The Proud Crab restaurant looks to bring new seafood option to downtown Port Orange - Daytona Beach News-Journal

PORT ORANGE — Driving along Volusia County's east coast on Florida State Road A1A means coming across several seafood spots.

But for those passing through Port Orange's busiest road, Dunlawton Avenue, another unique option is coming soon.

The Proud Crab restaurant is a few weeks away from opening at the Dunlawton Square by the end of the month, in the southeast corner of the Dunlawton Avenue and Nova Road intersection.

Beaches restaurant: Beaches restaurant on track to open on Daytona's East ISB Friday

Riverwalk: Port Orange chooses Bristol Development Group to lead the 'Riverwalk' project

NSB: New Paradise Pizza restaurant in NSB brings mix of Italian, brick oven pizza flavors

Kristin Claywell, who will be The Proud Crab's general manager, is no stranger to the restaurant industry. She worked at Norwood's Eatery & Treehouse Bar in New Smyrna Beach for more than 15 years and most recently at Takara Steakhouse and Sushi restaurant at the Port Orange Pavilion.

The seafood menu at The Proud Crab will specialize in crab boil, Louisiana-style seafood and burgers.

"We're doing traditional seafood boil-type restaurant — crawfish, blue crab, shrimp," Claywell said. "But we're also doing specialty sandwiches, fried dinner entrees, and eventually we'll have a specialty chef menu to make it a little different from the other boils around here."

Claywell said she has been helping the family who owns Takara Steakhouse and Sushi restaurant create the concept for and bring the brand new The Proud Crab location to the city. 

"(The family) has had a couple of seafood boil restaurants before," she said. "They wanted to open up one here. We don't have many around the (downtown) area and it would be a good venture for us."

Downtown's new and go-to seafood spot

Ken Zheng, who will also manage The Proud Crab, said the owners considered bringing the restaurant to Daytona Beach, but the location wasn't quite what they were looking for.

The Dunlawton Avenue location, which used to house a TGI Fridays and is next to several other stores in the Dunlawton Square, was better suited for the The Proud Crab space-wise, Zheng said.

"Being close to Publix and close to a market where you have a lot of people walking around, it makes it more visible for those people coming in there," Zheng said.

He said that "being a seafood restaurant, the first thing we look at is to be on the beachside."

But choosing the Dunlawton Avenue location for The Proud Crab might be even better than bringing it to the beachside, where the clientele (and space) wouldn't be as good for business, Zheng said.

"If you are opening somewhere close to the beach, where it's pretty much seasonal, it's either people going on a nice day or people who stay home and never go to the beach when the weather turns bad," Zheng said. 

He added that appealing to those living farther from the beach in Port Orange who want to enjoy seafood in town but who would rather not take the longer drive will be the key to The Proud Crab's success.

"We'd like to to keep it here at (downtown) Port Orange — that's where we are at right now," Zheng said.

The restaurant received its certificate of occupancy this week and is only waiting for a health inspection to finalize preparations for its opening. Zheng said that most of the staff has been hired, with only a few server positions still open.

The Proud Crab will be located at 3813 S. Nova Road in Port Orange.