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Ate: October 21, 2005 Published: October 30, 2005 $ Our success last week at finding a true hidden treasure in Grand Strand dining buoyed us and gave us the courage to try and go off the beaten path one more time. This time, we turned off of Highway 17 and headed into the town of Socastee. On the advice of my brother-in-law, we decided to try a small diner called Flavor King. As we drove up, my wife and I were expecting an old-fashioned, workaday America, blue-plate special diner. When we entered Flavor King, all of our expectations went out the window. The restaurant is going for a fifties malt shop theme and it generally succeeds, although it does feel a bit forced. My wife's brother had specifically recommended that we try their flounder plate, so that is what I ordered. My wife was thinking along the same lines and decided on the shrimp plate for herself. After ordering at the counter, we made our way to one of the four booths in their small dining room and waited, soaking up the atmosphere and observing the other patrons. We got the feeling that Flavor King is a clean-cut, family friendly place that is part of a tight-knit community. If some of the patrons we saw come in are any indication, this is the kind of place that parents can feel safe letting their ten-year-old child go into alone (presumably for the ice cream, not the flounder plate). No matter what else, we knew that we weren't going to be complaining about the price. One of the great things about Socastee is that is has yet to be discovered by the tourists or, more importantly, the developers. Compared to the developed sections of Myrtle Beach, real estate prices and rents are cheap. Most restaurants pass these lower prices onto their customers, so the same food can cost half or less of what it costs along the main drag. We were able to order our two dinners with tea, and a dinner to go for my mother-in-law, for just under twenty dollars. After a few minutes, the waitress/counter attendant brought our dinners in two massive plastic baskets. Each of us had a whole lot of fries, with our seafood sitting atop of them. In my wife's basket, she had a full half-pound of fried shrimp. In my own, there were two massive portions of flounder. I could have gotten my flounder batter dipped, like English fish and chips, but I'm a good southern boy, so I had opted for the southern style breading instead. The flounder was hot and fresh out of the fryer. Hot enough, in fact, that I had to let it cool for a few minutes. The juices had been locked in during cooking, and oozed out invitingly every time I went at the fish with my fork. I can honestly say that my brother-in-law's advice was on the money. This was one of the best flounder platters I've ever eaten. In addition, the fries were fresh, crisp and tasty as well. There was also a cup of slaw off to one side, but since I don't eat slaw, that's where it stayed. I'm sorry to say that my wife did not enjoy her shrimp quite as much as I did my flounder. There was nothing wrong with the shrimp, but it just wasn't up to the same standard as the flounder. She has a pretty discerning palate, and her assumption is that the shrimp themselves where frozen, bulk packaged and shipped pre-breaded from a processing plant somewhere. I tried a couple of her shrimp, and didn't find anything in them to make me doubt her. The cook had done a good job with them, but he could only do so much. After our dinners, we wanted to get one of the more unusual items from Flavor King's dessert menu. The deep-fried Oreo's had caught our attention, but unfortunately for us, they don't sell those on Friday nights. Apparently Friday is the biggest night of their week, and they need all their fryer space for flounder and fries. My wife decided she didn't want any dessert, but I was determined to end dinner on a sweet note. I ordered one of their sixty flavors of soft-serve ice cream and yogurt, learning the hard way that I probably should not be driving while trying to eat a large ice cream cone. But it was very good ice cream and, since we didn't wreck, it was worth the risk. While Flavor King was nothing like what we expected, we enjoyed ourselves and had a good time. It is always nice to get away from the crowds and the façade put up for the tourists; to enjoy a relaxing Friday night without having to put your name on a list and wait outside for forty-five minutes or more. If you want to grab a quick, inexpensive meal, or just some good ice cream, then consider driving over to Socastee and checking out Flavor King. |
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