# Civic Matters > Suburban & Other OK Communities > Norman >  The Big Tuna Fish Joint

## badfish77

Just heard the new HSRG restaurant is going to be opening Jan. 23. I heard they were keeping things moderately priced and will have fresh oysters along with other fish flown in.

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## BoulderSooner

lacation?

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## kevinpate

Brookhaven Square NW 36 and W Robinson, east and  south of Panda Garden

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## pure

yep, the old Cha Cha's location.

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## jbkrems

Has this place opened yet ?  Has anyone been there yet ?

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## Jersey Boss

> Has this place opened yet ?  Has anyone been there yet ?


See first post in thread.

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## badfish77

Got some friends working here. Scoop is that it will be counter service like the Garage on Main St., bar will be full service. All food is priced between $7-$12 except for oysters which are delivered daily at $16 a dz. I dunno of anyplace around with fresh oysters except Pearls N. Okc. Anyways. Bar drinks start at $3.50 lots of shot specials at $2.50 happy hour everyday $1.75 domestics 3-7pm. Thursday and friday lunch and dinner are soft opening dates, spots will fill quick if not already filled. Never hurts to try and make a reservation, official opening is next monday. Phone is 928-5250 I believe if you want to try and make reservations.

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## RadicalModerate

I will give them one chance and one chance only to prove that the food is as good as the name is clever.
One chance only.
One.

(Nothing will make you sicker faster than bad "fresh" fish.
Not counting "pink chicken" of course . . .)

All kidding aside, this sounds exactly like the sort of fish place I've been hoping for for a long time.)

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## badfish77

Had dinner here tonight. Oysters were great, very fresh. Spicy shrimp tacos were excellent. Fried catfish second only to cajun king IMHO. Apparently they're accepting limited walkins on their final day of soft opening (friday). Food and drink are free, so if you can make lunch or dinner friday, try it out.

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## britishbornusachick

great food! fresh (obvious) prepared. had the salmon poboy. mmmm the in house aloi dressing is wonderful. hubby had baked salmon he loved it. rum pecan pie had real rum in it. was totally yummy! a welcome change from red lobster. :Smile:  next time will have fish n chips.and am exoecting it to be great since tonights meal was! only complaint is bizarre system of having to order at counter, pay in advance and then pay bar tab separately. a bit of a hassle but the food makes up for it. i will return and soon!!!!!!    mgr pls consider putting corn tortillas on the menu and or corn tortilla chips for us celiac folks!!!

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## positano

If you're someone who's been waiting for Long John Silvers to get a bar, wait no more...

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## rcjunkie

> If you're someone who's been waiting for Long John Silvers to get a bar, wait no more...


You must be talking about a different Big Tuna, LJS is nowhere near the quality this place serves. The catfish poorboy is a must have. and the onion rings are some of the best I've ever had.

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## Roadhawg

Sounds good..  I'll have to give this place a try

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## positano

> You must be talking about a different Big Tuna, LJS is nowhere near the quality this place serves. The catfish poorboy is a must have. and the onion rings are some of the best I've ever had.


Actually not, but I was definitely being a smart a$$.  I was just really disappointed - probably had the wrong expectations going in.  If you prefer fried food, you might like it.  I've eaten here several times now, and have yet to find anything worth ordering again (but have not tried the catfish).  If you're looking for a seafood restaurant, you too will be disappointed.  That being said, I found it to be a great bar / patio to hang out and have a drink, and think the food was more equivalent to decent bar food.  To each his / her own.

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## badfish77

There is an abundance of fried food but a couple non fried items I've tried that stand out are  the lemon pepper tilapia, asian glazed salmon, bird on a bed (chicken breast with some kind of portabello mushroom cream sauce), and the blackened fish sandwich. Some exceptional sides as well like the grilled veggies, squash rockafeller, and green chile rice. I live close so I've gotten to know the menu. Anyways if you havent tried it, check it out. If you tried it once and didnt like what you got, how about another chance before you start putting the place down.

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## positano

[QUOTE=badfish77;511560If you tried it once and didnt like what you got, how about another chance before you start putting the place down.[/QUOTE]

I wasn't sure if you were referring to my negative review, but if so, I've been there about 6 times (kids like it) and ordered differently each time.  I would suspect at the status quo the place won't make it more than a year or so, which is a shame. It's great having patio options (like Louie's) in the area.  FWIW, I hear the same reviews from more than half of the folks I've heard talk about it.  No doubt the numbers will be good through the spring and summer, but come next fall will be the real test.

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## redone2010

I give this place two fins up. I ate there last week with a friend. He ate there before, but he is a landlubber, so I had to check it out for myself. Since I am a Native Floridian, I've eaten at some of, probably, the best seafood joints in the country. While I am used to a greater variety of fish, I really enjoyed the tuna entree I got at big tuna. Also, my friend was kind enough to share his salmon. It was pretty good.  Overall, I enjoyed the food and will definitely go back. My only hope is that big tuna expands its menu to include fish like snapper, grouper, flounder, mahi mahi, or redfish, just to name a few.

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## badfish77

This place is officially closed for business.

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## rcjunkie

> This place is officially closed for business.


lasted much longer then I expected, bad food and horrible service = closure.

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## positano

> lasted much longer then I expected, bad food and horrible service = closure.


