Audio By Carbonatix
Since there’s no dance music blaring over this humble luncheonette place, it’s hard to figure why Disco Fish is named that. Perhaps the reference is intended to suggest fish so fresh they’re still party animals boogying direct from boat to plate. However, though the eatery co-bills itself as a fish market, the “market” selection is small (basically one visible counter) and, like many fish market/restaurants where emphasis is on the eat-in component, not all fish always appear sparkling; though whole fish are generally bright-eyed, fillets sometimes sport that dry, dark-edged look.
My personal theory about the name comes from the menu’s right-hand side — because prices make an after-dinner dance at even the most velvet of the rope clubs affordable. Daily specials, each including two sides (yellow or white rice, moros y christianos, mixed vegetables, baked potatoes, French fries, much better yuca fries, pleasant but bland boiled yuca, and scrumptious syrupy fried sweet plantains), run just $4.95 to $6.95.
And the substantial servings are pretty tasty. Frankly I haven’t tried any of the four $4.95 entrées, since they’re all meat or poultry; sops to seafood-impaired sorts are necessary but not something saner diners want to encourage. But what you’ll notice on many tables, even though it’s a buck more than any other seafood special, is arroz con mariscos. The yellow rice is Spanish-style soft (rather than Asian-style firm), and the assortment of seafood in it is unbelievable for the price. Along with the expected inexpensive ingredients — squid, mussels, fish, some fairly small shrimps — are a couple of clams, a snow crab claw, and two sizable pieces of luxurious langosta (Florida lobster).
Camarones enchilados (shrimp creole) is my personal favorite special, featuring a very fresh-tasting onion/pepper/tomato sauce with just enough tang and heat. Additionally the shrimp are not shrimpy but fairly jumbo specimens, and not, for a change, overcooked.
The same, sadly, cannot always be said for the filete de pescado a la plancha I tried once, a grilled fish fillet that was too dry but also hadn’t a hint of wood smokiness. Diners desiring pargo entero frito might also ask for their fish to be pulled out of the deep-fryer a minute or two earlier than usual, since even good grease can’t moisturize a dried-out fish. But a side of that good creole sauce helps considerably — and getting a whole fried snapper for $5.95 makes one feel forgiving.
Hearty eaters who can handle additional appetizers should be advised that the $1.59/$2.25 sopa de cherna is fine, though more a thin seafood-flavored rice soup than a substantial chowder. But the $3.25 crema de langosta is much more interesting. The bisque doesn’t taste much like lobster — both taste and texture are winter squashlike, perhaps from its pumpkin pie-type spicing — but the smooth creaminess is quite comforting.
