Troy Clayton, owner and chef of the popular Geranio Ristorante in Old Town Alexandria has just opened his third restaurant at the Occoquan Harbour Marina. This spacious 400-seat restaurant is much like Clayton’s second restaurant, The Landing and Waterfront Bar at Coles Point Marina on the Potomac River. Each restaurant has a waterfront bar with beautiful views of boats and the river. Both restaurants have an inside bar in case of bad weather as well as covered patios.

Clayton has partnered with marina owners Dick and Lisa Krauss and Dick Lynn to bring a unique dining experience to Woodbridge and Occoquan. The menu is a combination of the fine food served at Geranio as well as new seafood creations. We sampled the roasted shrimp with garlic, chili and extra virgin olive oil over grilled country bread. The shrimp were large and plump with a very unique taste. The pairing with the bread made for a tasty and substantial appetizer.

We were sitting at the outdoor Tiki bar, which has their own menu and offers fewer items than are available in the dining room. However, with a little cajoling with our friend Troy, I was able to have the Crab Cake Dinner served at the bar. The two crab cakes were served with sweet potato fries, wilted spinach and a lemon butter sauce. The cakes were full of lump meat and lightly seasoned for a wonderful taste. These crab cakes are always served baked, as they are too delicate to stand up to frying. The lemon butter was a nice change from the obligatory cocktail sauce. The spinach was done just right and the sweet potato fries were a real treat. My companion ordered the Angus Burger with Aged Cheddar and Bacon. You might think that a hamburger is just a hamburger, but this baby was truly a “cheeseburger in paradise”. Maybe it was the marina setting, but this burger tasted great.

As I mentioned earlier, there is a substantial representation of Geranio Ristorante on the Landings menu. For this I am grateful, as Geranio is one of our favorite Old Town haunts. The menu includes Seared Shrimp Linguini, Saffron Risotto with fresh Asparagus, Geranio Lobster Risotto with #1 Maine Lobster, Grilled Atlantic Salmon, Oven Roasted Pork Loin, Seared Sea Scallops, and the list goes on.

The indoor bar has 25 seats and high tops and booths scattered throughout the room. The adjoining dining room has comfortable booths as well as table seating. One side of the dining room looks directly out at the marina and river. Outside there is a large deck with tables for your dining pleasure. This is referred to as the Front Porch and is also near the aforementioned Tiki Bar! This is a great place for a lazy afternoon and some great food and tasty cocktails.

Getting to the restaurant can be accomplished by taking Route 1 all the way down to the Occoquan River across the bridge and taking a right onto Annapolis Way. Go past the gravel yard and look for the signage to the marina on the right. For more detailed directions log on to www.thelandingrestaurants.com or call 703-910-6641.

Written by: Bob Tagert