Welcome to the House of Crabs

Cracked freshly open on Friday, the boisterously fun, forward-thinking Drink'n' Dine Group have brought another restaurant to market: the double entendre-filled House of Crabs, upstairs at The Norfolk in the Redfern end of Surry Hills.

House of Crabs, upstairs at The Norfolk, Cleveland Street, Surry Hills

Part Louisiana crab shack, part Aussie seafood showcase and all Drink'n'Dine, House of Crabs is unlike anything we've seen in Sydney.

As a Cancerian and having not ever experienced the southern US-style crab or seafood boil, I was very excited to attend a preview night at House of Crabs last week, just ahead of their Friday night opening.

Crab neon sign at the base of the stairs

The decor is retro kitsch and all about crabs and the sea. A neon sign lights the way from The Norfolk at ground level, leading up to a happy, welcoming red crab and the restaurant upstairs.

Restaurant signage

Dietaries list

A list of dietary warnings greets diners at the upstairs restaurant, having a dig at today's world of diner allergies and intolerances; though I couldn't quite work out which menu item would have seafood extender as an ingredient.

Peach Cobbler (left) and Arnold's Iced Tea (right) mixed drinks

Mixed drinks feature alongside full-hit cocktails and American beers, like Budweiser cans.

Both the Peach Cobbler with rye whisky, peach syrup and lemon juice topped up with soda; and the Arnold Palmer Iced Tea with vodka, tea and lemonade, were on the sweet and light side of mixed drinks that we sampled on the night.

BBQ Creole corn

There is a great range in the House of Crabs snacks menu, including buttery BBQ Creole corn on the cob and superbly smoky sausage with pickles and American mustard. However, for me, it's all about The Boil.

The Boil menu

A selection of seafood is available, priced per 500 grams. Pick a shellfish and one of four sauce options, and get your bibs on (latex gloves optional).

The tables are ready lined with white paper and furnished with Budweiser cardboard six-pack containers of cutlery, including crab picks and crackers, and two bottled hot sauce options.

A bag of crab

It was sheer excitement when the bags of shellfish arrived to the tables, in plastic bags somewhat obscured by rivulets of sauce. It was going to be a messy, hands-on affair - and I couldn't wait.

A long table for crab action

Diners are encouraged to dump the contents of the bag into the middle of the table, which does make it easier to access the shellfish compared to sticking your arms into a large, saucy bag.

Pile of king crab

Blue swimmer crab in Cajun sauce

We were treated to blue swimmer crabs in a buttery, spiced Cajun sauce with plenty of bite. Drink'n'Dine Executive Chef Jamie Thomas later confirmed that the deliciously addictive sauce contained "a lot" of butter.

The relatively small blue swimmer crabs are great eating for those with patience when it comes to shellfish, with flesh in the claws and body, as well as in the legs and flippers with a little more effort.

King crab in Cajun sauce

Prawns in Cajun sauce

Easier to devour were the well-sized Queensland prawns, cooked whole and served again with the Cajun sauce.

The sauce made the prawn heads worthy of sucking clean, while the shells were quite edible too. The peeled prawns were best had after a re-dunk or two into the bag of sauce.

House of Crabs window

Post shellfish feast, hand washing is assisted by 'magical' wet towelettes although there is also a unisex toilet upstairs for the restaurant.

House of Crabs is going to be an instant hit. I already feel like eating there once a week and while The Boil prices are a little heftier than what you'd see in Louisiana (Australia's higher labour rates, rent and all), it's guaranteed to be a good, finger-licking night out. Welcome, House of Crabs.

Food, booze and shoes dined at House of Crabs as a guest.

Cheeky drinks and naughty treats at The Norfolk

I'm not sure if it's age, influence or preferred crowd but when catching up with a large group of friends these days, it tends to happen at a pub rather than a restaurant.

More often than not it's one of the revamped Surry Hills pubs where there's well-priced food, plenty of booze options and easy access home. And The Norfolk is one of the favourites.

Bloody Mary at The Norfolk, Cleveland Street, Surry Hills

The Drink and Dine group - of The Norfolk, The Abercrombie, The Carrington, The Forresters and upstairs Queenies, The Flinders and the recently-opened Santa Barbara in Kings Cross (where the Piano Room used to be) - have the formula down pat.

Fun and quirky theming, proper yet affordable food plus cocktails, and a pub environment where it's entirely appropriate to get a little rowdy.

The Norfolk does a darn good Bloody Mary, served in a tin can. While there are a number of variations available, I admit it's just the original with a dash or two of Tabasco sauce that does it for me.

Fried chicken wings (front) and  fries (back)

This was the first time I had fried chicken wings at The Norfolk, after so many prior visits. And damn, they're about the best fried chicken wings in Sydney. So crunchy in a non-oily golden batter; so juicy they may well have had a sous vide treatment; and so moreish we had to order another plate.

The fluffy crinkle cut chips, which we frankly don't see enough of anymore, come tossed in a spice mixture with a tomato-ey sauce.

Deep fried pickles with ranch dipping sauce (front) and salt and pepper squid (back)

You've got your crunchy, your tartness and your creaminess, all in a deep fried pickle with ranch dipping sauce. I'm not sure which crazy person thought of this combination, but it's a winner with the pickle holding its own against the oily richness of the batter and sauce.

They're miles ahead of the salt and pepper squid in terms of innovativeness and deliciousness. The squid, served with jalapeno aioli, was insanely salty - so much that I only managed a single tentacle piece.

Chicken taco

Moving away from the deep fried food momentarily, a variety of tacos hit the table in a flurry with the chicken in front of me.

I'm so glad that the Mexican game has picked up in Sydney, although there's still a lot of nachos with sour cream going on. The soft tortilla of the chicken taco held lettuce, diced Spanish onion and cucumber, salsa guacamole and an orange chipotle mayonnaise.

Chicken quesadilla with Jack cheese, onion and salsa verde

The chicken quesadilla looked even better than the tacos, the cut wedges topped with salsa verde while the sides oozed with cheese.

Grilled haloumi with peppers and tomato salsa

The grilled haloumi was another dish high on the saltiness scale, served with grilled green peppers and a salsa, and topped with an array of fresh herbs. It was an odd one that was probably from the mains menu and a little harder to share among the group.

Several more cheeky cocktails and beers later, the naughty, salty, deep fried food didn't feel quite so bad. The bar closes quite promptly at 11:45pm and we were shooed out at midnight, forcing an early night upon us. Indeed, I wonder if age has decided that it likes the Surry Hills curfew.