Fish Co. more than just a meal

SLIDESHOW: Islamorada restaurant in the Bass Pro Shop

I don't hunt. I don't fish. I don't wear camo. And I don't normally frequent chain restaurants.

But Islamorada Fish Company? That's a different story.

I'm almost embarrassed at the degree to which I feel the need to rave about the Islamorada experience.

I call it an experience because dining here is not just a meal. Located in the newly opened Bass Pro Shops, Islamorada is a full-on sensory escapade that begins with the inevitable 45-plus-minute wait you'll spend trying to wrap your mind around all the glory that this camping-fishing-hunting-boating-archery-ATV behemoth holds.

Before I even start talking about the food, which is surprisingly notable, I must go into detail about the environs. Starting with the moat outside.

Yes, a moat.

In order to enter Islamorada, you must cross a moat intermittently dotted with various all-terrain vehicles. Imprints of animal footprints guide you across the bridge, through the door and up to Islamorada's massive bar that is backlit, of course, by a floor-to-ceiling aquarium.

With all the oversized fish replicas distracting from every inch of available wall space, you may have trouble finding the hostess stand. Just look for theentry connecting Islamorada to the retail portion of Bass Pro Shops.

It'll be the one that looks like a passageway into Disneyland -- if Disneyland had a NASCAR simulator, multistory waterfall pouring over a grotto filled with stuffed Grizzly bears, a shooting range and hunting wardrobes suited to every type of rifle-toting fashionista.

But back to the restaurant.

Be prepared to wait. Lunch, dinner, weeknight, weekday, you're gonna wait. Find a seat at the bar, peruse the extensive-enough drink list and anticipate what wonders await. Wines range from $5.75-$8.95 a glass and $22-$39 a bottle, and beer ($3.50-$4.50) includes everything from Bud to Land Shark.

While the restaurant is nonsmoking, don't be surprised if you encounter a bar customer, like the one I did, dipping and spitting into a BPS plastic kiddie cup as you wait for your table. Tobacco products abound at BPS.

After our beeper vibrated with enthusiasm, one of several hostesses escorted us to a corner booth with a perfect view of the aquarium and the varied crowd.

As we read the photo-adorned menu, our table was promptly graced with a miniloaf of Bimini bread, a sweet, brioche-textured bread made with molasses and topped with egg wash and sugar. It's easy to inhale this stuff, but sit tight. Islamorada's seafood-heavy menu is not only surprisingly good but also reasonably priced.

We started with the Florida Sampler ($11.95), smoked wahoo dip, fried alligator and coconut shrimp. Wahoo, an albacore tunalike fish, gave the creamy dip a robust flavor accented by hints of onion and lemon. Yes, the alligator tasted like chicken, but the breading was stand-out -- golden brown, intensely peppery and wisely complemented by a honey-mustardlike "gator sauce."

The coconut shrimp were as they should be -- lightly breaded, singing with coconut-laced sweetness and perfect with the accompanying citrus-meets-horseradish sauce.

Entrees range from flame-grilled seafood -- pick your fish, pick your sauce -- to fried seafood favorites to spare ribs ($16.95) and strip steak ($19.95). We went with Islamorada Portofino ($13.95) and fish and chips ($10.95), both signature dishes.

The Portofino's blackened tilapia was topped with grilled shrimp and decadent lobster cream sauce, an adroit foil to the blackening spices' intensity. This is a dish worthy of return visits.

Three meaty planks of flaky, white fish arrived delicately breaded and piping hot. Served with thick cut, Old Bay-dusted potato chips (or traditional French fries), Islamorada's version of this iconic dish is one of the best I've run into in a while.

We ended with Bimini bread pudding ($4.95), bread, sugar, vanilla, cinnamon and dark rum sauce baked into a gooey mess of sweet heaven.

No matter how much I don't want to admit it, Islamorada is not only a great restaurant with a friendly, albeit chain-restaurant programmed, staff but also a wild adventure of retail sensory overload. You don't have to be a fisherman to consider this one a catch. .