Where to get good crab legs in the city?

I am looking to go out for King Crab Legs in the city. Any suggestions. I have been to Half Shell, Shaws and Joes Stone Crab, and was wondering if there were some other places worth trying?

I recently had dinner at the Original Joe's Stone Crab in Miami. I had not only the stone crabs, but an order of their King Crabs as well. The King Crabs were some of the largest and most tasty legs I have ever had in a restaurant. You might want to check out the Joe's Stone Crab outpost in Chicago or Bob Chinn's. Those would be my top two picks for King Crab in a restaurant, although I rarely go out for King Crab.

Joe's Stone (and King) Crab


Joe's Seafood, Prime Steak & Stone Crab
60 E. Grand
Chicago, IL
312-397-5637

Bob Chinn's Crabhouse
393 S. Milwaukee Ave
Wheeling, IL
847-520-3633

If it were winter when live King Crab is in season, I would send you to Happy Cafe in Chinatown. A no-decor, no-frills Chinese restaurant but with very good HK/Cantonese food. They have live King Crab when they are in season which is about December/January/February.

Since these aren't in season right now and what you are buying is probably just rewarmed pre-cooked frozen legs, I would just go to Costco on the weekends and buy the colossal sized legs and steam/boil - or stir-fry them which is my preference - them at home myself. Costco sells these for a great price. You can lay down some newspapers, warm some butter, open up a few brewskies, and enjoy these in the comfort of your own home. Clean-up is simply wrapping up the shells in your fancy newspaper placemat and tossing the entire package into the garbage - or compost pile if you have one.

Enjoy !

I agree on the CostCo king crab legs. I usually reheat them using the Alton Brown method of wrapping them in a damp paper towel (I usually break at the joint to get smaller lengths) then wrap that in plastic wrap and microwaving for 1.5-2 minutes. I have found this to be a better end result than steaming/boiling since all you really want to do is heat them up.
Jamie

Thanks for the suggestions. While I am a big fan of Bob Chinn's in Wheeling, I was hoping to avoid the trip up north. I have recently had the CostCo crab legs and was pleasantly surprised how meaty and delicious they were. That meal actually spurned this craving I currently have. I may just have to go back to CostCo for some more and eat at home...

butter674 wrote:Thanks for the suggestions. While I am a big fan of Bob Chinn's in Wheeling, I was hoping to avoid the trip up north. I have recently had the CostCo crab legs and was pleasantly surprised how meaty and delicious they were. That meal actually spurned this craving I currently have. I may just have to go back to CostCo for some more and eat at home...

That is your best bet, and usually what I do rather than go out for them. Costco, or in a pinch, Whole Foods are the two places I normally buy them.

"Homemade" Costco Crab Legs

The Dominicks on Clybourn (between Fullerton and Diversy) had excellent King Crab legs on sale for $10/lbs about 10 days ago.

Another vote for Joe's Stone Crab here. Like the previous poster says, the stone crabs are indeed quite good there, but the king crab legs are even better.

Had great ones from Whole foods last night for dinner. Got em from the Gold Coast location (dont live there ) but I would imagine all the local ones have the same vendor.

J