Dining al fresco in these parts can be a dicey proposition.
Life in the humid subtropics is such that dining outdoors (which is what al fresco means; Al isn't your friend from Rome) can be something of a challenge. Even the best meal can wilt in our swampy summer heat.
So when your Well-Fed Reporter happened upon a dining opportunity that allowed semi-outside dining in relative comfort, he was on it like Surly Companion at an all-you-can-eat buffet on liver night.
The River Shack is an open and inviting restaurant almost in the shadows of the Dog River Bridge. It’s nestled right near the mouth of the river, on the southern bank, giving a sprawling view of the traffic heading in and out of Mobile Bay.
WFR wasted no time asking for a window seat for himself and a pair of well-heeled colleagues — the perpetually miffed Surly Companion and the newest member of the dining team, Red Head Companion.
They joined what appeared to be a typical mid-afternoon Friday lunch crowd. The rustic dining room was busy, but not rushed or harried in any way.
Overhead fans kept the air moving and a steady breeze swirled in and out the large open windows throughout the meal. (For inclement weather or winter-time dining, sheets of heavy plastic can be unfurled to keep the outdoors mostly outside.)
Folks clearly were enjoying a leisurely afternoon away from work. Your dining trio, however, were on the clock and ready to eat.
Surly Companion, though distracted by the unobstructed view of a lady fishing on the dock right outside the window, took the lead. He called right off for an order of fried dill pickles to whet his appetite — as if his palate ever needed whetting.
The trio studied the menu. Daily lunch specials include grilled fish, grilled chicken, fried chicken strips and fried catfish. WFR opted for popcorn shrimp with fries and hush puppies.
Red Head Companion announced that she was five months into a yearlong experiment to avoid anything fried, so she selected the cheeseburger with a salad as her side.
Surly, however, was in a mood to spend the bosses’ money, so he went right to the most expensive sandwich on the menu — a ribeye steak po-boy.
The pickles arrived quickly, a heaping basket crispy, salty slices with a side of creamy Ranch dressing for dipping. If fried pickles aren’t the official side dish of summer, Surly offered, they ought to be.
He grumbled that a sirloin po-boy, at $11.95, is pretty far afield from the concept of a large, cheap sandwich for boys who are po’. But he didn’t grouse about the sandwich itself, which was built around a single, medium-thin cut of steak.
Obviously the cut has to be pretty tender for this concept to work; otherwise you’re reduced to inelegant gnawing. On this point, Surly had nothing to complain about.
As delivered, the sandwich is fairly bare. You’re free to sauce it up as you please, but Surly didn’t feel the need for a drop of steak sauce. Surly is stingy with his complements, but WFR thinks that was one.
Red Head reported that her salad was just right, thanks to the light taste of the balsamic vinaigrette. It wasn’t quite enough to overcome the aching desire for just one of those perfectly fried pickles.
Five months is not enough time to overcome such a craving, she said. But she persevered, even when Surly suggested she pick off the breading and eat the pickle slice. It would have violated the spirit of the thing, evidently.
The burger was large, the juices running forth at every bite. It was topped off with generous portions of lettuce and tomato to which she added a smidge of salt.
WFR’s shrimp didn’t really deserve to be designated as popcorn. He found a mixed bag of medium and small shrimp, and plenty of them.
They were piled high on a mound of French fries; two round hushpuppies finished off the meal.
“They aren’t really popcorn, but we call them that,” owner Beau Phillips agreed in a later conversation, when questioned about his terminology. As for those pickles, Phillips said his staff breads them in-house, just as it does the fried okra.
“We do it all ourselves,” he said.
It was a fabulous waterside feast, the kind that makes it hard to go back to work afterward. The gentle breeze and the constant parade of boats in the river caused Surly to wonder aloud about the vagaries of life.
The spacious outside dining area is not all the River Shack has to offer. It also features a large indoor dining room complete with air conditioning, a full-service bar and televisions that are quite popular during football season.
For land-lubbers, the River Shack offers an array of steaks that Phillips said are very popular. For the princely sum of $17.95 you can get a dry-aged prime steak with two sides.
If you go:
The River Shack
Address: 6120 Marina Drive South, Mobile
Telephone: 251-443-7318
Hours: 11 a.m.-9 p.m., Tuesday-Sunday. Closed Mondays.
Menu: Plenty of shrimp, fish and oysters, served either in po-boys or on platters. Hand-cut, dry-aged steaks are offered along with a thick made-to-order cheeseburger.
Price: Lunch specials are $7-$8, most po-boys run about $10 and steaks are about $20.
In short: You don't have to own a boat to enjoy the special thrill of dining on the water. Here you'll find great fried and grilled seafood and steaks served in a fun, casual setting. Come for the food, stay for the view
Why steak at a river-side eatery? “I’m a steak person so we have five steaks to offer,” Phillips said.
Phillips said signature dishes include the plentiful shrimp po-boy, the cheeseburger and the fried catfish.
An oyster bar runs the length of the back deck. The recent ban on oystering has put a damper on that opportunity, but when the waters reopen Phillips said the bar will be ready.
On Sundays the River Shack offers live music on the deck. “Every Sunday but Mother’s Day,” he said. On Thursday nights it offers prime viewing for the sailboat races on the Bay.
Since it is right on the water, Phillips said a good bit of his business arrives by boat on weekends as boaters pull up to the dock where they can almost step directly into the restaurant.
The River Shack is so much more than a riverside fish house. It is a dining destination that offers unparalleled views and great food.
“There is always something to see out here,” Phillips said.