Coastal Blue Opens in Avon

Rick and I tried the newest restaurant in Avon last night - Coastal Blue. It took over the space vacated by Blue Parrot and is in the same shopping center with Ocean Air (formerly Windsurfing Hatteras).

This was a "date night" for us and we've been looking for a new special occasion restaurant on the island ever since Austin Creek Grill closed. The closest we'd found up to this point was Mack Daddy's. Ocean Blue, while not quite up to Austin Creek standards, was very, very nice. We sat by the windows and had a great view of kitesurfers practicing their aerials in the waters of the sound.

The first thing to arrive at our table was warm rosemary bread with soft butter. It was delicious. I was very sorry I have to monitor my carb intake (diabetic, you know) when they offered us a second round.

Rick ordered a goat cheese and roasted garlic appetizer ($8); I went with shrimp and grits ($10). Rick's appetizer came with some crispy seasoned bread, roasted red peppers and kalamata olives. All were very good when smeared and stacked on top of the bread. As far as the shrimp and grits were concerned, the grits were well-seasoned and very tasty (and I'm not a big grits fan). The shrimp and accompanying broth were fine, but kind of bland. The shrimp and grits would be a complete winner if they could find a way to perk up the shrimp.

One really nice thing about Coastal Blue is that they offer regular sized entrees and "small plates." Many of the entrees sounded really good. As soon as I saw the menu I told Rick I knew what he was going to order. He, of course, ordered the pork tenderloin with figs ($18). He has this thing for fresh figs, you see. I ordered a small plate of the crabcakes ($10), which is a big step for me outside of Maryland. Living near Baltimore for more than 15 years spoiled me. Most of the crabcakes I've had on the island tend to be too much filler and too little crab for my taste. Also, the crab in them is usually finely shredded. I like my crabcakes with jumbo lump crab, no filler and a nice crust. Coastal Blue did not disappoint. My small plate included one perfect crabcake that had a crispy crust made with ... potato chips! I also had some very tender asparagus and a nice pineapple salsa. It was definitely the best crabcake I've had on the island and may very well have been the best one I've ever had outside of Maryland.

For dessert, we split some tiramisu, made on the premises by none other than our waitress. Thank goodness we didn't have to lie when she asked if we liked it.

All in all, we were pleased with the food, service and atmosphere. We'll definitely go back. – Shelby Kinnaird