Food Review: Sea and Earth

With the main ingredient being the humble potato, you might not think visiting a chippy would present too much of a challenge if you’re on a plant-based diet. But the overwhelming majority of chip shops fry their fish and other meat items in the same oil as their chips - meaning that, both unfortunately and understandably, even a portion of chips can be off the menu when you’re vegan. 

But what if there was a chippy that not only fried their chips separately, but also offered a comprehensive range of non-meat alternatives to chip shop classic dishes? Step in Sea and Earth, the Woodthorpe-based eatery that entered my life as if sent by God himself, raising my spirits and cholesterol in one fell swoop. 

Not to get too bogged down in hyperbole, but their menu is truly superb, offering vegan versions of fishcakes (vishcakes), battered sausage, mushy pea fritters, chicken nuggets, spicy (corn) ribs, and even battered fish, made with 2/3 banana blossom marinated in herbs, layered in nori seaweed and fried. 

After much deliberation, I went for the battered sausage with small chips, mushy peas and gravy, and it was every bit as delectable as I’d hoped. The generous portion of chips tasted freshly cooked and not greasy, whereas the sausage, coated in delicious crispy, light batter was so good I was convinced it was the real thing. Having never been a fish eater, I had no frame of reference for the banana blossom, but my dining partner was full of praise. 

I’m only slightly ashamed to say that I ordered Sea and Earth again, this time from home, three days later and was delighted to see that, unlike many other takeaways, it travelled well, and tasted just as good as it had done in-store. With a menu that’s as accommodating for meat-eaters as it is for vegans, Sea and Earth has firmly planted its flag as one of Nottingham’s premier chippies.

seaearth.co.uk
778 Mansfield Road, NG5 3FH