Eating: Smitty’s Seafood

Boiled seafood must sound like the most boring bland food in the world to an outsider. Yet, we all know in Louisiana our boiled seafood is everything but boring or bland. Boiled seafood is more than a meal; it’s a celebration.

We were celebrating the fact that Cristina’s mom and step-dad came to visit. We needed a place that served boiled seafood. Smitty’s in Kenner did just fine.

Smitty’s, which is on West Esplanade, serves mainly fried and boiled seafood as well as some New Orleans area favorites such as roast beef poboys. While the fried seafood is okay, the boiled seafood is what keeps me going back. If I have someone that is willing to share it with me I always order the hamper, which contains all that crustaceans that are in season at the moment. Right now, that meant we had crabs, crawfish, and shrimp.

The crabs were all females full of fat, eggs, and juice. Or as I like to call them, perfect. The crawfish were small but full of flavor and came out of the shell easy. I’m not sure how they peeled since I don’t do that. The shrimp tended to be large and filling.

The amount of the trio was enough to fill us up at the table. Yet, that’s not all that you get. You get what seems like tons of sausage, mini-corn on the cob, potatoes, and mushrooms. Vegetables are part of every balanced meal.

Yet, I think the next time we go to Smitty’s, I might have to order the boiled seafood by myself. The roast beef sandwich bought to a neighboring table caught Cristina’s eye. I’ll have to make sure I take her back but not on a Friday.