We normally cross the Cooper River Bridge to eat at The Wreck of the Richard & Charlene, a bare-bones but terrific seafood shack in Mt. Pleasant. This time, we continued north on Highway 17 to Seewee, another noted shack, named for a local tribe of Native Americans. I was interested in tasting how they stacked up.

Mary Rancourt opened Seewee in 1993, and her son Kurt Penninger is the current proprietor. The sign outside reads, “Fresh Seafood and Good Home Cooking.” Those are two things I can get behind. Inside, there were classic Coke signs on the wall, alongside a metal cutout of a dog holding a dead duck in its mouth and a wall of bottled sodas, including grape and orange Nehi.

In addition to a profilic printed menu, there were a number of specials listed on a dry erase board, items like stone crab claws, pan-fried grouper with garlic shrimp and pan-roasted duck breast with honey pecan orange glaze. Ordering was agonizing. Not that I’m complaining.

It wasn’t long before I was downing sweet tea and we were all plucking hot, oily hushpuppies from a basket. The pups were a little too oily and crispy for me, but even average fried cornmeal balls still taste good.

We each started with a cup of hearty fish stew ($2.50), a spicy, tomato-based soup with whiting, diced potatoes, and celery.

I ordered a special pan-fried grouper with garlic shrimp ($18.95). Everything came swimming in garlic sauce, which helped keep the fish fillet moist and tender. Garlic-soaked jumbo shrimp were noticeably fresh, just like the sign promised.

My brother’s fried shrimp were huge, thinly-sheathed and damn tasty.

Jane’s grilled shrimp and scallops were served “Seewee style,” expertly-cooked and caramelized.

My father ordered one of the white board specials: Lowcountry chicken, shrimp and sausage over rice ($16.95). It turned out to be a large portion of smoky, spicy jambalaya.

With every entree but the Lowcountry special, we were each entitled to three sides. My fried okra was crisp outside, moist inside. The sweet potato “casserole” amounted to mashed sweet potatoes, sweet and tasty. Mac and cheese arrived in scoop, noodles folded with mild cheddar, dense but good.

For dessert, they were out of peanut butter and sweet potato pies, my first and second choices. I got some serious heat from my family for considering mincemeat pie, even thought it’s composed of some of my favorite things: nuts and dates. I asked the waiter, “Has anybody ever ordered the mincemeat pie?” He responded: “Not on my watch.”

Banana pudding, which the waiter said was “the best around,” was indeed impressive, a cup of creamy, candy-sweet pudding, filled with sliced, fresh bananas and Nilla wafers.

A serious slab of coconut cake was dusted with shredded coconut and spackled with thick coconut frosting.

I’m not usually a caramel fan, but my brother convinced me to try his caramel cake. I liked the flavor of the caramel frosting, but the yellow cake was nothing special.

The Seewee cooks prepared a strong meal, but we couldn’t help but compare everything we ate to The Wreck. The fried shrimp were a push; The Wreck has a cleaner sheathe, but the Seewee shrimp are triple the size. The fish chowder is much better at Seewee, much more satisfying and balanced. The sides and desserts, and range of options, are clearly better at Seewee. But what The Wreck does, they do very well. I might give the edge to The Wreck. Maybe. Thankfully, I don’t have to limit myself to one restaurant.