Crazy about Chowder: A Tale of Spud Point and Addiction on Bodega Bay
Carol's famous clam chowder attracts fans from around the globe to Bodega Bay.
I can’t even remember the first time I heard about the amazing goodness of the signature menu item at Bodega Bay’s always buzzing Spud Point Crab Company, but, suffice it to say, it was a very long time ago.
On every visit to Sonoma over the last several years, I found myself trapped in a wicked pattern. I would make a date to head out to the Bay for what I was assured was the best clam chowder this side of New England (or anywhere on the planet for that matter) and then, for some reason or another, on each and every one of those occasions, I would find my plans thwarted. (For the record, once upon a time the store would close for a day or so each week, but the craze for Spud Point chowder has reached such epic proportions these days that the restaurant’s proprietors, Tony and Carol Anello, now throw open their doors seven days a week -- save for Easter, Thanksgiving and Christmas).
Spud point's crab sandwiches are the perfect accompaniment to their world-famous clam chowder.
Finally, on a sunny afternoon during my last visit to Sonoma, one of my longest held, unrequited desires was granted albeit at the end of a long, if quickly moving, line. Surreal as it seemed at the time, I was on my way to sampling Carol’s Famous Spud Point Crab Company Clam Chowder which, I can now say, is undeniably everything I had expected or been told and then some. I’ve sampled iterations of this classic soup from points near and far, all up and down the Eastern seaboard and I’ve actually never tasted a chowder so singular in flavor.
This bowl of creamy, garlicky deliciousness loaded with a more than generous helping of massive clams and just the right proportion of potato, practically made me want to immediately scramble back in line for another, though I was more than satiated by the bowl I had only just consumed. It wasn’t hunger that motivated me in that instance, it was instead pure unadulterated desire.
On weekends, try the equally popular crab cakes. Photo by Joe Rozier.
That I had, upon the recommendation of the Sonoma-ite who first turned me on the miracle of Spud Point chowder, also ordered a crab sandwich filled with lightly dressed crab on the freshest of buns, only took the experience to nirvana.
I am a firm believer in never believing the hype but in the case of Spud Point Crab Company, I not only encourage believing the hype, I give it a full-throated endorsement.
Find out more about Spud Point Crab Company at spudpointcrab.com.