Trident Galley & Raw Bar

Whether it's just been shucked.

"Raw bar is the freshest seafood you can get."

Or recently plucked.

"You can't get much more local than this.  Just come outside and pick them whenever you need em."

Chef Brian Houlihan's cooking style is always fresh.

"My style of cooking has always been the same.   It’s basically dealing with the ingredients that are available at the moment, so local sustainable ingredients- that are right at our doorsteps here. As well as the obviously local seafood."

And at Trident Galley and Raw Bar, he's bringing creative food and a fun mood to the Hingham Shipyard. 

"It's a really cool setting.  We decorated with oyster shells and um driftwood, and kind of took. You know the views from out our window here is what kind of encapsulates the whole restaurant.  We want people to be able to come in in flip flops and shorts, but still have kind of an elevated experience."

And you know that experience is going to be above and beyond the second you approach Trident- where you're greeted by Brian's herb garden.

"This is our herb garden, we grow all our herbs for our restaurants right here on the premise. We can keep them fresh and plentiful all summer long."

Once you step foot inside, you'll find Trident's beautiful- but busy, oyster bar- where the offerings span way beyond bivalves.

"I just think that raw bar means more than clams and oysters. It's also a couple of creative raw dishes. Like our poke, our ceviches, lomi lomi."

If you prefer your seafood cooked, Trident has all of the classics lining the starters section- from creamy chowder loaded up with fresh clams and potatoes and then garnished with steamed littlenecks and fried clams to plump oysters flash fried so they're juicy in the middle and crispy on the outside.  And your typical lobster roll gets upgrade with the addition of bacon, lettuce and tomato. 

"The lobster BLT starts with..the local Scituate lobster and the lemon aioli, on a buttered brioche bun served with um a crisp smoked bacon just some bib lettuce, some fresh tomatoes.  Quite a good little delectable BLT."

And it doesn't have to be Tuesday to chow down on a fish taco- made with whatever seafood is coming off the boat that day.   

"Tacos are huge.  They're easy to pick up, they're easy to eat, they're light. You've got some crisp fried fish, along with the corn tortilla, your homemade fresh pico de gallo, a little chimichurri, a little mayo , and it's just, you know, it's just a lot of different flavors in one bite."

As for the entrees, there are perfectly seared scallops- fresh out of Scituate harbor....

And Portuguese fish stew loaded up with Chatham clams, local mussels, lobster, fish and chorizo for some heat.  

"It's got a little bit.  I don't want to overspice it and take away the flavors of the seafood, but the broth itself's got a little kick."

And check this out: a Red Curry broth gives lobster an Asian spin.

"It's a red curry broth, thickened with you know, root vegetables, a little bit of red curry paste, a little bit of coconut milk, just spicy enough but not overly spicy that it's going to take away from the, the luscious flavor of the local lobster."

And if you happen by Trident on the weekends, you can find that craveable crustacean served as a benedict. 

"We try to use lobster in a couple different guises...one being the lobster benny which is, you know, an english muffin, topped with a you know, half of a lobster basically...nice poached egg and some homemade hollandaise." 

But for the purists, there's the Lobster Bake. 

"Fresh lobster cooked alongside some littleneck clams, some mussels, a little bit of chorizos in there and potatoes and corn.  It's quintessential New England. You're sitting here and you're watching the yachts come in and out of the harbor. Might bring you back to your childhood when you were just, splitting lobster bakes at the table. Very simple way- very simple social way of eating. Just kind of tear it apart and dig right in."

If you're more of a meat lover, Trident has you covered with a beautiful Bone In Ribeye.

"It's a dry-edge bone-in ribeye that we just season simply, grilled served with our homemade demiglaze. A little chimichurri sauce, we just let it speak for itself, but it's a great piece of meat."   

But Brian is really known for his duck- and he's lined the menu with creative dishes like Duck Confit Hash served at brunch and Duck Confit Grilled Cheese you can get anytime.  

"Duck grilled cheese is amazing. It's grilled sour dough bread. With a mixture of cheeses. We got a little bit of homemade hot sauce. Our crisp duck confit.  When you pull it apart.  It'll string right up, and it's what you'd expect out of a grilled cheese with-the added ingredient of duck."

And while growing, sourcing, cooking and serving customers day in and day out may seem taxing, to this chef, it's hardly work. 

"I love doing this. Obviously I've been doing this since I was child, cooking in Ireland coming over here working in the city and I just love working for myself. As my father always said, 'if you enjoy what you're doing everyday, you'll never work a day in your life."