Hook, now open on M Street in Georgetown, is a restaurant focused on serving “responsibly sourced seafood and local products.” We loved the idea, but naturally had a few doubts. Like: "is it going to cost me an entire week’s worth of pay to dine at another overpriced trendy Georgetown restaurant?" Or, "is there going to be a pretentious presence about the place because they are focused on sustainable seafood and feel that everyone should?" Well, we are happy to report that all skeptics have been put to rest.

Executive Chef, Barton Seaver, and Pure Hospitality group have managed to achieve their goal of serving sustainable seafood in a deliciously creative way. In doing “research” for this article we decided just to sit in the lounge area and order multiple small plates to make sure we had a wide range of choices. Our first catch was a crudo selection. This section of the menu consists of about 8 different types of fish, served raw with a different topping on each. The diner gets a choice of any three of the 8, for $8. This, with a glass of Prosecco, was the perfect way to start things off. We then ordered three different appetizers. The arctic char with molasses glaze and goat cheese was perfectly balanced between the sweetness of the glaze and the acidity of the cheese. The whole grilled calamari with potato salad was definitely heartier than our other selections. But since we already featured a Calamari dish a few weeks ago we decided on the Grilled Shrimp with stewed white beans with fennel and basil. This dish is also a good way to kick of grilling season!

Hook is definitely on to something and we hope that more restaurants will follow their lead into supporting local agriculture and preserving the environment, all while making it delectable and fun. Oh, and in case anyone was wondering our total for two crudo plates, three appetizers, a heavenly dessert of donut holes and Nutella sauce, with a few glasses of wine came in just under $100 and we were left very satisfied.

Shopping List:
1 cup dried or canned white beans (the restaurant used cannelini, we used navy)
1 bulb Fennel
½ bunch of Fresh Basil
1 clove garlic
12 size 16/20 shrimp, preferably peeled
Olive Oil

Recipe:
1. If using dried beans, soak beans for a few hours but overnight is best.

2. Pour beans and soaking water into a pot. Make sure the beans are covered about 1 inch with water, adding more water if necessary. Cover with a lid and bring to a simmer.

3. While the beans are simmering, thinly slice 1 bulb of fennel and chop 1 clove of garlic. Add these with about ½ tsp. of salt to the beans and continue simmer. Simmer everything until the beans and fennel are very tender, about 1-1½ hours. If using canned beans, sauté the fennel and garlic until tender. Add the beans and 1 cup of water and simmer for about 15 mins. Season with salt and pepper.

4. Chop ½ bunch of basil and stir into the beans.

5. Peel and de-vein the shrimp, if necessary. Toss the shrimp in a bowl with a little olive oil, salt and pepper. Heat grill to a high temp and grill shrimp about 3 minutes on each side.

6. Place a spoonful of beans onto each plate and top with shrimp. Drizzle each plate with a little extra virgin olive oil.

*Serves 4 people, appetizer size portions.