A Shore Thing
Photos by Jim Henkens

The iconic West Shore Seafood has been everyone’s dream of a summer seafood shack since it first opened on the shore of Bantam Lake in Morris in 2007. Set in a 1960s-era ranch-style building, the popular eatery has been expanding its setting and its menu in recent years.

The biggest change was to take place last winter, with plans to add a full-service bar, and open year-round. A fire in January put a crimp in those plans, but didn’t kill the dream. The bar and restaurant opened in May; work on the fish market, retail shop, and expanded kitchen should be finished by this winter. Seafood classics are still menu staples. West Shore likes to say that they serve everything “that’s dipped in tartar sauce, enjoyed with a squeeze of lemon, and comes with a side of fries-n-slaw.”

That modest description belies the high-quality cooking coming out of the kitchen, for table service and catering, under the eyes of owner Susie Pregno and executive chef Rob Thompson (who joined the West Shore team last year).  Sure, there’s New England clam chowder, a raw bar, lobster rolls, fried seafood. But there is also the grilled salmon BLT, Baja-style fish tacos, grilled tuna with a wasabi aioli marinade and sesame soy sauce. West Shore Seafood is open for lunch and dinner Wednesday through Sunday. —westshoreseafood.com