Pier 36

Jimmy & Ann Cantu, and Jimmy’s mother Olga Cantu

Pier 36 has been cooking for and serving Fort Bend for 24 years

from SEAFOOD to service

WRITTEN BY JACLYN RITTER, PHOTOGRAPHY BY RHONDA KUYKENDALL

When you are craving fresh, mouthwatering seafood, leave the cooking to the professionals at Pier 36 Seafood Restaurant and Oyster Bar. Located in the heart of Fulshear, at the corner of Main and 1st Street, Pier 36 is your one stop shop for Texas style fresh gulf coast seafood. With their reputation for great food, hospitality, and service, Pier 36, and the family behind this treasure, have been feeding happy customers in Fort Bend County for over forty years.

FOOD & FAMILY

Jimmy Cantu, owner of Pier 36, loves introducing people to great seafood. Serving his customers has become a family tradition. Family and food, two magical ingredients, were the basis of Jimmy’s childhood. “When I was seven or eight years old, my parents, Pete and Olga

Cantu, got into the seafood business with a relative,” says Jimmy. “The restaurant became kind of my daycare. I used to help bus tables and play around in the kitchen while my parents worked.” While Jimmy was in college, Pete and Olga went on to open their own restaurant, Pier 36, in 1997 in the city of Needville, Texas. Looking back, Jimmy attributes those early years to the foundation of his love of restaurants and cooking.

Experience is often a great teacher. In his early years Jimmy learned the finer points of the restaurant business from some of the most respected names in seafood. Through his experience working with Pappas Restaurants, Inc. and then Churrascos Restaurant Group, Jimmy seized the opportunity to hone his skills as his passion for food grew.

In the year 2000, Jimmy rejoined the family business, this time as the owner. As the word spread about Pier 36, Jimmy helped open a Richmond location and leased out the Needville location. In 2018, Jimmy expanded the family restaurant into Fulshear. “This is such a vibrant and fast-growing community,” says Jimmy, “I felt it would make a great next location for Pier 36.”

SEAFOOD DONE RIGHT

Preparing the various varieties of seafood can be tricky, but when it is done right, it sure hits the spot. Two factors play a big part in the deliciousness that is Pier 36’s food: tried and true recipes and quality products.

Cantu family recipes have been developed, refined, and passed down through the years – it’s the fine details that make all the difference. From spices to the proper sear, Pier 36 guests know their meals have been made with generations of love. Jimmy takes pride in continuing his parent’s legacy one dish at a time.

The Cantu family also knows that when it comes to seafood, recipes are only as good as the product quality. Pier 36 sources local products as much as possible, from farm raised domestic catfish, to gulf shrimp. Fresh food is the key to great taste.

Pier 36 has something for everyone. “We are not just about fried food,” notes Jimmy. “We do our best to bring in two or three different kinds of fish each week, like red snapper, sea bass, red fish on the half shell, and fresh whole flounder.” He continues, “We pair them with different toppings and sides that enhance the fish’s natural flavor.”

The oyster bar, serving up fresh oysters and a perfectly paired drink, is a hit at both the Richmond and Fulshear locations. Jimmy also encourages customers to try his favorite dish on the menu, their gumbo. They make their own roux daily - something that takes a lot of time and patience to get just right.

PAYING IT FORWARD

Always one to give back, Jimmy is well known throughout Fort Bend County for his kindness and generosity. He serves on the board of many worthy foundations, like Access Health, a lower income health care provider in Fort Bend country. On top of it all, Jimmy and his Pier 36 team can often be seen donating food to local hospitals, schools, police and fire departments, and even the Fort Bend County Fair.

During the pandemic, a time when restaurants have been hit hard, many of those who were on the receiving end of the restaurant’s kindness chose to pay it forward. “We shut down the dining room and prepared for a flow of to go orders. We had assembly lines at both locations, scrambled to find the supplies we needed to go from in house to take away, and hoped people would come,” says Jimmy. “We got through this past year thanks to the incredible support of our customers who stuck by us through thick and thin.”

With live music every Friday night, a nice outdoor patio to enjoy the weather, happy hour Monday through Friday, and a relaxed and welcoming dining room environment, Pier 36 is the perfect place to catch a sports game or have a nice family meal out. So, whether you dine at the Richmond location or the Fulshear location, customers of Pier 36 are treated like family. If you are lucky, you will run into Jimmy’s mom Olga who still pops in now and then to walk the dining room and mingle with guests.

Family and food are always a magical combination. With family comes love, and with love comes soulful cooking. The Cantu family has been loyal to the people of Fort Bend County through both seafood and service since 1997.