The Great Machipongo Clam Shack

Food? It's...fine. Tastes like they know their way around a freezer, if you catch my drift. The service? Friendly but unremarkable. Don't ask to substitute the hush puppies as "they are free" (or are they just part of your meal??) You won't get a song and dance, but they'll refill your Pepsi before it hits empty.Now, for the ambiance--think a hometown of Long John Silver that said, "I want to go full nautical but forgot what it will cost halfway."Now, here's the kicker: they ask that you leave the bathroom door open. Yes, you read that right. Apparently, privacy is overrated. And if you're planning actually to use the facilities, brace yourself. The toilet paper? Well, it's basically cotton candy's twin--looks substantial, but the minute you need it, it vanishes into thin air. So if you're down for an experience that's somewhere between a snack and a nostalgia trip, swing by. Just... maybe bring your own TP.

This is a wonderful place and unpretentious. They have a lot of yummy frozen seafood and they have soup to go cookbooks and history books on the Eastern shore. The crabcakes were incredible and we really enjoyed the soups we had we love the soup so much we took some to go, the hush puppies were yummy and if it's a nice day, they have outside seating as well. You can also get a nice bottle of wine to go with your seafood. Oh I forgot about the fried oysters. Yum.

Food was fantastic and service was fairly quick. Understand this is a converted McDonalds Restaurant. You order your meal and then find a seat. They bring your meal to you, usually paper plates and forks. There is a small gift shop with lots of spices and seasonings they use. There is a full bar menu as well as all the usually sodas and teas.

The roads down the eastern shore of Delaware, Maryland and Virginia (Routes 13 &113) haven't changed much since I started driving to Newport News to visit family over 30 years ago. Two lane blacktop most of the way, except for the magnificent over Chesapeake Bay tunnel/bridge engineering that makes the adventure all the more worthwhile. There is something timeless about this narrow land surrounded by water that is exemplified by some of the roadside attractions there for your enjoyment and consumption. The Great Machipongo Crab Shack is one of the most compelling stops on southbound Rt.13 in Nassawadox, VA. It is all local color and deep fried clam, oyster and crab southern history. Throw in some Cape Charles Brewery fermentations, and you have a victuals stop of legendary proportions. We stopped in as we headed north to Pennsylvania. It sits in an old McDonald's with bar and market in the house surrounded by tables and booths for sit down eating. String lights on the ceiling, and old maps and photos of fishing boats and longbeards hanging loosely on the walls. Atmosphere thick enough to eat along with your meal. It really shouldn't be missed.We ordered lunch of Flounder Stuffed w Crabmeat and the Local Fried Oyster Basket w Hush Puppies & Sweet Potato Fries. Had a Cape Charles IPA for washdown. Powdered everything with tabletop Queen of Sheeba spices as recommended by our friendly server. It was all quite enjoyable and filling. It was fresh and flavorful as intended, but would not be mistaken for high end dining. The house was nearly full on this Sunday afternoon with mostly local oldsters and a bunch of hungry road warriors. Lots of first names being shouted across the room as friends greeted each other. We listened to their chatter to pick up hints on what was best to order. Helpful to be sure, as no one was asking for steak, but many grabbed up the crab cakes, oyster po' boys and burgers. Just sorry it took so long to finally check Maripongo out. It is surely another prime destination on this historic down south byway.

Everyone traveling down this stretch of DelMarVa MUST add this to their travel itinerary. Whether it's lunch, dinner, or a snack, this is a destination you cannot miss. Located on the side of the highway, in an unabashfully repurposed former McDonalds location (parking lot still had McDonalds customer parking signs), this is a local seafood shack with hospitality. The interior is filled with unique marine tchotchkes and boat blueprints. It is not unusual to see families, with all different license plates, arranging their Sunday lunch ritual here. That's how you know it's good.We called ahead on our way here just make sure we didnt have to wait too long when we were on our way back home from a weekend away. We ordered the soft shell crab sandwich, fried seafood platter with clam strips and shrimp, and the she-crab soup. The soup ended up being the perfect dipping sauce for everything we ordered, we had to order a second just to eat. 10/10 would recommend.

Love this place! First off, I was foolishly talked into by my wife to drive the whole family for vacation... from St. Augustine, FL to Cape May, NJ. Well after an obscene amount of driving by me and firing donuts into the back of the car. My kids and wife had enough and were all crying at the same time. It was absolute anarchy and I really needed to pull over somewhere fast!Out of nowhere came... The Great Machipongo Clam Shack!!! (Trumpets)As we pulled in and I dismantled the car of crying children and crying wife. We walked in and were pleasantly greeted by a really nice hostess who sat us down and went over the menu. They had an outstanding seafood menu for me and my wife, as well as a really kid-friendly menu. The place was clean, the service was fast, and my family was super grateful. Plus I love the old time decor in that place. Honestly, this place would be a "go-to" for me personally as I wanted to crush a lot more seafood than I did that day but still had some more hours on my drive. We unfortunately missed the Cape May ferry that we needed to catch but if it was t for Machipongo we would have lost our sanity. Most importantly the food & service was awesome! Side note: My daughter bought a T-shirt and I hope to someday be back again. In meantime, I will pray to the Machipongo Clam Gods whenever my car of screaming children awakes! Thanks again!!!

This restaurant thinks it's cute to illegally leave up a giant old menu outside with incorrect prices that deceives people. Upon asking about an order of the dozen little neck clams, she tells me $14.50 not $4 like the menu outside says. Wasn't about to argue the fact that they must legally sell them to me for the posted price, because I'm sure they won't care.

To be fair it was a Sunday night an hour and half from closing. Talking to the waitress they were not expecting the vacation crowds yet. It was weekend before July 4. It is a fish shack restaurant so it is utilitarian in setting. Lots of paper plates. The bisque was great. Shrimp OK. Would like to come back when it is earlier and better staffed

I usually keep driving if I see an elaborate structure advertising seafood. So when I saw this unimpressive building with a bunch of pickup trucks parked near it and a sign that said, "Seafood," I stopped. These folks don't do anything fancy with the seafood. Good quality seafood doesn't need fancy. Not only do you get to order oysters, you can select which river/creek you'd like them from! The lightly breaded oysters melted in my mouth. My wife ordered shrimp which had a good crunchy coating over firm but moist meat. Not rubbery, not flaccid. Just right. I give this place a 5 for ambiance where you might give it a 2. It's not on the water and there's nothing fancy about it. Just good, honest seafood served with a smile and, I could tell, a wee bit of pride.

Amazing!! The food is outstanding and the customer service was impeccable. My husband and I split the macho platter. We got a couple local beers from the Cape Charles Brewery to wash it down and we were not disappointed. My six year old demolished the shrimp and fry basket. I highly recommend this place and encourage you to give the Queen of Sheba Spice a try while you're there. We even bought some to take home.