Stephen Sawitz, Joe's Stone Crab
Stone crab season opens and we talk to the legacy owner of the family-owned restaurant
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Show Notes
The man behind Joe’s Stone Crab is actually a Stephen.
Stephen Sawitz is the great-grandson of Joe Weiss, who founded the Miami Beach restaurant in 1913. Four generations of his family have steered it into icon status. Now it’s Stephen’s turn. He’s the latest steward of Joe’s Stone Crab.
He tells us crazy stories about his grandfather, Jesse, who the restaurant's own website describes thusly: "Jesse was a character. He was a scoundrel, a womanizer to the hundredth degree, a gambler. But everyone who came into Joe's wanted to see Jesse."
He tells us why stone crab claws are boiled the second they come off the boat, whether you can tell frozen from fresh, what his grandparents did to defend Joe's against development, and what it's like to take over a restaurant with $40 million in revenue that is a family legacy and a Miami Beach institution.
Plus: La Planchita's maiden voyage pressing sandwiches, a rom-com themed restaurant and how to help a Hurricane Ian ravaged restaurant in Sanibel Island.
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