Dewey Destin's Harborside 202 Harbor Blvd., Destin, 837-7525 Hours: Open daily at 11 a.m. Reservations: Accepted for large groups Children's menu: Yes Dress: Casual Food Service Atmosphere Overall

By Bruce Collier
April 2, 2009 Issue

A last-minute unforeseen cancellation resulted in my dining alone at Dewey Destin's Harborside. I did not bother to call ahead, since I wasn't sure they would take a reservation for one. It was during the recent spate of bad weather, so I figured there wouldn't be too many others there. I was right about the reservation—they only take them for groups of eight or larger—but wrong about the crowd. There was no line, but the place was doing just fine when I got there, and business remained steady throughout the evening. Judging from the looks on the diners' faces, I was among a lot of regulars.

Dewey Destin's Harborside is a recently opened branch of the original Dewey Destin's on Calhoun and sits in a two-story building overlooking the harbor. Downstairs is the bar and a large dining room, with an outside deck. Upstairs, where I sat, is a smaller room (with its own restroom, a convenient touch) and a modest outdoor balcony. The chancy weather kept the diners mostly inside, and the staff made sure everyone got plenty of attention.

What impressed me right away was how friendly everyone is to customers. I started to go in the wrong door, and was greeted by a staffer who steered me to the entrance. "If you come in this door, you'll have to wash dishes," he laughed. My server was taking care of the entire upstairs dining room, with assistance from two support people. Nothing ruffled her, from repositioning tables to taking special orders. "Not a problem at all," was her mantra.

The homey decor is neat, clean, and simple. There are the requisite travel and fish-themed posters, and plain-topped wooden tables allow maximum exposure for the star of the show, the food. A takeout menu was not available, so I have to reconstruct the bill of fare from memory. Any inaccuracies are mine.

There are a few land-based items (steaks, burgers, chicken) but the emphasis is on fresh Gulf seafood, fried, steamed, and grilled. There are dinner-sized salads, sandwiches, and baskets. Among the fish available are oysters, shrimp, grouper, mahi mahi, yellow fin, crab, and scallops. The night I was there, they were offering a wine-tasting menu, with some more elaborate main courses such as grouper florentine and scallops with jack cheese. I expect these vary nightly.

Before I ordered, my server made it a point to let me know what they were out of that evening, and steered me away from soft-shelled crab ("They've been running a little small lately," she said). I ordered a cup of shrimp and crab chowder as a starter. Though I was dining alone and business was brisk, I was never rushed.

The chowder was just thick enough, seasoned with chopped scallions and accompanied by saltines. There was plenty of tender seafood, corn and potatoes. Other starters are crab claws, gumbo, crab cakes, and tuna dip.

I wanted to give Dewey Destin's a chance to do what waterside seafood places do best around here, so I ordered a basket of battered and deep-fried fish, shrimp and oysters with french fries, cole slaw and hush puppies. It came out still crackling and sizzling from the fryer, sending a wave of fragrant heat up to my face. Can't get fresher than that. I had to wait a few seconds to start.

The shrimp were large-sized, fresh and plump. This is what makes them drive all the way from Minnesota, I thought. The fish was greaseless, crunchy on the outside and tender as a chicken breast. The oysters held their own against the cocktail sauce, which is on the mild side. I'm sure they have pepper sauce if you need modification.

Other main courses are steamed or grilled shrimp, scallops, crab legs, and tuna, as well as sandwiches of just about anything, steaks, and seafood combinations, baskets and platters. A table of diners nearby asked for some combinations not on the menu, and all were cheerfully accommodated.

There were two desserts, key lime pie and a brownie with ice cream. I was leaning toward the pie, and my server said it was her favorite. It's the classic version, condensed milk and lime juice on graham cracker crust, and was a nice citrusy counterpoint to my fried dinner.

The place was still busy when I left, despite the weather warnings. Just before I rose to leave, the table nearby had just been served. "Best dinner in Destin," said one diner. I couldn't come up with an argument.

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