It has been a when due to the fact a restaurant has been equipped to entice me to make the journey to Clermont, but The Southern On 8th finally got me there. And if the stage of good quality there is any sign of what’s likely on in Clermont, I’ll have to go back again more typically.
As you might glean from the identify, Southern on 8th serves a menu of Southern dishes, equally regular and contemporary, and occupies a corner space at West Montrose Avenue and – you almost certainly can determine this out – 8th Street.
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It is a significant place, with a separate foyer entrance, a few of sizable dining rooms and a huge bar with much more tables that sits off a covered porch. The decor has touches of rusticity – distressed brick walls and barn board paneling – but the environment tends towards upscale informal.
The menu is under the course of govt chef Richard Formato with George Candelaria as chef de cuisine. Darren Johnston and Formato are co-owners.
On the suggestion of our waiter – service was pretty fantastic, by the way – my eating companions and I started off with a basket of spring onion & cheddar biscuits and Southern corn muffins, accompanied by pimento cheese, home-created preserves and maple honey butter.
We shared the fish dip, a incredibly hot blend of smoked, locally caught fish and blue crab meat, a tasty bowl of gooey goodness that we distribute on toasted sourdough.
We also had the creole baked Gulf oysters, 50 percent-shelled bivalves topped with garlic-infused parmesan and butter.
For my entree, I chose the Southern shrimp & grits, a additional vibrant (and flavorful) rendition than I’ve had in a though. It showcased Atlantic purple shrimp, plump and firm, hunks of spicy chorizo sausage and blistered cherry tomatoes. The grits experienced white cheddar cheese blended in, and it was all surrounded by a moat of pan broth. Really nice.
1 of my companions had the grilled bone-in pork loin chop, a tender hunk of meat topped with a mix of caramelized apple and onion-tinged goat cheese and a sauce of bourbon peach demi-glace. A slice of prosciutto garnished the meat, which rested on a ploof of grits next to grilled multi-coloured carrots.
The black angus tenderloin filet was also served with the colorful carrots but experienced mushroom risotto instead of grits. The meat, correctly grilled to the asked for medium rare, was graced with a bordelaise.
An additional visitor had the Low Region seafood pappardelle, which experienced the extensive al dente noodles tossed with red shrimp, bay scallops, fish and chorizo, as well as some sweet corn and a sauce of lemon cream.
If I hadn’t had an excess biscuit at the commence of the meal, I may have experienced area for bread pudding, Essential lime pie or the bourbon kissed chocolate pecan pie. But I’ll have to help save those for a different vacation. It is not that far absent.
The Southern on 8th is at 801 W. Montrose St., Clermont (map). It is open up for supper Tuesday by means of Sunday and for brunch on Saturday and Sunday. The cellphone variety is 352-394-7777.
