There’s something unique about dining at a fish house in the South that’s perhaps not unlike being in a seafood restaurant on one of the coasts. My first experience with a catfish joint was down in Nashville so many years ago that I might have seen Mark Twain at the next table. I’ve been meaning to try the Catfish House – part of a small regional chain with locations in Smyrna, Clarksville and Springfield, Tenn. – on the east side of Interstate 65 for quite some time.

The dining area, which contained around 20 tables in the nonsmoking section, wasn’t crowded during my visit. We were one of four occupied tables during our entire meal. The maritime-themed atmosphere was clean and open, and I was surprised to learn of the smoking section because the place was so clean.

As we settled in, the waiter brought us some fried okra, which is apparently a free munchie-appetizer at the Catfish House. I enjoyed these, and had to remind myself not to pig out. We also tried the fried pickles appetizer. I’m a fence-sitter on this particular taste – I’ve had good and bad, and it’s not something I’d normally order unless I’m in the mood. The Catfish House slices them in chip-style and cooks them in a very light breading. The result is a much more tender pickle than found at many places. The ranch and Thousand Island sides went well with the pickles, although I thought a horseradish sauce might also complement the taste pretty well.

I managed to sample a wide range of dishes here, from the sirloin steak to grilled shrimp, oysters, fried shrimp, crab cake, scallops and, of course, the catfish. Overall, I found the offerings pretty uneven – with some being quite good and others either plain or worse.

The sirloin came perfectly cooked, and the presentation on the plate next to a loaded potato enhanced the appearance of the dish. Sirloin is a less-tender cut of meat than many others, and cooks can exacerbate the problem by taking the meat directly from the cooler to the fire, or by turning it too often. Although the flavor was good (perhaps a bit of salt and pepper rubbed into it), I found the sirloin a bit cool when it arrived, and overly chewy. Overall, the nice flavor didn’t balance out the problems here.

The seafood platter came with a variety of offerings. Fried oysters at a fast food joint usually come with a heavy batter, which can “drown” the oyster. The Catfish House prepares its oysters with the same breading as the fried pickles, which remained light enough after frying to let the oyster texture and flavor come through. There was a lingering saltiness to the oyster and enough flavor so that I knew what I was eating. I liked these a lot, and think they compare favorably to the excellent oysters at Brickyard Cafe.

The batter on the fried shrimp was a bit thicker, and covered the entire shrimp. I liked the preparation of this dish. It seemed to be a butterflied shrimp twisted amongst itself, then battered and fried. I was in the midst of chewing it when I realized the tail was buried somewhere in the batter, and therefore my mouth. Now, I enjoy shrimp tails, but other diners might want to beware. I liked both the flavor of the shrimp and the consistency and taste of the batter as cooked with the shrimp.

The crab cake, on the other hand, was not very good. There is a tendency at many restaurants to prepare this as a cake, with some crab. The Catfish House follows this model. This dish contained a great deal of breading, along with some bell pepper and what seemed to be scallions, and a bit of crab. The taste was more along the lines of some bread with a touch of crab flavoring rather than a true Maryland-style crab cake.

The catfish was decent. A very light flour coating helped preserve the flavor of the fish, and the thin filet was perfectly cooked. The cocktail and tartar sauces went well with the catfish, and the deep-fried dish made me want to try the grilled and blackened catfish offerings. I enjoyed this as much as anything in the seafood platter, and if I returned, I would certainly try this one again.

The star of the whole meal, though, was the grilled shrimp. Cooked after a dousing of Cajun seasonings, the large or medium-large shrimp came out juicy, tangy and absolutely full of flavor. Although an order comes with around eight shrimp, I could have eaten a few dozen of these. The cooks did an excellent job of blackening the outsides, which gave them a bit of crispiness, while still not overcooking them to the point of rubberiness. The inside of the shrimp retained their tenderness. This was quite good.

I should say that the wait staff was exceedingly friendly, almost to the point of invasiveness. But while the waiter chatted with customers, and management drifted through the room, several tables sat piled with dirty dishes, even as dessert was served to those customers.

This was an uneven meal, at best, and I think the Catfish House has some improvements to make before I’ll return.

— Our anonymous food reviewer gives new restaurants a six-week grace period before reviewing. To comment, contact Managing Editor Mike Alexieff at 783-3235 or via e-mail at malexieff@bgdailynews.com.

Catfish House

300 Cumberland Trace Road

745-7171

Hours: 11 a.m.- 2 p.m. and 4 p.m.-8:30 p.m., Monday through Thursday; 11 a.m.-2 p.m. and 4 p.m.-9 p.m. Friday; 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Saturday; 11 a.m.-8 p.m. Sunday

Price range: $6.40 to $14

Specialties: Catfish

Libation situation: None

Smoking: Yes