Starfish is a bright light in the sea of Beijing restaurants, offering a menu dedicated toward serving seafood of superior calibre. Local fish are often a scary thought, given the pollution and other man-made tragedies, such that there’s a strong demand for imported varieties – carbon footprints be damned. And here is where Starfish fills a much-needed niche: the owners run JetFresh Foods, which imports fish wholesale, and this restaurant is their newest baby. The company has been a reliable relief in times where fresh (and safe) sourcing of fish has been lacking.
Live oysters are the delicious rock stars here, with technologically advanced rain-spritzing oyster condos to keep them alive and prime until they’re yours. A daily list of jetsetters fly in from North America, France, Australia, even South Africa. They aren’t cheap, ranging from 30 to 78RMB (though a single Belon could set you back 95RMB, depending on size), but then, they shouldn’t be. Still, 218RMB will get you five different oysters with a glass of house wine (or 10 plus a bottle of bubbly for 598RMB, ideal for two). For those who wish to treat their oyster with lemon, red wine mignonette or even (gasp) cocktail sauce, this is paradise found.
For everyone else, there’s a classic shrimp cocktail (86RMB) with the curled, sweet rare pinkies hanging precariously over the edge of a glass filled with shredded iceberg and horseradish-licked red sauce. It’s the grand dame of starters against a meaty crab cake (76RMB) that’s sure to please with a cilantro nod. But a pile of steamed manila clams (180RMB), available on special nights with wine and tender shallots, is especially briney and good, requiring a bready dip into the boozy elixir at the bottom. Skip the tomato and red onion salad (45RMB) until winter’s over, though, and ask for salt with the chowder (55RMB) -- it can be as bland as it is pale, with floating chunks of leeks and potatoes begging for the grace of a herb, pinch of salt and twist of pepper.
The linguini with New England sea scallops and Vietnamese tiger shrimp in a garlic-and-butter sauce with white wine is sold as ‘scampi’ and sounds worldly. But it tastes like the comfort of a New Jersey shore joint and, on subsequent visits, it’s consistently bland with slightly overcooked pasta (123RMB) – the type of dish your land-lubber friend might order. Sablefish, a silky cod, meanwhile is an easy and likeable choice (188RMB) with mustard greens that can lose distinction through overcooking. A vegetable coleslaw from the menu is actually a repeat of the overly dressed mixed-salad greens, in a cloying coat of balsamic heaviness, that appears on the Atlantic flounder (139RMB) with a partner of seasoned potatoes and salsa verde. If you want lobster, you can have it (for a seasonal price), and rest assured that Alisha and Chris, the brave partners who started this venture, will do you right if you have any upsets.
From a safely chosen, small menu there are still growing pains as Starfish shapes an identity, but it’s finding its groove. If you’re afraid of the water, dip a toe in at lunchtime, with two courses for under 100RMB and choices that change weekly. The new space that took over W Wine and Dine has been transformed into the type of place where Neptune might throw his own dinner party. Lillian Chou