Target: J&D Seafood
Target Address: 461 North Eastern Blvd, Montgomery Al
Service: Carry Out ONLY – Lunch menu (Average entrée – $9.15)
Guru, ready for a request? I think that is about how Thad put it. One of his readers requested that I take on J&D Seafood. Now I will be honest with you, walking in the place reminded me a lot, A LOT, of the Destin Connection. I don’t want to pit one against the other here, so I will just say this; Destin Connection had better step it up! This place was great in every aspect. You can also order all kinds of seafood to take home and cook yourself from this place. They had a section of spices for sale to take home and prepare your seafood with. I was very pleasantly surprised to see “Slap Ya Mamma” on the shelf.
First of all, don’t look for a table to sit at, it’s carry out only. There are however plenty of chairs around the perimeter to sit in while you wait on your order. There is a lunch menu posted and all of it is cooked to order. To say that this food came to me hot, fresh and ready to eat would somehow be an understatement because it had to be even better than that. Oh yeah there was something better, it was PLENTIFUL too.
I ordered the Fish and Shrimp Platter with Okra and Hushpuppies. Can you say 2 for 1? There was a dozen perfectly breaded and fried shrimp, two of the largest yet not strong tasting catfish filets I have ever eaten outside of my own house, 6 hushpuppies and enough okra to feed a small 3rd world country. Ok, maybe the amount of okra is stretching it a bit. I assure you though; there was more than enough food for two people there. The Catfish was light, flaky and none of it was greasy at all.
Now let’s talk about the place, it’s a fish market. They tell me in all of my training that you’re not supposed to smell fish even in a fish market. On the other hand I have been in fish markets from the Gulf Coast to Seattle and all up and down the East Coast and have never been in one that didn’t smell of fish. However there was a smell of fish and if you have a serious problem with that, then you’re not going to like walking in the door. That said, everything I looked at was clean and orderly. The State Health Department is not going to give these types of places a 98 just because, they have to earn it.
Guru Grade – Over all they get a 98 out of 100 points on the scorecard. Thad says I have to be fair, and well, that isn’t fair!! It’s a fish market and thusly smells like one. This place should be a 100 out of 100!! Everything else, and I mean everything else was perfect for a carry out fish market. I cannot wait to go back and take some seafood home to cook. One foot note, I had a short conversation with the owner and his line to me – “I only buy the best of everything”. If you have missed J&D Seafood on the Bypass, you have missed out big. Give it a try, Guru out!
The View From We2 
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