Florida tales. Part One (B): Fish

Before I get to the mind-blowing hugeness of Disney World, I have to tell you about a couple of dining experiences Marit and I had while staying in Wakulla Springs.  We asked around for recommendations, and ended up at two very different restaurants which both served sensational fish. 

The first was the Seineyard (pronounced signyard) which looked like a big homestead on the outside, complete with verandah (or porch, as the locals would call it) which held a large table surrounded by rocking chairs (to add a dash of swinging excitement to your meal).  A busy, bustling place, inside it was less cosy and more like a mess hall with a concrete floor, long communal tables, and plastic plates, cutlery and serving ware.  Everything was fried, unless you asked for it broiled (oven baked) or blackened (grilled with cajun spices), and the side salads, fries and other food accompaniments were ordinary to downright unappetising.  But the fish.  Oh, the fish!  On the recommendation of our waitress (who sported one of those glorious, weathered country faces you NEVER see in LA), I ordered the Grouper--a white fish, common to the Gulf of Mexico--served blackened.  Marit ordered the shrimp, also blackened.  Wow.  The Grouper was mouth-meltingly, orgasmically delicious.  Marit's shrimp wasn't bad either, but the Grouper was a winner.  Also of note at the Seineyard the evening we dined there were a couple of groups of people in colonial-style dress: the women in long, gingham dresses, their hair braided and pinned neatly to their heads, the men in waistcoats, the boys in homemade trousers and braces.  A local theatre troupe?  It seemed not, they weren't rowdy enough to be a bunch of actors winding down after a day of rehearsal.  We figured they probably belonged to one of the many churches in the area--perhaps Mormon?--and tried not to stare.

The next night we headed a little further south to the Spring Creek Restaurant, a cosy and charming little establishment that had much more atmosphere than the Seineyard.  Once again, the seafood was fabulous.  Marit ordered the Grouper (broiled and seasoned, although not with cajun spices) and was not disappointed, and I ordered the crab cakes, noted on the menu as one of the house specialities.  Moist and delicious.  The side salad was fresh, and the hushpuppies were crisp and fluffy in all the right ways.  Hushpuppies--not to be confused with the comfy footwear brand--seem to be standard accompaniments to fish in these parts (we encountered them on our plates at Seineyard too) and are a kind of cornmeal rolled into little footballs and deep fried.  They are quite tasty and useful for mopping up dipping sauce and juices from the fish.

The next day--Monday--Marit was picked up early to attend a meeting outside Tallahassee, and I drove Tiago and I out there later in the day to collect her and begin the drive south to Orlando and Disney World.