RESTAURANT OF THE WEEK
A PERSONAL REVIEW OF RESTAURANTS AROUND THE WORLD

CRYSTAL RIVER SEAFOOD
ORANGE PARK, FLORIDA

We had heard good things about this place and gave it a try late on a Sunday afternoon.  We've been sampling several Jacksonville area restaurants in search of the best fried seafood platter.

We passed over appetizers although the list appeared to be a good one and placed our main order.  I ordered a seafood platter for one.  My wife ordered "Sam's Big Fish" or something like that.  When my wife questioned our waitress on whether to order a "fish sandwich" or "Sam's Big Fish" or whatever it was called, the waitress explained that the regular fish was Pollock while Sam's was from a deep, cold  water fish.  Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't Pollock also a cold, deep water fish?  This should have triggered some alarms.

I ordered cole slaw and grits for my sides.  In this part of the U.S., the cole slaw always comes first, almost like an appetizer.  Our waitress also brought some cheese and crackers for us.  The cheese appeared to be infused with some sort of fish, perhaps salmon.  It was salty and hit the spot.

My seafood platter arrived with all the usual suspects normally found on a Jacksonville area plate -- fish filets, oysters, clam strips, shrimp, scallops and a deviled crab.  All were okay but of all the seafood platters I've sampled in the Jacksonville area, this one left the most to be desired.  Some of the batter on the shrimp was still runny and doughy -- it hadn't cooked thoroughly.  My wife smirked when she bit into "Sam's Big Fish."  It was fishy and not at all good.  She ate a few bites and bought the rest home for Cody, our dog.

This wasn't a horrible experience but based on this one experience, we'd never return.

This outlet (and there are more than one) of Crystal River Seafood is located at 4453 Blanding Blvd.   Their phone number is (904) 771-8922.

Their web site is here.