Surf City Crab

At Surf City Crab, commercial boats unload at the market’s own dock on the waterway while you shop, and fish is cut to order on the spot. It’s on Roland Avenue on the island, open seven days a week, and it’s where many Surf City rentals’ shrimp boils begin.

• Surf City
• On the island
• Shrimp & crabs
• Cut-to-order fish
• Open daily

What stands out

Freshness is the headline in public reviews, along with a crew that knows its seafood and will explain how to cook what you buy. Shrimp is the most common order, and you can get it with the heads off and cleaned so it’s ready for the pot. Visitors find prices fair for the quality. It gets busy, and parking and traffic around the market can be tight in summer.

What to pick up

• Local jumbo shrimpHeads-off and cleaned options make a shrimp boil easy.
• Fish cut to orderWhole or filleted while you wait; ask what came in that day.
• Live blue crabs and shellfishAsk what shellfish is in the case that day, including clams, oysters, mussels and scallops.
• A steamer bucketA Basic or Cajun kit with shrimp, snow crab, clams, sausage, corn and seasoning for a crowd.
• Crab cakes and crab meatFor an easy dinner, along with frozen favorites like lobster tails.

Before you go

• Availability changes daily. Call ahead for something specific or a large order.
• Bring a cooler if you’re stopping on the way to somewhere else.
• The Crab Pot restaurant shares the address but is a separate business.

Plan your visit

• Where: 508 Roland Avenue, Surf City, NC 28445
• Hours: 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily, per the market’s website.
• Phone: (910) 328-5004
• Market & updates: surfcitycrab.fish
• More nearby: grocery stores and markets near Surf City

Staying nearby? Browse our Surf City vacation rentals, all cared for by our local team.

Based on the business’s own website and social posts and on recurring themes in public reviews; checked October 2026. Hours, stock and prices change, so confirm with the store before you go.