Clam strips

[bcherod]

Once upon a time, a long, long time ago, on a star far away, clam strips were good. There were actually clams in the clam strip.

Does anyone else remember when clam strips were good and not these little crumbs of something that does not resemble a clam?

Is there still such a thing as a good clam strip?

 

[Dodinole]

Once upon a time, a long, long time ago, on a star far away, clam strips were good. There were actually clams in the clam strip.

Does anyone else remember when clam strips were good and not these little crumbs of something that does not resemble a clam?

Is there still such a thing as a good clam strip?

The Opryland Theme Park that used to be in Nashville had awesome clam strips and fries, served in a cone to make it easy to keep taking in the sights.

 

[Swago]

Its a long drive up I-95, but Maine has world's best fried clam strips, I prefer the rustic small town drive-ins. Sometimes the best drive-in clams still had some sand or grit. Maine is a great state, loved to fish at lodges across the state.

 

[seminole97]

I don’t know what clam strips are, but now I know they’re not what I was hoping.

 

[stbrown]

Don't know how great/healthy they were - but LOVED Clam Strips at Howard Johnson's! STB

 

[bcherod]

Don't know how great/healthy they were - but LOVED Clam Strips at Howard Johnson's! STB

I did too. We used to go to HoJo's after church sometimes when I was a kid and I always had them. They were good.

I ate a lot of clams in CT and ME. Now that Maine has been mentioned, I'm going to be on a lobster kick. I may have to go get a real lobster.

 

[CC0492]

I ate a lot of clams in CT and ME.

Phrasing.....

 

[bcherod]

Phrasing.....

There's always one in the crowd.......

 

[cfbfan23]

If you're going to go all of the way to Maine for fried clams, you may as well go for the fried whole belly steamer clams. They're not cheap, but they're the best. Way better than clam strips (and I like clam strips).

 

[CC0492]

There's always one in the crowd.......

 

[LEGAL]

I did too. We used to go to HoJo's after church sometimes when I was a kid and I always had them. They were good.

I ate a lot of clams in CT and ME. Now that Maine has been mentioned, I'm going to be on a lobster kick. I may have to go get a real lobster.

Beth, I definitely remember clams at HOJO's being very good, but truthfully that was maybe 50 years ago ?

 

[bcherod]

If you're going to go all of the way to Maine for fried clams, you may as well go for the fried whole belly steamer clams. They're not cheap, but they're the best. Way better than clam strips (and I like clam strips).

Lobsters are worth going to Maine for, but they can also be shipped. Clams are not worth going to Maine for, IMO.

The lobster guys have been showing up in Tallahassee regularly, but $25 for a lobster roll? I remember getting a great one in Newport for $5 ten years ago.

I was always on the hunt for the best oysters, and oyster "farming", and oyster "gardening". They turned all those little islands off the coast of RI into oyster farms, and those are some really good oysters. Each bay and inlet has their own oysters.

Bluffton oysters, (SC) are really good, kind of like the A'Cola oysters, but we once met an "oyster doctor", that gave us the run down on oysters. Pretty cool stories.

 

[bcherod]

Beth, I definitely remember clams at HOJO's being very good, but truthfully that was maybe 50 years ago ?

Agree. We were kids and food like that tasted better to us then, than now, I'm sure.

But you reminded me of something about our eating habits as kids.

I was 11 when my dad was transferred to Japan. My mother belonged to this cultural exchange group and we were invited to this Japanese family's home for dinner.

They served sushi, which was a real delicacy for the Japanese in the '60's. I went with my parents and I was expected to eat it. I had to have been 12-13 at the time. I was mortified, as I did not know how I was going to eat that. I think it was the seaweed that turned me off so much, but I quickly learned what was edible in my brain. As it happened, I was able to stomach eel of all things.

Now, I'll eat a variety of sushi, but still won't eat roe, unless it's Russian caviar. LOL.

