By: marid4061
8/11/2024 6:08 PM
We have some friends joining us later this week while we are on vacation here in Nags Head. Is there anywhere we can go out to eat and get a seafood boil for dinner? We don't want to order it to go or prepare it at home, we want to find a restaurant that has it on their menu. I have looked at so many restaurants and can't find any of them that offer it. I don't want to go as far as Hatteras, but Corolla or Manteo would work as well.
LikeQuoteFlag
By: Tim-OBX
8/12/2024 8:27 AM
I have never seen it offered on a eat-in menu, only as a carry out or as in a cook at home thing.
LikeQuoteFlag
By: marid4061
8/12/2024 8:37 AM
Thank you, Tim. As many years as we have been coming here, I have never seen it on a menu anywhere either. It was a birthday dinner request and they will have to either get it to go or change their dinner request!
LikeQuoteFlag
By: mikey
8/12/2024 9:18 AM
maybe fat crabs in corolla. Never been there though, and don't know how big the dine in section is.
LikeQuoteFlag
By: Mstaszew
8/12/2024 9:59 AM
We have some friends joining us later this week while we are on vacation here in Nags Head. Is there anywhere we can go out to eat and get a seafood boil for dinner? We don't want to order it to go or prepare it at home, we want to find a restaurant that has it on their menu. I have looked at so many restaurants and can't find any of them that offer it. I don't want to go as far as Hatteras, but Corolla or Manteo would work as well.
I've not used them, but Outer Banks Boil Company says they'll cater at your location. Maybe have them bring it to your house so you can just eat without the fuss of having to deal with it. The cost of catering would be offset somewhat by not having to buy drinks at the restaurant if that's your thing.
LikeQuoteFlag
By: Tim-OBX
8/12/2024 10:31 AM
We have some friends joining us later this week while we are on vacation here in Nags Head. Is there anywhere we can go out to eat and get a seafood boil for dinner? We don't want to order it to go or prepare it at home, we want to find a restaurant that has it on their menu. I have looked at so many restaurants and can't find any of them that offer it. I don't want to go as far as Hatteras, but Corolla or Manteo would work as well.I've not used them, but Outer Banks Boil Company says they'll cater at your location. Maybe have them bring it to your house so you can just eat without the fuss of having to deal with it. The cost of catering would be offset somewhat by not having to buy drinks at the restaurant if that's your thing.
Outer Banks Boil does a lunch thing with the seafood boil for our office a couple times a year, I am not a fan of it but those that are love it.
LikeQuoteFlag
By: Alexy
8/12/2024 2:37 PM
I do not think I would enjoy a crab boil at a sit down restaurant. They are always long social events that span a few hours so you can eat and socialize at your pace and excuse yourself as needed for other things like yard games, fishing,volleyball etc..
That said a catered one would be a fun thing since the "boilers" are usually the hosts and for some reason we always end up being the hosts.
I will say hatteras island seafood boils seems to do well. They catered a neighbors wedding and it was well done.
Like +4QuoteFlag
By: Pickle
8/13/2024 6:36 AM
Generally the "Boil" is more of a special big gathering meal and is uniquely served/spread over a table lined with Newspaper. To stay true to "Tradition" it would be a nightmare to serve at a Restaurant. Just as "Hard Crabs" (Blue Claws) are not common in local Restaurants. You need a Dozen per person to make a meal. Where do you put them. FYI, Food Lion sells a Crab Boil package for $49.99. However I don't think that would include the "Turkey Fryer" Pot to do the Boil. I guess you can use a large Lobster Pot.
LikeQuoteFlag
By: Greg MD
8/13/2024 8:26 AM
The problem with finding a boil at a restaurant is how it is prepared. A very large pot of water with a basket is brought to a boil, which takes a very large burner to get it going. The water is transformed into a delicious broth with the addition of sausages, vegetables, mushrooms, citrus and seasonings. The broth itself can take an hour to develop. Then the seafood is added incrementally, by how long each type takes to cook. You want it all to be finished cooking at the same time. It has to be closely watched to adjust the heat after each seafood addition to keep it boiling, without boiling over. The basket is then pulled out, drained and spread down the center of a table of guests. So cooking time is maybe an hour and a half from boiling the water to spreading on the table. Consuming it all could take just as long.
So now maybe that helps to understand the time and cost of preparing a seafood boil in a restaurant. It can't be made ahead and reheated or that would be a major flop.
The only alternative I see would be find a restaurant that serves a low country corn, sausage and potato dish and also serves steamed seafood. Then one person orders crab, one person orders shrimp and one person orders clams and y'all share with each other. Not the same, but maybe close enough? Dirty Dicks in Avon offers what they call a Trinity Platter that includes enough of the above for two.
