Changes coming, even in the pet alligator’s name, at popular South MS restaurant
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Crawfish House on the Bayou will replace Huck’s Cove after renovations before Christmas 2025.
- Mother-daughter owners expand menu with lobster, Dungeness, oysters and expanded seafood.
- Renovations add indoor/outdoor seating, deck docks, heaters, kids area and parking.
Blend the scenery and waterfront vibes of Huck’s Cove in Gautier with the menu and lively spirit of The Crawfish House and Grill in Ocean Springs and South Mississippi gets a new restaurant experience.
The result will be Crawfish House on the Bayou, tucked away just off U.S. 90 on the Singing River in Gautier. What was Huck’s Cove for 26 years will become a new restaurant when renovations are complete before Christmas.
“We’re very excited, especially to be on the water,” said Michelle Schenck, who with her daughter and business partner Sumer Steelman has started the remodel while working on the menu for their second Crawfish House.
The first is in downtown Ocean Springs and the two will be similar, with indoor and outdoor seating and both upscale dishes for those who want an “awesome” stuffed lobster, Schenck said, and budget-friendly and fun dishes like chicken nachos, hamburgers and debris fries.
They’re bringing a family atmosphere to the Gautier location and will embrace the waterfront ambience with expanded views from the dining room and more crawfish, catfish and seafood on the menu.
Expanding scenery
The mother-daughter team is deciding whether a wall of windows or a garage door will best maximize the million-dollar views from the dining room to the water. The deck and docks, where customers will sit at the edge of the water and boats can be tied up, are being repaired.
The resident alligator who hangs out nearby, once named Willie, had a name change to Lil’ Huck as a tribute to the history and memories of Huck’s Cove.
“So we’re going to have new furniture and new flooring and covered seating,” Schenck said. The new roof over the deck and outdoor heaters will make it comfortable to dine outdoors on cooler nights and some screens will make for a better experience in the summer. New restrooms and better parking are in the plans.
When they bought the Crawfish House in Ocean Springs, she said, the restaurant didn’t have any big fans or outdoor heaters. “When we came, nobody would sit outside. So when we started putting the heaters out, everybody wanted to sit outside because it was so comfortable.”
They also like a lot of lights, Steelman said, and decorating for seasons and holidays, even wrapping a palm tree in the middle of the Ocean Springs restaurant with lights and leaves.
“Another thing that we’re planning on doing is putting in a kids’ area,” Schenck said, adding toys to a fenced area to make it fun and safe for kids out on the deck.
The kids will get Bible bags with crayons and sheets to color, Steelman said. The Bible activities have been so well received in Ocean Springs they decided to carry the tradition to Gautier, she said.
New menu of food and fun
Some of the most popular items on the Crawfish House menu in Ocean Springs will make it to Gautier, but with a few differences and more seafood.
“We’re going to bring snow crab. We’re bringing Dungeness. We’re bringing lobster,” Schenck said. They’ll have an oyster station, catfish baked or blackened, grilled chicken, wings, salads and burgers.
“We’ll bring a kids’ menu with chicken tenders, mini corn dogs and grilled cheese sandwiches,” she said.
For those who want a drink with dinner or out on the deck at dusk, they are installing a few daiquiri machines and will have a menu of craft cocktails, frozen bushwackers and other favorites.
“We’re still going to offer karaoke,” Schenck said, bands on the weekends and other kinds of fun, perhaps darts, trivia or other activities that bring people together.
Making memories on the bayou
The Crawfish House family is going into their fourth crawfish season.
In Ocean Springs they have one season, and it’s crawfish season, Schenck said, from January to July.
In Gautier they are planning for two seasons, bringing crawfish and then sailing right into boating season and plentiful seafood.
When they were considering expanding, they began looking west toward Biloxi and beyond for a second restaurant. Instead, they found this opportunity to the east in Gautier, and are amazed by the welcome from the community.
They all the same thing — “We love Huck’s,” Schenck said, but then talk about how excited they are for this new restaurant coming to town.
When they bought the Crawfish House in Ocean Springs, their family already had so many memories at the place, she said. It’s where Steelman got engaged, where she told her family she was pregnant for the first time, where they did Mother’s Day and Father’s Day and holidays.
Memories are what makes the Crawfish House special, they said, and they plan to bring the same memory-making experiences to their new place.
“The whole concept is food brings people together, and in turn, you think about anything you do, any family function, whether it’s a wedding or a birthday, it evolves around food,” Schenck said. “If you can provide a great atmosphere and good food, you’re going to make great memories.”
