12 Beaches Known for Their Seafood

With the trend toward local sustainable food, is it any wonder we’re all asking where our dinner came from? Learn (and visit) where your favorite seafood meals originate from.

By: Jennie Baird

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Maine Lobster Bake

Is there a more quintessential New England experience than the lobster bake on a rocky beach? Maine lobstermen haul in 40 million pounds of lobster each year – 90 percent of all lobster caught in the U.S. Why not eat it at the source?

Malaga's Sardines

Sardines are supposedly products of Sardinia, Italy. However, many people consider the sardines caught off the beaches of Malaga, Spain to be the best in the world.

Alabama Fried Grouper

You don’t have to be Bubba Gump to love Gulf shrimp in all its permutations. But on Alabama’s Gulf Coast, the fried grouper sandwich at The Gulf in Orange Beach is the local favorite.

Australian Barramundi

Wonga Beach in North Queensland is one of many Australian beaches known for barramundi, a type of seabass.

Prince Edward Island Mussels

Prince Edward Island in Canada is famous for its mussels.

Aldeburgh Fish Shack

Fish and chips and smoked fish are available fresh from the boat in Aldeburgh, England

Point Reyes Oysters

The area along Tomales Bay on Point Reyes National Seashore in Northern California is also known as the Oyster Trail. Here, the mollusks are typically served grilled on an open flame with barbecue sauce.

Portuguese Langostino

It’s sea-to-table dining in Cascais, Portugal, where Mar do Inferno is one of a handful of beachside restaurants serving freshly-caught seafood. Langostino – that smaller-than-a-lobster-bigger-than-a-shrimp crustacean, is the specialty of the region.

Hawaiian Ahi Poke

Poke, a Hawaiian dish of cubed, raw ahi tuna doused in soy sauce and other seasonings and mix-ins, is popular on the beaches of Oahu.

Crabs from Maryland’s Eastern Shore

On Maryland’s Chesapeake Bay, native blue crabs are served steamed and smothered in Old Bay Seasoning. Lay them out on a newspaper, and crack them open with a wooden mallet. You can rinse your sticky, Old Bay-encrusted fingers in the tide when you’re done.

Carribean Conch

Conch is popular in many forms – most notably as deep-fried fritters – throughout the beaches of the Florida Keys and the Caribbean. Here, fisherman prepare conch on a beach in Turks and Caicos.

Zanzibar Octopus

Zanzibar, off the coast of East Africa, is known for its white sand beaches and its octopus – caught in the reefs by wading spear fishermen. In Zanzibar, octopus is typically served grilled or in curry.