions such as a Tuscan sangiovese and an organic Italian pinot grigio, an interesting array of beer and cocktails and carafes of Pimms punch and sangria.

Dessert choice was limited to a candied orange dark chocolate tart, a trio of semifreddos or our choice of a deconstructed version of the English favourite, Eton mess ($12), with a scoop of fabulous raspberry sorbet, macerated strawberries, cream and jam-sandwiched meringues.

On a spring evening fanned by a gentle breeze, the restaurant with its indoor-outdoor vibe seems like one of the city’s most pleasant locations for a meal. The fishy nature of the casual menu is appealing, and by now hopefully service and tempura are on song.

This review originally appeared on couriermail.com.au.