Big Hickory Seafood Grille hooks diners with first-class fish

By now I suspect you've seen the You- Tube video of Susan Boyle, the 47-yearold unemployed plain Jane who stunned Simon Cowell and company recently at "Britain's Got Talent" with her magnificent rendition of "I Dreamed a Dream" from "Les Miserables."

If you haven't, do so now. I'll wait…

Aside from turning in a fabulous performance, this unlikely singing sensation soundly reminded us of that old adage we all know but all too often dismiss: You truly cannot judge the book by its cover.

Ms. Boyle's performance ran through my mind as I approached Big Hickory Seafood Grille last week. From the road, if you notice it at all, it looks like a weathered bait shop. The observant might see the sign that identifies it as a restaurant, but even so, it's unlikely anyone harbors great expectations as they drive into the unpaved parking lot for the first time.

Close up, however, the neatly set tables on the deck and the inviting view of Estero Bay provide a clue that there could be more to this place than an initial glance reveals.

The dining room is bright and cheerful, with Mexican tile floors and a row of trophy fish mounted above big windows that look out upon the deck and bay. A bar area along one wall was piled high with menus, wine bottles and other such necessities, but space is tight so it probably can't be helped. Tables are angled so most seats face the water, which draws attention away from this less-than-come- ly display.

Cubana grouper is an impressive looking dish with its crown of frizzled sweet potato. Big Hickory is a casual spot, offering what its Web site calls "fishcamp food" — salads, sandwiches and baskets of fried seafood, all of which looked great as servers passed our table on their way to deliver them to other diners. In addition, the dinner menu offers a variety of imaginative signature dishes created by Executive Chef Jasen Post.

The wine list consists of about 35 offerings, 20 of which are available by the glass, and includes some modestly priced South African and German varieties. The South African '07 Bouchard Finlayson Blanc de Mer, a blend of reisling, viognier, sauvignon blanc and chenin blanc grapes, was creamy and delicious, with notes of apple and melon, and served as an excellent partner to our primarily seafood meal.

Spicy crab rolls and tuna yakitori (a nightly special) were both fine starters. I can't say with certainty, but the rolls bore a striking resemblance to those served at Bacchus in Fort Myers — and which proprietor Shannon Yates makes and sells commercially — right down to the pair of sauces, one a spicy mayo, the other a teriyaki ginger sauce. Wherever they came from, they were crisp, had just enough bite and looked great on the plate.

The lightly seared tuna came on skewers accompanied by sweet and spicy raspberry chipotle wasabi cream. The fish was fresh, tender and easy to eat right from the skewers.

Given that the restaurant is called a seafood grille, it isn't surprising that the menu is primarily made up of seafood selections, with the much beloved local fish, grouper, figuring prominently. We tried two dishes — Cubana grouper and grouper and shrimp Chron — that started with the same fish but bore no resemblance to one another.

Classic Key lime pie could have done without the lime sauce drizzled over it for effect. The Cubana version consisted of a good-sized piece of bananaencrusted fish seared and flambéed with banana liqueur then finished with a crown of frizzled sweet potato shreds. It's a relatively sweet dish, but not so sweet that the delicate flavor of the fish was overpowered. It came with island rice — a mix of white and wild, which should have been warmer — and peren,

fectly tender-crisp fresh carrots, yellow squash and broccoli.

The grouper and shrimp Chron (which our server pronounced "shorn") began with a grouper fillet that was stuffed with crab and shrimp that had been tossed with tomato Hollandaise. I have no idea who or what Chron is, but the dish appeared to be a variation of the classic Oscar presentation. It was extremely rich — no surprise considering it contains crab, shrimp and Hollandaise — but the flavors married well. This dish also came with fresh vegetables and the island rice, which was less warm than the serving that accompanied the Cubana grouper, indicating it had been placed on the plate and allowed to cool while the fish was being prepared.

PHOTOS BY KAREN FELDMAN / FLORIDA WEEKLY Spicy crab rolls with two sauces taste as good as they look. The dessert menu includes about eight dishes, none of which are made there owing to the diminutive size of the kitch- our server told us when we inquired. However, she assured us the Key lime pie was the restaurant's recipe, even though it was made off site.

We shared a piece and found the pie to be too sweet, the sweetened condensed milk all but drowning out the tart Key lime flavor that is the whole point of this dessert. A drizzle of lime sauce that zigged and zagged across the plate looked nice but had an artificial flavor that further detracted from the pie's Key lime flavor.

Dessert notwithstanding, the meal was good, as were the view and the service, delivered by women who appeared to get along well with customers and one another. It was evident they were wellversed in the menu and were aware that customer service is just as important as food quality when it comes to attracting a following.

Clearly, what goes on inside Big Hickory Seafood Grille is what's allowed it to succeed for so many years despite its plain-Jane façade.