When a cooking disaster strikes just before a big dinner party, those who know about River Falls Market have somewhere to turn. River Falls is an emporium of fresh fish, fresh meat and prepared foods. The store sells a small selection of wine, beer and organic vegetables, but the focus is on the top-quality fish counter and gleaming display cases of gourmet take-home items, from starters through dessert.
Owner Jeff Grolig, a 21-year veteran of the seafood industry, opened River Falls in 1999. "I knew that my background was seafood, but the trends were toward home meal replacement: prepared foods that we cook, and people take home," Grolig said. "I knew that was the trendy thing, and I had to seize on that." The store now has two chefs in two kitchens preparing more tantalizing dishes than customers can possibly try in a single visit.
The giant 6-ounce Cadillac crab cakes ($9.95 each), the store's most popular item, are tough to turn down. Grolig developed the recipe after learning that customers desired big chunks of crab meat. The paprika-dusted cakes balance perfectly with the caper- and dill-infused tomato tartar sauce. Salmon cakes are alluring, a mix of fresh and smoked salmon. With its subtle tingle, horseradish-crusted salmon ($21.99 a pound) is a delicious choice, but crab-stuffed tilapia ($13.95 each) and Parmesan cheese-crusted sole fillet ($21.99 a pound) also beckon.
For snacking, the jambalaya ($11.99 a pound) packs a punch, with spicy chorizo sausage and succulent shrimp. Shrimp lovers can also try steamed jumbo shrimp ($21.99 a pound) and the popular Old Bay-laced spiced jumbo shrimp ($23.99 a pound). Side dishes include Greek vegetable salad ($9.99 a pound) and a lemony orzo salad with arugula, pine nuts and eggplant ($9.99 a pound).
Delicate scallion-topped chicken dumplings (50 cents each), soups ($7.95 to $11.95 a quart) and a juicy half-slab of ribs ($8.99) are among tempting non-fish items, and the daily dessert, recently an apple crisp ($4.99 per portion; a portion serves 2) tops things off. For the lunchtime crowd, the market sells a small selection of packaged salads and sandwiches ($4.95 to $7.95).
And for those who prefer not to host dinner parties, River Falls recently acquired neighboring restaurant Renato's and will add crab cakes and other River Falls fare to the restaurant's signature dishes in January.
-- Erin Hartigan (Oct. 4, 2006)
