Croaker’s Spot and Patrick Henry’s Bar and Grill…I hadn’t been to the former in years and it’s only a few blocks from my house and the latter is new so I had to find out what they had to offer me.
Walking into Croaker’s Spot was exactly as I’d remembered; it’s warm and sticky in the front of the restaurant (whole lotta frying going on) and there’s classic R & B coming from the speakers. As a major fan of poster art, I used the waiting time to appreciate that this place has some classics: MLK’s 1963 Walk on Washington, a Billie Holiday club performance circa 1956…the mood is timeless in here, despite it being 2008 just outside the door. I settle into a booth in a cooler part of the restaurant and order the seafood chili (scallops, shrimp, fish, kidney beans, tomatoes. carrots, red onions, peppers and all the right spices to tie it together). The dish is delicious and enormous…my waitress tells me no one finishes it, even really big guys. It comes with a piece of sweet cornbread taller than my fist and I wash it all down with iced tea. It’s the perfect southern Sunday dinner.
I’d heard that Patrick Henry’s did mussels four ways and since I’m a big mussels fan (so cheap and sooo tasty) I felt the need to know. I opted for the simplest preparation, garlic, white wine and butter. It was a generous serving and the broth was so fragrant and delicious that my dinner partner couldn’t resist reaching over to sop some of my broth. Not once but repeatedly. I have an old college friend who orders mussels and eats only the mussels. He has no interest in sopping (yes, he’s a tad strange in the food department). I order mussels as much for the sopping as for the mussels, so I think people who don’t sop shouldn’t be ordering mussels. I mean, what’s the point?
And my point? Nothing much, just wanted to share a couple of tasty dining options…for what it’s worth.
RSS 2.0