Nothing puts you in vacation mode faster than a delicious meal that’s true to the place you’re visiting. In Austin it might be breakfast taco smothered in hot sauce, while in New Orleans a bowl of gumbo or plate of beignets always does the trick. If you’re near the water, seafood is 100% the move. Our readers, who are more than familiar with their local stretches of coastline, certainly agree. When they’re at the beach, a no-frills seafood dive is the number one place they head after unloading the car. Whether you prefer your catch fried to golden perfection, broiled with a squeeze of lemon, or steamed with Cajun spices, these beloved restaurants more than know their way around a seafood plate. These are the South’s Best Seafood Dives of 2025 as voted on by our readers.
South’s Best Voting Process
An online survey was conducted by third-party agency Proof Insights among Southern Living Consumers, asking them to rate their favorite places across the South. The survey was fielded from July 10 to August 21, 2024, and had over 10,000 respondents.
10. Middendorf’s
Akers and Slidell, Louisiana
This 90-year-old restaurant started in a small fishing village with couple Josie and Louis Middendorf using her family recipes, one of which remains the house specialty: Thin Fried Catfish.
middendorfsrestaurant.com; multiple locations
9. The Original Crab Shack
Christened with the tagline “where the elite eat in their bare feet,” this popular spot has waterside views of the marsh and a lagoon with live alligators. Order their huge Low Country Boil, and prepare to get messy…