Located on the Bay Bridge on the Carquinez Straits in Crockett, California is a restaurant which a humorous name. The name of the restaurant is The Dead Fish and their slogan is “We may have a funny name, but we’re dead serious about our food!” That slogan says it all.
Crockett is on the way to the Napa Valley Wine Country in California. So the Bay Bridge is a well traveled area. The Dead Fish stands out in the area by being in a building that is multi colored and bright! The red, green, and yellow really catch traveler’s eyes! That is how we found it.
The inside of The Dead Fish is not what you would picture it to be at all. I thought it would be an average tourist diner, but I was wrong. The booths were a maroon color and the walls were filled with historic pictures and newspaper clippings. There were nets and beautiful mirrors hanging on the walls also. From the ceiling there were beautiful chandeliers hanging over some of the tables.
In another area, they went for the more romantic style of dining. The booths had beautiful maroon curtains trimmed with gold lining that went around them. Inside the booth each table had a red light hanging above it and an old fashion gold mirror hanging on the wall. From the ceiling in the middle of the aisle, there was a beautiful candle chandelier hanging down to brighten up the room. It was really nice and like I said very romantic.
Outside they had small black and white granite tables set up on a beautiful old style brick floor. There was a half rock wall that separated you from the beautiful green plants and trees surrounding the building. From here you got an amazing view of the bridge and the water! There were small bulb lights hanging from the ceiling to add to the atmosphere. You also got to watch the boats in the water and enjoy the fresh air. It was really romantic out here at night when you could see the lights from the boats and the bridge.
The menu was just as amazing as the atmosphere of the place was. They served items like mussels, shrimp, crab, clams, and prawns. For fish choices they offered salmon, halibut, tilapia, sea bass, sturgeon and Petrale that you had your choice on how to prepare it and what sauce you would like on it. They served different kinds of salads like the Crab Caesar, Crab Louie and the Shrimp Louie. They also served items like rabbit, ribs, steaks and many other items. The menu had a lot of variety on it.
The best part about the menu was the titles of the food categories they had in there. They had Dead Burgers, Other Dead Things, Dead or Alive (Surf and Turf), Live Salads, and Recently Demised Fish of the Day. To advertise drink specials the title was Drink like a Fish Cocktails. I thought it was humorous and cute.
I ordered the two pound Dungeness crab and it was so good! It was a lot to eat though. My husband ordered the prime rib and shrimp Surf and Turf and his was really good also. Each of our meals came with a side salad also.
Being close the Napa Valley, the Dead Fish offered an amazing selection of California wines. The prices ranged from $7 a glass to $179 a glass. You could order anything from Chardonnay to Dom Perignon. They also offered beer and mixed drinks if wine isn’t for you. I had a great Nozzole Chianti with my meal and a nice Mac Murray Pinot Noir after my meal.
The Dead Fish also serves a brunch on Saturdays and Sundays from 11am to 3pm. They had a lot of items on there also. There were items like an Italian omelet with Thai vegetables, a Dungeness crab omelet with avocados, pancakes, crab eggs and many other intriguing items. I wish we would have gone there on a weekend to try the brunch. Some other people that we met there said they go every Saturday and they said it is out of this world!
The atmosphere was so beautiful and like I said not what I expected at all, the service was great and friendly, and the food was so good! The prices aren’t too bad here. They range from $15.00 and up depending on what you order. But you definitely get your moneys worth. So if you are in the area of the Dead Fish make sure you swing by and grab a bite to eat! You will be as amazed with the place as I was!
