It’s officially summer, so why not head to the beach? It’s nice to get out of the city, feel the sea breeze pushing an ocean mist into your face, dig your feet into the sand and feel the grains hide between your toes.

 Well, now you can get the same sea-vibes close to home at Port Richmond’s newest restaurant, Bait & Switch, a seafood themed bar that takes you from Philadelphia and sets you into a Cape Cod-like beach getaway that does not disappoint.

 From the same folks who brought Loco Pez to Fishtown, Bait & Switch has added a classic sense of flavor to the neighborhood north of Lehigh. The restaurant sits at the corner of Belgade and Somerset (2537 E. Somerset St.) in Port Richmond. Bait & Switch gives their guests a sense of coziness that assures them nothing short of a great experience.  

  Inside the eatery, the hardwood floor looks as though beach sand and sun has worn it down for ages. The ceiling, open to the building’s beams (a trent in the city) actually works well here. Famous fish from history are displayed on a shelf alongside a wall adorned with noble captains, such as The Skipper from Gilligan’s Island, Jean-Luc Picard from Star Trek and, my personal favorite, Kurt Russel from the hit 1992 classic, Captain Ron.

  The Happy Hour Ahoy is reason enough to visit Bait & Switch. With $1 oysters, half-priced draft beers, $4 Schuylkill Punch (we’ll get to that later), $5 red and white wines, their happy hour is certainly worth the trip.

 Happy hour features half-off on the Bait Bucket, which is a dish of Old Bay French Fries topped with Cheese Curds and New England Clam Chowder. Is this the New England version of gravy fries? Ocean gravy fries? Imagine Crab Fries from Chickie’s & Pete’s, but instead of simply being fries with Old Bay seasoning, Bait & Switch adds the sharp flavor of cheese curds tossed with fresh clams and chowder. This is Crab Fries times 1,000. My order didn’t come in a bucket as advertised on the menu, which was a bummer because I was excited to see that. However, the Bait Bucket was still my favorite dish of the evening and is a must-order if you go.

  I also recommend the Schuylkill Punch — a drink consisting of Farber Light Rum and Myers’s Dark Rum, guava, lime and a house made grenadine. Farber is a distillery located in Quakertown, Pa., and Myers Dark Rum is a Jamaican rum. These two liquors — when mixed with the sweet hint of guava, lime and grenadine — make for a tropical, yet northern special that goes down quicker and smoother than the Titanic. I ordered quite a few while I was there and sure did not regret it.

  For dinner I ordered the Shrimp Fry, which came with Mexican Golden Shrimp, two sides and two sauces for $17. For my sides I ordered Hush Puppies and the seasonal vegetable, which was broccoli. For my two sauces I ordered cocktail sauce and tartar sauce, but received two orders of tartar (no biggie, I like tartar sauce and I used both, almost needing a third).

 Bait & Switch does a great job of giving you classic seafood. The shrimp was perfectly cooked, crunchy and soft, and the hush puppies were some of the best I’ve had in the city. The broccoli was cooked very nicely, but I would love to try them grilled, not because I didn’t like them, but because I know Bait & Switch would do a great job with grilling them. Along with their Shrimp Fry, the menu features Fish and Chips, Shrimp and Grits or Taco Pezcado, which is blackened fish, spicy super slaw, salsa verde and crema.

  Obviously, dessert is a must when dining out. I recommend Bait & Switch’s Key Lime Pie, which the menu states is “Momma’s original 1914 recipe!” The pie is big enough to share, but not too daunting to eat entirely by yourself. Having spent six years in Florida, I’ve had quite a few key lime pies in my day, so I feel it’s fair for me to say Bait & Switch does this dessert right. Usually Key Lime Pie comes in a slice from a bigger pie, but having a personal one with a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top was the end to a wonderful night.

  This restaurant is going to be a new pearl in the city and you’ll want to go there the next chance you get.