The Boiling Harbour located at 3175 Rutherford Road, #17 in Vaughan

Thanks to Jenny of @itsjenyu and Michael of @cravethe6ix, I was able to taste the seafood dishes from The Boiling Harbour ahead of its opening day.  The Boiling Harbour is a seafood boil restaurant located at 3175 Rutherford Road in Vaughan at the Vaughan Mills Plaza.  (It’s tucked away in a little corner so when you arrive in, look for Marcello’s which is right beside it.)

The Boiling Harbour opens today (August 6, 2016)!  Last night, we got a chance to preview the prominent seafood items on the menu and what a party it was! 🙂

The pre-opening tasting event began at 7 and ran until 11 p.m.  There were foodies, bloggers, instagramers, and friends of friends who arrived to enjoy a scrumptious night of seafood!

The Boiling Harbour! (Almost clean slate before we signed our signatures on it at the end of the night)

Those who are familiar with seafood boils know that it is a Southern/Cajun delicacy where seafood is boiled and then simmered in sauce, immersing the seafood in the sauce which makes it oh, so delicious!  The highlight of this cuisine is that the seafood is placed into a plastic bag and then you use your hands to eat.  At the end of the night, there is no clean-up involving plates or cutlery; you simply wrap everything up and throw away the sheet lining your table.  It is a fun and unique way of enjoying fresh seafood! 🙂

In addition to seafood boils, The Boiling Harbour also serves other hot dishes like Lobster Mac & Cheese Balls, Lobster poutine, gumbo, and more! 😀

Upon arriving at 7 p.m., it was a mix and mingle party where there was a DJ, alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks served, and I got to meet so many foodies I’ve seen on instagram before but never met in person as well as catch up with the old foodie friends I’ve already met before.  It was the hot spot of the night for the foodie community! 😀

Jenny giving a speech and introduction of the The Boiling Harbour and our night ahead

Beautiful name cards created by @BunnyBumBoxes!

After some introductions from the organizers, we all gathered near the patio in the back of the restaurant where there were some sample seafood items put out on a table for us to photograph.  This was the prime spot for getting those food photos taken due to the natural lighting outside and the food resting on a white table (good background for photos).

After the brief photoshoot, we found seats inside at the tables and were ready for our food!  I have to say that the staff of The Boiling Harbour did an amazing job serving us that night.  They were as prompt as the kitchen could be (serving over 50 people that night) and delivered us the right eating tools at each course of the night — whether it be spoons for the gumbo, plastic gloves and bibs for the seafood, or tools for the seafood itself.  Great job, Boiling Harbour staff! 😀

Sample menu items laid out for us on a table for a photoshoot!

Loaded Lobster Fries!

Gumbo!

Look at all these foodies and photographers hard at work!

The first thing we tried on the pre-opening menu that night was the Lobster Mac & Cheese Balls.  Mmm, these were gigantic Mac n cheese balls!  The shell was crunchy while the inside contained moist Mac & Cheese with bits of lobster meat.  I really liked the sauce that was drizzled on top of it as well!

Lobster Mac & Cheese Balls

The inside of the Lobster Mac & Cheese Balls

The second item was the Gumbo.

“Gumbo is a stew that originated in southern Louisiana during the 18th century. It consists primarily of a strongly-flavored stock, meat or shellfish, a thickener, and the Cajun holy trinity of vegetables, namely celery, bell peppers, and onions.”  (Quoted from Wikipedia.)

I haven’t eaten much gumbo in my life but but I already know it is a stew that I really enjoy.  The gumbo was chock-full of great ingredients!  There were sausage, chicken, shrimp, and vegetables in the stew.  It was all very flavourful and filling!  I enjoyed it. 🙂

Gumbo

Some Stella beer to enjoy the seafood with

Me in The Boiling Harbour bib!

Utensils and limes and pepper & salt

Me and some of the ladies at our table

Loaded Lobster Fries
-whole lobster boiled and quickly deep fried, tossed in a garlic butter sauce, and drizzled with a delicious garlic aioli. Served on Cajun fries

The Loaded Lobster Fries arrived next.  This was a whole lobster boiled and quickly deep fried, tossed in a garlic butter sauce, and drizzled with a delicious garlic aioli.  It was served on Cajun fries, red cabbage, and delicious aioli on the side.

This was absolutely divine!  This was the best item of the night (even though it was hard to choose a single contender).  I loved this whole lobster because its meat was so juicy, moist, and perfectly boiled.  It just tasted of perfection!  The garlic butter sauce was perfect with the lobster and didn’t overpower it while the garlic aioli was the perfect dip for the fries and red cabbage.  You have to order this dish!

Look at its massive claws!

Details matter. I love how its claws were holding a lime each

Juicy, juicy lobster tail! ❤

Me loving this Loaded Lobster Fries

Mmm, more chunky lobster tail! It was so easy to pry out of the tail. Cleanly cooked!

Last but certainly not least, we tried The Boiling Harbour’s seafood boils!  We had all been waiting for this all night.  I was so excited!

Vodka shots!

The seafood boil bag!

The plastic bag contained mussels, king crab legs, shrimp, corn, and sausage.  They provided plastic gloves for you but be prepared to use your bare hands at times and lots of napkins as you complete your meal.  It was a messy and finger-licking meal that was so good!  The seafood was just submerged in the sauce that was saucy and had just enough spicy kick to it.  I really enjoyed the king crab legs especially.  It was delicious! 😀

King crab legs creeping out of the bag

Mussels!

Spot the shrimp

Love seafood boils!

Le king crab leg. Delicious

Needless to say, we all left very full and satisfied.  The Boiling Harbour was very generous to provide us with so much fresh seafood that was done perfectly and deliciously.  They open today and I’m excited to see customers leave with good reviews since they have so much potential for being one of the best seafood boil restaurants in the city.

A chance to make ourselves famous on the wall of the The Boiling Harbour! 😛

The Boiling Harbour surfboards

The Boiling Harbour wall

Thank you so much again to Jen, Michael, and the owners and staff of The Boiling Harbour for setting us up with so much good food, hospitality, and an overall amazing foodie night! ❤

The Boiling Harbour menu

The Boiling Harbour menu

The Boiling Harbour business card

The Boiling Harbour storefront

FTC Disclaimer:  Although Jen reached out and invited me to a complimentary tasting to showcase the food at The Boiling Harbour, the opinions expressed here represent my own and not those of the company.