Seafood at dawn
Quick info
About Seafood at dawn
Seafood at Dawn is a seafood restaurant on Coast Rd in Colchester, taking walk-ins rather than reservations. The menu runs to tapas-style sharing dishes, including loaded chips, alongside oysters, mussels in white wine, hot sticky prawns, and sea bass. Cold Platter and Hot Platter options let a table share a spread of seafood across both courses. A dressed crab salad with buttered potatoes rounds out the individual plates. Tables mix different styles and decor for a rustic feel, and seating is available both inside and out. Service runs on a table basis, with food arriving quickly from the kitchen. The restaurant opens Tuesday to Sunday, closed Mondays, and closes at 7pm.
Reviews
What reviewers say
Reviewers most often mention cold platter, loaded chips, hot sticky prawns and mussels in white wine.
What reviewers say
Reviewers most often mention cold platter, loaded chips, hot sticky prawns and mussels in white wine.
Customer Review Summary
Reviewers consistently praise the seafood platters, both hot and cold, alongside sharing dishes like the loaded chips and hot sticky prawns starters. Several call service friendly and attentive, with portions described as generous and fresh. One diner notes the early 7pm closing felt rushing for a dinner seating. Most describe great value and say they'd return.
Customer Review Summary
Reviewers consistently praise the seafood platters, both hot and cold, alongside sharing dishes like the loaded chips and hot sticky prawns starters. Several call service friendly and attentive, with portions described as generous and fresh. One diner notes the early 7pm closing felt rushing for a dinner seating. Most describe great value and say they'd return.
Featured reviews
- pro65 pro65
“We had an early evening dinner on Saturday. Seated inside, was lovely to see a restaurant full and busy. Rustic feel, with different tables and decor. Attentive friendly service, with food arriving quickly. For 2 we had oysters, mussels in white wine and the hot sticky prawns to start, then sea bass ( I changed to chips and salad - best chips I've had in a long time), and the dressed crab salad, which came with buttered potatoes. A bottle of wine and a pint of local beer. This was more than enough for 2 hungry, and yes, greedy people! All was delicious, and came to well under £90. 100% recommend Sea Food at Dawn. Its not fancy but good honest and very tasty seafood, with excellent service.”
- andrew dennison
“Lunch for 3 we had 2 perfect platters and 1 cold platter. Absolutely outstanding! Great service and platters to die for. Can not fault it at all. Delicious plentiful fresh seafood made to perfection. 3 fussy foodies were very satisfied with very generous portions and incredible value for money. We dont know how they do it for the price. Highly recommended. Don't hesitate. we'll be back.”
- Kali
“Lovely fresh seafood, nice selection of different sharing options. We chose some of the tapas dishes and then were enjoying ourselves so much we went for a portion of the loaded chips afterwards. Staff were all lovely and friendly and attentive. Sitting outside is fun if you get lucky with the weather. Our only issue was that they close at 7pm, which is a bit early compared to what we're used to and we felt a little rushed for a dinner seating.”
- Dezso Viktor
“We popped in for late lunch yesterday and despite they were about to close in 15 mins due to an event, they let us in and we were allowed to stay as long as we wanted. …”
- Tom Levy
“What a brilliant place. We couldn't have asked for more. Firstly the food was perfect. I had the Cold Platter and my partner had the hot …”
Hours
- Monday
- Closed
- Tuesday
- Wednesday
- Thursday
- Friday
- Saturday
- Sunday
Good to know
- ReservationsWalk-in only
- AccessibilityHas wheelchair-accessible car park · Has wheelchair-accessible entrance · Has wheelchair-accessible seating
Amenities
- Has wheelchair-accessible car park
Show more amenities
- Accessibility· 3
- Has wheelchair-accessible entrance
- Has wheelchair-accessible seating
- Has wheelchair-accessible toilet
Location
Restaurants near Seafood at dawn
- The Coast Inn4.51,5410.1 mi£20–30Good for kidsReservations
seafood platter, parking charge disputes, fish and chips
- Dilan Kebab House4.25346 mi away£10–20Wheelchair accessibleGood for kidsReservations
chilli sauce, turkish bread, lamb quality
- Ali's BBQ House4.01616 mi away£10–20Vegetarian optionsWheelchair accessibleGood for kids
pizza, kebab, delivery
| Place | Rating | Distance | Price | Mentioned in reviews |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Seafood at dawn | 4.7408 | — | — | cold platter, loaded chips, hot sticky prawns |
| The Coast InnGood for kids · Reservations | 4.51,541 | 0.1 mi | £20–30 | seafood platter, parking charge disputes, fish and chips |
| Dilan Kebab HouseWheelchair accessible · Good for kids · Reservations | 4.2534 | 6 mi away | £10–20 | chilli sauce, turkish bread, lamb quality |
| Ali's BBQ HouseVegetarian options · Wheelchair accessible · Good for kids | 4.0161 | 6 mi away | £10–20 | pizza, kebab, delivery |
The 3 nearest restaurants by distance. Ratings, hours and review terms come from public business profiles.
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