La Sepia

I haven't found a better place to eat good fish in Hamburg yet. The place is really busy but it is definetly worth waiting for a table. Try the Taschenkrebs 'natural' and the Jakobsmuschel-Spiesse!

One of my favorite restaurants in Hamburg, and especially for fish! Great selection of fish (grilled or with a light sauce) for reasonable prices. Sides are pretty plain, but I've enjoyed the fish whenever I've been there (I haven't tried much else). Nice Spanish/Portuguese flair with cozy deco and atmosphere!! Service is usually a bit slow, but it's a nice place to go out for the evening.

IMHO so far the best Portugese Restaurants in Hamburg I have tried! The only drawback is that it is way too crowded and therefore the waiters tend to be stressed out. Make a reservation! The food is definitely worth it! Nice ambiance too! Don’t spread the word, its toocrowded already ;-) Ok others are obviously not on the same page with me here, but try the Cataplanas (copper bowlswith simmered seafood) You didn’ t like it here? Good. More space for the rest of us.

I was there last night with a couple of friends who raved about La sepia, saying - and i quote - the best fish they have had.

I am not a fish fan, but i do love seafood. I got the seafood salad and we shared a plate of octopus.

Well my salad was... dull.
no sauce.
fortunately it had a lot of seafood to make up for the unsaucy greens.

the octopus were ok, i've had better.

otherwise it was a busy night hence it was really slow. we didnt get served at the same time. drinks took around 15 minutes to get to our table.

i wouldn't be back soon

If you live near the Schanze and are on a budget, you'll know La Sepia. Likely you've eaten there more than once; I certainly have. I've had acceptable dining experiences there (meaning nothing appalling), but mostly, the quality is mediocre or just a cut below. The service, as mentioned elsewhere, is slow, not attentive, and sometimes just plain rude.

To sum up: if it's about the money, you might do all right. But if you can afford it--or if quality is important to you--go somewhere else.

We were invited to a large dinner party at La Sepia and had high hopes. The folks around the table kept buzzing about how the restaurant is known for it's good fish, and any fish I was bound to order would probably be the best fish I had had in a while.

Unfortunately, the fish at La Sepia blows.

No, I didn't get a bad dish - the folks next to me, who also ordered the "Fischplatte" (an assortment of different types of fish), received the exact same meal. All sat there swooning over their meals as I stared bored over my food, fork in hand, and exclaimed: "THIS is what you think good fish tastes like?!?".

Don't get me wrong - for many people, the fish at La Sepia will be the best fish they have ever tasted. These people have probably been mainly having fish from the Elbe river. The sauce is pretty good. For the rest of us who are used to Mediterranean fish, the fish at La Sepia will be dull, tasteless and boring.

Conclusion: He who travels to the coast of the Mediterranean sea shall have real fish. He who stays in Hamburg should stick to sardines.