In an effort to 'get off the reservation' (as in the resort I am staying at for the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery), I hailed a town car and galavanted off to the Orlando neighborhood of 'Point Orlando'. My destination was Oceanaire, which came recommended by the concierge desk. Oceanaire flies its fish in fresh everyday and changes it's menu depending on the quality of items it receives, which, might make you immediately jump to conclusions of selling your first born to pay for a dinner date - not the case (entrees range from $25-40 which is expensive but I was invisioning a $50-60 entree when I was told about the fish freshness)! There are locations throughout the country: Atlanta, Boston, Denver, Indianapolis, Minneapolis, San Diego, Baltimore, Dallas, Houston, Miami, and DC, so you don't have to be in MCO airport code area to nosh on this good stuff!!
On the outside, it looks no different then a Capital Grille or Legal Sea Foods, but on the inside I was transported back in time to a traditional oyster bar and seafood eatery on the wharf in downtown Boston. Waitstaff is dressed in white fish market jackets and their friendly, 'can-do' attitude was much appreciated. Details, right down to changing out my white napkin for a black one, so that white link would not rub off on my black outfit, to the dental clips (yes dental clips!!) to pin a bib around you for dishes such as lobster or cioppino, were always on hand. The meal starts with 1/2 boule of fresh bread and a relish tray - ohh yes, welcome back 1950 - relish tray. I was super excited to see Barramundi on the menu given my last encounter with the Australian version of bass, and I it wanted it Oscar style (ie topped with lump crab, asparagus and hollandaise), but because I am picky at times and have great disdain for hollandaise after having to learn how to make it, I replaced the hollandaise with Louie sauce (lemon-butter). My dinner mate ordered a pink snapper louie style which also had lump crap atop it with a side of rice. Since the menu ran slightly like a steakhouse the sides were A la carte and we settled on cheesey au gratin potatoes and a white anchovy salad for our sides.
The lump crab might just have been THE BEST crab I have ever sunk my teeth into. The quarter sized pieces of Maryland lump crab were cooked beautifully - tender and juicy with out any hint of canned or prepackaged flavor. Maryland crab is the good stuff - none of that Alaskan crab shit for me, and I really believe that these Maryland crabs hit the back of Oceanaire alive (like a lobster would) and were prepared freshly at the start of service that night, they had that much 'just out of the water' mouthfeel and flavor to them. The pink snapper was nice, it reminded me of a lighter version of swordfish. The barramundi, though not as thick as the fillet from White Dog Cafe, was full of flavor and complimented nicely by some lemon butter. The cheesey au gratin potatoes were laced with bacon and leeks. Now we all know I love bacon, so the chunks were a welcome addition to my favorite item (cheese - duh), but the slight onion flavor from the leeks gave the potatoes an interesting twist. This 'side' dish could have be shared by 4 people, so at $10 it was a fabulous purchase of two heaping portions and leftovers. We were in Florida so we had to order key lime pie for dessert, which could also have fed a family of four. I like my key lime pie a little tart and this one was just that - tangy with a thick, buttery graham cracker crust. It was also served with a steak knife and I have since proclaimed that if the dessert doesn't come with a steak knife, I'm not buying.
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