 

[goldmom]

Phrasing.....

🙄

 

[West Duval Nole]

Phrasing.....

I just saw this thread title and thought there has to be an inappropriate joke in here somewhere related to furry clams. And yours was the closest to it. I guess this board has been cleaned up a little bit since the locker room.

 

[bcherod]

I just saw this thread title and thought there has to be an inappropriate joke in here somewhere related to furry clams. And yours was the closest to it. I guess this board has been cleaned up a little bit since the locker room.

haha, well if you know me, I'm easily set up. Just ask Johnny Mac and the Animals, or my Springtime krewe.

 

[West Duval Nole]

haha, well if you know me, I'm easily set up. Just ask Johnny Mac and the Animals, or my Springtime krewe.

I vaguely recall a comment in a thread a year or more ago that the immature juvenile in me chuckles when I see women talking about getting facials. And I believe you may have asked who doesn't like facials. To which someone explained the alternate meaning and I cracked up. I could be wrong but I believe you may have been the one that asked who doesn't like facials.

 

[bcherod]

I vaguely recall a comment in a thread a year or more ago that the immature juvenile in me chuckles when I see women talking about getting facials. And I believe you may have asked who doesn't like facials. To which someone explained the alternate meaning and I cracked up. I could be wrong but I believe you may have been the one that asked who doesn't like facials.

I don't remember. I may have.

People love to pounce because I never think of the alternative meanings sometimes, and I turn beet red.

Since I occasionally dish it out, I have to be able to take it.

 

[MagNoleA]

I just saw this thread title and thought there has to be an inappropriate joke in here somewhere related to furry clams. And yours was the closest to it. I guess this board has been cleaned up a little bit since the locker room.

I think its more of a bearded clams thing.
Jane Fonda loved Jon Voight

 

[FSUTribe76]

Lobsters are worth going to Maine for, but they can also be shipped. Clams are not worth going to Maine for, IMO.

The lobster guys have been showing up in Tallahassee regularly, but $25 for a lobster roll? I remember getting a great one in Newport for $5 ten years ago.

I was always on the hunt for the best oysters, and oyster "farming", and oyster "gardening". They turned all those little islands off the coast of RI into oyster farms, and those are some really good oysters. Each bay and inlet has their own oysters.

Bluffton oysters, (SC) are really good, kind of like the A'Cola oysters, but we once met an "oyster doctor", that gave us the run down on oysters. Pretty cool stories.

I actually kind of disagree. Lobster may be the most overrated seafood item out there. I’m a huge seafood fan and I’d have Maine Lobster behind quite a few seafood items including in no particular order: Dungeness Crab, Blue Crab, Snow Crab, Stone Crab, Jonah Crab, Rock Crab, Edible Brown Crab, Spider Crab, King Crab, Bairdi Crab, Golden Crab, Australian and New Zealand Rock Lobster, African Rock Lobster, Slipper/Shovelnose Lobster, Moreton Bay Bugs, Balmain Bugs, Paua Shells, Yabbies, American Crawfish, abalone, uni/sea urchin, most squids, most octopus, most cuttlefish, Atlantic oysters, Pacific oysters, flat/belon/European oysters, Kumamoto oysters, Olympia oysters, geoducks, razor clams, softshell/steamer clams, pen shells, bay scallops, Atlantic sea/diver scallops, king scallops, cockles, periwinkles, lots of whelk species, Queen conch, Horse Conch, Giant Turban conch, King/Spanish Helmet Conch, gooseneck barnacles, acorn barnacles, langostinos, rock shrimp, red shrimp, pink shrimp, Atlantic white shrimp, Pacific White Shrimp, Sugar Shrimp, “Popcorn“ Shrimp, Florida hopper shrimp, Atlantic brown Shrimp, Tiger Shrimp, Spot Prawn (one of my all time favorites), pink prawn, blue leg/giant freshwater prawn, Dublin Bay prawn, carabineros prawn/cardinal prawn/Spanish red shrimp, and probably some more I’m forgetting. And that’s just the shellfish, if you count fish species we’d be here all day.

