CUISINE THE DISH
Cajun-Creole Savor A LOCAL FAVORITE SERVING INNOVATION AND QUALITY FOR THE PAST 46 YEARS BY: JESSIE CHROBOCINSKI PHOTOS BY: RACHEL BENAVIDES
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n Aransas Pass, a dining room with a view resides atop stilt architecture overlooking a nearby residential canal. Established in 1976, Crab-N Seafood Restaurant remains a local favorite for its high-quality dishes, including a bring-yourown-fish option, refreshing cocktails and oh-so decadent key lime pie. Rooted in Cajun-Creole-style cooking, the small family-run restaurant has only grown more successful and delicious over the past 46 years. Owner Terry Brooks credits Evelyn Wheeler, a cook from Louisiana who his father hired, as who helped his family get started in the right direction. As time passed, Crab-N's dishes have adapted and changed, but one dining component has remained the same: the ability to have your catch prepared to your liking. "Back then, Paul Prudhomme came out with blackened redfish in about 1983. We went to New Orleans and ate at his place, K-Paul's. It was so popular that they had to stop redfish and trout commercial harvesting,” Brooks said. “After about two years, restaurants were selling it like crazy, and we were 96 The Bend
one of them. Consequently, that was reserved only for sports [anglers]. Then the sports fishermen would catch the fish and ask, ‘Why don't you fix this fish for me?’ So, I said, ‘I can do that; that I can legally do.’ And that has become a big part of our business for the past several decades." With a wide variety of choices for having your catch prepared, Brooks says you could probably order a different way every day for a month — blackened, fried, pan-seared or even paired with a signature sauce. Some of Crab-N’s most popular dishes include the crab and shrimp bisque, pecan-crusted flounder topped with crab relish and the choice Black Angus, center-cut filet medallions layered with a crab and shrimp buttercream sauce on top. Brooks noted how special to him the secret recipe is for the bisque, which has been Crab-N's best-selling appetizer for almost four decades. "When I wrote down the recipe, I wrote down 'Gift of God,' and I feel very strongly about that,” he said. “I've had people call me and want to trade for the recipe, but we do not give
One of Crab-N's most popular dishes: Pecan Crusted Flounder with crab, roasted pecan relish and a side of asparagus.
