After a delay of almost a year, the Angry Crab Shack recently debuted in the long-vacant former Joe’s Crab Shack space on Sunset Road at Green Valley Parkway. Owners Dana and Rick Lopez signed a franchise agreement to bring the restaurant chain to Henderson back in March, spending their savings just before the coronavirus pandemic began to cripple the restaurant industry.
Dana Lopez says when she decided to invest, she had no idea restaurants would be shut down the same month. “My husband retired from the union, and we made the decision to invest in the concept. We pulled out some retirement to get it going, and that happened two weeks later,” she says.
Despite the setback, the couple moved forward as planned. And now Dana Lopez, who comes from a family in the restaurant industry, hopes to help provide jobs to some of those who have lost theirs. Overall, she plans to bring on at least 50 employees, including bussers, cooks, servers, dishwashers and managers. “People that stand out for us are the ones who are unemployed,” she says.
Angry Crab Shack specializes in Cajun dishes with Asian spices and homestyle fixings, such as red potatoes, baked beans and corn on the cob. There are soups (the gumbo is a must), salads, bowls and sandwiches, including Louisiana-style po’boys, for lunch and dinner.
For those who choose to dine in with their pod, the seafood boil is a great excuse to get your hands messy. Shrimp, crab (snow, king and Dungeness), lobster, crawfish, clams and mussels can be sauced up seven different ways—try the trifecta of Cajun, lemon pepper and garli—and spiced from mild to “ridiculously hot,” then boiled in a bag and eaten on butcher paper-covered tables. (Gloves are provided for ease of cleanup.)
That communal style of eating was what initially hooked the Lopezes, who have lived in Henderson for two decades, when they had a meal at an Angry Crab Shack location in Arizona.
“What really won me over was when we sat down to eat,” Dana says.
ANGRY CRAB SHACK 4250 E. Sunset Road, 702-998-9095. Friday-Thursday, 11 a.m.-11 p.m.