Just about the only shellfish I wouldn’t voluntarily choose over the Maine Lobster that I can think of are the European/Blue/Common lobster, the Florida/Caribbean/Spiny/“Warmwater Rock” lobster, calico lobsters, brown lobsters, California spiny lobsters, Japanese spiny lobsters, spotted/Guinea Chick lobsters, ornate spiny lobsters, greenlip mussels, blue/common mussels, horseshoe crab, limpets of all types, sea cucumbers of all types, and common/quahog/hard shell clams even the raw littlenecks which I sometimes order at raw bars as a contrast to the oysters.

Plus, the Maine Lobsters transport quite well when alive so you’re getting just as tasty Maine lobsters in Iowa and Florida as you are in Maine. The only real benefit to going to Maine is how cheap the lobsters are there as I went to one lobster pound about 5-6 years ago (unfortunately permanently closed due to the pandemic plus only a limited season of tourists) that had a dinner of three steamed 1.5 lb “chicken” lobsters plus lobster chowder and two sides for only $20.

What I found out I actually loved in Maine was the softshell/steamer clams. I’d never had them to my knowledge before heading up to Maine and they are ridiculously good, far tastier than the hardshell/quahog/common clam.

 

[F4Gary]

 

[SoddyNole]

I actually kind of disagree. Lobster may be the most overrated seafood item out there. I’m a huge seafood fan and I’d have Maine Lobster behind quite a few seafood items including in no particular order: Dungeness Crab, Blue Crab, Snow Crab, Stone Crab, Jonah Crab, Rock Crab, Edible Brown Crab, Spider Crab, King Crab, Bairdi Crab, Golden Crab, Australian and New Zealand Rock Lobster, African Rock Lobster, Slipper/Shovelnose Lobster, Moreton Bay Bugs, Balmain Bugs, Paua Shells, Yabbies, American Crawfish, abalone, uni/sea urchin, most squids, most octopus, most cuttlefish, Atlantic oysters, Pacific oysters, flat/belon/European oysters, Kumamoto oysters, Olympia oysters, geoducks, razor clams, softshell/steamer clams, pen shells, bay scallops, Atlantic sea/diver scallops, king scallops, cockles, periwinkles, lots of whelk species, Queen conch, Horse Conch, Giant Turban conch, King/Spanish Helmet Conch, gooseneck barnacles, acorn barnacles, langostinos, rock shrimp, red shrimp, pink shrimp, Atlantic white shrimp, Pacific White Shrimp, Sugar Shrimp, “Popcorn“ Shrimp, Florida hopper shrimp, Atlantic brown Shrimp, Tiger Shrimp, Spot Prawn (one of my all time favorites), pink prawn, blue leg/giant freshwater prawn, Dublin Bay prawn, carabineros prawn/cardinal prawn/Spanish red shrimp, and probably some more I’m forgetting. And that’s just the shellfish, if you count fish species we’d be here all day.

Just about the only shellfish I wouldn’t voluntarily choose over the Maine Lobster that I can think of are the European/Blue/Common lobster, the Florida/Caribbean/Spiny/“Warmwater Rock” lobster, calico lobsters, brown lobsters, California spiny lobsters, Japanese spiny lobsters, spotted/Guinea Chick lobsters, ornate spiny lobsters, greenlip mussels, blue/common mussels, horseshoe crab, limpets of all types, sea cucumbers of all types, and common/quahog/hard shell clams even the raw littlenecks which I sometimes order at raw bars as a contrast to the oysters.

Plus, the Maine Lobsters transport quite well when alive so you’re getting just as tasty Maine lobsters in Iowa and Florida as you are in Maine. The only real benefit to going to Maine is how cheap the lobsters are there as I went to one lobster pound about 5-6 years ago (unfortunately permanently closed due to the pandemic plus only a limited season of tourists) that had a dinner of three steamed 1.5 lb “chicken” lobsters plus lobster chowder and two sides for only $20.

