After spending an hour or so enjoying the sunshine and a beer on the City Pier my wife and I decided to have a walk along the beach to see what the other pier had to offer, and maybe later return to the City pier for a meal in the restaurant.
We strolled along looking for unusual shells and admiring the beachfront properties that all had their own direct access to the beach and had fairly soon covered the half a mile or so to what turned out to be The Rod and Reel Pier. We walked out to the end where again there were and a bar and restaurant plus plenty of people fishing for what turned out to be ‘sheepshead’ fish which feed off the barnacles on the pier legs.
The restaurant here was up a flight of stairs and had good views over the sea. The menu looked interesting, with naturally plenty of fish and shellfish dishes, and so although we were not yet ready for a meal we decided to head back to the City Pier and bring the car up to the parking area in front of the Rod and Reel Pier and then put our names down for a table at the restaurant.
Typically, even though it was a Thursday, by the time we got back the restaurant wait list had lengthened and we settled down out of the breeze to wait for a table. I have to say that the forty minute wait was well worth it. We were lucky enough to get an outside table on the balcony that was not only sheltered from the wind but also had a wonderful view of the sunset over the tip of the island, and as the sky darkened the restaurant turned on strings of small coloured lights which added to the splendid ambiance.
For dinner I opted for a seafood gumbo, nicely spicy with plenty of scallops followed by pecan crusted amberjack, while my wife had seafood chowder and a crab cake dinner. Both main courses came with a choice of two sides and we both opted for fries and mixed vegetables which consisted of runner beans, broccoli, red peppers and yellow carrots – an unusual but delicious vegetable. The cost together with a glass of wine each was just $45 plus tip. To the best of my knowledge you cannot reserve a table in advance, but nevertheless I can certainly recommend this restaurant to anybody visiting the island!
We strolled along looking for unusual shells and admiring the beachfront properties that all had their own direct access to the beach and had fairly soon covered the half a mile or so to what turned out to be The Rod and Reel Pier. We walked out to the end where again there were and a bar and restaurant plus plenty of people fishing for what turned out to be ‘sheepshead’ fish which feed off the barnacles on the pier legs.
The restaurant here was up a flight of stairs and had good views over the sea. The menu looked interesting, with naturally plenty of fish and shellfish dishes, and so although we were not yet ready for a meal we decided to head back to the City Pier and bring the car up to the parking area in front of the Rod and Reel Pier and then put our names down for a table at the restaurant.
Typically, even though it was a Thursday, by the time we got back the restaurant wait list had lengthened and we settled down out of the breeze to wait for a table. I have to say that the forty minute wait was well worth it. We were lucky enough to get an outside table on the balcony that was not only sheltered from the wind but also had a wonderful view of the sunset over the tip of the island, and as the sky darkened the restaurant turned on strings of small coloured lights which added to the splendid ambiance.
For dinner I opted for a seafood gumbo, nicely spicy with plenty of scallops followed by pecan crusted amberjack, while my wife had seafood chowder and a crab cake dinner. Both main courses came with a choice of two sides and we both opted for fries and mixed vegetables which consisted of runner beans, broccoli, red peppers and yellow carrots – an unusual but delicious vegetable. The cost together with a glass of wine each was just $45 plus tip. To the best of my knowledge you cannot reserve a table in advance, but nevertheless I can certainly recommend this restaurant to anybody visiting the island!