We Asked Ourselves…

Have we ever done this before? Have we ever visited the same restaurant three times in only ten days?

Our time along the Gulf Coast is coming to an end and there are meals uneaten. There is the steakhouse in Gulfport, the all-you-can-eat fried chicken buffet (or boo-fay as some in the Philadelphia area pronounce it), the pub in Biloxi with the ten ounce burgers, and—if you are in the mood for a burger—the burger in Gulfport that was named as U.S.A. Today’s “Best in Mississippi.”

But our choice for our final meal was a no-brainer. It would be a return to Taranto’s for more of their wonderful seafood.

That we would share an order of the fried oysters was a given, and these were as plump and juicy as they were on our two previous visits.

And this time Chuck insisted on his own order of cole slaw—no sharing. So we each had a side of slaw along with a shared side of potato salad.

And then we went in a new direction. Taranto’s offers a shrimp platter with fries and you can get your shrimp either fried (as we had on the mixed seafood platter) or grilled. This time we went with grilled and what a fine decision that was.

The foil “pouch” must have held at least a dozen and a half medium shrimp that had been grilled with seasonings (perhaps the same that flavored the crawfish boil) and butter and when you got to the bottom of the pouch there was this pool of seasoned butter that made a perfect dredge for the coated fries.

Just when we thought we were full, our server Cindy asked if we had ever tried their bread pudding. (You remember Cindy. We posted her photo along with her daughter Shug on our earlier Taranto’s blog.)

Well, of course we had to try it and it was delicious. It came to the table piping hot and contained both raisins and pecans. And best of all, it wasn’t overly sweet.

Again, a 5.0 Addie meal. Taranto’s may indeed be a dive, but some of our best meals have been eaten in dives.

To review the role of Adler and the Addie rating system, read the November 14, 2011 blog.

Before leaving the Mississippi Gulf Coast, we took a drive through the Gulfport Harbor Square Commercial Historic District.

Restoration work has been underway for about five years on several landmark structures.

When I saw the building, I was more interested in the remaining evidence of its signage. I later learned about the building itself and its inclusion in this district.

Hewes Building, Constructed 1903-04 in Italian Renaissance architectural style.

The restoration work is a combination of the facade grant program and a significant investment by private developers.

I was not able to find information on the buildings shown here, but I had the feeling that some evidence of the District's restoration work is present.

Aubert Motor Car Co., 1928-29, housed a Dodge dealership and others until the 1960s.

We now head to Nashville.