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Wyland's Ocean Blue

A sea-loving artist's resto adds to your land-blubber

Sun-Thur 4pm-midnight, Fri-Sat 4pm-2am: In the Village at Fairview, 311 Town Place; Fairview; 972.549.4007

Obsessives become beloved when they let others into their world, as Willy Wonka did with his factory tour, and Jay Leno is doing with his "Joyride My Gallardo" program. Wait, no? But it was just sitting there behind those custom mahogany doors operated by next-generation fingerprint access... Filling your belly with his own tireless preoccupation, the man behind Wyland's Ocean Blue, open now.

Elaborately conjuring the sea with azure mood lighting and expert aquatic-life renderings set off by twin aquariums and a bronze dolphin-guarded waterfall, Ocean's part surf-n-turf mecca, part gallery for the one-named artist behind downtown D's building-size whale mural, who partnered with a marine-centric Floridian on this massive restaurant in order "to enjoy all the beautiful things the sea provides for us while spreading awareness" -- so count on catching the latter unless you double-bag your mind.

Executed by an ex-Oceanaire/Pappas Bros chef, the menu kicks off with the "Crab & Shrimp Stack" (w/ avocado, mango & micro-green tropical-fruit puree) and poblano-Bearnaise chicken-fried oysters w/ andouille, then dives deeper with mains from citrus-beurre-blanc blackened "Halibut Oscar" (w/ seared scallops in addition to the crab) to "Triton's Fra Diavolo": lobster tail, scallops, shrimp, mussels, & calamari over linguini drenched in spicy lobster stock (for the seafood speculator in you). Because non-gilled creatures also deserve to be feasted on, there are apps like goat cheese/chipotle-hoisin bbq-duck flatbread, plus fatter fare like jerk-seasoned pork osso bucco and a range of steaks toppable with cheese, crab, lobster tail, or horseradish crust (ask for "horseradish crusty" and you'll look like a clown).

The dual boozers ("Whale Bar" and "Fish Tank Bar") sling 14 bottled beers, 16 house cocktails like the Maestro Dobel-Cointreau-Grenadine-pineapple-OJ "Sting Ray", and a rotating wine list that includes Wyland Cellars -- drink enough of that, and you'll belove everybody.

Bar happy hour 4-7 & 9-11 -