El Chiringuito De La Roja

Loveee the seafood here, very fresh. My bro in law even said their paela was even better than what they had in spain. I dont like calamari but i like theirs. Prawn was good but not really worth it 5pcs for $9, fish n chips was good, we ate there 3x, 3days we stay in Geelong, thats how good their seafood are. Buy then eat it outdoor while enjoying the scenery and watch the helicopter flying away on a sunny day. Perfect.

More fun than fish and chips!. When I'm at a waterfront town like Geelong, I want to have fish and chips while I'm sitting outdoors next to the Big Briny. But Fishermen's Pier was too expensive for what I was prepared to spend, the chip shack next to it looked desultory and The Wharf Shed didn't even have a menu out where I could see it. (But I was going to go there anyway.) Then I noticed El Chiringuito. Not a food truck -- a food boat! Way cool!

The menu is limited -- mainly, mussels, paella and chips -- but hey, it's a boat on the water. You don't expect four pages of choices and a wine list. Stroll onto the dock, lean over the gunwale, place your order and a couple of minutes later you have shellfish in your hand. The hombre running the place quickly banged me out a batch with red wine sauce, tomatoes and red capsicum in one of those small boxes like you get Chinese takeaway noodles in. It wasn't a huge portion for $7, about a dozen mussels, but they were cooked correctly, moderately spicy and I didn't get gas tro from 'em. The cup of chips ($4) were extra-crispy. I think they had been re-fried, and that gave them a nice crunch.

It was a chilly, windy day but it was still a great seaside eating experience. I fought off the mob of seagulls that wanted to share, watched the whirlybird take off from the helipad nearby and soaked up the scenery while I snarfed. This was an unexpected find, one of those atmospheric places that I'll remember. Helped that the food was decent, too.