-[Eat]- Tropical Greatness at Caroline’s Cafe, Key West

If you just so happen to find yourself lost 130 miles out from the Florida Atlantic coastline, smack dab in the middle of the ocean, just rest easy in the fact that you know for certain you’ll be eating better than any of your colleagues stuck back on the mainland.

Located on the northen end of historic Duval St. in Key West, you’ll find the white picketed patio of Caroline’s Cafe. Caroline’s rests on the same grounds of the Dr. Joseph Y. Porter House, believed to have been built around 1838. It’s the birthplace of Key West’s first native physician, and is now considered a national landmark. Properties of this nature tend to be the best place to do some serious people watching, which Caroline’s has in droves. However, once seated, you’re never hit with the feeling of being too cramped or that there’s a loss of privacy. The patio’s atmosphere does a great job of slowing down the pace to infamous Key West levels. So laid back in fact, upon getting to my seat I had a sudden urge to brandish my newly acquired hand rolled cigar, but was quickly denied a quick light by the barback hiding in the restaurant’s tikki bar. It’s all good, the stogie was purely for show anyway.

The menu at Caroline’s sports the fare you’d come to expect from other tropical seafood joints. You’ll notice a steady mix of platters, burgers, sandwiches, and appetizers galore. Where they excel, though, is the extreme freshness of the seafood due to the proximity of their establishment to the Key West Bight. The restaurant is merely a few steps from the marina, meaning that fresh hauls are available at a moment’s notice.

Knowing this, we planned our strategy accordingly. I had a groovy image of something , anything, slathered in tartar sauce so I went with the Blackened Mahi-Mahi sandwich. The filet was seasoned perfectly with a cajun herb rub and lemon. The blackening was exquisite for this style of fish; salted and charred coupled with the airy flakiness of the meat. Superb eating.

We also planned to attack the Fisherman’s Fresh Catch, a feature that changes daily depending on what is in season. Just our luck, we would have the privilege of tasting the ever elusive Hogfish snapper. Hogfish is native to the Atlantic seaboard and the Gulf of Mexico, and even then can only be spearfished since they call Florida’s sensitive coral reefs their home. The catch was presented as large, lovely, and fried breaded hunks, served with tasty broccoli florets and a bed of yellow saffron rice. The hogfish’s meat is super delicate, lightly oiled and subtly sweet. Speaking of sweet, it goes without saying, you order the Key Lime Pie when in the Keys. Although there’s more famous Key Lime Pie’s out there, this was hands down won the ribbon for “Best All Around Presentation”. The graham cracker crust was dense and crumbly, but somehow managed to keep a nice firm moistness. The filling leaned more towards to that of a cheesecake like texture,  as opposed to a more custard style, like say a Knaus Berry pie.

All in all, Caroline’s made for an incredible dining experience. Our waitress made sure to compliment our plate choices, knowing full well that we had just received the local treatment.

Oh, and they have a pet rooster named Abby.