"Best Seafood Restaurant" - Lowell Sun
by Dean Johnson, Sun Correspondent

It's easy to get hooked on Joe Fish...and I promise I'll only use a couple more fishing analogies in this review. The seafood eatery in part of a restaurant enclave in North Andover near the Haverhill line that also includes the Loft, the China Blossom, and Orzo, among others.

But Joe Fish has a different look and feel from its neighbors. The outside has an almost Disneyesque architectural look in places. The inside is very nautical, very upbeat, and generally casual. I mean, our dinner rolls, which were fresh and enticing were served in a tin bucket.

The main dining room includes a busy bar area as well as hanging plants, wainscoting, boating and fishing paraphernalia, and a general look that encourages a soundtrack of constant Jimmy Buffett music. Don't fret, though, the tasty background sounds when we visited ranged from Luther Vandross to Van Morrison. It's a restaurant, not a frat house for grown-ups.

During busy weekends, the place also utilizes a ground floor dining space that can also serve as a function room. It has all the amenities of the main floor, but tends to be a little on the quieter side, so think of which dining mood you'll prefer if you visit during peak hours. I always worry when we're seated in an "auxiliary" dining space that the service will be lacking. It wasn't. Our items were all served at the proper temperature, and our server was helpful and took care of business.

One of the may things I liked about Joe Fish is that there is no mistaking what it wants to be known for. Many so-called "seafood" places offer nearly as many or even more meat and poultry dishes as they do offerings from the sea.

Not here. Oh, there are a couple of things, such as sirloin steak ($15.99) and grilled chicken breast ($10.99). But there are literally as many vegetarian specialties as strictly beef/chicken platters.

The Woonsocket calamari ($8.99) was a generous platter of fried calamari sauteed with olive oil and peppers. Though the calamari was done just a bit more than necessary, this was still a terrific starter. The dish had a mild spicy bite and plenty of texture. Traditional fried calamari ($7.99) is also available, but you're really better off paying the extra buck for the high-end version.

A half-dozen Chatham oysters (at first, our server only described them as East Coast oysters—a seafood place has to do a little better than tha) served in their shells on a bed of ice had a fresh and clean sheen and taste, especially when they were spruced up with a volatile mix of cocktail sauce, Tabasco, and horseradish.

Entrees include a choice of starches as well as vegetables or salad. The house salad included a fresh and varied plate of greens, a nice option when it doesn't cost extra. The pilaf had a Hispanic flair and was accented with red peppers—overall, better than standard.

The bayou catfish ($14.99) was a wonderfully flavored, slightly smoky dish. The catfish itself was mild and flaky. Served with a Cajun cream sauce that was laced with Andouille sausage, the fish picked up subtle tastes from both. Served on liguine with baby shrimp and tomatoes, it was delightful, especially for the money.

Grilled shrimp and steak tips ($15.99) featured four real jumbo shrimp and three big beef tips. Items can be grilled upon request in one of three ways: Cajun-grilled, lemon-peppered or traditional. The lemon-peppered shrimp provided a smart contrast to the traditional tips, which were done exactly as requested.

An appealing wedge of Boston cream pie was one of several desserts available the night we visited, and it was only one more in a series of satisfying choices we made.

The bottom line: Go fish for Joe Fish.