The first low country boil at Trophy Fish kept it charmingly traditional. Credit: Scott Harrell

The low clouds over St. Petersburg’s Historic Kenwood and Grand Central districts threatened rain Sunday evening, but held off as 14 ticketholders sat down at 6 p.m. for still-new Central Avenue restaurant Trophy Fish‘s first low country boil. The eatery had prepared two long tables off to the side of its open-air bar; “reserved” signs, trays of bread and tubs of butter and cocktail sauce sat atop newspapers taped down to completely cover the eating surface.

Patrons who’d scooped passes online for the intimate, sold-out affair — the first of two seatings Sunday night — claimed their seats, then headed to the bar for the complimentary beer included with their ticket, though some opted to shell out for one of the restaurant’s signature boat drinks or craft cocktails instead. After everyone settled back in, co-owner Ryan Griffin came over to thank everyone for coming to the event’s maiden voyage, and to let us in on some of the upcoming developments for Trophy Fish. (Brunch! A fish market on Fourth Street North!) Then he handed things over to director of operations Liz Senyak, who explained that we’d be eating in traditional style — basically, they were gonna dump everything on the newspaper-covered tables and let us have at it.

And they did.

And we did.

Picking through a long pile of shrimp, crawfish, crab clusters, andouille sausage, corn, garlic, onions and potatoes, we peeled, dipped and munched, pausing to get to know the folks with whom we were rubbing elbows and occasionally jokingly fork-fighting over a particularly attractive morsel. It’s his birthday! They went to the same law school! We live three blocks apart! Communal dining can be awkward, but the casual nature of the meal seemed to draw everyone out, sharing personal facts and stories while we shared the food.

As for the feast, it too tended toward the traditional, and was on point. As a lover of low country boil, I’ve had my share of pale imitations, and Trophy Fish nailed it. The seasoning was there, but not overpowering; the shrimp and crawfish peeled easily; the garlic cloves were sweet enough to eat by themselves; the potatoes were fork tender. The ratio of meat to veggies was just a bit out of whack — at the end, tables remained littered with uneaten taters — but everyone seemed to get their fill of the good stuff.

The meal finished, diners drifted away from the table, doing our earnest pleased-to-meetchas, as some drifted back to the bar and others departed through Trophy Fish’s distinctive gate while the bus staff gathered up the devastation in its shroud of newspaper and prepared for a second 8 p.m. seating. Most, however, appeared reluctant to leave before finding Griffin and securing his assurance that the experience was just the first of many.

Keep your eye on CL and Trophy Fish’s Facebook page for the announcement of December’s low country boil, scheduled for the first Sunday of the month.