Poe’s Tavern on Sullivan’s Island (South Carolina) introduced me to Buffalo Shrimp Tacos but The Boathouse (Isle of Palms) and Jack’s Cosmic Dogs (IOP/Mount Pleasant) introduced me to Bleu Cheese Cole Slaw.

I’ve been making bleu (or blue) cheese coleslaw for years and year. The first time I had it, it was back to back days at the beach. One night while on a family vacation to Isle of Palms, we went to (now) one of our favorite restaurants, The Boathouse. It is located on the inlet side of the island practically right on the bridge that crosses to Sullivan’s Island. I ordered something that came with the coleslaw and I was amazed how good it was with bleu cheese in it. The next day it was a little rainy, so we decided to go for lunch to a place I’d heard of called Jack’s Cosmic Dogs. This place is also amazing. I ordered a hot dog that had bleu cheese coleslaw on it, again blown away. The next week, at home, I made the below recipe which I have blogged many times, but it is still soooo good. In fact, it is the most requested item when I bring food to a party or dinner with friends and family.

Anyway, a few years later on another family vacation to IOP, we ventured one island down to Sullivan’s. They have a number of really good restaurants and Poe’s is one of them. I ordered the buffalo shrimp tacos and they were all I would’ve expected, amazing. I know Poe’s Tavern fries their shrimp but I don’t own a fryer (by design). So I baked my “fried” shrimp and they turned out great.

Ingredients

• 1 lbs fresh local shrimp, peeled, deveined and tailed
• AP Flour
• Egg and milk for egg wash
• Creole seasoning
• Bread Crumbs
• Cooking spray
• Buffalo sauce
• Slaw mix
• Bacon
• Bleu cheese crumbles
• Salt and pepper
• Flour tortillas
• Cilantro
• Lime slices
• Radish (optional for plating)
• Avocado (optional for plating)
• Green onion (optional for plating)

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 400° F. Please bacon on a pan and allow to cook until crispy. Remove and place on a paper towel and allow to cool then slice in julienne strips.
2. In a wide bowl crack and whisk the egg and milk and whisk again. In a gallon zip top bag add flour and season with creole seasoning.
3. Add shrimp (in batches if need be) in zip top bag with seasoned flour and toss to coat. Set aside, remove any extra flour from the bag and add bread crumbs. Add shrimp to the egg wash mixture and coat. Add the coated shrimp to the bread crumbs in the bag. Again toss to coat.  Place shrimp on a baking sheet lined with non-stick aluminum foil. Spray shrimp with cooking spray. Set aside.
4. In a large bowl, add coleslaw mix, coleslaw dressing and bleu cheese. Toss to combine and season with salt and pepper. Set in refrigerator until read to serve. Add bacon and toss again.
5. Bake shrimp at 400° for about 4 minutes on each side or until shrimp turn pink and coating is golden brown. Add buffalo sauce to a large bowl and toss shrimp until coated.

I plated with avocado, thinly sliced radish, green onion, cilantro and lime wedges. All of that added to the experience and the look of the tacos. Enjoy. Thanks Poe’s for the inspiration!