Tautog's Restaurant

Tautog's Restaurant Restaurant Review:

With the swell of splashy high-rises along the oceanfront, it’s hard to get a whiff of “Old Beach.” But Bill Gambrell and Scott Ferguson believe in preservation and converted a weather-beaten cottage from the 1920s (when this was a fledgling resort area) into Tautog’s, a contemporary seafood restaurant. Reasonably priced sandwiches and entrées entice for their freshness and smart preparations: catfish is coated in sage and cornmeal, oven-fried, then topped with salsa; sage and Granny Smith apples tart up the tartar sauce that accompanies crab cakes; and house-made peach barbecue sauce jazzes up shrimp, while cheddar grits get a kick from jalapeño in this version of shrimp and grits. Weekly additions such as a vegetarian sweet potato over seasoned rice topped with a spicy Creole sauce highlight local ingredients, and prove that there’s enough to delight non-seafaring diners, too. Cap off your meal with Key lime pie. The wine list is thoughtfully composed and many selections are available by the glass. In warm weather, the porch is a must, while the cozy dining room with its fireplace is fine for a winter’s night as the surf batters the shore a half block away.