Something fishy is going on in metro Detroit, thanks to a culinary trend that has some deep roots down south. The seafood boil — also referred to as a crab boil, low country boil, or Frogmore Stew — is a decadent seafood smörgĂ¥sbord smothered in buttery seasoned goodness, and it’s making waves. For the uninitiated, a boil bag meal looks something like this: potatoes, corn, sausage, and various crustaceans and sea meats are placed into an oven bag along with a blend of spices, sauces, and butter. The bag is then sealed and placed in either an oven or boiled in water on the stovetop so that every tender bite is infused with flavor. Oh, and there are a few spots on this list that have yet to open, but we’re keeping our eyes on their open dates. Get crackin’ at some of these local spots serving up spicy and savory seafood boils.

Mad Crab 13351 W. 10 Mile Rd., Oak Park; 248-965-2120; madcrabseafood.com Oak Park’s Mad Crab invites seafood lovers to combine their choice of seafood (lobster, snow crab, mussels, shrimp, crawfish, and more) with Cajun spices, garlic butter, and lemon pepper. Photo via Mad Crab/Facebook
Saucey Crab 21754 W. Eleven Mile Rd., Southfield; 248-728-4444 | 21639 Eight Mile Rd., Detroit; 313-693-4631; sauceycrabs.com Bags at Saucey Crab range from $15 for black mussels and crawfish to $41 for king crab. Meals include corn, potatoes, and chicken sausage. Customers can pick their flavor of sauce or spice, with options like garlic butter, lemon pepper, jerk seasoning, and Saucey Way — the restaurant’s signature sauce that’s a closely guarded secret. Photo via Saucey Crab/Facebook
JJ Crab House 2871 Carpenter Rd., Ann Arbor; 734-222-1111; jjcrabhouse.com This spot celebrates hibachi and seafood with a split menu for those who want, well, hibachi, and those hankering for a seafood boil, which is served with your choice of snow crab, crawfish, mussels, blue crab, or shrimp. All seafood boil meals come with corn, potatoes, and sausage, and can be customized according to spice level and sauce flavor. Photo via GoogleMaps
King Crab 10840 Belleville Rd., Belleville; 734-325-7706; kingcrab.uorder.io Crab is king at King Crab in Belleville where you can order ramen, fried oysters and calamari, and, yes, seafood boil options. Among them, the 8-lbs. Super Seafood Combo, which includes shrimp, lobster, snow crab legs, mussels, crawfish, potatoes and corn for $117. Photo via King Crab Boiling/Facebook
Detroit Wing Spot 12829 Harper Ave., Detroit; 313-246-0788; detroitwingspot.com Though wings are in the name, Detroit Wing Spot has a variety of seafood boil options, including the Detroit boil which comes with snow crab, lobster tail, jumbo shrimp, hard-boiled eggs, potatoes, sausage, and corn. They also offer a build-your-own-boil option. Photo via Detroit Wing Spot/Facebook
Detroit Crab House Ribs and Soul Cafe 19721 W. Seven Mile Rd., Detroit; 313-535-1400 | 27167 Van Dyke Ave., Warren; 586-806-5047; crabhouseflavor.com Seafood boil bags at Crab House offer more than just crab. Among the options are crawfish, shrimp, lobster tail, or just get a bag with everything, because you can do that, too. But they don’t just serve seafood bags; you can also indulge in southern staples like turkey necks and porkchops. Photo via Crab House/Facebook
Crazy Crab 25271 Telegraph Rd., Southfield | 13351 W. 10 Mile Rd., Oak Park | 26613 Hoover Rd., Warren; 248-327-7400; crazycrab-southfield.com Crazy Crab has three different locations and all serve up delectable and customizable seafood bags. You design your own meal by picking seafood options, spice levels, and seasoning options. Photo via Crazy Crab/Facebook
Hook & Reel Cajun Seafood Bar 7838 Telegraph Rd., Taylor; 313-982-7979; hookreel.com Not sure what seafood boil is for you? Hook & Reel offers an online quiz on their website where you can make your perfect seafood broil suited just for your preferences. The quiz might suggest a seafood boil with snow crab legs, clams, black mussels, scallops, lobster tail, king crab, shrimp, blue crab, or crawfish, and all bags are made with your choice of sauce, spice level, and extras like potatoes, sausage, corn on the cob, hard-boiled eggs, or noodles. Photo via Hook & Reel/Facebook
Detroit Pho & Crab 26680 Dequindre Rd., Warren; 586-486-4290; detroitphocrab.com Though crab boils are considered Cajun cuisine, the dish made its way onto “Viet-cajun” menus thanks to New Orleans’ sizable Vietnamese population. This Vietnamese restaurant in Warren offers a choice of seafood, like mussels, clams, scallops, lobster, and others, in addition to your choice of sides, spice level, and seasoning. Photo by Tom Perkins
