Barra beats cod off menu

It weighs up to 130lb, can reach 7 feet in length and is revered in its native country as the finest of all eating fish.

Now the barramundi has made it to our shores and the first crop of British farmed fish has just gone on sale in Waitrose.

Its backers believe it is so good that it can sell for higher prices than favourites like dover sole and sea bass.

But the big question is whether this Australian fish justifies its stellar reputation and steep prices.

Top chef Renaud Marin, who has created London's first restaurant dish with it, is convinced it has 'huge potential'.

Praising the 'delicate and delicious' texture of the barramundi's flesh, he said he would have no hesitation serving it in his Mayfair restaurant Kilo.

'It tastes a bit like sea bream and has a very subtle texture. It is a delicate, fine fish which will be very popular.'

His dish of barramundi Renaud Marin consists of panfried fillets with fennel, basil and 'a tagliatelli' of thinly sliced courgette and carrot.

He then pours a warmed 'sauce vierge' over it and serves it with a rocket salad.

It is, according to one diner who tasted it, 'simple and delicious'. And because the fish comes from a farm in the New Forest, chefs will never be forced to take it off the menu as they have with cod and haddock.

The farm is the brainchild of businessman Les Green, who imported the fish as fingerlings from Australia last September.