Posey's Up The Creek and T-Rays Burger Station

Driving along the Gulf Coast in a rainstorm had us stopping in at Posey's in Panacea, Florida - it passed the parking lot check (lots of vehicles pulled in) and we were hungry. It turned out to be a great impromptu stop. I had the oyster sandwich pictured above. It boasted easily over a dozen oysters - we ate several before we got around to taking a picture. Best fried oysters I've had yet - light, crispy coating on the outside, hot, plump and juicy on the inside. Really, really good.

Sherry ordered the grouper sandwich, which was also very tasty - perfectly cooked, nicely seasoned fish.



After we had ordered, we noticed that others were ordering plates of oysters on the half shell. For some reason it hadn't occurred to us to order raw oysters. They looked great, and we were in shock when we saw the price - $6 a dozen (about half the going rate in New Orleans). We knew we had plenty of food coming, so we reluctantly decided to resist the urge to order some.

Taking pictures outside, we noticed the sign you can see to the far right in the picture below:



That's right - order one dozen oysters for $6, get the second for a dollar. Non-oyster-ordering regret was really starting to sink in now. An hour down the road, I thought seriously about turning back. Now, typing this up, I really wish I had. Lesson learned...

Our next stop was in Fernandina Beach, on the Atlantic Coast. Located on Amelia Island, Fernandina Beach has a cozy little downtown area on the inside coast of the island and a long beautiful beach on the outside. The problem was the vibe - full of gentlemen in white shorts and white tennis shoes and ladies in dresses. Very country club.

Decidedly less country club was our "brunch" stop on the way out of town:



Not even sporting a sign on the outside to help you find it, T-Rays Burger Station lives inside an Exxon. We were hoping for breakfast, but arrived as they were switching over to lunch (we're not early risers, ok?). As we waited for lunch to begin, people started streaming in. Soon, the line was all the way back out the door.



We had a couple of pretty competent burgers and enjoyed the local flavor, with Ray himself bustling around the place keeping everything moving. Smiles on our faces, we got in the car and headed north up the coast.

Posey's Up The Creek Steam Room & Oyster Bar
506 Coastal Hwy
Panacea, Florida
(850) 984-5243

T-Rays Burger Station
202 S 8th St
Fernandina Beach, Florida
(904) 261-6310

Time Out on the Redneck Riviera

Finding a place to eat along the Gulf Coast can be difficult. Unless you have an unnatural fondness for Waffle House, that is. Apparently, lots of people do since they are *everywhere*. Seriously, what is up with all the Waffle Houses? On one stretch through Mississippi and Alabama, they were packed in so tightly that often while passing one you could already see the next one coming up.

The beaches were very nice, though. We stopped in for a few days in Panama City Beach. Crystal clear water at just the right temperature.



Anticipating that good eats were going to be a problem, we booked a place with a kitchen. We went up the road to Buddy's Seafood Market to get something to cook up.



They had a small, but nice selection of local fish and shrimp. Shrimp seemed like a good call.



With New Orleans still on our minds, we came up with a dish we called Trinity Spaghetti with Shrimp and Tomatoes. Sherry used the heads and shells to make a quick stock that she used as the basis for the sauce.



The final dish came out quite well. It didn't hurt that the shrimp were fantastic - great texture and flavor.



We thought it would be amusing to post a recipe from the road, so here it is:

Trinity Spaghetti with Shrimp and Tomatoes

The shrimp and sauce cook while the spaghetti is cooking, so be sure everything is ready before you drop the pasta. (Serves 2)

1 pound large shrimp, head-on
2 stalks celery, diced small
1/2 onion, diced small
1/2 green bell pepper, diced small
2 medium tomatoes, diced
4-6 ounces uncooked spaghetti
1-2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, or as needed
Kosher salt

Heat a large pot of water for the pasta. Rinse and drain shrimp. Remove the heads and peel the tails, retaining all the heads and shells. Remove the vein from the back of each shrimp, then rinse, drain well and set aside.

Heat a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Add 2 teaspoons olive oil, then the shrimp-heads and shells. Let sizzle, stirring occasionally. After 5 minutes, add 3 or 4 tablespoons of water to the shells and stir. Repeat 2 or 3 times to create a few tablespoons of rich seafood broth.

Add salt to the boiling water then drop the pasta.

Heat a saute pan over medium-high heat. Add 1 tablespoon olive oil, then add the shrimp in a single layer. Cook 3 to 4 minutes, turning once, until pink on the outside and just opaque in the centers. Sprinkle lightly with salt, remove from pan and set aside.

If necessary, add more olive oil to the saute pan. Place about 2/3 of the celery, onion and bell pepper into the hot pan, sprinkle with kosher salt and saute about 2 minutes, then reduce heat. Drain the seafood broth from heads and shells into the vegetable mixture and stir through. Add the remaining celery, onion and bell pepper just before pulling the pasta.

When the spaghetti is al dente (9-11 minutes), drain and mix with the sauce. Top with the cooked shrimp and chopped tomato, stir gently and serve.