Hell Point Seafood: Not hell, but not heaven either

I went to Hell Point Seafood downtown Annapolis for dinner the other day. It occupies the space down by the Harbor where Phillip's used to be. I had been dying to go, because it is owned by Bob Kinkead, of Kinkead's in DC, but the food is supposedly one-third the price. It's about one-third as good, too. Don't get me wrong. I'm not being too critical; Kinkead's is pretty good. I actually have a quasi-mathematical justification for the one-third figure. I had three courses, so one might think that only one of three were good. However, one would be wrong. The soup and dessert were both good, but the main course was eh. I think that the main course should be weighted more heavily especially at a restaurant that specializes in seafood, so it should count for two-thirds. The highlight of dinner was the tomatillo soup. It had nice large chunks of tuna in it and a really nice spice, which was surprising. I don't remember the soup being described on the menu as spicy, but it was; not truly spicy, but spicy in comparison to what passes for spicy at most restaurants. The runner-up course was dessert, an apple tart tatin. It was good, but not the most imaginative thing in the world; certainly no tastier than a good homemade apple pie. I had flounder for my main course. The crabcakes were over $30, so I didn't want to spring for them. I didn't get tuna; although I like it a lot, it's so commonplace, and like scallops, it's one of those things that's usually good as long as its fresh. The flounder was disappointing. It was encrusted in cornmeal, I think (can't remember). It wasn't particularly flavorful or moist without the sauce (which I'm having trouble remembering now). Everyone else seemed pleased with their entrees (tuna and scallops), but I was expecting better given the Hell Point's relationship to Kinkead's, especially because seafood restaurants in Annapolis need to bring their "A" game, since Annapolis is a coastal town. Lest I forget that part of this blog is about coffee, I will note in parting that the coffee was almost bad. It was extremely strong, which I like, but tasted like it had been burnt or sitting for awhile. I probably won't go back because the food didn't impress me enough to justify the expense.