Original Oysterhouse

Cuisine editor

On the day of the GMAC Bowl, I snagged a few others and conned them into trying to eat at the Original Oyster House. This could have been the absolute worst time to go. Cars are always flowing onto the Causeway, with no end in sight or available spot to park.

It amazes me how a restaurant can sustain such crowds. Stories abound of people waiting up to an hour for a table downstairs. I refuse to wait any longer than 30 minutes to eat anywhere, much less the Oyster House.

Past experiences downstairs didn’t blow me away. Seafood tasted too fishy, bland or maybe not from around here. But, I always ordered the same thing—the grilled amberjack sandwich. You would think I would have steered away, but I kept thinking it would be better this time. You know, kind of like continually hooking up with and getting back with that psycho girlfriend over and over again.

Usually, when I eat at the Oyster House, it is upstairs, where the menu has more entrée selections and a fresh, bountiful salad bar. But that is a different experience to be dealt with another time.

On this most recent visit to the laid-back downstairs restaurant, we were told it would be 15 minutes, which was actually stretched out to 25. The “house” is loud and garish. Plexiglass sharks jump down from the ceiling, frolicking below the painted sea mural ceiling. There was plenty of time to make our decision. The menu had expanded since my last visit. I was torn between several items. First, there was a grilled tuna BLT sandwich - seared and with a wasabi mayonnaise. Then there was K.P.’s sampler (named after me perhaps?) - a basket of fried flounder, popcorn shrimp and chicken tenders.

The scene was lively, which made for great atmosphere. The restaurant was full of visitors in town for the GMAC Bowl game. They were enjoying an afternoon of cold beers, oysters, boiled and fried shrimp. Our waiter did a quick drive-by to get our drink orders, but we were able to hold him still for a moment to request a dozen oysters on the half-shell ($6.95) and some fried cheese ($5.95). My expectation for the cheese was low. However, plump mounds of soft mozzarella cheese, rolled batter and deep fried were brought to the table with the oysters. The cheese actually outshone the oysters—not that the mollusks were bad; the cheese was just remarkably good. The oysters were fresh, but on the small side, which some people prefer.

I have only one complaint. It took 45 minutes for our meal to arrive. I was glad we ordered the appetizers. It was slammed, but isn’t that always so at the “house”?

I do owe the owners an apology. At least on my visit, the fish was a fine representative of our local frying capabilities. The grouper was fresh. I ordered the Southern fried Grouper and cheese grits ($13.50) two generous pieces of fish, cracker fried crisp - crunchy on the outside, hot and tender on the inside. The Cole slaw and French fries were passable. The grits were so thick with cream and cheese that my spoon could hardly move through them - they were delicious.

For tourists, this is the perfect initiation to grits. For locals, they are rather decadent. Another at the table ordered the same as I, but with turnip greens. She reported that the greens were tender and salty. I do wonder why no hush puppies are were served with either meal—it kind of goes without saying that they should be included on every plate.

My friend who eats nothing but chicken fingers or fettuccine Alfredo ordered the chicken tenders ($6.95). The tenders were tremendous, with each appearing to be almost a fourth of a breast.

My wife has long been a fan of the restaurant’s steamed seafood platter. The oversized Luncheon steamed seafood platter ($8.95) contains crab claws, shrimp and oysters with corn on the cob and red skin potatoes. It is dusted with Creole seasoning and served with drawn butter. The platter used to have steamed cabbage as well. I guess people never ate it, as it is no longer on the plate. In the past I stole the cabbage from my wife.

It fell apart in my mouth. Another tablemate ordered the platter. He was slightly disappointed. The shrimp were rather small and not as tasty as he was used to from this selection. I find crab claws are hit and miss wherever you are, and these were a miss. The steamed oysters were delicious, as usual, he reported.

People either love or hate the “house.” If you hate it, I encourage you to give it another try. The wait can be long, in fact sometimes too long to bother. The owners would likely say that being crowded is testimony to great food.

Once you’re seated, the food is good, if not better than some of the fried traps around. In the past I have avoided the “house” due to prior experiences and lack of patience. I will ensure that future visits are at off-peak times (which will be hard). And if my experience continues to be as good as on this visit, I may drift into strong like.

Kinnon Phillips is Lagniappe cuisine editor. Contact him at kphillips@lagniappemobile.com.

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