Chilled Florida stone crab claws with mustard sauce, served on shaved ice from October 15 to May 1, the dish that defines Joe's Stone Crab and Miami's stone crab season.
Where to eat it: 2 restaurants across 1 city.
Joe Weiss opened Joe's in 1913 on Miami Beach as a small lunch counter; the stone crab arrived in 1921 when a Harvard ichthyologist suggested the crabs could be boiled and chilled. Florida law allows only one claw per crab to be harvested; the crab regrows the lost claw and is returned to the water. Joe's Stone Crab opens for the season every October 15.
Common allergens: Shellfish, Egg (mustard sauce)
Tip from the editors. Season runs October to May only. Outside season, Florida stone crab is not legally available; substitute Dungeness for the home version.
This is the TableJourney editorial recipe, modelled on the canonical bistro / counter version. The first place to try the dish in its city of origin is below.
Joe's Stone Crab in Miami Beach is the 1913 South of Fifth seafood cathedral, serving chilled stone crab claws with mustard sauce from October 15 to May 1 each year.
Signature: Stone crab claws with mustard sauce, Key lime pie, Hash browns
Order: Jumbo or large stone crab claws with the mustard sauce and a side of creamed spinach.
Tip: No reservations for dinner; arrive by 5pm or use the take-away counter next door for the same claws to-go.
Why locals love it: On the Miami River next to a working fish market, this almost-half-century-old seafood room runs quieter than the Brickell crowd realises and locals book here for stone crab.
Tip: Sit on the river deck. The fish market next door sells the same catch by the pound to take home.
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