While this restaurant’s English name is nowhere near understandable, its Chinese name, Jiele Haihuo (加勒海货), perfectly explains what’s being sold: seafood.
Galle is a port city in the southwest part of Sri Lanka. Judging from the restaurant’s decor, however, Galle Hihoo has nothing to do with that city or even that country. Its design concept, according to the manager there, is a pirate boat on the Caribbean Sea. We’ve never been onboard a vessel flying the Jolly Roger, but the dim interior and pale yellow lighting give us the illusion of dining in the cabin of an old craft straight out of the film Ghost Ship.
Freshness is important in seafood, of that there can be no doubt. But how to guarantee that what you order in a restaurant is 100 percent fresh? Galle Hihoo offers a pretty solid answer: instead of ordering from a menu, diners are led to a room to choose from a variety of living sea creatures on display, like shopping in a supermarket. Each kind of seafood is presented with a small sign stating the price, the recommended cooking method and location it was imported from. In addition to these, there are various appetizers available, including assorted sushi, colorful salads and drinks of foreign brands. The payment process is unconventional: you pay market price for the seafood and Galle Hihoo cooks it for you without charging extra money.
Baked scallop with sea urchin jam (RMB38) is a hot sell at Galle. Though the scallop tastes tender and smooth, the rich jam fails to cover its strong fishy odor and the combination lacks synergy. The salt-roasted tiger prawn (RMB38) is a bit hard to handle, since shelling is left to the customer and, to make things worse, the salt on the surface stains your fingers and feels unbearably sticky. Still, if you don’t fear getting your hands dirty, we highly recommend it.
There are three general ways to tell whether salmon is fresh or not: bright orange color, white-streaked flesh and chewy texture. While the salmon sashimi (RMB58) sold at Galle Hihoo meets all three points, it also falls apart at the seams when you pick it up. We’ve never, in our long years eating for a living, seen this happen, so we’re going to say it’s abnormal – but is it concerning? Fish experts may email our editors with an explanation.
In the past year, Guangzhou has seen dozens of seafood restaurants like Galle Hihoo open their doors. With mediocre food and no outstanding dishes, Galle Hihoo is unlikely to plunder the hearts of diners or make off with their gold doubloons.
Price: Approx. RMB100
Who’s going: Landlubbers with a craving for the ocean’s bounty
Good for: Window-shopping for fish, filming a pirate horror movie
// Listing.
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