What I found out I actually loved in Maine was the softshell/steamer clams. I’d never had them to my knowledge before heading up to Maine and they are ridiculously good, far tastier than the hardshell/quahog/common clam.

Where does Crawfish line up in this list?

 

[GeddyLee09]

Agree. We were kids and food like that tasted better to us then, than now, I'm sure.

But you reminded me of something about our eating habits as kids.

I was 11 when my dad was transferred to Japan. My mother belonged to this cultural exchange group and we were invited to this Japanese family's home for dinner.

They served sushi, which was a real delicacy for the Japanese in the '60's. I went with my parents and I was expected to eat it. I had to have been 12-13 at the time. I was mortified, as I did not know how I was going to eat that. I think it was the seaweed that turned me off so much, but I quickly learned what was edible in my brain. As it happened, I was able to stomach eel of all things.

Now, I'll eat a variety of sushi, but still won't eat roe, unless it's Russian caviar. LOL.

Japan has some of the best food anywhere. Always fresh and perfectly prepared from street food to fine dining.

 

[Nole-4-Life]

Sickest I ever got in my life was after eating scallops at a HOJO in Tennessee in the 70s.

Wish I'd ordered the clam strips.

 

[FSUTribe76]

Where does Crawfish line up in this list?

Probably towards the bottom but ahead of Maine Lobster. They’re easy to overcook so I don’t trust Crawfish boils in Florida as they get tough and mealy, but at the Woodbine crawfish festival in Georgia and of course anywhere in NOLA or Cajun country LA as well as Taranto’s in Biloxi I LOVE them just in a well seasoned crawfish boil. And in jambalaya, etouffe, maque choux or quick fried (and thus not overcooked) in a Poboy they are tremendous.

My personal favorite shellfish are probably spot prawns #1, king scallops and fresh diver Scallops tied at #2, fresh pounded and fried green or red abalone steaks #4 and live before it’s steamed or fried Dungeness Crab #5. But octopus prepared correctly with a sous vide and then quick high heat charcoal or especially binchotan grilled CAN be #1. That takes a good cook though who knows what they’re doing as it’s easy to end up with rubbery and/or bland octopus, but in the right hands it’s like one giant perfectly tasty scallop.

 

[FSUTribe76]

Japan has some of the best food anywhere. Always fresh and perfectly prepared from street food to fine dining.

And sometimes insanely cheap for what it is. Kura sushi is one of the biggest and cheapest chains in Japan with all kinds of interesting sushi and sashimi usually served in two portions And over there each plate on the conveyor belt is typically under $1. I saw one was coming to Tampa and looked at the menus for the 43 American locations and you’re paying anywhere from $5-10 per plate. And that’s not counting the tip you have to give in America that is not given in Japan typically.

 

[bcherod]

Probably towards the bottom but ahead of Maine Lobster. They’re easy to overcook so I don’t trust Crawfish boils in Florida as they get tough and mealy, but at the Woodbine crawfish festival in Georgia and of course anywhere in NOLA or Cajun country LA as well as Taranto’s in Biloxi I LOVE them just in a well seasoned crawfish boil. And in jambalaya, etouffe, maque choux or quick fried (and thus not overcooked) in a Poboy they are tremendous.

My personal favorite shellfish are probably spot prawns #1, king scallops and fresh diver Scallops tied at #2, fresh pounded and fried green or red abalone steaks #4 and live before it’s steamed or fried Dungeness Crab #5. But octopus prepared correctly with a sous vide and then quick high heat charcoal or especially binchotan grilled CAN be #1. That takes a good cook though who knows what they’re doing as it’s easy to end up with rubbery and/or bland octopus, but in the right hands it’s like one giant perfectly tasty scallop.

