Fast food chain dubbed 'McDonald's of the sea' set to launch in UK

As far as fast food chains go, there is no shortage to satisfy any palate and of late, many new ones have announced their arrival on UK shores. Late last year Dave's Hot Chicken, a US fast food chain backed by Canadian musician Drake and Hollywood star Samuel L Jackson, opened its first UK site. In January, rapidly-growing chicken chain Wingstop announced plans to open at least 20 new sites in the UK this year. So there's no denying of late there's been a boom for chicken chains in the UK, with Popeyes also rapidly opening new sites and new players such as the above-mentioned Dave’s Hot Chicken and Chick-fil-A entering the market.

Now there's a new player on the menu. US fast food chain Captain D's, often dubbed the 'McDonald's of the sea', has announced plans to bring its 'signature seafood offerings to the UK and other European countries'. Announcing their first venture into Europe, they announced the first location will be Westwood Cross shopping centre in Kent, slated for an Autumn opening, with other restaurants to open in Sussex and Hampshire.

A post on the Westwood Cross Instagram account from August 15 teased the opening, including a picture of a Captain D's meal with the words 'Coming Soon'. It was reported they were opening as early as this month (August 2025) but an official date doesn't appear to have been confirmed yet.

If you haven't come across Captain D's before, they have their headquarters in Nashville, Tennessee, with more than 530 restaurants in 23 states in the US. They cite themselves as being 'the nation's leading fast casual seafood restaurant'. Captain D's was founded in 1969, and they offer up a wide variety of seafood - including the company's signature batter dipped fish. Now, given fish and chips is a national favourite here, they have a lot to live up to.

The Captain D's Seafood Kitchen Instagram account has more than 30k followers, with its bio saying: 'It’s always Batter Dipped Fish time'. A quick look at their US menu online to get a taste of potentially what's to come includes things like batter dipped shrimp, fish and fries in a meal deal for $5.99 (just under £5).

A release announcing their opening previously also said that they offer up premium-quality, grilled items such as shrimp, Tilapia and Salmon, as well as hush puppies (a fried fish side dish), desserts and freshly brewed, Southern-style sweet tea, a Captain D's favourite. For those not in the know, sweet tea is an iced tea that, as its name implies, has a shedload of sugar in it to up the sweet factor. We're not sure if it's on the menu for the UK or if it pairs with battered fish and mushy peas, so adventurous tasters will have to wait and see.

"We have been looking for the right brand to introduce to the UK market, which is exciting and healthy," said Naveed Chattha, Operations Director of CDs Holdings, who the brand has signed their master franchise agreement in the UK with. "There is a large fish and chips market in the UK, but no one has tried to apply discipline, standards, and quality to such a level here before. With our experience, we feel Captain D's is the right choice."

But what’s the verdict of Captain D’s in the US? Well, one person on Tripadvisor, who posted under the name Florida_Sugar_Daddy, said: “This is the McDonald's of seafood and they do a great job at it. The Sebring store is clean and well maintained with a friendly and helpful staff who get your food to you quick and the prices are good.” Someone else said: “very fast friendly service....great selection...served hot....very clean...lots of space for patrons. The staff is very eager to please!!!!”.

With the new fast food fish outlet entering the group chat, let's see if they can live up to our fish and chips standards.