Neches River Wheelhouse offers views, seafood

Neches River Wheelhouse offers seafood and views

Just about everybody in Southeast Texas has tried out Neches River Wheelhouse in Port Neches and I finally got to enjoy a lunch there. I’d already enjoyed some catered food from the Wheelhouse. Now I can tell others they ought to venture out the our newest seafood-with-a-view venue by Port Neches Park. Don’t wait until RiverFest. Go now. Even on a gray winter day there are great views of the river traffic. It’s set up for hanging out with friends. Fire pits and fried seafood just goes together.

Angel food

I don’t even know how the angel food cake mix showed up in my pantry. But someone gave me the lemon pudding mix. So I combined the two to make a birthday treat for a friend. I didn’t care for angel food cake as a child, going instead for something more rich. Now I appreciate the subtlety of the sweetness, but it’s easy to kid yourself that it is more healthy and you can have an extra piece or two. So I topped it with the lemon pudding/pie filling I cooked up and enhanced with vanilla and whiskey.

It went well, but here’s another observation. At our ages, I tend to top birthday cakes with one symbolic candle. It’s kind of difficult to decide where to put one candle in a bundt cake. There’s no middle.

Oh well, it worked. There were no leftovers.

Do you blame the sulfites?

I certainly have. Used as antimicrobial and preservatives for bottling and storing wine, sulfites cause a sensitivity in some people. I think I’m one of them. Jean Ishihara used to feel very sick after wine and came up with a Just the Wine, which comes in eye-drop sized bottles so you can squirt a few drops into your glass or bottle. That’s all there is to it, but the story is interesting. Go to justthewine.com for the background. I tried it over the holidays and offer a good report.

Darragh Doiron loves to dine and cook and write for Port Arthur News readers.