Everyone is different. I prefer bay scallops to any other scallops. Some people like the big ones because they're bigger, but to me, they taste more like a fish than a scallop.

As far as crabs, I like Alaskan King Crab. The commissary always had them because the planes that refueled in Alaska always brought them.

But, I was originally talking about lobster, when I mentioned lobster, not other seafood. I do not like langostinos that people call lobster. They are definitely different and do not taste the same. And, there are definitely some clams and oysters that I don't like as much as others.

I'm spoiled. We had this Norwegian guy that was a fisherman in CT. He opened a seafood store and his stuff was top quality. Before his wife died they had a restaurant, and that place was special.

There was a restaurant on the Rye-Port Chester boarder. They sold lobster from LI Sound. I found out that their lobsters were not Maine lobsters because they didn't taste right, so I asked. CT lobsters. They tasted like langostinos, but they had claws. Big difference between them and the Maine lobsters.

I have gotten ME lobsters from Southern Seafood, and they were the real deal. Good enough to boil the shells down and make lobster bisque.

 

[GeddyLee09]

Probably towards the bottom but ahead of Maine Lobster. They’re easy to overcook so I don’t trust Crawfish boils in Florida as they get tough and mealy, but at the Woodbine crawfish festival in Georgia and of course anywhere in NOLA or Cajun country LA as well as Taranto’s in Biloxi I LOVE them just in a well seasoned crawfish boil. And in jambalaya, etouffe, maque choux or quick fried (and thus not overcooked) in a Poboy they are tremendous.

My personal favorite shellfish are probably spot prawns #1, king scallops and fresh diver Scallops tied at #2, fresh pounded and fried green or red abalone steaks #4 and live before it’s steamed or fried Dungeness Crab #5. But octopus prepared correctly with a sous vide and then quick high heat charcoal or especially binchotan grilled CAN be #1. That takes a good cook though who knows what they’re doing as it’s easy to end up with rubbery and/or bland octopus, but in the right hands it’s like one giant perfectly tasty scallop.

Had octopus in Kenya one time and the guy brought it straight from the beach. The chef (?) dropped it in hot water for a few minutes then grilled it. Was super tender, best I've had aside from maybe some at Tapas bars in Spain but those are always marinated in oil and lemon juice.

 

[FSUTribe76]

Had octopus in Kenya one time and the guy brought it straight from the beach. The chef (?) dropped it in hot water for a few minutes then grilled it. Was super tender, best I've had aside from maybe some at Tapas bars in Spain but those are always marinated in oil and lemon juice.

Octopus is definitely a high ceiling, low floor food which makes it tough to rank. In the hands of people who know what they’re doing it may be my favorite seafood. In the hands of poor cooks it turns out a rubbery, chewy mess. Most of the Greek restaurants in Tarpon Springs FL do an excellent job with it so I usually grab it as an appetizer or main when I’m in Tarpon Springs.

Similarly, uni/sea urchin can vary between a 1 and a 10, but it’s not usually dependent on the quality of preparation but the quality of the urchin itself. I have literally never gotten sea urchin of even decent quality on the east coast or anywhere landlocked except NYC, Las Vegas and Portland, Maine. I’ve been to high level seafood and Japanese restaurants in Florida, Virginia, Maryland, Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Georgia along the coast and while the rest of the dish may be great the uni is a fishy gross snot. Meanwhile in Vancouver, San Francisco, Seattle, and LA you can get amazing uni that tastes like magnificent sea butter at even low level neighborhood sushi joints. So it’s another highly variable seafood that is touch to rank.

 

[TC Nole OX]

Kelly's Roast Beef, a small Boston area chain, is opening in St Pete in the Pasadena neighborhood. Their menu has fried clam bellies

Kelly's Roast Beef brings famous New England bites to Tampa Bay

Kelly's Roast Beef is bringing a taste of New England to Tampa Bay. The celebrated brand is set for a major South Florida expansion. University Park in Sarasota is home to the state's first Kelly's

thatssotampa.com

 

[goldmom]

That’s looks ridiculously good.

