\u201cThe storm churned up the seas and moved crabs straight into the traps,\u201d Morris told the South Florida Sun Sentinel from the parking lot of one of his clients, Even Keel Fish Shack in Lauderdale-by-the-Sea. \u201cWhen crabs stay affordable, it\u2019s looking like a good season.\u201d<\/p>\n
Local purveyors agree with Morris. Wholesalers, fish market owners and restaurateurs\u00a0say robust consumer demand and supplies of the crustacean delicacy are keeping prices flat with the start of last season, despite some shortages of medium-sized claws in the opening days and lingering problems with the high cost of diesel fuel.<\/p>\n
Peter Jarvis, owner of boutique wholesaler Triar Seafood in Hollywood, said his 700-pound wishlist order for stone crab arrived in full and\u00a0is bound for shipping to high-end clients. He\u2019s charging $39 per pound\u00a0for medium, $49 for large, $69 for jumbo and $79 for colossal \u2014 about even with last season \u2014 prices he suspects would be lower if not for \u201cthe frustrating cost of diesel,\u201d which fuels crabbing vessels and delivery trucks that transport claws to his shop.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m just glad the demand is pretty good, pretty vibrant,\u201d Jarvis said. \u201cBut if fuel prices stay high, the prices will stay the same. The only way I see prices starting to dive is if stone-crab production exceeds demand, and then you\u2019ll see a butt ton go into the freezer.\u201d<\/p>\n
During the 2026-27 season, which continues through May 1, the state\u2019s stone crabs are typically caught in muddy waters along the Gulf Coast, Florida Keys and Florida\u2019s Big Bend, with some fisheries laying traps near Miami and the Bahamas. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission abridged the season by two weeks in 2020 (from May 15 to May 1) and set strict rules<\/a> on size limits to curb overfishing and give crabs time to regenerate their claws.<\/p>\n Dewey Culbreth, owner of Catfish Deweys in Oakland Park, said the state cutting the season short \u201cgives stone crabs more time to spawn\u201d and grows the industry, which brought in $42.3 million in 2024, according to the most recent data<\/a> from the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.<\/p>\n Hurricane Isaias\u2019 arrival in early October actually improved the stone-crab haul, argued\u00a0Culbreth, whose restaurant offered a $105 all-you-can-eat special on Monday<\/a>. \u201cIf the water is calm, stone crabs burrow into the sand and don\u2019t move. Hurricanes churn the waters and motivate them to wander around. You know the signs are encouraging when they show up in lobster traps, too.\u201d<\/p>\n Carline Jean\/South Florida Sun Sentinel<\/p>\n Brad Phillips, chef and co-owner of Even Keel Fish Shack in Lauderdale-by-the-Sea, pours out freshly delivered stone crabs for sale. The restaurant is offering an all-you-can-eat special for $99. (Carline Jean\/South Florida Sun Sentinel)<\/p>\n Because fresh stone crabs are out of season in the summertime, pent-up demand always crescendos at kickoff with long lines, said David MacLennan, co-owner of Even Keel. Such was the case this weekend,\u00a0when hundreds of diners booked reservations for the restaurant\u2019s $99 all-you-can-eat special.<\/p>\n \u201cThe first hauls are usually more expensive, but the [all-you-can-eat] special matches last year and brings people through the doors,\u201d said MacLennan, who sources claws from suppliers on the Gulf Coast and Florida Keys. \u201cThe average person\u2019s going to eat 2 pounds anyway, about 12 medium claws \u2014 you just get tired of all that cracking after a while.\u201d<\/p>\n Clay Brand Jr., co-owner of Captain Clay and Sons Seafood Market in Delray Beach, said his claw prices are near where they were\u00a0last season: $28.99 for medium, $37.99 for large, $51.99 for jumbo and $58.99 for colossal.<\/p>\n Carline Jean\/South Florida Sun Sentinel<\/p>\n Even Keel’s Brad Phillips cracks into stone crabs on Friday, Oct. 16, 2026. (Carline Jean\/South Florida Sun Sentinel)<\/p>\n \u201cThe medium supply was a bit light, but we got exactly what we wanted,\u201d said Brand, who received all 400 pounds he ordered from fisheries in the Keys and Gulf Coast.<\/p>\n So where can the biggest bargains be found? Call ahead to confirm by-the-pound pricing, but Delaware Chicken Farm & Seafood Market in Hollywood is charging $31.99 for medium, $36.99 for large, $52.99 for jumbo and $58.99 for colossal.<\/p>\n Elsewhere, some prices are higher. Pop\u2019s Fish Market in Deerfield Beach is offering claws at $39.99 for medium, $45.99 for large, $59.99 for jumbo and $65.99 for colossal. Luff\u2019s Fish Market in Boca Raton reported $42 for large, $51 for jumbo and $57 for colossal.<\/p>\n The kickoff to stone crab season will be feted in festival form next month during the South Florida\u00a0Seafood Festival at Miami\u2019s Wynwood Marketplace. The Nov. 8 event will offer pop-ups from Miami restaurants, as well as live cooking demonstrations, games and live bands. Visit Eventbrite.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n Sun Sentinel senior features writer Phillip Valys can be reached at pvalys@sunsentinel.com<\/a> or Twitter\/X @philvalys<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"With his refrigerated van packed to the brim, seafood wholesaler Vinny Morris kicked off South Florida\u2019s stone-crab season…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":432375,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[1593,3337,506,104,1594,28,688,249,251,250,114,8229,8230,557,687,109,685,106],"class_list":["post-432374","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-fort-lauderdale","tag-bars","tag-boca-raton","tag-broward-county","tag-entertainment","tag-explore-florida","tag-florida","tag-food-and-drink","tag-fort-lauderdale","tag-fort-lauderdale-headlines","tag-fort-lauderdale-news","tag-latest-headlines","tag-lauderdale-by-the-sea","tag-oakland-park","tag-palm-beach-county","tag-restaurants","tag-social","tag-the-eat-beat","tag-things-to-do"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/432374","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=432374"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/432374\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/432375"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=432374"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=432374"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=432374"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"Brad](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/tfl-l-stone-crabs-even-keel.jpg\")
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