Captain Benjamin’s Calabash Seafood

FOOD

Calabash-style fried seafood and unlimited Alaskan snow crab legs establish Captain Benjamin’s dinner buffet. The frying style uses a light coating, with shrimp, flounder and deviled crab among the familiar examples. Crab clusters supply the hands-on shellfish centerpiece. Beyond that foundation, an unusually extensive range of stuffed, baked and sauced seafood gives the restaurant much of its interest, reaching well past the expected fried fish and crab legs.

The fried seafood covers several kinds of fish, including flounder, grouper, catfish and cod, as well as scallops, oysters and clam strips. Shrimp comes plain fried, in a coconut preparation and with a Buffalo treatment. Calamari extends the range further, with alligator and frog legs also in the selection. Coconut shrimp and coconut-sauce shrimp are separate preparations, illustrating how thoroughly shrimp runs through this buffet.

Blue crab, crawfish, mussels and clams deepen the shellfish selection around the snow crab. Shrimp boil brings shrimp together with sausage and corn, while cold peel-and-eat shrimp and oysters give the seafood a different presentation. Lemon, cocktail sauce, tartar sauce and horseradish accompany the spread. The cold seafood has a clear place of its own alongside the fried foods and the richer prepared dishes.

Among those prepared dishes, octopus, scallops and shrimp in tomato-basil cream is especially distinctive: three seafoods combined in one sauce. Crab Imperial and oysters Rockefeller bring two further named preparations to the buffet. Stuffed green mussels, stuffed clams and stuffed scallops develop the shellfish in another direction, with stuffed mushrooms also available. This depth of cooked seafood is a strong reason to look beyond the crab clusters.

Shrimp and grits, shrimp Alfredo and lobster macaroni and cheese carry seafood into familiar comfort-food combinations. Scampi, Creole and coconut-sauce preparations give shrimp several additional treatments. Lobster’s role here is in the macaroni and cheese, while shrimp has the much broader presence across the buffet. She-crab soup and clam chowder continue the seafood theme in bowls, alongside the hot entrées and shellfish.

The land-food selection is substantial in its own right. Sirloin and ribeye join brisket, pulled pork and barbecue ribs, while chicken Alfredo, chicken strips and pizza cover familiar family preferences. Collards, fried okra and sweet potatoes give some of the accompaniments a Southern character. This part of the buffet makes a full non-seafood supper possible within a restaurant chiefly devoted to seafood.

Baked salmon and teriyaki salmon offer fish beyond the Calabash frying. The colder selection includes shrimp salad, crab salad, ceviche and kani crabmeat coleslaw, so seafood continues into the salad bar as well. Hummus, stuffed grape leaves, feta and olives extend that selection beyond lettuce and vegetable toppings. These foods add another register to a buffet with considerable emphasis on fried and creamy preparations.

Dessert warrants real attention. The chocolate fountain is a visual centerpiece, accompanied by plain, raspberry and chocolate-chip cheesecakes. Tiramisu and almond-mascarpone tiramisu join key lime pie, miniature cannoli and chocolate éclairs. Peach and apple cobblers carry the Southern finish, with banana pudding also available. The build-your-own ice-cream bar includes cookies and cream, mint chocolate chip and rainbow sherbet among its flavors. The range of cakes, pies and ice cream gives dessert a breadth to match the seafood.