Kaitlin, Jack and Nic Lucas have seafood in their blood, going back to their propappoús (great grandpa), a fisherman in Kastellorizo, the small island from which many of Sydney’s first Greek immigrants came. They’re the new look of Sydney seafood with old-school service: Sydney’s best seafood shop!
They buy whole fish direct from the fishermen, as well as being the youngest guys at the fish market auction each day. They dry-age and dry-fillet in their see through custom-built room behind the counter. Growing up with seafood in their blood, they have an almost instinctive understanding of how to source, store, prepare and present Sydney’s freshest seafood.
Sydney rock oysters, from premium oyster affineurs Appellation Oysters, are dry-shucked to order. They’re everything an oyster should be: a creamy, briny, sweet mouthful! And at less than $36/dozen dry-shucked to order they’re a steal! I love the total absence of any dressing or garnish too, save a wedge of lemon (which they don’t even need in my opinion)!
Uncut also does the best seafood takeaway in Sydney (with limited seating for dine-in)! Thinly sliced sashimi kingfish, salmon and yellowfin tuna is superb with shallot, capers and a drizzle of evo. Mum’s smoky, salty, creamy trout dip is slathered on toast. Nothing’s an after-thought here and Kaitlin collects the bread for this from Organic Bread Bar Darlinghurst each morning.
The siblings’ Greek heritage shines through in well-charrred Tassie octopus hot off the grill with just a drizzle of olive oil, scattering of rigani and squeeze of lemon juice. And Mum’s taramasalata is superb alongside crisp-skinned barbecued fish with a deliciously healthy side of charred greens and excellent pita.
What sets these guys apart is their genuine people focus. Not just the seafood, but everything at Uncut Seafood is curated with thought, from the bread to the wine – which comes from a mate’s boutique vineyard in Mudgee, Grattai Grove. Above all else they want to make their customers happy! That’s rare and makes me very hopeful for the next generation of Sydney providores.
Uncut Seafood is Sydney’s best seafood shop, for prawns (raw, cooked whole, or beautifully peeled), oysters dry-shucked to order, whole fish or fillets, octopus, and more. If they don’t have it, ask and they’ll do their best to get it in for you. It’s also the best casual seafood eatery I’ve come across for takeaway, lunch or an early dinner (last orders 7:30pm). Seating is limited and they don’t take bookings – so come early. Visit UncutSeafood.com.au to learn more.
Jack, the most gregarious of this outgoing trio, tells me that he and his siblings are 4th generation fishmongers: “Our great-grandfather was a fisherman on Kastellorizo. Then Pappoú had a fish shop on the south coast. He’s 96 now and lives for what we’re doing here. Dad started seafood wholesalers Chippies and Fishboy. When Dad retired, we thought it was time to do something different. He didn’t share our vision at first, saying: ‘You can’t have a fish shop without chips, without a deep-fryer.’ But now he understands we want to focus on the healthy, Mediterranean food we grew up with. Even our friends are surprised we’re not on any delivery platforms. But we pride ourselves on being a bit different. We don’t want people to just jump online and order, we want them to come into the shop, see what we have, what we’re doing, to talk to us. Maybe it’s the Greekness, but at the end of the day, the thing that matters most is that our customers are happy.”