LikeQuoteFlag
By: WaveRunner93
8/13/2024 12:05 PM
I Got Your Crabs doesn’t do an all together boil in the restaurant but you can sort of DIY it by ordering different types of steamers and they have corn, potatoes, etc. available as sides.
Like +2QuoteFlag
By: Gettysburg Lady
8/13/2024 3:58 PM
We did the Outer Banks Boil Company for 12 at our cottage. It was great! I don;t think I would like to do it in a restaurant. Pretty messy.
LikeQuoteFlag
By: ezbuckwheat
8/13/2024 5:12 PM
Generally the "Boil" is more of a special big gathering meal and is uniquely served/spread over a table lined with Newspaper. To stay true to "Tradition" it would be a nightmare to serve at a Restaurant. Just as "Hard Crabs" (Blue Claws) are not common in local Restaurants. You need a Dozen per person to make a meal. Where do you put them. FYI, Food Lion sells a Crab Boil package for $49.99. However I don't think that would include the "Turkey Fryer" Pot to do the Boil. I guess you can use a large Lobster Pot.
Sign in front of Food Lion
Like +2QuoteFlag
By: marid4061
8/13/2024 7:52 PM
Thank you all for the suggestions. I agree that I would not want to sit down in a restaurant for a seafood boil. It is a lot of work and takes time to prepare. They will have to figure out if they had rather enjoy a dinner out, or enjoy a seafood boil ordered and brought to the house.
LikeQuoteFlag
By: Floyd
8/13/2024 9:37 PM
Generally the "Boil" is more of a special big gathering meal and is uniquely served/spread over a table lined with Newspaper. To stay true to "Tradition" it would be a nightmare to serve at a Restaurant. Just as "Hard Crabs" (Blue Claws) are not common in local Restaurants. You need a Dozen per person to make a meal. Where do you put them. FYI, Food Lion sells a Crab Boil package for $49.99. However I don't think that would include the "Turkey Fryer" Pot to do the Boil. I guess you can use a large Lobster Pot.Sign in front of Food Lion
That would be enough for 2-3 people at most. Snow crab legs in a low country boil?!?!
LikeQuoteFlag
By: HopSkipandJump
8/14/2024 4:31 AM
Black Pelican has a mini version of a boil for one or two people on their dinner menu
* THE FROGMORE CLAMBAKE
$28.00
A Kitty Hawk tradition featuring steamed shellfish and vegetables that include plump mussels, clams, oysters, spicy shrimp, and Andouille sausage plus steamed corn on the cob and red potatoes. The Frogmore for 2…$53.00
Like +2QuoteFlag
By: Greg MD
8/14/2024 7:36 AM
Just pointing out that a boil and a steam pot are not the same and don't taste the same. Restaurants like to use the term 'boil' because of its crazy popularity, but dish out steam pot food with reheated crab and common sausage to the unwitting.
LikeQuoteFlag
By: Alexy
8/14/2024 10:19 AM
I will say that a Boil on the beach is a nice thing. We had neighbors who planned a get together off the 55 ramp and had about 12-16 people who drove out to fish. They set up the boil with a propane crab pot steamer and did it on the beach with the items they wanted and it turned out amazing.
Best part was the clean up literally involved taking the corners of the plastic table cloth up and trying them all together and putting it in a trash can back at the house. We did not go but it worked out well.
Like +1QuoteFlag
By: Orville
8/14/2024 6:35 PM
Steamers (Southern Shores) and Cravings (Duck) both have to-go steamer pots on their menus. They provide the pots, the food, and the instructions. It's easy. If it matters, pretty sure not all of the seafood is local.
We've done that a couple of times with guests and it's a fun and social (and messy) meal. We've added a tossed salad, crusty bread, and steamed spiced shrimp to the menu.
Like +1QuoteFlag
By: OceanBlue
8/15/2024 9:53 AM
I will say that a Boil on the beach is a nice thing.
Pretty much ANY meal on the beach is perfection...but, dinner, with the sun setting, waves rolling is THE best. So many awesome kid memories of clam bakes, lobster boils, scallop cooks w fam, cousins, close friends. I don't miss sandy hamburgers though...I can still hear my dad's voice "rinse it off" as I prob made a weird face biting into a hamburger that, a few moments before, had rolled off the grill 
Like +1QuoteFlag
By: larich
8/15/2024 5:14 PM
Fat Crabs in Corolla Light Town Center does seafood boils
LikeQuoteFlag
