Crazy Popular Crab Hut Opening Third Location in Mira Mesa

Since first launching in Kearny Mesa in 2007, Crab Hut has drawn huge crowds to its Convoy Street location and spawned several copycats. In 2011, the Louisiana-inspired eatery opened a second outpost downtown on Broadway to keep up with demand. Now, owners Kim Phan, Ky Phan and Quan Le have announced plans for a third restaurant in Mira Mesa that will be an evolution of their concept.

The new Crab Hut is headed to the Mira Mesa shopping center at 8280 Mira Mesa Boulevard, where they're just beginning a remodel of a 5,000-square-foot space with a 300-square-foot patio; the owners are working with Ocio Design Group on a look that will be more modern than their existing eateries, with a central island that will house 20 craft beer taps, a cocktail bar and a raw seafood bar.

This iteration of the seafood-centric eatery will still specialize in casual, roll-up-your-sleeves seafood boils, but intends to swap out some of the fried items on the menu for more fresh seafood, from crab cocktail to seasonal oysters. Their cocktail program is also getting an upgrade; expect craft cocktails and a large whiskey collection. After the 250-seat eatery opens in Mira Mesa in February 2016, the owners tell Eater that they will refresh their first two locations while beginning to search for a fourth.