Killer shrimp invade, satiate hearty appetites

Published: Monday, July 20, 1998

Monday, July 20, 1998

RESTAURANT: Simple perfection of Cajun specialty worth wait

By Nerissa Pacio

Daily Bruin Senior Staff

It might just be the only restaurant where the beverage selection is triple the size of the entree menu. But people don't come here to drink. They come to dunk.

Shrimp with bread. Shrimp with pasta. And shrimp with rice. With only three choices on the menu to accompany the main attraction, Killer Shrimp boasts, "We only make one thing." And although this seafood place is limited as far as variety, bravely putting all their eggs in one basket, Killer Shrimp does so with simmering success.

A far cry from the mish mash mediocrity of multi-ethnic fast-food joints like burger-taco-chicken places a la Jack in the Box or Westwood's surprisingly average pan-Asian cuisine, Killer Shrimp seeks perfection in just one specialty item - fresh, hot, juicy, jumbo Louisiana shrimp.

Chefs create the warm, spicy, Cajun-style broth by simmering these perfect prawns for 10 hours. Each dish of about about 20 shrimp dip and soak, calling for diners to dunk the crisp, fluffy chunks of a flaky French loaf, or to swirl the soft vermicelli noodles around a fork, or to scoop the piled high wild rice which gets fluffier by the minute in the luxurious sauce. The aromatic, swirling smells of oregano, thyme, crushed red pepper and freshly ground black pepper permeate every olfactory crevice upon entering the simple, yet intimate, seafood restaurant.

With only 11 green marble-esque tables inside, a three-seater marble bar and an outdoor patio of about eight, this place seems to do everything just a bit differently - beginning with the menu. While the all-female waitressing staff seems to have an unspoken dress code of all-black, urban, gothic chic, where thigh-high go-go boots and short crew cuts are seemingly uniform, the restaurant itself has an unexpected location in a two-story plaza, the top floor of which gets enough of the marina's seaside air to stay fresh and inviting. Heat lamps provide abundant warmth for outdoor diners, through which incoming customers weave and pass by on their way into the restaurant.

While weeknight customers pick and choose where they will sit, usually opting to wait a while in order to get the chance to sit in the breezy outdoors, lines of late-night shrimp buffs take whatever tables they can find as Friday and Saturday nights become packed after the sun goes down or around 8 p.m. (whichever comes first).

The influx of twentysomethings, thirtysomething couples and small groups of friends demands fast, though not always friendly, service. In other words, expect your food and little chit chat or attention from the busy waitresses, but a simple wave of the hand accomplishes the task of getting dessert or the check.

Prices are a bit out of range for daily eats on a student budget ($11.95 for the "original" shrimp with just broth, and $14.95 for the shrimp with pasta or rice, all three dishes with a huge basket of delicious French bread), but Killer Shrimp should be reserved for special occasions to be visited with someone you love.

But despite the long lines after dark, the simple decor and the distance from campus (a good 20 minutes without traffic), people come and come and come again for one good reason - the great food, large portions, fast service and the pecan sweet potato pie ($4.95). With a thick, fluffy dollop of fresh whipped cream, this dessert is candy, pastry, ice cream and heaven all rolled into one. It's the only dessert offered and needed to end this perfect meal.DERRICK KUDO/Daily Bruin

Terry Grall of Sacramento sips a glass of wine on the outdoor patio of the Killer Shrimp restaurant.