Thorny Oyster — Restaurant in Bay Saint Louis

We went to the Thorny Oyster on a Wednesday night. Our go to spot downtown is Field's, but if you don't have a reservation there, forget it. Generally we will hit 200 North Beach if we don't go to Field's, but decided we should try TO.

It feels upscale when you walk in, but the beauty of the Bay is that you could go in wearing shorts and flip flops or a semi formal dress and it's okay. The hostess was waiting, sat us right away and the waitstaff was prompt and friendly. The only thing that is a negative as far as the atmosphere is the noise. It's just kind of loud, not sure if it's that people are just loud in general or if it's the acoustics. That being said the tables are further apart than at Field's (which is also loud), so it's not that you are specifically hearing conversations, just noise.

The menu is not super extensive and the prices are comparable to both the places we usually go downtown. I ordered the FISH CADDY Gulf Shrimp, Lump Blue Crab, Pasta Bordelaise. The menus don't have great descriptions of what it is you are getting, but I'm sure if we had asked the server, she would have explained. The dish came with the fish of the day, and was about a four to five ounce piece of fish. It was good, but a tad overcooked on the edges. There were maybe 3 medium sized shrimp and a couple of tablespoons of crab on top. The bordelaise sauce was really good, but the pasta was OUTSTANDING. It is obviously made fresh, run through a press and cooked right before it is served. The texture was perfect and I don't recall ever going to a restaurant and thinking that the pasta was the highlight of the meal. I would normally choose a potato side over pasta, but not here. If going back, I would specifically choose a dish based on it being served with pasta.

My husband had the burger and fries which looked good, he had no complaints, but he didn't really mention anything about it one way or another. I recall that they didn't ask him how he wanted it cooked, which is a bit unusual outside of a fast food place, but being smash burgers, maybe that is why. He had a couple of drinks with his meal, so our bill was $79 and some change, so with tip it was $100. That price is right in line with the other places in that area, so no surprises.

I'm sure we will return and it will be another spot that we refer guests to. I am giving them 5 stars, but if I could do half stars, I would give them 4.5 based on the noise and the fact that my fish was a smidge overcooked. I would rather give a business a boost than try to find something wrong with them. I do wish that upscale restaurants would have a small dinner salad offering at a better price. I just cannot bring myself to pay $15+ for a salad wedge with blue cheese or some dressed greens. My final thoughts are, as mentioned, they are as good as the other spots downtown that are the same caliber and if you haven't given them a try, know that you are going to drop at least $100 for two people and you won't be...

The visit started off great! The decor and staff let you know you're in an upscale restaurant. As soon as we stepped into the restaurant we were greeted by the hostess and seated right away. One of the waitress came right over to greet us and filled out water glasses. Shortly after our waitress came over to take our drink and starter order. We ordered the grilled oysters and hamachi crudo. Once she returned with our drinks she took our dinner which my wife ordered the whole fish with side of truffle fries and I ordered the red snapper almondine with a side of pasta.

The starters were good... Normally we are use to grilled oysters with some kind of thick sauce or plenty of toppings. However, these grilled oysters had a light sauce which was almost unnoticeable topped with a cheese that melted in large flakes. The cheese was more of a visual thing then for added flavor / taste. The toasted bread that came which it was ok. Toasted on the outside and soft on the inside. The hamachi crudo was decent and refreshing. The fish did not have a fishy taste and the grapefruit that topped it did not overpower the flavor of the fish. The grapefruit actually blended in with the taste of the fish making both ingredients indistinguishable.

Our main entree's came out about 15 to 20 minutes after we were done with out starters. Both the whole fish and the red snapper fish looked delicious! The red snapper came with baby bak choy, a light sauce and slivers of almond. The taste was clean and not heavy feeling at all. You can definitely finish this plate and still have energy to go. The main disappoint I had with the dish was that the first bak choy I started to eat had alot of dirt / grit still in the stem area. At first I thought ok there's just a little bit and I can kind of eat around it. Well, once I went for my second bite there was more. After that I stayed away from the bak choy for the rest of my meal. However, I did finish my fish and the really al dente pasta that I ordered which had a buttery sauce. The sauce was good but, pasta was too on the al dente side. Maybe just a couple of more seconds in the water would help.

My wife took a bite of her whole fish and then took a bite of my red snapper. She actually preferred the taste of my fish over her's. She did say that the whole fish was cooked well and wasn't a total disaster. The one saving grace were the side of truffle fries. They were nice and crispy with just enough truffle flavor.

We would both say the truffle fries were probably the best part of the meal and my red snapper shortly behind it minus the gritty bak choy. We understand that it's a new place and probably still working out the kinks and need some time to do so. We maybe give them an other try but, time...

One of our sons selected this restaurant for his birthday dinner. We had not been here before. It was a great choice for a special meal.

To start with, I called a few hours before we intended to go to dinner to make a reservation. Although they were heavily scheduled, the hostess graciously worked it out so that our large party could be accommodated.

Second, I asked what their policy was about bringing in outside birthday cakes, as I already had one. I was told that it was no problem. At the restaurant, I learned that there was no plate fee either.

Upon arriving, we were impressed with the atmosphere, which was beautiful, without being pretentious.

Our server, Rita, was AWESOME, and provided great service throughout the evening.

Everything on the menu sounded good. We started with frogs legs, calamari, and fish spread for appetizers, all of which were very nicely done.

I was torn between the bouillabaisse and the fish almandine, and ultimately went with the bouillabaisse. It was very good, but next time, I will order the almandine. One person in our party had that, and they raved about how delicious it was. Two people in our party had the shrimp and grits, which was good, but very rich. One person had the half chicken, and said it was excellent. One person had the burger, and really liked it. Everything we ate here was delicious.

The only down side to this restaurant is that trying to find parking in this area is very challenging. I would recommend coming early to the area to be sure that you secure a space before you plan to eat, especially if you are meeting others or have a...