How soon did you notice it going downhill since your February review?  The only change I ever noticed was the attempt to go to traditional full service in the evenings.

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## kevinpate

Only made it by once myself.  It was a good eve out with some friends.  

Oh well, there's not really a shortage of places to go in town.  I do sorta wonder who might roll their dice next for that location.  
So many things have imploded there over the years despite their best intentions.

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## rcjunkie

> How soon did you notice it going downhill since your February review?  The only change I ever noticed was the attempt to go to traditional full service in the evenings.


I had two visit's shortly after my Feb. visit and the decline in quality and service was very evident.

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## BoulderSooner

that is a great spot for a bar ..  champions was solid in this location

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## soonerguru

Another Hal Smith special?

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## ou48A

Too bad…. I went 3 times and enjoyed it.

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## RadicalModerate

I regret the fact that I was too lazy or preoccupied to miss the opportunity to be disappointed.
The Restaurant Game: Tougher To Win Than Playing "Go" Blindfolded.
Perhaps a Window of Opportunity Has Been Opened for a DQ Player?

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## NoOkie

That's a shame, I commute down to Norman and work out of our office in the same shopping center once a week.

Was a nice place to walk to for lunch.  I enjoyed the fish and chips the couple of times I went.

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## ShiroiHikari

Aw man, I kinda liked this place. I guess that's just not a good location for a restaurant?

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## JimTrabersColostomyBag

> Aw man, I kinda liked this place. I guess that's just not a good location for a restaurant?


Panda Garden, Louie's, Mazzio's, City Bites.... I guess that's right

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## Roger S

I think the OP meant that spot in particular.

There are a couple of other buildings in OKC that seem to be restaurant black holes but are surrounded by other successful eateries.

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## JimTrabersColostomyBag

> I think the OP meant that spot in particular.
> 
> There are a couple of other buildings in OKC that seem to be restaurant black holes but are surrounded by other successful eateries.


I know, I was just being a smart ass...... it's similar to the spot in front of the west side Wal-Mart.......

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## Roger S

> it's similar to the spot in front of the west side Wal-Mart.......


Yep... I can understand why Slim Chickens didn't make it there. I wouldn't cross the road to eat that chicken, but I sure thought J.R. was doing pretty good business at that location.

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## kevinpate

> Yep... I can understand why Slim Chickens didn't make it there. I wouldn't cross the road to eat that chicken, but I sure thought J.R. was doing pretty good business at that location.


Never a fan of JR Q, but a long time fan of Jim Ross.  

Keep in mind, that spot in front of Wal-Mart, even a doughnut shop fell out. _A doughnut shop, in front of a wal-mart_.  Think on that a moment.  Is there any other place such a shop should of had assured success in Norman ... well, maybe next door to NPD.

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## Roger S

Not just any donut shop but............................... a Krispy Kreme! 

I'm sure it jacked up traffic for days when it opened.

JR's BBQ was good for what it was. I wouldn't drive across the state to eat it but if I was in Norman I would stop in for some pulled pork nachos.

I ran into Jim Ross ordering Q to go at Ray's Smokehouse last August.

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## badfish77

Heard a rumor that it might be used for a K. Durant place in Norman, but theyre still just talking. Nothing decided yet, might even give the building up completely.

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## Monkeypony

Closed! 
the food was o k but the service was ridiculous! for one, you ordered your food at the counter, paid, and then they brought it to your table. aTHEN you had to go to the bar to get your drinks. At all this, you paid full service prices!  It was a silly set up, We brought this to the mgrs attention and he blew us off. apparently it was owned by these three guys who obviously couldnt decide who was in charge.... so as i predicted. Adios Amigos....a successful businessman listens to his customers.

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## mattjank

Sorry to bring back a dead thread, but does anyone know what is going in to their old space? There have been large tow-away dumpsters parked out front for a few weeks now.

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## Roger S

I don't know but I hope it's not another restaurant because that's another location that seems to be a restaurant black hole.

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## kevinpate

I haven't heard on the BTF spot.  The now former Panda Garden is slated to become a retail clothing location (not sure who). The folks with Panda continue to operate their east Norman location off 12th and Alameda, but closed the west side location at the end of March when the lease could was not renewed.

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## ereid

It will be a new restaurant in the Big Tuna spot. Word on the street is it will be called Pub W.

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## Roger S

> It will be a new restaurant in the Big Tuna spot. Word on the street is it will be called Pub W.


Well hopefully it will succeed and a year from now we won't be having this same conversation again.

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## positano

June 24ish is the targeted opening date.

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## RadicalModerate

Pub W. . . . . . would it be too much to hope that W stands for Walleye?

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## ereid

Pub W opens July 16

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## ereid

Here's the link to their website. PubW We were also told they will have 24 beers on tap & 50 bottles.

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## pure

Anyone know when this it to open? Also, what kind of pub closes at 11 PM?!

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## jedicurt

> Anyone know when this it to open? Also, what kind of pub closes at 11 PM?!


and if you look at their website... are they really only open for an hour on sundays?  from 10pm to 11pm???


EDIT:  But if you read the about us, it says 11am-2am everyday... which goes against what the times on the top of the page say

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## ereid

They are delayed. The new opening date is tentatively scheduled for July 23.

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