Gary Howard Seafood
Gary Howard Seafood
est. 1989
"THE BEGINNINGS"
Gary was born in a home on Chincoteague Island and comes from a family of ten children, five boys and five girls. He started working at a very early age digging clams to help the family income. He, like all his brothers, became watermen of Chincoteague Island.
His long-time dream was to have a small oyster shucking house and be able to process the oysters he caught in the Island waters. Being a waterman meant selling his catch (usually at below market price) to try to make a day’s work. Getting decent pay for the quality given seemed to be getting harder by the season, so in the year 1989 he put his dream into motion. Soon he had a shucking house, certified by the health department, and Gary Howard Seafood had begun. It was operated by Gary and his wife, Audrey and their 2 children as a "mom & pop" business out of the backyard .
The "business" was open in the winter for shucking and selling oysters, and closed in the summer. As customers increased and inquired about a variety of products, additions and changes were made to expand into other seafood types.
Now we are open year round, with a variety of seafood from shrimp to crabs, local shellfish and finfish alike. We shed our own softcrabs in the summer months, shuck our own oysters in the winter and have some of everything all the time.
We pride ourselves with having the highest quality possible. Our clams come from Tom’s Cove located at the mouth of Assateague Island inlet where the ocean water is clean, fresh and salty. Our hardcrabs are local, sweet seaside crabs caught fresh everyday just for our market. Our softcrabs are just that, SOFT, not semi-soft and paper-like when you touch them. Our fish comes straight off the boats and we fillet them on premises for your convenience. Sea scallops also are a favorite among our customers, always fresh from the ocean, never treated with chemicals as many store bought types. Everything in our market is iced several times a day to keep the freshness and quality of the seafood at its highest.
We also supply ice and help you pack for travel at no extra cost, to ensure your purchases get home in the best condition possible.
Time and care is taken to provide the best quality for your enjoyment. Stop in and see why we can proudly advertise "Ask around....the best in town".