Gary Graves — Crab King of Keys Fisheries
Keys Voices has an excellent piece on one of the Middle Keys Treasures, Gary Graves. Gary is the owner of Marathon’s Keys Fisheries restaurant and manager of the fishing operation, has been with the business since it began more than 40 years ago. His fleet of boats ply the Florida Keys and surrounding waters capturing lobster & stone crabs for your dining pleasure. If you have eaten at Joe’s Stone Crab restaurant you should thank Gary for providing those sumptuous crab claws.
The on-site seafood market and restaurant, obviously, serve up the freshest seafood available. They are famous for their lobster Reuben, Gary came up with the dish after attending a meeting in Miami at Joe’s Stone Crab, where he was shown the version offered at Joe’s Take Away. About five months later, he created an over-sized sandwich at Keys Fisheries using lobster meat, homemade Thousand Island dressing and freshly baked bread. “Being such a huge producer of lobster as well as stone crabs, we have leftover meat from the lobster tails,” Gary explained. “So it dawned on me, why not make our own lobster Reuben?”
Like savoring the lobster Reuben, ordering at Keys Fisheries is a unique experience. Customers walk up to a window and place their order for pickup. But instead of being asked their name, as in most establishments, they’re asked the question of the day, which might require them to name their favorite song title, pet peeve or New Year’s resolution. When the order is ready, the customer’s answer is announced over the loudspeaker to signal that he or she can come collect the meal.
Read the rest of the story at Keys Voices.
