Capt. Dave's Dockside
It was just about as perfect a day as you could get — bright and sunny. I was riding my motorcycle in the general direction of Murrells Inlet, taking back roads and old highways. While this was a fun ride, I did have a destination in mind.
Earlier in the week, I got a call from David Owens, the owner of Captain Dave’s Dockside, inviting me to come down and have dinner. I had to postpone until the weekend, but David was more than accommodating, and made sure that I got top notch service when I was finally able to make it. Of course, from the moment I got there in the late afternoon until I left, the service I received was par for the course.
Captain Dave’s is a beautiful place, right on the waterway in Murrells Inlet. From the outside, it looks like a fine house.
Inside is a beautifully decorated dining room with hardwood floors and a stately array of art. A short bar goes to one side of the room, fronting for the kitchen.
The back wall is made of sliding doors, giving diners a beautiful view of the inlet and a small island that is home for several peacocks. There is a small deck in the back, as well as, to be expected, docks.
I knew I was in for something special right from the start.
My waitress, Sherri, brought me some hushpuppies with a raspberry butter spread. The spread was so thick and sweet, it was like eating mini doughnuts.
Captain Dave’s offers a great special menu called the Prix Fixe, which offers a three-course meal — appetizer, entrée and dessert — for $20.
This is a great deal for the money, and they change the offerings regularly so you can have plenty of options when you go back again and again (and you will want to).
For me, I started with a bowl of blue fin crab soup and an order of the grilled scallops from the appetizer menu.
The soup was so thick, you could have called it a stew.
Succulent, thick and hearty are some of the words that come to mind when I think about the soup.
Thick also comes to mind when I think about the scallops. These scallops were two, maybe three times as thick as the scallops you would find in any other meal.
Served on a bed of greens, these scallops were barely touched by the grill, standing on their own pure, mouthwatering flavor.
For my entrée, I finally broke down and tried shrimp and grits. Only the other day, I was telling a friend that I had fallen in love with grits for breakfast since moving to the South, but had yet to try shrimp and grits. Well, Captain Dave’s take on the meal pushed me over the edge.
Served with andouille sausage, tasso ham, tomatoes and onions in gravy, this sounded like a good time to try the dish. As it turned out, it was an absolutely great time.
This dish was spectacular with plenty of huge shrimp, and lots of ham and sausage.
Just when I thought I couldn’t possibly eat anything else, Sherri tempted me into eating a piece of key lime pie. One thing I have learned since I have suddenly become fascinated with key lime pie, it doesn’t have to be day glow green to be good.
In fact, apparently the pies are better when they are not green, because this one wasn’t green, but it was spectacular.
Sherri kept my Diet Coke filled and let me relax after dinner. I watched the peacocks and even went outside to the deck and the docks to snap some pictures of them and a crane that was fishing nearby.
It was a great ending to a wonderful meal.
I can’t think of anything better to say than go to Captain Dave’s Dockside. It is simply a great place to be.
