Whitby seafood restaurants and suppliers you will wish you had found sooner
Whitby is famous for seafood, and not just because of its fish and chips. This is the kind of seaside town where you can eat lobster by the harbour, pick up proper smoked kippers from a traditional smokehouse, try fresh crab, mussels and scallops, or take home quality fresh fish from a trusted supplier. Whether you are planning a sit-down meal, a quick chippy tea, or a seafood haul to enjoy later, these are the Whitby seafood restaurants and suppliers worth adding to your list.
Magpie Cafe
- Location: 14 Pier Road, overlooking Whitby harbour
- Menus: main menu, wine menu, dessert menu, children’s menu, takeaway menu and daily specials
- Good to know: booking is available online, and group and party bookings may be available at certain times
The Magpie Cafe is one of Whitby’s best-known seafood restaurants. Set in its distinctive black and white building overlooking the harbour. Its reputation is built on its fabulous fish and chips, but the menu also includes a wide choice of fresh fish, seafood dishes and daily specials.
Whitby Mini Guide
We have created a FREE mini-guide with all the essential information about Whitby, now available for instant download.
The building dates back to 1750, when it was built as a merchant’s house, and has a long connection with Whitby’s fishing and shipping history. It was later used as a pilotage before being converted into a cafe around 1939.
Today, The Magpie Cafe remains a popular choice for anyone looking for classic Whitby seafood in a historic setting. Whether you are after takeaway fish and chips or a sit-down meal with views across the town.
The Fisherman's Wife
- Location: Khyber Pass, Whitby, close to the seafront
- Menus: Whitby main menu, children’s menu and takeaway options
- Good to know: bookings are available through OpenTable, and the Whitby takeaway is open every day
The Fisherman’s Wife is a fish and chips and seafood restaurant on Khyber Pass, with a takeaway for anyone who wants to eat by the sea. The restaurant has more than 60 years of experience and serves traditional fish and chips alongside a wider choice of seafood and other dishes.
Fresh fish is carefully selected from Whitby Fish Market. The restaurant says its crab and lobsters are caught daily from local Whitby waters. Meat is supplied by Radford’s award-winning butchers in Sleights, helping to round out the menu for anyone who wants something beyond seafood.
Trenchers
- Location: New Quay Road, Whitby harbour side
- Menus: restaurant menu, children’s menu and takeaway menu
- Good to know: Trenchers mainly operates on a walk-in basis, with limited reservations for groups of seven or more
Trenchers has been serving fish and chips and seafood in Whitby since 1980.
The menu includes fish and chips, seafood salads, crab, lobster, fresh fish, homemade pies and lasagnes, Whitby scampi, vegetarian options and a dedicated children’s menu. There is also a takeaway next to the main restaurant for anyone looking for a quick bite.
Trenchers was named Fish and Chip Restaurant of the Year at the National Fish & Chip Awards in both 2019 and 2026.
Tide by Trenchers
- Location: Bridge Street, Whitby
- Menus: lunch menu, dinner menu, children’s menu and takeaway menu
- Good to know: Tide is the sister restaurant to Trenchers, with lunch served by day and a more refined à la carte menu by night
Tide by Trenchers brings the award-winning Trenchers name to Bridge Street.
By day, the lunchtime menu includes tapas-style dishes alongside favourites such as Trenchers fish and chips. By night, Tide offers a more refined à la carte menu, with seafood, meat dishes, and fresh local produce at the centre.
It is a good choice if you like the Trenchers tradition but want something a little different, especially for a more leisurely lunch or evening meal.
Abbey Wharf
- Location: Market Place, near Church Street and Whitby harbour
- Menus: food menu and takeaway menu, with vegetarian, gluten-free and children’s meals available
- Good to know: the restaurant seats over 250 guests, with balcony seating overlooking the harbour
Abbey Wharf is a spacious seafood restaurant, bar and takeaway in Whitby’s Market Place. With a large dining room, balcony seating and views across the harbour towards the East and West Piers.
The menu includes seafood, steaks, salads and other dishes, alongside vegetarian, gluten-free and children’s options. Abbey Wharf also has a fish-and-chip takeaway at the entrance that uses the same fresh produce as the restaurant, with gluten-free fish and chips available on request.
It is a handy spot whether you want a sit-down meal, drinks on the balcony, or takeaway fish and chips before a walk along Church Street, Tate Hill Sands or the East Pier.
Fortune's Kippers
- Location: 22 Henrietta Street, beneath St Mary’s Church
- Good to know: the shop is cash only, and products are only available from Fortune’s
- Opening times: usually Monday to Saturday, 9 am to 3 pm, and Sunday, 9 am to 1 pm, but they may close early if they sell out
Fortune’s Kippers is one of Whitby’s most historic seafood stops. Founded in 1872 by William Fortune, the shop and smokehouse are still trading from the same Henrietta Street premises more than 150 years later.
The smokehouse is known for traditional Whitby kippers, with the skills of smoking and airing still practised as they were. Beneath the cliff near St Mary’s Church, it is a proper Whitby institution and a great place to pick up kippers while exploring the east side of town.
The Seafood Shack Whitby
- Location: Pier Road, by Whitby harbour
- Menus: seafood stall and takeaway-style options, with fresh seafood availability changing by day
- Good to know: check the latest Facebook updates or call before making a special trip, as smaller harbour-side seafood stalls can vary their hours or sell out
The Seafood Shack Whitby is a small harbour-side seafood stop on Pier Road, handy if you want something quick and fresh rather than a full sit-down restaurant meal.
It is a good one to know about if you are wandering around the harbour and fancy simple seaside seafood, such as oysters, crab or other fresh shellfish, depending on what is available that day. Its location makes it easy to pair with a stroll along Pier Road, the harbour or the nearby quayside.
Slightly further afield, Fish Cottage
- Location: Sandsend, around 20 yards from the beach and a short drive from Whitby
- Menus: seasonal catch menu, young guests’ menu, dessert menu and takeaway ordering
- Good to know: reservations are recommended, walk-ins are welcome if space is available, and the restaurant is dog-friendly
Fish Cottage is a seafood restaurant and fish-and-chips takeaway in Sandsend, just along the coast from Whitby. It is a good choice if you want fresh seafood close to the beach, with the option to sit in the restaurant, dine outside in the garden, or pick up a takeaway.
The seasonal catch menu can include fish such as coley, hake, whiting, turbot, brill, lemon sole, monkfish, cod, skate and ling, depending on availability.
Fish Cottage is a lovely option for anyone exploring Sandsend.
The Whitby Catch, Traditional Fishmongers
- Location: 1 Pier Road, just across the road from Whitby Fish Market
- Known for: fresh fish, crab, lobster, shellfish, smoked fish and seafood ready meals
The Whitby Catch is a great option if you want to enjoy Whitby seafood at home. It sells fresh fish and seafood both online and from its Whitby shop.
The business is the fishmonger arm of The Magpie Cafe and offers more than 120 different fish products online. This includes fresh fish, lobster, crab, shellfish, smoked fish, ready meals and more. Fish is sourced through Whitby-owned Lockers Trawlers, who land at Peterhead Market and deliver overnight, as well as from other nearby fish markets. Crabs and lobsters are still landed in reasonable quantities onto Whitby Quay.
The Whitby Catch is a good choice for anyone looking to take home quality seafood from a trusted local supplier.
Before you visit, it is always worth checking opening times, menus and booking details. Especially on weekends, during school holidays, and on busy summer days. Whitby seafood is absolutely worth making time for.
Related Posts