It Might Possibly Be Worth Going to City Island for Soft-Shell Crabs

City Island lost its charm for me on my second or third visit, back in 1988 probably, when I realized that the lobstermen I was waiting around to interview were psychotic racists. That plus the fact that every time I went there, City Island seemed less like the "quaint New England fishing village" of my stereotype-loving editors' description than the kind of neighborhood I left Staten Island to avoid, only closer to the water. City Island readers, don't take this personally. I'm sure there are some nice people there and I'm sure it can occasionally be a pleasant place to live. But it's not my kind of place.

That said, my Google alert sent me a link to this post, in a blog called "At the Sign of the Pink Pig," about Johnny's Famous Reef Restaurant, on City Island. I like the description, although as is my wont I found a couple of things wrong with it -- the first being the assertion that the waters around City Island are too polluted for fishing (they're not), and the second being the opinion that, "It still looks like a little fishing village." (It doesn't. It looks like the Bronx waterfront.)

But here's what really caught my attention:

... the highlight for me is the soft-shells; even if they aren't straight out of the water, they come out of Johny's deep fry impeccably crisp, well-seasoned, and cooked just through. There a few things I dislike more than a deep-fried soft-shell with a cold, liquid center. At $11, usually six to the order.

Can it be true? A half-dozen delicious soft-shell crabs for $11? Soft-shell crabs are still available at my local market, for $5 a pop, and you have to cook them yourself. Given my prejudices, I'm not likely to head down to City Island any time soon. But if by chance I'm ever there at lunchtime, I know what I'll be ordering.