If you ever watched "Jaws" and quivered, this exotic fish dish is your chance to exact some payback.

I went to Kaieteur Restaurant in Richmond Hill for the seventh installment of the "Quirkiest Cuisines in Queens" series, where I sample the most intriguing ethnic fare that the borough has to offer.

The Guyanese eatery turns a swimmer's worst nightmare into a tasty snack with its fried shark appetizer. Manager Karran Rupansingh said the platter is called a "cutter" in Guyanese slang, which translates to bar snack.

"It's something different. It's not something you can find everywhere," Rupansingh said.

While a shark wandering close to shore may clear out a beach in mere minutes, the shark snacks here draw a loyal following of expats of the South American country. Rupansingh estimates that Kaieteur (pronounced KAI-chur) sells roughly 250 pounds of shark every month.

Richard David, executive director of the Ozone Park-based Indo-Caribbean Alliance, said that in Guyana, shark is eaten mostly in restaurants.

"It's rarer to find people cooking shark in their home. It's the perfect cutter," he said.

I was as eager as a great white smelling blood in the water to sample the fierce fish. The mounds of shark meat are breaded and fried, giving them a glistening golden brown exterior reminiscent of popcorn chicken.

The stark white meat was flaky and soft and had a mild fishy aroma and taste. Rupansingh brought out red snapper and another Guyanese speciality, banga mary fish, for comparison and it had the tamest taste.

Rupansingh told me to watch out for large bones and tough cartilage because Kaieteur uses the entire shark, except for the fin, when making the meal.

Midway through, I resorted to using my hands after finding the knife and fork approach ineffective for navigating the inedible parts. Rupansingh noted that fried shark is a finger-food.

He later urged me to dip a bit of shark meat into their hot pepper sauce, which he said is a staple condiment of virtually every Guyanese meal. A drop of the light red liquid felt like a tiger shark latched onto my tongue.

A fried shark appetizer, with a portion large enough to feed two, costs $10.95. Kaieteur Restaurant is located at 87-12 Lefferts Blvd. in Richmond Hill.

If you know of a Queens eatery that offers something unique and interesting, email QueensNews@nydailynews.com with the words "Quirkiest Cuisines in Queens" in the subject line.

http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_...an_eating_shark.html