Raymond's Seafood

My brother and I were driving through East Palatka, FL, on our way back from the beach. Poor Edmund was famished, so we hunted for a lunch spot. East Palatka isn't a large town, but nevertheless it provides a worthwhile destination in the form of Raymond's Seafood Take-Out Restaurant. Raymond's isn't much to look at: a small, windowless, cinder-block structure with a dirt parking lot. But there was something about the exuberant road-side signage (BLUE CRABS...LIVE OYSTERS...GARLIC CRAB & SHRIMP) and the promise of good cooking from a glorified rural baitshop which we found irresistable. We pulled into the parking lot.

Where I live in the San Francisco Bay Area, seafood is treated like a precious commodity--even despite the Pacific's proximity. Every dungeness crab and halibut fillet is given the royal treatment, to be incorporated into elaborate recipes and overwrought presentations. I wish I knew why. If you're looking for today's catch with minimal treatment--tossed without ceremony into the deep fryer or steamer, for example--then you're out of luck.

Luckily, in Florida it's not difficult to find fuss-free seafood. At Raymond's, the simple menu is posted on the wall: garlic crab, garlic shrimp, oyster, gatortail, shrimp, fish, fries. They have sandwiches with the local catch: mullet, whiting, flounder, croaker, grouper. I ordered the shrimp & fries ($6.00!). Edmund ignored the posted warning about shellfish (we all know it's a mere formality) and got oysters & fries (also $6.00), plus a syrupy sweet tea to wash it down. He then attacked the free sample tray of smoked pork ribs, leaving a few greasy scraps for the next customer.

We waited a bit, our order appeared, and we hurried back to the car with our styrofoam trays--there's no seating inside. Edmund's deep fried oysters were fresh, and tasted like the sea. I could tell my shrimp had been caught recently--they were still sweet. Both shrimp and oyster servings were so generous, neither of us finished the fries. I'm encouraging Raymond's to open their San Francisco branch as soon as possible.

Raymond's Seafood
180 State Road 207 
East Palatka
(386) 326-6375