Giuseppi’s Wharf: Dining at Bay
821 Bayshore Drive, Niceville, (850) 678-4229

Hours: Open daily for lunch 11 a.m.-4 p.m., dinner at 4 p.m.
Reservations: Large groups only
Children’s Menu: Yes
Major credit cards
Dress: Casual

l

By Bruce Collier
August 7, 2008 Issue

We ate at Giuseppi’s Wharf on a night early in the week. They are open every day, and we wanted to avoid the weekend summer crowds. We had plenty of company, nevertheless.

Giuseppi’s takes reservations only for large groups, for which a call-ahead is suggested. The two of us arrived early enough to get a booth along the wall. There are plenty of freestanding tables, and the staff moves them around to accommodate groups. The indoor dining room runs at a slight angle, with lots of window space. Customers can also dine in the bar/lounge, and on an outdoor patio overlooking the docks. The walls are painted in slate blue and cream, trimmed in white, decorated with framed paintings. The booths are nice and roomy.

Once seated, the server took our drink orders and brought us a basket of hot bread, butter, and hushpuppies. That didn’t last long, but kept us satisfied while we looked at the menu.

With a name like Giuseppi’s Wharf, one expects seafood and Italian food. One gets it. The menu offers appetizers; soups, salads, pasta dishes, steaks, house specialties, combo platters, and a fresh catch selection served with a choice of six sauces. There are some imaginative side dishes, and dessert bears forethought. A blend of Gulf, Italian, and Louisiana-inspired cooking, Giuseppi’s has something for most tastes.

We started with a cup of seafood gumbo and a plate of fried blue crab claws. The gumbo had a definite tomato base and was fairly mild—the server will bring hot sauce on request—and had plenty of smoked andouille sausage. About 20 claws came hot and batter-fried with a horseradish cocktail sauce. You eat them like artichokes—just place between your teeth and drag, a classic bar tidbit.

Other starters are calamari, spicy “Fire Island” shrimp or oysters, crab, tuna or spinach artichoke dip, shrimp cocktail, seared tuna, crab-stuffed mushroom, and shrimp bisque. There are also salads, which can be made meals by adding chicken or shrimp.

Much as I love seafood platters, I had recently had one, so I decided to give the Italian fare a try and ordered shrimp penne with garlic, olive oil and marinara sauce. My friend got a combination of grouper parmesan and fried shrimp. Hers came with sautÈed mixed vegetables, and she chose vanilla bean sweet potato mash as a side. Other sides are French fries, Cajun fries, baked or au gratin potatoes, and garlic mashed potatoes.

The food came. My penne had plenty of small, tender shrimp, just enough marinara to coat them without overwhelming them, and little chunks of creamy feta cheese. Two slices of garlic bread absorbed the extra.

Ordinarily I don’t care for the combination of fish and cheese, but the parmesan grouper’s cheese-and-breadcrumb crust was greaseless and crunchy, in contrast to the flaky fish. The shrimp were large and hot. “Happy Thanksgiving,” said my friend as she dipped up the sweet potatoes. The vanilla enhanced the potatoes’ natural sweetness without cloying.

Other main courses choices include lasagna, blackened chicken with bow tie pasta, shrimp alfredo or scampi, chicken parmesan, grilled beef filet, rib eye or strip, fried seafood platters, steamed snow crab, Louisiana crab cakes, and broiled scallops or shrimp. The fresh catch—grouper, mahi mahi, flounder, yellow fin tuna, tilapia, or salmon—is served grilled, broiled or blackened with sauces like citrus butter, hollandaise, pepper-infused olive oil, chardonnay lemon pepper, Tabasco butter, or Creole meuniere.

Giuseppi’s offers five desserts. Judging from the size of ours, they are suitable for sharing. There’s a banana split, mile-high key lime pie, ice cream sandwich, vanilla bean crËme brulee, and a brownie with ice cream. We ordered the pie and sandwich. “Mile-high” is a good appellation. It’s a thick, dense chunk with graham cracker crust and kinda-sorta whipped topping. The vanilla ice cream was sandwiched between two huge white chocolate macadamia nut cookies, on a pool of chocolate and raspberry sauce. Much of the pie was boxed up, but I had to finish the ice dream there. I managed.

Giuseppi’s is very family friendly, including its prices—the most expensive item on the menu is $16—and its portions. The place has made some renovations since I was last there, and the result looks a bit sleeker but still welcoming. They haven’t tried to improve on the view, either. There was no need. The bay, the boats, and the sunsets are still fully operational.

(Top)