Anaya's Seafood - Richardson — Restaurant in Richardson

I have visited this establishment twice, and I should have heeded the warning signs after the first visit.

The first time I came, I requested coffee with cream, but what was brought to me on a plate were cream cups with dark mold growth all over them. The waitress apologized and brought me another plate of cups without mold.

I had ordered the coconut shrimp appetizer and the fish and chips. Both were overly saturated with grease. I could pick up the coconut shrimp, dab my fingers on a napkin, and leave heavy grease stains. This reminds me of an attempt to deep fry at too low a temperature. Coconut shrimp should be light, but this was heavy and greasy.

The calamari appetizer I ordered the second time I came was overly salted, so much so that after a few pieces, the dish became inedible. Over half the plate was not eaten (this is relevant to my point later).

The “special,” which has been the “special” for about the last month that I know of, stuffed flounder, tasted like old seafood. The spinach on it was fine, and so were the potatoes, so I ate half of that but only two bites of the actual fish.

I also ordered the bourbon street red snapper. This single bite I will never forget. It was rancid. The fish had turned. It tasted like rotting beef blood. I spit it out and went to the bathroom. I was sick for the rest of the evening. Just remembering the taste makes me want to throw up. My dining partner did throw up after one bite that was swallowed about 45 minutes later.

The cornbread the snapper sat upon was incredibly stale. It was also inedible and even tough. Imagine having to put effort into taking out a piece of cornbread with a fork.

Now, we hadn’t eaten all day, and it was about 5:30 pm, so we were VERY hungry, but three out of the four dishes we had were inedible.

The waiter didn’t check on us to see how the food was. He was more interested in hanging out with the rest of the staff in a group, watching the dissatisfied experience unfold without actually getting involved. When he took back three full plates, he didn’t even ask how the food or our experience was. He showed he didn’t care about it. He didn’t even ask after a few minutes of us having the dishes, as is regular etiquette.

We simply paid for everything and left. We spent $155 on old seafood that was probably cross-contaminated in their walk-in, a waiter that just wanted to hang out, and a floor manager who never asked.

I’m from Alaska, and I love seafood, as it is what I grew up on. Unfortunately, the food was so bad I cannot even think about seafood right now without wanting to throw up.

The staff’s lack of basic dining etiquette means that to them, this is business as usual and not at all something to be considered or addressed. This review is to help the next diner. I will be filing a complaint with the health department on Monday for...

My wife and I saw Anaya’s Seafood Scratch Kitchen had just opened and the menu looked interesting, so we went in on a Monday evening just after Christmas to try it out. We were really glad we did.

When we walked in, the manager, Miguel, brought us a sample of three of their soups. All were great. My wife loved the gumbo. We both loved the crab bisque (at the top of the picture), and I really liked the roasted poblano (lower left).  The poblano has a little kick to it, and my wife is a no-spice gal, so I got to eat her sample, too.  The crab bisque is very rich, creamy, and flavorful — always a favorite of mine — and they did it very well.

We started with crab cakes as an appetizer. They were fresh, hot, and tender — served with very nice greens and on a tasty sauce. They also included a roasted lemon to squeeze onto the crab cakes which was a very nice touch.

Then we split their seafood trio with catfish, shrimp, and oysters.  This was a very large meal that was more than enough for two people when paired with an appetizer. You can get any of the seafood items fried, blackened, or grilled.  We had the catfish and oysters fried and the shrimp grilled. They came with a very good tartar and cocktail sauce as well as nice crisp fries and hush-puppies.  Their batter was a really light and fresh corn-meal style.  Nothing was at all greasy so you could really taste the quality and freshness of the seafood. In keeping with the “fresh and not greasy” theme, their coleslaw was in a light sauce, not the thick and creamy mayonnaise sauce you often see, so you could taste the freshness of the ingredients.

I had a glass of their house Chardonnay which was very good and my wife had the Cabernet which she liked.  We forgot to ask what they were serving but I thought the white wine complemented the very fresh seafood quite well.

Our water, Diego, was very friendly and took great care of us and made great recommendations from the menu.  As well, Miguel, the manager, also stopped by to check on us and tell us about their new place.

The interior decor is spacious with high ceilings but a warm atmosphere very tastefully decorated.  Their music was a nice mix with some jazzy holiday tunes thrown in and at a nice volume level that did not overpower conversation - a good fit for the feel of the restaurant.

I expect Anaya’s will do very well and look forward to our next visit.  There are a lot of good things on the menu we didn’t get to try including the key lime pie that caught my eye.

I’m sure you will enjoy your visit just as...

I've been to Anaya's twice now. I love the fact that the gentleman (I would guess one of the owners) asks when you arrive if this is your first visit. If it is he will offer you a soup sampler. I thought all of the soups are fantastic. The Clam Chowder was on the sampler but not on the menu at the time. It was absolutely great! My first visit I was offered some grilled oysters as a special. Well, I've had chargrilled oysters in New Orleans and they are amazing. I had some here in Dallas and they were terrible. So I have always been worried about ordering them again. So when I told the gentleman that told us about the special he said "I'll get you a half dozen to try and if you don't like them they are free!" I loved them and said be sure to put those on my tab too! Second visit was just as pleasurable. We came in for lunch and when the gentleman this time that was waiting on us came to take our drink order he mentioned he was also the bartender and would make us any drink we wanted. I told him about a mixed drink I had in San Francisco that blew me away since I normally only drink beer. I showed him the picture I took of the menu in San Francisco and he said "I think I can make that". When he brought it to the table he told me it was on the house! I mean this is a great place to go I am impressed by the customer service I have been presented with each time I visited. The food has been on point with one minor issue for everyone in my party. I love the sauces they make for some of the fish dishes but I would prefer more sauce on them or at least more on the side should you choose to have a little extra. That's not a knock on how good everything is. The only minor issue was the blackened shrimp got overcooked. I assume trying to set the blackening. But that can happen. I would just recommend maybe being a little more careful on how long they are on the grill versus the setting of the seasoning. And even in that case I would be more than happy to order those again! I wish I had more pictures but I just don't remember to take them when the food hits the table!! GO SUPPORT FAMILY BUSINESSES! AND GO CHECK...