Crawfish King- Crack. Peel. Eat. Wipe Face. Repeat.
A few weeks ago, I was going to have lunch at Bistro The
Home but when I got there, I found out they were closed down! I was depressed
because I really loved Bistro’s pasta, especially their unique squid ink pasta
that normally cannot be found anywhere else.
Even though I was sad, what intrigued me was the new
restaurant that was going to take over. It’s called Crawfish King and they
opened just over a week ago. They specialize in Southern Cajun Seafood Boil and
this is their second location. Their first location is in Seattle.
restaurant that was going to take over. It’s called Crawfish King and they
opened just over a week ago. They specialize in Southern Cajun Seafood Boil and
this is their second location. Their first location is in Seattle.
I’ve never had crawfish before so I went here with Meta
Knight for dinner.
Knight for dinner.
We came at around 7pm and much to our surprise, the entire
place was packed! Richmondites really know the place to go for cool, interesting
food, eh? We had to wait for a good 15 minutes before we were offered a small
cramped table.
place was packed! Richmondites really know the place to go for cool, interesting
food, eh? We had to wait for a good 15 minutes before we were offered a small
cramped table.
If you know what Bistro the Home looked like before, you can
probably tell they did a complete makeover on this place. The entire
restaurant is decorated to look like you’re on deck or on a ship catching crawfish.
probably tell they did a complete makeover on this place. The entire
restaurant is decorated to look like you’re on deck or on a ship catching crawfish.
You can order your seafood by the pound and it is all market
price. The crawfish at the time Meta Knight and I went was $12.99/lb. Once the
seafood is chosen, you get to pick the sauce and the spicy level.
price. The crawfish at the time Meta Knight and I went was $12.99/lb. Once the
seafood is chosen, you get to pick the sauce and the spicy level.
Aside from the seafood boil, they have other items such as
fried seafood, gumbo, Jambalaya…etc. However, not every item was available
such as fried okra, fried mushrooms, and blue crab.
fried seafood, gumbo, Jambalaya…etc. However, not every item was available
such as fried okra, fried mushrooms, and blue crab.
For the two of us, we ordered Two Pounds of Crawfish ($12.99/lb) and Fried Oysters with Fries ($11.99).
We
mainly ordered the fried oysters and fries as our carbs because we knew two
pounds of seafood would not be enough for two people. The ‘cajun fries’ were
(much to our disappointment) regular fries. There was not even a hint of cajun
seasoning.
mainly ordered the fried oysters and fries as our carbs because we knew two
pounds of seafood would not be enough for two people. The ‘cajun fries’ were
(much to our disappointment) regular fries. There was not even a hint of cajun
seasoning.
The
oysters were okay but definitely not the best fried oysters I’ve ever had. Overall,
this platter was ‘meh’ but it got the
job done of filling us up.
oysters were okay but definitely not the best fried oysters I’ve ever had. Overall,
this platter was ‘meh’ but it got the
job done of filling us up.
They
serve the seafood in a plastic bag and the bucket is for shells.
serve the seafood in a plastic bag and the bucket is for shells.
Okay, so here goes my tiny rant. I read somewhere (I think
the Seattle location’s website) that you get free corn, potatoes, and sausages
if you order two pounds or more of crawfish. However, this location only gives
you corn… and by corn, they mean half a corn. If we had known the corn was
going to be so puny, we would have ordered one pound of crawfish and another
pound of clams or shrimp.
the Seattle location’s website) that you get free corn, potatoes, and sausages
if you order two pounds or more of crawfish. However, this location only gives
you corn… and by corn, they mean half a corn. If we had known the corn was
going to be so puny, we would have ordered one pound of crawfish and another
pound of clams or shrimp.
We chose mild as
the spicy level and Big Easy as our
sauce. Mild was plenty spicy for us. We both loved the Big Easy seasoning because it was incredibly
flavourful and I particularly enjoyed the massive amounts of garlic. One big FYI though- the crawfish is super oily! There was literally a pool of red oil sitting on the bottom of the crawfish.
the spicy level and Big Easy as our
sauce. Mild was plenty spicy for us. We both loved the Big Easy seasoning because it was incredibly
flavourful and I particularly enjoyed the massive amounts of garlic. One big FYI though- the crawfish is super oily! There was literally a pool of red oil sitting on the bottom of the crawfish.
The crawfish you get will range in size so some might be
really small but some might be giant.
really small but some might be giant.
This particular one was very large and if you don’t
know what crawfish is, it pretty much is like a tiny lobster. There is not much
meat in the head so you just kind of suck its juices and eat the tail and
claws. One thing we both noticed about their crawfish was that it was
overcooked. If it was perfectly cooked, you should be able to get a whole piece
of tail out in one piece, but in our case, it was mushy and did not come off in
one piece.
know what crawfish is, it pretty much is like a tiny lobster. There is not much
meat in the head so you just kind of suck its juices and eat the tail and
claws. One thing we both noticed about their crawfish was that it was
overcooked. If it was perfectly cooked, you should be able to get a whole piece
of tail out in one piece, but in our case, it was mushy and did not come off in
one piece.
Here is the scene of the crime. It is a dirty (but fun) experience
so make sure you come with someone you are not trying to impress. It’ll will
be hard to look pretty wearing a bib while sucking the guts of little creatures with oil running down your hands. 😀
so make sure you come with someone you are not trying to impress. It’ll will
be hard to look pretty wearing a bib while sucking the guts of little creatures with oil running down your hands. 😀
It can get expensive if you want to fill yourself up here.
We were okay because we had fries, but otherwise, one person would probably need about
two pounds of seafood to be full.
We were okay because we had fries, but otherwise, one person would probably need about
two pounds of seafood to be full.
Overall, it’s a very cool and fun experience to eat crawfish
so I’d definitely recommend trying this place out. The horrible service that
everyone talks about on Urbanspoon is true but I can tell they are trying
really hard to accommodate the unexpected demand of hungry customers.
so I’d definitely recommend trying this place out. The horrible service that
everyone talks about on Urbanspoon is true but I can tell they are trying
really hard to accommodate the unexpected demand of hungry customers.
Service Rating: 2/5
Food Rating: 3/5
Price: $$$-$$$$
Overall Rating: 3/5
Happy Eating!
<– just lovin’ my crawfish
courtesy of.. my camera 😛
Wow this is the fastest post ever. Didn't you just go last night? AND OMG IS THAT A PIC OF YOU I SEE? 😛
That picture of the crawfish looks like… it's alive…!! And "don't come here with someone you're trying to impress". So you're totally past impressing Meta Knight now eh? *nudge nudge wink wink*
Haha I know, I totally wrote it right away so you guys could read it. 😀
Yup, finally a pic of me on the blog! But most people might not even scroll to the very bottom so I don't know if it matters 😛
And haha yup I eat pretty savage with him so he's used to it by now 😀