Battered, fried or sautéed and bathed in buttery sauce, shrimp leads many restaurant patrons into their meal.

This article first appeared in the 1 September 2006 issue of Restaurants & Institutions (R&I).

R&I is the USA's leading source of food and business-trend information and exclusive research on operators and restaurant patrons. Editorial coverage spans the entire foodservice industry, including chains, independent restaurants, hotels and institutions. To find out more about R&I, visit its website here >>

By Patricia B. Dailey, Editor-in-Chief

Net Catch (pictured above)

Bubba Gump Shrimp Co., multiple locations. The chain’s name makes clear its shrimp-to-the-max intentions. The appetizer menu celebrates shrimp’s many faces with popcorn shrimp, shrimp cocktail and sautéed in spicy Cajun butter sauce. The Cajun taste also can be captured in Net Catch, a bucket of beer-steamed shrimp that, although listed as an entrée, has peel-and-eat appeal that makes it a terrific starter.

Coconut-Crusted Shrimp

Rockfish Seafood Grill, multiple locations. Fried shrimp always has been a shining star on the chain’s menu, both as appetizer and entrée. Coconut shrimp, consistently a strong seller, recently underwent a recipe update. Island-inspired dipping sauces—one built around piña colada flavors and another a sweet-hot mix of orange marmalade, horseradish and chipotles—now arrive with the crisp, tail-on crustaceans.

Parrot Bay Coconut Shrimp

Red Lobster, multiple locations. Seafood-centric Red Lobster has woven shrimp into entrées and appetizers, knowing well the strong affinity it has with guests. For a wildly popular appetizer, Red Lobster hand dips jumbo tail-on shrimp in rum-spiked batter. Tropical tastes of coconut and pineapple mingle in the dipping sauce, creating a dish so popular that a larger portion is offered as an entrée.

Crispy Tropical Shrimp Sticks

Zocalo Grill, San Diego. Drama comes to the table at this 3-year-old, 175-seat restaurant, elevating the expected to something distinctive and original. Shrimp, coated with coconut flakes and breadcrumbs, are fried and then finished in the oven for perfect crunch. They’re pierced onto skewers that stand erect in a wedge of Sugarloaf pineapple. Mango salsa and red-ginger dipping sauce arrive alongside.