Shrimpy's Snack Shack offers seafood to go

Just steps off the beach, Shrimpy's Snack Shack on Rehoboth Avenue offers fast, fried take-out items from funnel cakes and french fries to coconut shrimp and clam strips.

Open from 6 a.m. to 11 p.m., daily, general manager Ron Zee said the small storefront at 8 Rehoboth Ave. is made for a cozy take-out business like this.

"The intention was to offer shrimp and seafood on a carry-out basis," Zee said. "We almost bought a restaurant in Ocean City instead, but this location is much better and much closer to our original business concept."

Principal owner Jim Clarke said the original business concept was to offer pails of shrimp on a carry-out basis close to the beach.

The business proposal has evolved to expand offerings with a menu that includes shrimp and tuna salad sandwiches, fried shrimp, clam strips, funnel cakes, fried Oreo cookies, fountain Coca-Cola and boardwalk fries not fried in peanut oil.

"Our number-one seller, besides bottled water, of all things, is our fries with 0 trans-fats," Clarke said. "We have Phillips crab cakes and we are trying to do a bang-up business on shrimp salad, shrimp on a stick, clam strips and crab cakes."

The carry-out snack shack also offers hamburgers, hot dogs and hush puppies, which the owner referred to as "fun foods."

The manager said he gets most of his seafood from the Gulf of Mexico through major food distributors. All sauces are made in-house, and already, Zee said, the clam strips, crab cakes and fried and coconut shrimp have been a hit with their fast-moving clientele.

The most popular dessert offered at the snack shack is funnel cake, he said, and now that the season is picking up, Zee said he plans to open at 6 a.m., daily, to offer breakfast sandwiches to the early crowd.

Zee plans to stay open with seasonal hours until November. For more information, contact Shrimpy's Snack Shack at 302-448-1620.