Those whom have been following the happenings around the local F&B scene would probably have come across the news about The Mad Sailors making its comeback — a brand that was previously by The Black Hole Group whom has brought to us concepts such as Tipo Pasta Bar / Tipo Strada, Small Batch and Ela, The Mad Sailors had once operated at Haji Lane before its exit some time in 2022. The Black Hole Group had most recently resuscitated the brand; The Mad Sailors is now located in a shophouse along North Bridge Road, taking over the former premises of their other now-defunct concept named Afterwit. The current iteration of The Mad Sailors sticks pretty closely to their original concept — perhaps even more stronger an emphasis being placed on their Fish & Chips offerings as a dining establishment that seemingly bears an English influence. Fish & Chips served with different types of fish are essentially the only main course offered in the current iteration of The Mad Sailors; the other categories found in the menu of The Mad Sailors would include Sauce, Sides, Bevy, Tea, Coffee and Dessert.

The Hokki is one out of the two types of fishes being mentioned on the printed menu that comes with the Fish & Chips offerings — the other would be the Halibut. The Hokki is said to be sourced in New Zealand; all Fish & Chips are also described in the menu to come with hand-cut triple-cooked chips and tartar sauce. Thought the Hokki would be the better fish to opt for to have for the Fish & Chips considering how this was the fish that felt a little more flaky with the moisture of the fish still being locked in. Coming with a deep-fried batter that is similar to that of English-style Fish & Chips, the batter here does come in a beautiful shade of golden brown — some might find the batter being a little overly thick, though it does give a good crunch nonetheless. The accompanying tartar sauce does work well to provide a creamy mouthfeel to the fried fish, though we did find that the note of capers and lemon could be stronger to give it a more punchy zing to provide more contrast of flavours to the fish. The hand-cut triple-cooked chips does come thickly-cut and chunky; with that being said, the chips did feel less fluffy with a more firm bite — we also did feel that it did come a little greasy with some smaller pieces coming a little over-fried.