Seafood on Jones Creek - Captain Chuck-A-Muck's

It's Friday night, and you don't feel like cooking, so time to hit Yelp and TripAdvisor and find some good seafood for dinner.  I have to say that living in an area surrounded by water, you would think this would be easy, but surprisingly, not so much.  My husband has been to Captain Chuck-A-Muck's several times for lunch, but I had never been, even though it had been featured on Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives (keep it to yourself all you Guy Fieri haters), so we decided to make the trek to Rescue (yes, the town is named Rescue) and give it a try.

Rescue itself is is a tiny town not far from the better-known Smithfield, and Captain Chuck-A-Muck's
is set at the marina right on Jones Creek so you can watch the boats coming in and going out from the sail-covered outdoor deck. Since it was not an oppressively hot evening with a bit of a breeze, we decided to sit out on the deck and enjoy the view. I have to say that, having heard  this place described as a "dive", I was pleasantly surprised- the outside was well-kept, the inside was clean and welcoming with a nautical feel, and the outdoor deck was spacious with both bar seating and tables with benches.  Being a Friday night, there was a line for larger parties, but since we were willing to sit outside (Note:  my husband almost NEVER chooses al fresco dining in the summer- he believes strongly that Willis Carrier should be canonized) we were seated right away. At first I wasn't sure I wanted a drink so I started with 1/2 and 1/2 iced tea and my husband had a glass of merlot, but as I perused the menu, I changed my mind and ordered a Captain's margarita. It came in a mason jar, and was just the right combination of sweet, tart, and booze!

The menu was fun it itself- the very first thing on the menu was the listing of desserts- fair warning
so you make sure to save room when making your choices.  Descriptions are written in a fun conversational tone, and frankly, every dish sounded amazing.  We decided to start with the smoked trout dip appetizer, then I ordered 2 apps for my dinner- the fresh tuna poke, and the Tiki Shrimp, my husband could not say no to the buttered crab- a pile of freshly picked blue crab with butter that came with 2 sides- he chose green beans and french fries.

Our appetizer came first, a shaped mound of smoked trout dip, that was mostly trout and very little binder on a bed of lettuce and topped with sliced jalapenos and tiny julienne radishes served with what else?  Captain's wafers! This appetizer was just incredible! I was a bit leery about the jalapenos since while I love spicy things they don't always like me,  they had carefully removed the seeds and so the thinly sliced rings added just a touch of heat. The fish had just a touch of smoke flavor-perfection!

We had just finished our app when our entrees came, and they were just as impressive. My husband's crab with butter was no joke - a mountain of picked crabmeat in an au gratin dish topped with melted butter and perfectly seasoned, with some crispy fries and cooked green beans as sides. You know how you know a restaurant knows their blue crab?

Not one piece of shell in the whole plate! My poke was large jewel-like chunks of fresh tuna, dressed poke style, with a wasabi sauce on the side.  Knowing this would not make it till tomorrow, I ate the poke first- as an app, this could easily feed two, or could be an entree by itself.  The Tiki Shrimp featured a half dozen lightly breaded shrimp tossed with a sweet/hot sauce that was delicious and not overwhelming.

By the time we were done our meal, we couldn't think of
eating dessert, but I as a devotee of key lime pie,  I asked for a slice to go. I wish I could include a picture of it but unfortunately I ate it all before I even thought of taking a picture, and an empty to-go container is really not that visually interesting.

All in all it was a great meal, relaxing, laid back location, beautiful scenery and really delicious seafood prepared with real care. We will definitely be going back!