Shell Shack
At Shell Shack, custom seafood
THE CONCEPT
Dallas-born restaurant specializing in boiled seafood dinners, especially a variety of crab, which can be seasoned to a customer’s liking. It is the company’s first Houston outpost with more franchise locations on the way, including one in Katy scheduled to open in early 2019.
THE SPACE
The former Social Junkie building on Washington Avenue, which previously was home to the historic Pig Stand, can accommodate 320 diners with indoor and patio seating on two levels. The décor is no frills, with chalkboards on the wall displaying menu options and market prices. Many television screens throughout make it a great place for sports fans.
THE FOOD
The restaurant’s signature is a customizable dinner of crab, shrimp or crawfish (when in season) that diners can flavor and season to their liking. It goes like this: Choose your shellfish (such as king crab, snow crab, Dungeness crab or bairdi crab, the kind seen on Discovery Channel’s “Deadliest Catch”), which is boiled. Then pick a flavored marinade (liquid margarine combined with seasonings such as Cajun, garlic, lemon pepper or a trifecta of all three) and a spicy heat level that can range from no heat to “diablo.” Add-ins, such as corn, sausage and potatoes, can go into the mix. The menu’s other options are fried seafood platters, sandwiches, salads, raw and fried oysters, chowder and gumbo, and starters such as crab-stuffed tater tots, fried calamari, fried alligator tenders, fried crawfish tails and chicken wings.
THE DRINKS
A variety of local craft beers on tap, wine and cocktails such as Shell Shack Tea (sweet tea vodka, lemon juice, simple syrup, Coke and Sprite), Mi Shellada (Dos Equis and Bloody Mary mix), Hurricane Shack (rums with passion fruit syrup, pineapple juice, orange juice and grenadine) and Shell Shack Mama (spiced rum, dark rum, coconut rum, banana liqueur, pineapple juice, orange juice and grenadine). There is also the Knob Creek barrel program with special aged bourbon that is served in a glass with an ice sphere.
ONE MORE THING
If you are a neat freak, take heed: Seafood boils are served with bibs and gloves for those who like to keep the mess to a minimum. There’s even a nifty hand-washing station near the hostess stand that scrubs fingers clean of butter and spices.
THE DETAILS
2412 Washington, 832-998-8000; shellshack.com. Open daily 11 a.m. to 2 a.m. with kitchen serving until 1 a.m.