The original Outback Crab Shack opened in 1984 and was popular with locals and tourists until it was heavily damaged by Hurricane Matthew and forced to close in 2016. Now it’s making a comeback as a new restaurant is built at the site.
Sleiman Enterprises has announced it’s rebuilding the restaurant at 8155 County Road 13 N., with an expected opening in the spring of 2022.
“The reopening of Outback Crab Shack will continue the history of one of Northeast Florida’s favorite dining destination accessible by boat and land,” said Eli Sleiman of Sleiman Enterprises in a news release.
The property is located on Six Mile Creek, just west of the St. Johns River.
Although it has a St. Augustine address, most people would consider it in rural St. Johns County, along a picturesque stretch of County Road 13 that hugs the St. Johns River.
Google Street View Of Outback Crab Shack Site
The new Outback Crab Shack will be leased to Nathan Stuart. Stuart comes from a family of fishermen and owns six other seafood restaurants in St. Augustine, Jacksonville and Tallahassee.
“Outback Crab Shack will be a place for people to enjoy each other’s company and share in delicious Southern food prepared in our made-from-scratch kitchen. We can’t wait to bring this concept back to life and bring activities to our riverfront including events and live music,” said Stuart.
Outback Crab Shack’s menu will include local shrimp, fresh grouper, snapper and mahi-mahi, an assortment of oysters plus the traditional low-country boil that Outback Crab Shack was known for.
The restaurant will include a 1,500-foot-long dock for boaters.
Bill Bortzfield can be reached at bbortzfield@wjct.org or on Twitter at @BortzInJax.
