By Jessica Pope
June 03, 2008 03:43 pm
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According to the Random House Inc. unabridged dictionary, an appetizer is defined as a very small portion of a food or drink served before or at the beginning of a meal to stimulate the desire to eat.
Crystal River Seafood defines an appetizer as New England clam chowder, seafood dip, Moore’s sweet potato chips, Anchor cheese sticks, fried blue crab claws, fried lobster bites, fresh stuffed mushrooms, frog legs, fried gator tail, bloomin’ onions, chicken strips, and shrimp served grilled, buffalo, cocktail, fried, or boiled.
Crystal River Seafood was founded by Sam Bajalia Jr. in Tallahassee, Florida, in 1988. The restaurant chain boasts five locations. The newest one can be found at 958 North St. Augustine Road in Valdosta and was opened on May 10, 2005.
“I guess Valdosta was just hungry for some good seafood,” General Manager Keith Phillips said.
In 2006, 2007, and 2008, readers of The Valdosta Daily Times named Crystal River Seafood the Best Place to Eat Seafood in South Georgia. Sharing this news with customers, both new ones and old ones, brings a smile to Phillips’ face.
“Valdosta has been very good to us,” he said.
From the parking lot, Crystal River Seafood really does not look very much like a seafood restaurant.
However, from a booth or a table inside, it really is everything a southern, family-oriented and casual seafood restaurant should be with a 50-gallon fish tank, wood paneling, light fixtures made out of the finished wood of a nautical steering wheel, as well as walls adorned with glass ball floats, replicas of ocean fish and a shark, life rings, wooden oars and pieces of ship rope.
“This location has worked out well for us,” added Phillips.
All of the food served at Crystal River Seafood is prepared fresh when ordered, Phillips noted. Most of the seafood items can be ordered grilled, boiled, blackened, broiled, or fried.
Featured menu selections include shrimp, catfish, flounder fillets, oysters, clam strips, scallops, gator tail, blue crab claws, deviled crab, fish sandwiches, bite-size shrimp salads, lobster, frog legs, soft shell crab, and more. Lunches, sandwiches, and entrees come with a choice of two sides — cole slaw, green beans, grits, mixed veggies, broccoli, baked potato, applesauce, cheese grits, french fries, or rice pilaf.
For children under the age of 12 years, the menu at Crystal River Seafood has everything from fried shrimp to bite-size shrimp to macaroni and cheese to fish fillets to fried chicken strips to corn dogs to grilled cheese sandwiches. For land lovers, it has a grilled chicken breast, fried chicken strips or a 12-ounce New York strip steak.
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