 

[bcherod]

Octopus is definitely a high ceiling, low floor food which makes it tough to rank. In the hands of people who know what they’re doing it may be my favorite seafood. In the hands of poor cooks it turns out a rubbery, chewy mess. Most of the Greek restaurants in Tarpon Springs FL do an excellent job with it so I usually grab it as an appetizer or main when I’m in Tarpon Springs.

Similarly, uni/sea urchin can vary between a 1 and a 10, but it’s not usually dependent on the quality of preparation but the quality of the urchin itself. I have literally never gotten sea urchin of even decent quality on the east coast or anywhere landlocked except NYC, Las Vegas and Portland, Maine. I’ve been to high level seafood and Japanese restaurants in Florida, Virginia, Maryland, Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Georgia along the coast and while the rest of the dish may be great the uni is a fishy gross snot. Meanwhile in Vancouver, San Francisco, Seattle, and LA you can get amazing uni that tastes like magnificent sea butter at even low level neighborhood sushi joints. So it’s another highly variable seafood that is touch to rank.

Did you grow up overseas?

 

[MagNoleA]

That’s looks ridiculously good.

Thank you. I do what I can.

 

[West Duval Nole]

Did you grow up

This may be a better question. JK Tribe.

 

[FSUTribe76]

Did you grow up overseas?

No but I did grow up eating Czech food in Masaryktown, Greek food in Tarpon Springs, Cuban and Spanish food in Tampa, “Italian” food from Brooklyn, Long Island and Philly transplants in Spring Hill, good local Southern seafood in Crystal River, Japanese from my Okinawan warbride grandaunt, Floribbean, Jamaican, Haitian and Bahamian in the Keys and Miami plus trips to the Bahamas on my uncles boat, plus Norwegian, Moroccan, French and German from annual passes to Epcot.

 

[Robear7]

My wife is a flight attendant for Delta so I will join her on 30 hour layovers occasionally. During the pandemic we stayed over in Portland, ME and had solid meals at Luke’s and The Porthole. Both on the water where the lobster boats drop off the catch dockside.

 

[F4Gary]

Use to love Portland layovers.

 

[GeddyLee09]

No but I did grow up eating Czech food in Masaryktown, Greek food in Tarpon Springs, Cuban and Spanish food in Tampa, “Italian” food from Brooklyn, Long Island and Philly transplants in Spring Hill, good local Southern seafood in Crystal River, Japanese from my Okinawan warbride grandaunt, Floribbean, Jamaican, Haitian and Bahamian in the Keys and Miami plus trips to the Bahamas on my uncles boat, plus Norwegian, Moroccan, French and German from annual passes to Epcot.

While the states does have some authentic international cuisine I haven't come across any that really captures the true flavor of places overseas. German food anywhere outside of Germany never really measures up though.

 

[fsufool]

Lobsters are worth going to Maine for, but they can also be shipped. Clams are not worth going to Maine for, IMO.

The lobster guys have been showing up in Tallahassee regularly, but $25 for a lobster roll? I remember getting a great one in Newport for $5 ten years ago.

I was always on the hunt for the best oysters, and oyster "farming", and oyster "gardening". They turned all those little islands off the coast of RI into oyster farms, and those are some really good oysters. Each bay and inlet has their own oysters.

Bluffton oysters, (SC) are really good, kind of like the A'Cola oysters, but we once met an "oyster doctor", that gave us the run down on oysters. Pretty cool stories.

If you are getting lobster rolls for $25 you are getting a deal. They range from $23-$35 up here in northern New England. Silly amount of money IMO.

 

[CC0492]

I see $17 lobster rolls on some food trucks around metro ATL. That makes me cringe a bit unless I'm going to share it.