Princeton Seafood Restaurant & Market is located in Princeton, California — not the other Princeton, where Einstein lived. This Princeton is a half hour drive down the Pacific coast from San Francisco. The small town is home to an active fishing port, and it is a refreshing getaway from Silicon Valley and suburbia that lies over the hills to the east.

Princeton Seafood is a little quirky. They have a regular restaurant, a service window with outdoor tables, and a seafood market. The service is always friendly, and always confused, as if it is the first day on the job for half the staff. No matter, the food is reliably fresh and well-prepared.

We went seeking oysters on a brisk winter day. Calling the day cold would be an insult to all the people who know what cold really is, but for Californians it was chilly. Job one is deciding what goes with fried seafood on such a day. Mint tea turned out to be a choice worth remembering. The bright flavor compliments fried food.

Fried oysters are deservedly classic seaside cuisine. Just as marshmallows go with campfires, fried oysters go with harbors. Princeton Seafood does them as well as they can be done, fresh oysters with a crunchy crust. No too much batter, but enough to preserve the juicy oysters and to crunch well.

Cole slaw has great potential, but why is it that few seafood restaurants get beyond cabbage dampened with vinegar? Great cole slaw has a creamy sweet-and-sour dressing. But here, as with nearly all West Coast seafood restaurants, it was just damp cabbage. I suggest prompt government action to remedy this situation.

Princeton Seafood also serves up fried artichoke hearts, a regional specialty that is, for reasons I cannot imagine, becoming less common. They do them well, and if you have the opportunity, this the place to add them to your list of culinary conquests.

After lunch, a walk out on the pier by the restaurant seems mandatory.