Woodman’s of Essex
I’m reposting a slightly editied version of a restaurant review I wrote for Yelp a while ago.
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I’ve traded in my sunburned white skin for golden fried Essex River clams!!! Living in southern California good clams were hard to come by!
Opened in 1914, Woodman’s made a major dent in American cuisine. It’s undisputed folklore that Chubby Woodman served the first fried clam at the same shack that you can visit today. At the time Chubby was selling fresh clams, fruit and homemade potato chips. One Woodman’s customer suggested that since their potato chips tasted so good deep fried, why not the clams. The fried clam was born. Arguably the best fried clams you’ll ever have will be served at Woodman’s.
The shack has grown somewhat since 1914. They have an upper dining deck, room for receptions in the back and a rather large gift shop. Nice selection of gifts, but the shop has given Woodman’s a more commercialized look and feel. Kinda touristy, which is not at all what I desire after living in southern California, San Francisco and Las Vegas.
The decor is what you might expect from an old time New England clam shack. Walk-up counter and old wood picnic tables and benches. Cash only, no cards. No cards!? In this day and age? Who carries cash when the debit card is king? I usually order a combo plate of fried clams, fried scallops, french fries and onion rings. The clams and scallops are TO DIE FOR. Lightly battered and fried in lard. A gut bomb, but well worth it. The problem is that it’s a bit pricier than the average clam shack in the area.
If lobster is what you want, go somewhere else. I’ve seen them serve pre-boiled, re-heated lobsters here. I DON’T THINK SO!! If you want fried clams, this place is tough to beat. Luckily, I live about five miles away and I can come home quickly and pass out after eating so much fried shellfish. Yankees suck!
I’ve had a Woodman’s lobsta! I liked it! It was summertime. I guess they are fresher then, because the place is jammed and they can’t cook the lobstas fast enough!