Murphy's Fish & Chips - Truro

Having been born and raised a little north of Truro, and then spending much of my adult life in Halifax, I really don 't have much of an excuse for it taking me 40 years to get to legendary seafood purveyor Murphy 's. However, I finally brought this unfortunate streak to end recently while in town for a blood donation. There was a decent crowd there for a Tuesday evening, although it thinned out over the course of my meal as I had arrived toward the latter end of the main dining hours for Murphy 's prime demographic. In spite of its unassuming location in the strip mall on Esplanade, the décor goes all in on the fishing and sea theme, with wood paneling and kitsch aplenty that transports you from the mid century mediocrity of the building 's exterior. Although I had done my menu research beforehand, I only had my options shortlisted to the fish and chips or the seafood platter. While Murphy 's F&C are lauded as among the best in the province, the seafood platter includes that and a whole lot more. My one concern was what my lowered amounts of blood and a massive meal might do to my energy levels for the drive home, but the gluttonous devil on my shoulder told me that a cola would be enough to get home. And so I went with the seafood platter, and in decent time the mound of deep fried delight was before me. The amusing, fish shaped plate contained a mound of clams, a handful of scallops, a few shrimp, one piece of haddock, fries, carrots and coleslaw. All of the seafood had their own unique type of breading/batter, and I appreciated that Murphy 's does this instead of taking the easy way out and doing them all the same. I went for the scallops first, since I figured that they wouldn 't hold up as well as time passed (and it would take some time to eat this fryer feast). Lightly dusted with flour and fried, the scallops were spectacularly succulent, with their signature sweetness, and not a hint of overcooking. They were so juicy that the breading was quickly soaked through; while they would likely fare better with a simple pan sear, tradition abounds in seafood places like this. The tail on shrimp were firm and plump, with a heavier breading than their compatriots. The crisp exterior held up well, and the meat within was pleasantly firm, but not at all rubbery. I really enjoyed the fried clams. Covered with a chunky, loose breading that got super crisp upon frying, the clam meat itself was flavourful, sweet, and once again, perfectly cooked. Last but not least of my fishy food was the battered haddock. It likely wasn 't in an ideal state when I got there, but the light, airy batter was still reasonably crisp. The fish itself broke up easily into flaky chunks with my fork, without a hint of sogginess. The fries were crispy coated, but I doubt many celiacs are coming here. The coating did its job and they were crisp to the last fry. While the menu lists a vegetable of the day , I feel like my forgettable steamed carrots are a frequent sight on plates at Murphy 's, just as they are at (too) many old school places. The coleslaw had a creamy dressing, and while I prefer vinegar based for better counterbalance, it still helped to mix things up for my taste buds. Both my server and the cashier at the front were impossibly nice in the way that you only really find in small towns. I was glad that Murphy 's lived up to the hype, and while it won 't be another 40 years before I return to Murphy 's, it 's probably best for the people that get my future blood donations that I don 't make a habit of their hearty fish fare.

Best fish chips in town for sure. Always friendly and efficient staff. Would highly recommend this for fish!

Where's the first place I'm stopping when in Truro? Murphy's Fish Chips! The fish and chips were cooked perfectly. The breading was light and crisp... it had that perfect crunch. The tartare sauce is a perfect compliment to the fish. We had to poutine our fries (because Canada, am I right?!? and I'm so glad we did! Honestly, the best poutine we had in Nova Scotia. Take a girl out of Texas, and put her in Murphy's Fish Chips in Truro... life's pretty good (and tasty !

Really nice local fish chips restaurant in Truro. We met our friends here for lunch and we had a very pleasant lunch. Our food was fresh and tasty. The fish chips is the winner. Huge pieces of fish with light batter. Very friendly service, booth was comfortable and very cute maritime decorations inside.

Great food! I ordered the fish and shrimp combo with poutine. I need to be barrel out of here! It was so filling, so flavorful. Just a nice Sunday dinner for this guy from Chicago visiting for the weekend!