Vancouver's new seafood restaurant serves some of the crispiest fish in the city

Tyson Reimer, co-owner of Vancouver’s new seafood destination Rumble Fish, has plenty of experience in the Vancouver food industry. Perhaps that’s why the food he and the team are cooking up is so darn good, and why multiple people who spotted us outside the restaurant before and after our meal sang its praises.

“They serve the best fish and chips here, you’ve got to try it,” said a passerby. With a recommendation like that, how could we not go in?

Reimer has been a part of the food industry since 1992, having opened multiple restaurants, including the likes of Deacon’s Corner in Kitsilano, Cobre, and the Carolina-style BBQ spot Peckinpah in Gastown, just to name a few.

So, when we heard that, after years of serving a meat-primary menu at Peckinpah, his latest venture was a seafood joint, we naturally got curious.

That’s why we headed down to Rumble Fish to chat with Reimer about his latest concept and to learn why people can’t seem to get enough of his seafood.

 

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Rumble Fish

Rumble Fish got its start when Reimer decided to leave the city and move to Squamish. There, he started a food truck by the same name serving fish and chips among other seafood faves.

“Originally, I was gonna call it Outsiders, because we opened up the food truck at a cidery,” he said. However, he eventually decided to go with the title of a different S.E. Hinton book: Rumble Fish. 

“It shows my age that I think that’s still cool,” he said with a laugh. 

Eventually, after operating the truck out in Squamish for a while, Reimer got the idea to bring the concept to Vancouver with its own brick-and-mortar space.

While the store isn’t decked out in S.E. Hinton memorabilia, there are still ways that Reimer honours the book-turned-movie, like his picture of Matt Dillon and Micky Rourke from the movie.

Additionally, you’ll find many other ocean-themed touches, from the Jaws poster hanging on the wall to fishing poles and nets and a mural of a beta fish, giving the impression of the seaside restaurant you’d find in a movie.

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Accessible (and tasty) seafood

“I feel like there’s not a lot of affordable seafood in town,” Reimer explained when asked why he chose to make the switch to seafood after operating the meat-forward Peckinpah for so many years.

“We have such an abundant amount of seafood around us. I just think it’s kind of criminal that it’s not really thought of as a local thing. Not a lot of people think that eating salmon or going for rock cod or anything like that is an affordable meal, you know? You can get the farmed salmon at whatever grocery store, or you can try to source your own stuff, but there aren’t a lot of restaurants that I’ve seen that offer it in a more affordable, easy, accessible way.”

While this, in part, may be the secret sauce that has made Rumble Fish so popular with the locals, Reimer also says that making everything in-house is equally the reason for his success, something he said is becoming a lost art.

“As a restaurant, you have to make everything,” said Reimer. “Not buying pre-made sauces, not buying a bunch of pre-made stuff from one of the bigger suppliers, and just making everything because I think that’s what you’re supposed to do if you own a restaurant.”

This is clearly seen through one of Rumble Fish’s heavy hitters: the Pacific Cod and Chips. During our visit, we of course had to try some to see what the hype was about.

The fish here is definitely the star, and rightfully so. Add some fresh fries, housemade tartar sauce, and some of the crispiest batter you’ve ever had to the picture, and you’re in for a good time. We took some leftovers with us to enjoy later, and this fish still had a crunch to it. Talk about impressive.

While it’s easy to focus on the fish and chips here, that’s only part of the picture. The Grilled Rockfish with Beans and Rice were particularly noteworthy.

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Grilled rockfish is served on flatbread with pickled onions and chimichurri. We piled on some rice and beans to go with that and sank our teeth into this dish with a slight kick. Again, the fish shone through as the star of the meal, while the rest of the elements here just added to the experience. No fuss or frills, this was just quality seafood paired with good-tasting ingredients.

“There’s nothing better than just a nice grilled piece of fish, some rice and beans,” said Reimer. “I love that, especially when it’s hot out.”

Another easy favourite we had on the menu was the Prawn Roll. This handheld consisted of a simple combination of prawns, sriracha mayo, pickled onions, and pea shoots, on a soft bun. We’d happily order this one again.

Marco Ovies/Dished

But there’s still so much more on the menu that we’re itching to go back and try, from a miso-glazed sablefish bento box to tuna poke; there’s plenty of good eating left to be had.

So, if you’re looking for some standout fish and chips, or just good quality seafood in general, do yourself a favour and make the trip over to Rumble Fish.

Rumble Fish is currently open daily from 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m.

Rumble Fish

Address: 2296 E. Hastings St., Vancouver

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