Bobby Wells is a Georgia boy who knows his seafood. The Brunswick native scored an internship at Fiddler’s Crab House on River Street after college at Georgia Southern and now he runs the kitchen with affection. Affection for both the hungry patrons who pack the place and for the food he feeds them.

“We spend a lot of money to get the best seafood around,” he proclaims. “It’s as fresh as you can get.” Fiddler’s steamed seafood platter is a head-turning maritime celebration that is one of the restaurant’s signature dishes. Wells piles a tin platter high with piping hot steamed Georgia shrimp, crawfish, oysters, mussels and clams. Crowning the top of the feast are straight-from-Alaska snow crab legs. Plenty of butter and a few choice spices are all he needs to accentuate the flavors that just arrived fresh on the truck.

Order it with a friend and you both get side choices including potatoes, coleslaw, stone-ground grits, hush puppies, corn or Savannah red rice. Wash it all down with a beer or glass of wine from Fiddler’s extensive list, and there’s no doubt you’ll walk out later to stroll the river’s edge with a smile on your face. “It’s nothing fancy,” Wells says. “It’s just that we’ve gotten it down right.”

Chef Wells and his co-manager, Tye Munn, work together to make sure Fiddler’s has both great food and a memorable atmosphere. “It’s a fun place,” Munn explains. “It’s casual, with our outdoor seating and laid-back feel, but you can have a very upscale meal here.”

The restaurant is known for more than just the steamed seafood platter. Jumbo lump crab cakes and Buffalo shrimp, breaded in a special recipe, are two of the kitchen’s most popular appetizer requests. And the Fresh Catch Savannah dish is always a menu star with its pasta, béarnaise sauce, mushrooms and green onions. “The kitchen is my comfort zone,” Wells says. “We work hard to make it seem like a family here and I think that shows.”

Photography by Angela Hopper