Expanding Utah restaurant chain to drop anchor in old McGrath’s Fish House

When McGrath’s Fish House closed recently, it left a seafood void at the Boise Spectrum.

But a new chain plans to drop anchor next.

O’Crab Cajun Seafood & Bar will open soon, according to banners hung outside the building at 1749 S. Cole Road. It‘s the second Treasure Valley location planned for O’Crab, which also recently leased a 6,022-square-foot space at 16808 N. Market Place Blvd. in Nampa.

Both Idaho restaurants are slated to open by the third quarter of 2021, according to Tracy Doong, a Salt Lake City real estate broker working with O’Crab.

This is good news if you enjoy spicy seafood. Or it might make you crabby, if you were hoping for something besides a chain. McGrath’s, which opened at the Spectrum in 1998, also was a chain.

O’Crab lures customers with “a wide selection of freshly imported seafood and Cajun dishes inspired by the style of cooking made famous in New Orleans,” according to its website, which was not functioning when this article was posted. O’Crab has one open restaurant so far — in West Jordan, Utah — with another under construction in south Salt Lake City, Doong said via email.

As noted in a prior article, O’Crab is strikingly similar to Hook & Reel, a nationwide chain with a store at 1510 N. Eagle Road in Meridian. You can mix and match with crab, shrimp, lobster, calamari and other options, choosing from three spice levels. Plates are served with corn on the cob and potatoes. There’s a selection of po’ boys, soups and salads. And like every other restaurant navigating the waters of the coronavirus pandemic, takeout is a priority.

This story was originally published January 19, 2021 at 12:31 PM.