Searching for Key Lime Pie

Key lime pie seems to be growing in popularity and is served at quite a few restaurants today. They don’t have to be in Florida (although it is the official pie of the state) or even in the American South. However, the pie seems to be the best on one of the Florida Keys. The most southernly the location is, the better the pie seems to taste.

Columbia Restaurant in St. Augustine, Florida, is one of several restaurants in Florida that serve the pie.

On a trip through the Florida Keys, my wife and I were watching for signs where Key lime pie was being served. The more homemade the sign was, the more enticed we were to stop. As we drove from Key Largo to Key West and returned, the first option for food had to be Key lime pie. If it wasn’t on the menu, we weren’t interested in eating there.

I found my favorite pie in Islamorada, Florida.

For me, the best Key lime pie was served in Islamorada, a village that stretches 18 miles across five keys. At the Islamorada Fish Company, I found the perfect Key lime pie, served with a graham cracker crust (not a pastry crust, which I don’t prefer) with a lime slice and a dob of whipped cream (not meringue or extra cream to avoid diluting the lime flavors) in an attractive white ceramic cup.

A  table at Islamorada Fish Company that overlooks the Gulf of Mexico is the best place to enjoy the pie. 

Although some people think that Key limes grow in only Florida, they are grown primarily in Mexico and Peru. Although they are named for the Florida Keys (the small, low islands located off the southern coast of the state) where they also grow, they are not indigenous to the area. They vary in size and color and are smaller in size and harder in texture than the more common lime (citrus latifolia).

Key limes are grown primarily in Mexico and Peru.

The juice of Key limes with egg yolks and sweetened condensed milk creates a magnificent dessert. The original recipe didn’t call for the mixture to be cooked because during mixing a reaction between the acidic lime juice and the proteins of the egg yolks and milk cause the filling to thicken on its own without baking. However, pies today are usually baked for a short time because consuming raw eggs can be dangerous.

The city of Marathon, set on 13 islands in the Florida Keys, is the home of Sweet Savannah's, which always have pie ready.

I always check to see if Key lime pie is on the menu of restaurants even in locations outside of Florida; however, whenever a restaurant in the Florida Keys indicates it serves the pie, I stop.

Whole pies are available for takeout in Key West, Florida.

Finding a “Swamp Fest Platter” at a Fish Camp

Fish camps once were common in the South in coastal areas where commercial fishing crews worked until the early parts of the last century. Huts (or cabins) for the workers at some camps were built to last only one season of fishing, and others were more permanent and often could last more than a dozen years. In addition to housing for workers employed in the fishing industry, some camps had accommodations for their families who would spend summer months there on vacation. Other camps in the Carolinas were simple campsites where textile mill workers and their families fished and fried their catches when they had free time.

Relics of old fishing equipment are on display outside Clark's Fish Camp.

Some fish camps evolved into family-style seafood restaurants where local clientele would be served reasonably priced meals. Although the fish camps were usually located on waterways, lakes, or rivers, most bought their fish from wholesalers and farms. Although many of these restaurants have closed as they faced competition from chain restaurants, a few such as Clark’s Fish Camp on the banks of Julington Creek in Jacksonville, Florida, are still thriving.

The rustic exterior wall of Clark's Fish Camp adds to the fish camp atmosphere.

Originally a bait and tackle shop, Clark’s maintains a fish camp atmosphere with very simple and rustic features. Lilly, a five-foot alligator, makes her home in a large aquarium known as Lilly’s Pad that also houses turtles and fish. Also on display is the largest private taxidermy collection in America – lions, bears, tigers, monkeys, giraffes, deer, bobcats, and other amazing animals -- although the food is what makes this restaurant a destination for tourists and brings back local clientele. The menu includes everything imaginable.

The simple entrance to Clark's refers to its history.

My wife and I indulged on a “swamp fest platter” loaded with gator tail, soft-shell crab, frog legs, conch, calamari, catfish, and hushpuppies. Other platters can also include clam strips, oysters, shrimp, scallops, and crab cakes. Signature dishes feature trout, tuna, and salmon.

The swamp fest platter cam loaded with frog legs, gator tail, soft-shell crab, conch, calamari, catfish, and hushpuppies.

Eating by the banks of a creek with slowly flowing water added to the ambiance of the rustic building that houses Clark’s. The extensive menu is very popular, and it makes many customers wish that such fish camps were still more common.

Key lime pie is the best way to finish a meal at Clark's Fish Camp.

Two baby alligators swim near the entrance to Clark's.

Stuffed animals overlook the long rustic bar.

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Note: Click on the links for history of fish camps in North Carolina and South Carolina.