Harry’s Seafood Bar and Grille In St Augustine, Florida

 

Harry’s Seafood Bar and Grille In St Augustine, Florida

 

St Augustine (1565) proudly wears the title of America’s second longest continuously occupied settlement of European origin. Only San Juan Puerto Rico (1521) is older.  And although the Spanish ruled the region for some 200 years, it remained a battleground between Spain, France and Britain, until it was finally ceded to the United States in 1819.

 

As you might guess, Spanish influence is still evident on nearly every street in this beautiful old colonial city, including remnants of city walls, old building, and the national monument of Castillo de San Marcos, which overlooks the harbor.

 

Of course I have greatly abbreviated the history of St Augustine because I know the limited attention span of my three faithful readers.  Instead, I’ll tell you about one of the best restaurants I’ve visited in quite a while, Harry’s Seafood Bar and Grille.  Hey you’ll get some history!  The historic Spanish fort is right across the street!

 

Now let’s talk about Harry’s Seafood Bar and Grille.  Think of New Orleans, another French influenced city, and you’ll get a mental picture of the restaurant’s lovely courtyard and sumptuous menu.

 

Let’s start with a delightful cocktail.  I certainly did!  The Royale is a smooth blend of Crown Royal’s apple whiskey, elderflower, and ginger beer, with a squeeze of lemon.  It came with a recommendation from our waiter, Greg.

 

It’s here I need to show off my snobbery.  Any restaurant, independent of décor or price, depends on its food as a calling card.  But also very important to me is a pleasant and well-trained wait staff.  I don’t go to a restaurant to make a BFF, but I value civility, a solid knowledge of the menu, knowing which side to serve from, not stacking dishes on the table, and a firm grasp on when to interject and when to silently keep a proper distance.

 

Greg is an outstanding waiter and when, after reading this, you rush for St Augustine and a visit to Harry’s, ask for him.

 

So what else did Greg recommend?  The she-crab soup.  I’d heard that before and was not disappointed.  Matter of fact, I injured myself hurrying to get the second spoonful to my mouth.  Using the word ‘delicious’ doesn’t do this heavenly concoction of crab and wine and cream justice.  You will quickly forget the already fading memories of any other crab soup you’ve tasted.

For me there is always an appetizer I can never pass up:  Fried calamari. Harry’s serves their version with a very light panko batter and fried green beans, with a remoulade sauce on the side.  I like my fried foods crunchy and the use of panko made it delightful so, and the calamari were tender.

 

So, what else did I order?  Pan fried slices of eggplant, interlaced with lump crab meat and topped with sautéed onions and a very flavorful cream sauce.

For restaurant food, my code is simple: if I could have done better in my own kitchen, then next time I will.

 

At Harry’s Seafood Bar and Grille, I could never do better, and the menu was topped off with service that competes favorably with anything to be found in a French bistro.  For me, that’s high praise and I add another kudo for Greg, our waiter!

 

Sure, go to St Augustine for the culture, the history, the shopping, but never forget to visit Harry’s Seafood Bar and Grille!

 

 

Mill Top Tavern, St Augustine

Mill Top Tavern

Even though I’ve spent much of my adult life in foreign lands, I appreciate Americana and especially American history.  During our crawl down the eastern seaboard, we found just the place to immerse ourselves in both.  Sure, I’ve wiled away days in Charleston and Savannah, but St Augustine has a special feel, like a city that hasn’t outgrown it’s parade of conquistadors and pirates and invasions by the French and British.  And yet, the atmosphere is not completely like any of those.  It’s a mixed blood French, English, Spanish Lady who speaks with an American accent.  The ancient walls, what’s left of them, the massive Castillo de San Marcos guarding the harbor, and the French Huguenot cemetery speak to other times and other cultures that still cling like the remnants of last night’s party.

Chances are, in a vain effort to educate all three of my faithful readers, I will write more about the wonders of St Augustine, but today I’ll walk down a certain street and grab a bite at a certain restaurant, The Mill Top Tavern on St George Street.  This narrow walking street marks the beginning of the historic district.

People often ask, “How do you find these places?”  Well, I don’t thumb through guidebooks, I ask people.  In this case, I sauntered over to a uniformed guard and inquired about a good place for lunch.  First thing out of her mouth, as she pointed toward the swarm of folks ambling the cobblestones and gazing at the endless clusters of tiny shops on either side, was “Mill Top!”

The Mill Top Tavern is built on the site of an 1880 grist mill and opened as a bar in 1950.  In 2016 it required a complete restoration, which was completed with an eye toward keeping its historic charm and appearance.

Wasn’t hard to find.  About a block down from the old city gates, with a sign pointing upstairs.  Two open air rooms, separated by a compact bandstand where a fiddle playing, gray haired lady and guitar strumming younger man about twice her size, played music with a country twang.  I admit, normally, being prone to conversation over lunch, I view a live band as I would a concert of Johnny and the Maniacs accompanied by several children banging trash cans.

But, Sue Tice on Fiddle and Matt Fowler on guitar are practiced musicians, with the sound of their instruments just as important as Matt’s mellow baritone.  I also admit I love fiddle music, done right, and Sue Tice is a virtuoso.   Between the two of them, the sounds are perfectly blended and allow someone to eat, enjoy the music and converse.

Our server, Annette, was just as cordial as the music, and experienced and polite enough to offer suggestions, then disappear and reappear as exactly as needed.

Plus, the seating is ringed by open half walls that allow heat to escape and a comforting breeze to refresh the senses.

So, what did we order, my companion and I?  We had light appetites.  I opt for (yes, folks, op is the singular and opt is the past tense and there ain’t NO opted) for black bean soup crowned with diced fresh onions and my companion got a pressed Cuban pork sandwich, with small sides of grilled vegetables and potato salad.

Black Bean soup, as it should be!  Well herbed and served hot!

The pork, seasoned Cuban Style, and accompanying roasted vegetables and potato salad were excellent!

To allow us to continue to stagger through town, we opt to swig some strong coffee.

Our lunch was perfect on that gloriously sunny day.  But, it wasn’t the end of our St Augustine adventure.  We walked St George St for a while, stopping to see American’s oldest wooden schoolhouse, then moving on.  We still had old worlds to re-conquer.