After we finished running some errands on Tuesday we decided to go and get some dinner. We were on our way to Charo Chicken in Tustin, but as we were driving down 17th street to get there I suggested we check out The Crab Cooker instead. Mrs. DanGarion had a knack to have more shrimp after the shrimp she had at Koji’s the previous night so my suggestion paid off.
The Crab Cooker in Tustin is pretty much the same as the one in Newport Beach, except it’s not near the beach and I’m assuming probably isn’t as popular. But they seem to have pretty much the same menu, although checking their website it does say that there are some things not available at the Newport Beach location. The restaurant also has a small fish market that one could purchase food to go as well as fresh fish. The restaurant is decorated with paintings and maritime items over all the walls, as well as a large shark hanging from the skylights in the main dining area. The kitchen is open and you can watch the cooks through windows placed right in front of their grill.
My wife ordered the Shrimp on a Skewer (10 medium sized shrimp) along with Romano Potatoes and sliced tomatoes (diner plate $14.95). I ordered the Combination Plate (4 medium sized shrimp, two cuts of fish, and 2 scallops) with Romano Potatoes and cole slaw (dinner plate $14.50). The food is all prepared the same way, it’s broiled on the grill and lightly seasoned with some oil, salt, pepper, and I think some paprika. Because of the broiling the fish sometimes has a little burnt flavor to it, but it’s not something that detracts from the flavor of the fresh fish. We both agreed that the shrimp was good; I even got extra since my wife got full! The fish was perfectly cooked and flaked a bit as I picked it off my fork and fingers. I didn’t know they scallops could be broiled but they were pretty good as well. Overall the Romano Potatoes stole the show; we each got 1 delicious ice cream sized scope of the Romano seasoned mashed potatoes. I think we would have both enjoyed a meal of just the potatoes. Unfortunately the cole slaw left much to be desired, it was very bland and somewhat bitter, but I’ve come to terms that cole slaw is hit or miss from restaurant to restaurant. Both our meals were good, and they weren’t too big to overwhelm us.
The service was good. It was sort of funny that their placemats say they will serve water upon request when our waitress just gave us cups of water without asking. They serve their soft drinks in biodegradable corn cups, which I thought was neat, but then they give you plastic forks, knives, paper plates, and a paper cup for the water. I’m not sure if they are trying to save the environment or if they just are using whatever they can instead of having real silverware and dishes.
The Crab Cooker is a Orange County staple and they didn’t disappoint, they gave us a solid meal with good service, nothing stood out, but nothing detracted from our dinner.
Visit 06/25/08 for dinner
[xrr rating=3.5/5]
Crab Cooker Restaurant
17260 17th St
Tustin, CA 92780
(714) 573-1077
