By Jimmy Prosser - Photos by Wen McNally
Paula Deen’s
Creek House Seafood & Grill
Y’all! I’m sure most of you have noticed recently that we have made our way
onto Wilmington and Whitemarsh Island. We are so excited to branch out and we
thought what a better way to embrace our giant leap across the Lazaretto than
to do our first off-island Food Spy with one of the biggest names in food: Paula
Deen. And what better restaurant to do it at than Paula Deen’s Creek House
Seafood & Grill. Butter up y’all! I mean, listen up y’all!
We met with the General Manager, Tim, who showed us to a private dining
room (if you need a large space for private events call them!). He introduced us
to our server, Dacie, who took us off to their buffet. Now this was a first for us,
and we weren’t sure what to expect. I will tell you now, you need to forget all
preconceived notions about buffets. This spread was over the top! From a build
your own waffle station, to a carving station, a wall of house made desserts, and
every side under the sun, our jaws hit the floor. We decided on a plan - we each
build a plate or four that makes sense. And we’ll go from there.
First up was Southern Style Chicken Tenders, Homemade Mac & Cheese,
and Green Beans. The tenders were lightly breaded all-white meat, fried to a
golden brown. I grabbed a house-made honey mustard that boasted a zesty
twang to it. The Mac & Cheese was the perfect side choice for any palette! The
green beans were loaded in bacon (I’ll tell you now bacon is going to come up,
a lot). I, under no circumstance, am a green beans person, but I went back for
seconds. Just as we were finishing this up, Dacie brought out the Maple Glazed
Bacon (from the menu), four 1lb. strips of thick cut bacon, dripping in maple
syrup, hanging from clothes pins on a wire rack. My heart hurts for everyone
who has never tried this. It was beyond magical.
We went out of order with plating, and eating, but we were so excited (you
can’t blame us). Wen was fighting Alaina and I off to get her pictures. We moved
on to what I would call a breakfast perfection plate: Scrambled Eggs, crispy
Bacon, plump Sausage, a mound of Home Fries, a Sweet Danish, fresh
cut Fruit and a Breakfast Casserole packed with potatoes, cheese, and
ground sausage. Paula would have been proud had she seen us build that!
Alaina grabbed the Biscuit and Sausage Gravy. This was packed full of
sausage, was thick and had a light kick. In through the door walked Amber
Wilson (she’s the person behind all the desserts), who brought us a beautiful
made-to-order Waffle, so giant and fluffy, with blueberry maple syrup, and a
strawberry compote and whipped cream. It was heaven!
Did I mention they have all you can drink Mimosas? I didn’t? Well, that’s
because I had six. They were sooo goood! This place has a full bar and offers tons
of local beers and craft cocktails. The Mason Jar Margarita was exceptional,
you can taste the fresh squeezed juices, and the Creek House Punch was like
drinking a tropical peach. But the one that wowed me was the Bacon Maple Old
Fashioned. THERE WAS BACON IN THE DRINK! It was incredible!
On our next plate we had hand-carved Sirloin, with a house Au Jus and
creamy horseradish sauce. Not that the steak required either, it was perfect as
is! With it were the fluffiest Skin-on Mashed Potatoes I’ve ever had. Next to
this carving station was a Salad Bar, bright and fresh spring mix with dozens of
toppings. I couldn’t pass up the pecans and bacon bits. From there we had the
Salmon, which was some of the best fish I’ve ever had, with a blend of spices
and a squeeze of lemon, I could eat this every day! We moved on to Shrimp
& Grits that we’re so creamy and smooth, they were out of this world. And
8 TYBEE BEACHCOMBER | MAY 2019
speaking of creamy, you need to have the Chicken Pasta, with broccoli and sun
dried tomatoes over bowtie pasta. I’ll make the return trip for that alone.
At this point you can imagine we’re stuffed. I’m beyond able to move, but that
Alaina snuck off and grabbed us one of every dessert, all made in-house. The Red
Velvet Cake stood out the most. The frosting was so light and wonderful. Even
though that was my favorite, the Iced Caked Lolly’s and the Chocolate Layer
Cake were amazing, and have I failed to mention the Chocolate Fountain? That
gorgeous fall of chocolate that you can coat over anything from Rice Krispies to
Chocolate to Strawberries. Beyond yum!
All in all, this is not what I expected. The menu and buffet are priced extremely
affordable for one and all. They also offer a gluten free menu upon request.
Creek House is also located on the creek and the views are staggering. They
have a gorgeous backyard area that they open during the summer for familyfriendly
space to hang out, play corn hole or just relax and have a cocktail at the
Tiki Bar with friends.
Friday and Saturday they have live music from 6-9pm, featuring many wellknown
local musicians that we all love. Wednesday is Wine Down Wednesday
and every bottle they have is half off (I KNOW)!!! Of course there is a gift shop
there offering everything Paula. You can find any kind of dressing, marinade,
recipe mix, book and/or great gift that your stomach desires!
Paul Deen’s Creek House Seafood & Grill is a must experience (often)! Their
food is perfect, the ambience is classy and refined and the dress code is just
have clothes on. You can visit the Creek House every day off the week. They
open at 11am and are located at 104 Bryan Woods Road in Savannah.