Dining at Fish Crazy during Naples' Restaurant Week

   It's Restaurant Week in Naples, and 49 top Naples restaurants offer special dinners at the $25 or $35 price per person.  My dining companion and I were in the mood for fresh Florida seafood, so we swam off to Fish Crazy  for the $25/person deal! Did I mention that Fish Crazy earned  3rd place in the Restaurant Week's Culinary Competition?  That's Quality!

The rules are simple-pick an appetizer, entree, and dessert from the choices. For only $3, one can add one choice of side garden salad, mixed fresh vegetables, sauteed spinach, or steamed kale.

We started with the Sesame-crusted and perfectly pan-seared Ahi Tuna with seaweed salad, wasabi, and pickled ginger. The tuna was a generous portion, especially at the price, and the drizzle of savory sauce made it a hit. 

The Firecracker shrimp are my favorite-10 medium sized lightly dusted nd fried Gulf shrimp with a mild yet zesty sauce. This portion could be a meal for many. Recommended.

We were quite happy with our choice of wines; a glass of  Maso Canali Pinot Grigio (Italy)  ($9.75), and The Show Malbec (Argentina) ($10).  Had we arrived earlier, during  3:00 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. Happy Hour,  prices would have been $5 for margarita or mojitos, and $4 for house wines and well liquors. Still,  at 7 p.m., there were Mojo Mojitos, Southern Moscow Mules, and Fish Crazy bloody Mary for $9, and other drinks for $8.

Where else can one get a whole Maine lobster tail, a generous crab cake with true lump and claw crab meat and little filler, and a potato, plus appetizer and dessert for only $25 in Naples? No where else! 

The lobster meat was baked just to tenderness, and the  house-made crab cake with remoulade sauce hit the spot.

My dining companion made "all gone" with her baked onion encrusted Red Grouper, kissed with a sweetly tart lemon beurre blanc sauce.  The crisped onions give a great umami flavor accent to the flavorful, sweet local grouper. 

The sweet potato with honeyed butter was a welcome surprise. I'd order that again, in a heartbeat. Recommended.

We were just full enough to turn down dessert, however since one came with each meal, we made our choices.

The Homemade Key Lime Pie is pretty much "Randy's Original Recipe Key Lime Pie"  with a twist, and a dollop of fresh cream. This has been one of my favorite Key Lime pies over the last decade or more. Recommended.

Chef Hector's homemade mouth-watering coconut flan lives up to its name, with generous caramel syrup. It's so rich that two can share it. Some order the pie or the flan as take out! Recommended.

We also had a pair of the famed Hidalgo brisket tacos. My dining companion Annie said "Wow, the flavor is so rich! I feel like I'm eating the King of Tacos, and I'm only a princess." The brisket is slow cooked over two days, the fat is removed, and the poblano pepper sauce is concentrated and added back to the shredded meat. The result is a lusciously lean, succulent portion that's melt in your mouth tender, topped with avocado for a deliciously creamy mouth-feel, cilantro and sliced onion. This would make any BBQ  brisket lover happy!

The whole brisket before being slow cooked to perfection

There are few places in Naples where one can get delicious, ample food (and a doggie bag) for $25, and Restaurant Week at Fish Crazy is one of them. Based on the success of the Restaurant Week Menu here and at other restaurants, expect to find such specials continuing long after the June 14 end of Naples Restaurant Week. Best part? Naples Restaurant Week raised over $15,000 for the Humane Society!

Executive Chef Hector Hidalgo

NOTE: FISH CRAZY HAS CLOSED FOR GOOD ON 7/11/17.