We recently had some friends visiting and we took them to TJ Oyster Bar for some seafood and tacos.
With such a big group, we ordered quite a few items and it gave me a chance to try some new dishes as well.
Rock Shrimp
Crunchy battered shrimp tossed in a spicy sauce. These were bold, spicy and a good way to wake up our palates.
Smoked Tuna Fries
Think carne asada fries but with smoked tuna instead. Crispy fries, piled with smoked tuna, cilantro, cheese and creamy white sauce. This is definitely a fun group appetizer.
Stingray Taco
This was my first time trying the stingray and I enjoyed the mild and pleasant flavor.
Octopus Taco
Out of all the taco offerings, this is my personal favorite here. It was also our group’s favorite. The marinated octopus is bursting with flavor and more tender than chewy.
Diabla Shrimp and Cheese
Spicy shrimp and melted cheese. Not my favorite but I can see this being quite popular.
Smoked Tuna Taco
I really enjoyed the jerky-liked smoke tuna here and they put plenty of it on their smoked tuna tacos.
Fried Oyster Taco
Fried Fish Taco
For a little under $2.00 each, the fish tacos here are pretty good.
Campechana Cocktail
I like the array of fresh seafood but wished for more depth in the cocktail sauce. It was a little bland.
Overall, we had a another great meal here. The service is always attentive, the food enjoyable and our friends seemed to have a good time.
Previous TJ Oyster visits can be found here and here.
The restaurant has three locations. We visited the one with the full bar and sit-down restaurant.
TJ Oyster Bar- The Seafood Place
4410 Bonita Rd.
Bonita, CA
This is one of my favorite taco places down South. The octopus is also my favorite. I’m so glad that this place (all three in fact) are doing so well. The first location is so tiny and there’s always a line out the door, so it’s good this one is pretty close by.
I need to visit the third location. But yes, I agree. this place is great!
Unless you REALLY know where your seafood comes from, a lot of times what’s sold as bay scallop is really just stingray, at least here in Florida. So you may have eaten it and not realized it.
that’s interesting. i didn’t realize they tasted so similar