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A Royal Experience For Pirates And Landlubbers Alike Port Royal Grille is a casual and homey restaurant located in the heart of the town of Islip on Main Street. From the uniquely decorated, pub-like dining area to the exclusive names of specialty dishes, everything about this popular neighborhood eatery is excitingly pirate themed.
Their
dining room and fully stocked bar creates the perfect setting for private events and
can comfortably accompany parties for up to 10 – 40 people. Off premise catering
is also available for those looking to cater on their own turf using the delicious
food of Port Royal Grille. Port Royal Grille is the first restaurant that owner, Anthony has ever owned. Anthony comes from a large catering background as his family has been in the catering business since 1963. Anthony took over the business back in 1993 and being involved in the restaurant business was something he was always avidly interested in. Chef
Mike is the newly appointed chef at the restaurant. He was born and raised in Malta,
a country in Southern Europe off the coast of Sicily. Chef Mike is formally of
Smokin Al’s, Captree Cove Restaurant and Tova of Syosset and is now making a name
for himself in the kitchen of Port Royal Grille. The
atmosphere of the restaurant is extremely friendly as the largely portioned, impressive items on the
menu are bound to spark up conversation between neighboring parties. Atop each
table sits a basket of their homemade sauces: Ma Bailey’s Sweet Honey, Carolina
Mustard BBQ and Queen Anne’s Revenge. Each sauce has a tasty and distinctive
flavor that will surely enhance any dish. Immediately upon being seated we were greeted by our server with a complimentary basket of homemade, well-seasoned, very addicting potato chips (below left). Made from real Idaho potatoes, they were the ideal snack to prepare our growling appetites for the delicious meal that was on its way.
We began our experience with a trio of delicious soups: a classic French Onion Soup, Beef Vegetable Soup and the Three Alarm Texas Chili. The French Onion Soup tasted as good as it smelt (above right). It was very thick and simply luscious. The Beef Vegetable Soup was another hearty soup and featured slowly simmered, fresh zucchini, carrots and hearty chunks of tender beef (below left). The Three Alarm Texas Chili was filled with tender brisket, smoked sausage, pork and topped with a thick layer of cheddar cheese (below right). The chili was nicely spiced and woke up our palates.
Port Royal offers 20 different flavors of wing sauces including the exclusive, “World’s End” Ghost Chili wing sauce in which you have to sign a waiver before you are even permitted to sample it! We were presented with a dozen of assorted Stormy Buffalo, Honey Citrus Pepper and Sweet Island Spice wings (below left). The aromas of the different flavors were immediately apparent as the dish approached the table. The Stormy Buffalo wings were not too hot, but definitely had a nice kick to them. The Honey Citrus Pepper wings were spicy, sweet and tasty. The Sweet Island Spice wings were covered in a sweet, tangy sauce and were extremely appetizing. The combination of flavors offered the perfect medley of wings and something different for everyone’s taste buds to enjoy.
Our
next appetizer was the Port Royal Crab Cakes, made with jumbo lump blue claw crab
(above right). Cooked to golden brown and served alongside a tangy remoulade sauce
and chipotle mayonnaise, these crab cakes were an excellent appetizer choice and
present a nice ratio of crab to crumb. One of their most enormously portioned dishes is the Triple Decker Grilled Cheese Bacon Burger (below left). If you think the title alone is a mouthful you should see the burger itself! This dish features a bacon burger sandwiched between two grilled cheese sandwiches and is truly a sight to see. Served with a side of crispy sweet potato fries, this monstrous burger gives a whole new meaning to delicious comfort food!
The
Overstuffed BBQ Po’ Boy was smoky, sweet, messy and scrumptious (above right).
Another hefty portion of food, this burger is packed with pulled pork, pulled
chicken, smoked sausage and sliced brisket, all served on a hero. As if that
combination of food isn’t enough, the Po’ Boy is topped with melted cheddar
cheese sauce and tasty fried onion straws. As
we perused the extensive menu we came across their signature International Mac N’
Cheese section. Their Mac N' Cheese dishes are made using cavatappi (corkscrew)
pasta and are baked in enormous pasta bowls, but for tasting purposes our portions
were significantly smaller than the standard colossal portions. Port Royal offers
eight different selections of exclusively enhanced Mac N’ Cheese including
Italiano Mac, Mediterranean Mac and the exceptional styles we were privileged to
sample: The Tex Mex Mac and the Chicken Cordon Bleu Mac. The Tex Mex Mac features a blend of pepper jack and chipotle cheeses and is topped with smoked chorizo sausage, tomatoes and chopped green onions (below). The spicy sausage and abundance of cheese complimented each other well and released a nice mixture of diverse flavors.
The Chicken Cordon Bleu Mac features a mix of Gruyere, Gorgonzola and goat cheeses and is topped with julienne strips of grilled chicken, ham and Swiss cheese (below). Just like the Tex Mex Mac, this dish was overflowing with a medley of delicious cheeses and was a great, innovative twist on your customary Chicken Cordon Bleu.
The Chicken and Pork sliders present a rush of flavors to your palate (below left). Served on mini potato buns and doused in a sweet, tangy sauce, both the pulled pork and pulled chicken were adequately seasoned and nicely smoked.
We rounded out our meal with Captain Jack Rackam’s Baby Back Ribs (above right). These extremely tender ribs were cut nicely for our convenience and saturated with a mouth watering, smoky and spicy sauce. The ribs were served alongside buttery, tender corn on the cob and a yummy bowl of meat filled baked beans.
For the grand finale we completed our meal with four spectacular desserts. The Cheesecake was creamy and delicious (above left). The Chocolate Mousse was light and speckled with a mosaic topping of delightful chocolate (above right). The Chocolate Molten Cake was rich, soft and presented the perfect rush of chocolate (below left). Port Royal's infamous Mount Vesuvius is their most popular dessert item and once you taste it you’ll discover why (below right). It is truly an industrial strength dessert that is layered with cheesecake, chocolate, ice cream, pudding and more chocolate. This indulgence is definitely something you want to save room for.
Adam Richman, host of the Travel Channel’s hit television show Man vs. Food, made the journey to Islip to visit Port Royal Grille. He took on one of Port Royal’s biggest challenges known as, “The Davey Jones Locker”. This family sized meal is enough to feed four to six people and features two bountiful pounds of snow crab leg clusters, a full pound of grilled jumbo shrimp skewers, a pound of steamed mussels, a pound of fried clam strips and twin jumbo seafood stuffed flounder. On top of that abundance of food, it comes with a soup or salad and two family sized side dishes. Adam was able to finish this meal alone in an hour and earned himself a spot on the wall of fame at Port Royal Grille. He is pictured there along with other brave challengers that have completed this demanding task. The experience at Port Royal Grille is without a doubt worthy of a visit. People from across the island make the trip to sample their wide array of exclusive and delectable menu items. From the friendly staff, casual ambiance and bulky portions of extraordinary food, Port Royal Grille is hands down a place like no other and it’s the kind of place every town would be lucky to have.
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