'I ate at Rick Stein's flagship restaurant and found one aspect outrageous'

A YouTube restaurant critic delivered a rave review of one particular element of his dining experience at Rick Stein's premier seafood establishment in Padstow.

Despite previously delivering a damning assessment of the TV chef's neighbouring fish and chip outlet, Gary harboured high expectations for The Seafood Restaurant.

Not only did Gary enjoy an exceptional experience at the bustling Cornwall establishment, but he highlighted one menu item that would typically go unnoticed.

Documenting the visit for his channel, he revealed his £36 lemon sole dish was accompanied by what Gary described as "outrageous" potatoes.

Flawlessly prepared with a knob of butter and sprig of mint, they were "beautiful," Gary declared: "It's not often I actually rave about potatoes," though added that on this particular occasion he was exceptionally impressed.

The modest spuds proved so remarkable that they nearly stole the spotlight from the main attraction - a piece of lemon sole that was "super-fresh, a taste of the sea" adorned with a touch of samphire for additional saltiness.

Gary commenced his meal with an assortment of amuse-bouches featuring salt cod and crispy miniature prawns before progressing to a fish soup served in an enormous tureen.

Gary's sole genuine grievance regarding the soup was that there was, if anything, an excessive quantity of it.

Gary advised: "If you're going there yourself, just ask for two bowls."

The reviewer noted that the soup, a type of fish and shellfish bouillabaisse featuring tomato, saffron, garlic, red peppers and fennel, might have benefited from slightly more robust flavouring, though he heaped praise on everything else served.

"Zero complaints," he declared. "If I'd just gone in there and had that lemon sole and some tap water and paid £36 with the service charge, I would have walked out of there and I would have given that a 10/10 easily."

Indeed, Gary had been enticed into ordering not one, but two glasses of white wine to accompany his meal: "I wanted to be upsold. I actually was enjoying it. So, no complaints there."

His final bill totalled just shy of £100 - with a full quarter of that sum attributed to the two large glasses of wine.

However, Gary insisted it represented excellent value: "I really, really enjoyed it. I'm giving it a nine out of 10!"

He confirmed he would dine there again "in a heartbeat", delivering a resounding endorsement for the veteran celebrity chef's flagship seafood establishment.