Authenticity and innovation off the beaten path
by Richard Foss The life of commercial fishermen has always been hard, dirty, and unglamorous, which hasn’t stopped restaurants evoking it in their decor. Decorators scavenge nautical wrecking yards for patched nets, rusty lobster pots, and bits of anything that might plausibly have been used to catch fish. As soon as the last rusty binnacle is nailed into place, a sign goes up offering a fried shrimp platter and a happy hour beer special. I headed for the recently opened Trani’s Dockside Station half expecting some variant on this theme, because predictable as the formula is, it sells. The Trani family has been running restaurants for four generations in San Pedro, so one might forgive them for cashing in on that vibe. One thing doesn’t fit that scenario, though: the location in the former Canetti’s Seafood Grotto. This area of maritime service businesses and fish warehouses – real ones, not restaurants designed to look like them — is well off the tourist path. The historic building that is now Trani’s Dockside Station has been refurbished, but not updated. Photos by Tony LaBruno (TonyLaBruno.com) Short answer: that’s not their market. The area at the foot of 22nd Street still…
Read this story on easyreadernews.com