Crazy Crab Ypsilanti 2800 Washtenaw Ave., Ypsilanti; 248-681-3200; crazycrabypsilanti.com This Ypsilanti spot offers a variety of fried seafood baskets and a selection of “crazy seafood combos,” all of which include corn, hard-boiled egg, and potatoes and can be customized with sauce options and spice levels. Photo via Crazy Crab Ypsilanti/Facebook
Crab Hut Seafood 17720 Frazho Rd., Roseville; 586-859-7585; crabhutseafood.com In addition to a variety of Chinese food favorites, Crab Hut Seafood offers bags of snow crab legs, lobster tail, shrimp, and more. Each boil bag meal comes with a side of corn, eggs, and potatoes. Photo via Crab Hut Seafood/Facebook
The Beach Tiki Bar & Boil 142 E Walled Lake Dr., Walled Lake; 248-669-3322; thebeachtikibar.com The Beach Tiki Bar and Boil is a hot seafood spot on the water that, in addition to an extensive menu that includes something called Tiki Fries, their signature boil bags include your choice of seafood (lobster, jumbo shrimp, crawfish, king crab, and mussels) as well as sauces (lemon pepper, garlic butter, cajun and tiki style), and spice level. Photo via GoogleMaps
The Krazy Crab 32821 Grand River Ave., Farmington; 248-579-6538; thekrazycrab.com Located in downtown Farmington, the Krazy Crab offers shrimp, snow crab legs, clams, mussels, and lobster, along with hibachi dishes, and bubble tea. Photo via Krazy Krab/Facebook
Crafty Crab 5802 Gull Rd., Kalamazoo; 269-903-2461; craftycrabrestaurant.com This chain restaurant, which has many Florida outposts, has brought some crabby goodness to Kalamazoo. According to Crafty Crab’s website, seafood boil lovers can pick from blue crab, shrimp, lobster tail, snow crabs, shrimp, clams, mussel, king crab, seasoning (Cajun, lemon pepper, buttery garlic), and spice level. Crafty Crab also allows you to mix and match seafood so you don’t have to pick just one. Photo via Crafty Crab/Facebook
Crab Kitchen Cajun Seafood 7520 N. Wayne Rd., Westland; 734-744-7655; crabkitchen.ordereze.net Crab Kitchen’s seafood boils come by the pound and can be served with snow crab, Dungeness crab, crawfish, clams, black mussels, shrimp, or your choice of two. You can also select potatoes, corn on the cob, sausage, hard-boiled egg, broccoli, zucchini, or pasta noodles, as well as your desired spice level and sauce option. Photo via Crab Kitchen/Facebook
The Tangy Crab 3366 Corunna Rd., Flint; 810-835-4050; thetangycrab.com This Flint-area spot offers four different “low country southern seafood boil” options, including New Orleans Jamba, the Cajun Classic, and the Juicy Special. The Tangy Crab also has a build-your-own-boil option so you can mix and match your favorite seafood offerings. Photo via The Tangy Crab/Facebook
Red Crab 35756 Van Dyke Ave., Sterling Heights; 586-725-0303; redcrabseafood.com According to the Red Crab website, they offer seafood boils from blue crab, lobster tail, snow crabs, shrimp, clams, mussel, king crab, sauces (Cajun, lemon pepper, garlic butter, or the juicy special), and spice levels, including extra hot. Photo via Red Crab/Facebook
168 Crab & Karaoke 32415 John R Rd., Madison Heights; 248-616-0618; 168crab.com This Asian grocery store has expanded into an adjacent strip-mall karaoke spot, and has tweaked the menu to center on seafood boils. Karaoke rooms are available to rent by the hour and boils include crawfish, crabs, clams, lobster, and more.
Crab Du Jour 18900 Michigan Ave., Dearborn; 313-982-7000; crabdujourdearbornmi.com A fast-growing chain launched in 2019 in Raleigh, North Carolina, opened its first Michigan location in Dearborn’s Fairlane Town Center. According to Jeffrey Schroth, the company’s national general manager, Crab Du Jour has more than 100 locations, with plans to open 200 by the end of 2022 and 500 by the end of 2025.
What’s Crackin’ 19163 Livernois Ave., Detroit; TBA For his latest offering, Chef Max Hardy (of Coop Caribbean Chicken) has teamed up with Ron Bartell, a former Detroit Lion cornerback and the owner of the nearby popular Kuzzo’s Chicken & Waffles, for what is being described as a casual seafood boil takeout spot. Slated to open in Detroit’s Avenue of Fashion district, What’s Crackin’ will be the latest customizable seafood boil bag restaurant to join the Detroit landscape. Customers can choose their seafood, sauce, and spices, including a selection of Chef Max Signature Spice Blends, which will be made available for purchase. Photo by Tom Perkins

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