Little Creatures. Big appetites.

On a last minute whim, Big M decided to whisk us down to Fremantle to check out the fabulous Containbow by super cool Marcus Canning and to soak up some portside vibes. It was a great day, not too hot not too cold and the sun was super shining. After playing parking ticket hide and seek with the very frustrating ticket machine (Big M is NOT impressed that the City of Fremantle managed to charge us twice for the same car park at the same time, no we are not time travellers) the hunger was on.

Since turning the big eight late last year I have decided to widen my horizons on the food front and now with the smell of salt in the air I was taken with the urge for some salmon. Yep salmon. Big M gave me the choice of the boardwalk restaurants Cicerelllos, Joe's Fish House, Bathers Beach House or Little Creatures. It was tough but I went for an old favourite - Little Creatures. Note this was not because of huge sand pit out the back - I am over sand pits and noisy little kids fighting over a meagre supply of toys. It's a little demeaning, and let's face it sandy! We check in and quickly looked at the menu to ensure salmon was swimming there somewhere, and it was. A roasted salmon with tartare, salad and frites ($29), bingo!

I opted for a roomy inside booth along the wall in the main dining area - so far so good. Big M had to dash to the bathroom, so full marks to the waitress who came over and dropped me the menus and water saying she would come back to grab the order. Nice. Too often there is an uncomfortable ignoring of a temporarily single young diner. Big M returned and quickly settled on one of her favourites, chilli mussels. This was not so cool as I have recently discovered the joys of mussels in Noosa and have taken to nabbing a few of these delicacies to supplement my meal but not the chilli ones! After some discussion we agreed to get the mild version so I could give it a go.

After placing our order with the friendly waitress the drinks come out quickly. Apple juice is my go to pretty much every time, and this one came out in a nice tall glass with ice (no apple slice though, I distinctly remember an apple slice on the side last time I was here, but you know the economy was better then so perhaps it's a cost cutting measure. Or the bar guy simply forgot). It was good AJ - looked cold pressed, but not fresh pressed, but hey we are in a brewery so I can live with that.

And then something strange happened. A steak sandwich was proffered to me by a young guy. Nope dude, I am after salmon and only salmon, no steak considered, uttered or wanted. Some flash of confusion and the steak sandwich was whisked away. OK that was weird.

About 5 minutes later Big M's mild chilli mussels arrived ($24). I gotta hand it to mum, she was right. Those little suckers were delicious and the chilli well easy to handle. The charred bread was great to dip in the sauce. Look it wasn't the world's biggest serve and they weren't the biggest bivalves around, but you know small can be tasty and it was priced accordingly. About halfway through assisting with mussel disposal I realised that there was still no sign of my longed for salmon. You know a mussel is only going to give me so much, a meaty salmon was required. The waitress noticed a rise in anxiety and quickly came over to assure me that the salmon was on its way, pronto. Yay!

Anticipation quickly turned to disappointment as several people who had sat down and ordered after we got our mussels seemed to be getting their food. A good 10 minutes later and the salmon had still not arrived. Mussels were now down to two tight lipped guys who required a little prising with a knife (insert pic here of Big M managing to thrust one open and splodgidly cover pink silk shirt with chilli sauce - it's the simple things that keep me amused).

Finally, the salmon arrived. No word of explanation - a quick drop and leave from another cool guy from the battalions of hip waiters patrolling the floor. That's OK. But back to the sole reason for starting the adventure - the big fish. It was OK. The serve size was fine, but it seemed to have been overcooked - I like it still glossy and a bit pink inside but this was solid and chunky all the way through. Salad was OK (although Big M got her own back on the mussel devouring and got her greens on big time so I did not have much), The frites? Woody. You know that twice cooked effect when it just goes that step too far and they become a little dehydrated? Look they were obviously great potatoes and were edible. just not frite-like. Tartare sauce I can't go there - but Big M assured me it was the real home made deal, I believe her.

The nice waitress came back to ask how it all went - we said it was fine when we finally got the salmon, she didn't offer an explanation, we didn't press her for one. After all this is a pub and not five star dining. We passed on desserts - we had a date with the Ferris wheel across the park.

Would I go back? Sure I love that place and I want to sit up on the top level next time. Salmon or no salmon.

Food rating 3.5 out of 5

Service rating 3.6 out of 5

Good to know A Freo classic, hip, sure of itself and good decent well sized meals. Great for kids of all ages (there's respect), sand lovers or not.

Overall Moe Score 3.5 out of 5

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