(Promenade at Coconut Creek - shopping and dining)

The Promenade at Coconut Creek is a fairly new shopping and restaurant district located at Lyons Rd and Wiles.  It's a cool little place to stop in and wander around in.  While some of the shops are still empty...there is enough to see while you walk around and work off a meal.

(Fish City Grill - Promenade at Coconut Creek)

We decided to stop into the Fish City Grill for lunch at about noon.  We got there right before the lunch crowd and found a comfortable booth.  The place isn't huge...but feels nice and comfortable.  They have a few TVs for sports fans and some high top tables and booths.  The kitchen is almost 'open' so you can see the action if you want.


(Fish City Grill - inside...high-top tables)


(Fish City Grill - dining area...booths)

The menu is heavy in seafood (as you can imagine) with some unique items too.  They tout the 'oyster nachos'...but we decided to pass (not really the oyster fan).  Our server was quick to greet us and told us about the specials.  They were quite elaborate sounding and there were about 8...so I was glad when she left a small card with all of the explanations. 

We decided to go for a cup of 'Cream of Roasted Jalapeno' soup and a crab cake appetizer to start.  First came the soup...and she actually gave us a few spoons.  Smart!  Maybe we looked like we each wanted to try everything.


(Cream of Roasted Jalapeno soup - Fish City Gill)

The Cream of Roasted Jalapeno soup was hot and looked nice and creamy.  It actually tasted really good as well.  While you could tasted the jalapeno...it wasn't really 'spicy-hot'.  It almost reminded me of a broccoli cheese soup base (without the broccoli).  It really hit the spot on a rainy cool day like today too.


(Crab Cake Appetizer - Fish City Grill)

The crab cake came out with some sauce on the side.  It was a large 'cake' with celery, onions and old bay mixed in.  I could taste all the components except for the crab.  It was full of crab..but maybe it could have used some salt to bring it together?  While it didn't explode with flavor...you could tell it was fresh.


Now on to the entrées.  I ordered the Combination Dinner.  You can choose two of the following:  Shrimp, catfish or oysters.  (or all three for a small up charge).  You can get the shrimp and catfish either fried, grilled or blackened...and the oysters come fried or on the 1/2 shell.  I went for fried shrimp and blackened catfish.  You also get to choose two sides.  I went for the waffle fries and sautéed spinach. 


(Combination Dinner, Fried Shrimp and Blacked Catfish...with waffle fries)


(Second side item - satueed spinich)

Everything came out hot...which is great.  The shrimp were perfect and not greasy and the coating was nice and light.  The catfish was actually one of the best catfish fillets I've had in a very long time.  The blackened spice was spot on!  I was really surprised on how good the fish was.  The waffle fries were sprinkled with some kind of spice and were great.  The spinach was freshly made...but could have used some garlic or other kind of spice.  Overall...great meal.

Jeff went for the Fish Tacos.  The tacos are made with fried catfish...but you can swap it out for another kind of fish if you want.  You can also get the fish fried, grilled or blackened.  He went for the fried catfish.


(Fish Tacos and Dirty Rice)

The plate comes with a mound of 'dirty' rice and the tacos are cut to make four pieces.  There is cheese, cabbage, tomato and a few other items we couldn't figure out...which all worked really great together.  These are not your traditional soft tacos either.  They are almost like a cross between a taco and a burrito.  They grill and kind of press it too.  Interesting.  The fish was excellent in the tacos and the tacos really tasted good.  In the middle of the plate was the 'dirty rice'.  Jeff kept saying how it was the BEST RICE HE'S EVER HAD!  I think he said it to me....like four times through lunch.  He even asked the server to find out what was in it.  The quick and 'dirty' version of the recipe?  Chicken stock, tarragon, thyme, mushrooms, onions, celery...oh...and rice. 


($40.53 with tax)

Overall...we were both glad we stopped into Fish City Grill and will definitely stop in again when we are in the area.  Prices are reasonable too.  For all that food..and two soda's...it came to $40 with tax.  They offer some daily discounted specials too.  Monday's they have a $24.99 'two can eat' special.  One appetizer to share....two entrées and one dessert to share. 



Fish City Grill is located at:
4437 Lyons Rd
Coconut Creek,  FL

FTLToday's restaurant grade: B (maybe more B+)