FAB FISH FROM Rick & Jill

Rick and Jill Stein opened their flagship seafood restaurant in Cornwall in 1975 and, in honour, they've released a special anniversary cookbook.

- By ELLA WALKER

ASK Jill Stein whether she misses the early days of launching her and telly chef Rick Stein’s beloved Padstow joint, The Seafood Restaurant, she laughs. “Not really, no, ha!”

She takes a beat, then adds: “Actually, on a good night, Rick and I used to sit on the barrier outside the restaurant, have a beer and look in, and say, ‘God, that was a tough night; but you always felt a great sense of achievement.”

“Hospitality, it’s like a drug, adrenaline, and you work on that. It’s probably not very good for you, but you get this big hit at the end of the night,’ she continues.

“Some nights it didn’t go well, and people had to wait or complained, and you have to deal with it. So it was quite tough, but I wouldn’t change it.”

They first opened in 1975 and, five decades on, the Steins have put together The Seafood Restaurant Cookbook, packed with classic dishes from menus across those 50 years, and a few new ones too (“It’s not about the past, it’s about going forward as well”). From poached lobster risotto and clams in XO sauce, to fish pie, chocolate fondant, and ray wings with black butter, Rick’s notes about the recipes are accompanied by snippets of detail from sons Jack (who oversees the menus) and Charlie (who manages the wines).