Was there any doubt that I’d want oysters on my birthday? I didn’t think so! Last year I celebrated my birthday at Eddie V’s with my mom before flying off to Orlando with my sister-in-law. It was so good, we decided to reprise the experience and Eddie V’s did not disappoint.

The sole purpose (see what I did there?) of choosing Eddie V’s over the other fantastic restaurants in Fort Worth was to indulge in seafood. My mom is from San Francisco and my dad is from Seattle so even though I was born and raised in Texas, a staunch love of seafood is in my blood. When they said they wanted to take me to dinner for my birthday, I pored over menu after menu and decided none of my friends would appreciate Eddie V’s to the extent my coastal parents would.

Appetziers

To start the meal off, we ordered one dozen raw North Atlantic oysters.They were bigger and meatier than some I’ve had on either coast. Just look at those plump sea medallions just waiting to clear up your skin with their ample amounts of zinc. Delicious and nutritious: that’s oysters for you!

The raw oysters are shucked when you order them and are served with horseradish (not for me), a delightfully fresh Mignonette, tarter sauce, and half a lemon.

Salads

Though the soup selection sounded divine (what’s not to love about crab and corn chowder with bacon?!), I opted for the shrimp and crab chopped salad. As much as I adore soup, a cream-based chowder or bisque is a bit rich when you’re eating a four course meal. Veggies seemed like the wiser option.

The salad comes with three large shrimp, raw mushrooms, heirloom tomatoes, hearts of palm (which I grew up eating and rarely see on menus), Maytag bleu cheese, mixed greens, candied walnuts, and a pile of creamy crab on top. Each of our salads (Mom ordered the Fuji Apple Salad and Dad got the Caesar, delighted with the fresh anchovies) were well portioned, not too small and not too large. You can absolutely squeeze one in before your meal.

Main Course + Sides

I ordered the North Atlantic Lemon Sole, which was shockingly inexpensive compared to the cost of sole at other fine dining restaurants. The delicate white fish has a parmesan crust (not a damn thing wrong with that) and is served swimming in a lemon-garlic butter sauce. If you’re anything like me and like all of those words, you would love Eddie V’s.

Dad ordered the Swordfish Steak served with avocado and boiled lump crab. Frankly, I would love it if every dish was served with a pile of lump crab casually hanging out on top. The swordfish was perfectly cooked. When we commented on it, our knowledgable waitress said, “Oh yes, that is harpoon caught by our supplier based in Boston. The way it’s caught makes a huge difference in the quality of the fish.” Now we know!

The crab fried rice is really next level. Our waitress lit up when we told her we were considering ordering it. Apparently she eats it quite frequently. I’m delighted that there’s some waiting for me in the fridge for lunch.

I loved the presentation of Mom’s scallops, served with citrus wedges and a browned butter sauce. How creative! (Note the beets on the plate were ordered separately and do not come with the dish.) It was a gorgeous, Californian dish for my gorgeous, Californian mom!

We also got baby beets and spinach. I loved that the spinach was served with giant parmesan shavings. I must remember to do that when preparing spinach at home! I would never have ordered spinach but my dad wanted some and I’m glad we did. I would absolutely order it again. I prefer my beets cooked a bit softer but the flavor was delicious.

Dessert

Save the best for last, right? Rather than bringing you a dessert and hoping you like it like many restaurants do when they know it’s your birthday, Eddie V’s instead brought out the dessert menu out and said to choose any dessert, complimentary for my birthday. Classy move, Eddie V’s! I ordered the bananas foster butter cake and a cappuccino. Mom ordered the s’mores with housemade marshmallow.

I don’t always eat dessert (just kidding!), but when I do, I like it on fire. If you’ve ever ordered bananas foster, you know that it flames up after rum is added to the hot butterscotch sauce. At Eddie V’s, they light a gravy boat of alcohol on fire and then pour the liquid fire over your cake to caramelize the bananas. WHAT IS NOT TO LOVE HERE?!

You of course wait until the flame dies down before taking a bite. The butter cake is served with freshly whipped cream and butter pecan ice cream. My dad is not a huge dessert guy and he kept going in for bite after bite after bite, much to my delight. At one point he excitedly said, “This tastes just like a waffle with maple syrup!”
Not only does Eddie V’s serve a meal to be remembered, but also provides an environment that lets you enjoy it. The tables at the Fort Worth location are spaced luxuriously far apart, the waitstaff seems genuinely thrilled to share the evening with you, and even the bread presentation is a step above. (Not to self: paprika and chives on butter is fantastic.) 

My dad regularly dines at some of the top restaurants in Dallas and as we were walking out, he said, “I think that might be my new favorite restaurant.”

To find an Eddie V’s near you, click here.

Happy dining,

The Rose Table
@therosetable
fb.com/therosetable
instagram.com/therosetable