3 minute read
Ocean City Today DECEMBER 24, 2021
Continued from Page 1 age to the local Phillips family and their global contribution to the crab industry.
The words were pointed, albeit cliche, but likely never rang more true for a resort establishment’s cessation.
The news broke shortly after 4 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 20, in a Facebook post. The post has since amassed more than 3,800 comments, 11,000 shares and 4,600 reactions, with the numbers continuing to grow.
“The Phillips family has made the difficult decision to sell our Phillips Crab House property in Ocean City, Maryland, and the location has now permanently closed,” the post said. “Over our 66 seasons in business, we’ve served millions of families, vacationers and OC locals, and our family feels so fortunate to have earned the loyalty of our guests, who came back year after year to build their vacation memories with us. Thank you for being such a wonderful part of our story.”
Later in the week, the company reported that the property is under contract for sale.
Building a legacy
In the heyday of the franchise, proprietors Brice and Shirley Phillips were virtually the king and queen of Ocean City — and the Crab House was the Windsor Castle of 21st Street.
“Brice and Shirley Phillips were true Ocean City icons and they created a seafood experience that became synonymous with Ocean City,” Mayor Rick Meehan said this week in an email in response to the closing. “Thousands of high school and college students have worked at Phillips over the years helping to pay for their college educations and becoming part of the extended Phillips family.”
The family’s story really began, according to Cathell’s book, when Shirley Flowers first laid eyes on Brice Phillips, a local waterman, when they were both children living on Hooper’s Island in Dorchester County. The two were smitten with one another from the start and embarked on a love story that eventually led to the opening of the crab house in 1956.
A “shoe string operation” from the start, as Cathell wrote, the restaurant started with humble roots in a former hardware store building next to Buck Griffin’s, which was at the time the resort’s only crab house.
Cathell said the Phillips’ decided to get into the restaurant business after struggling with sales and operations at a plant they started on Hooper’s Island after Brice returned from World War II.
Happy Holidays
from the Atlantic Dental Team
Family Dentistry & Smile Enhancements
Invisalign® • Implant Restorations • Full Mouth Restoration Accepting New Patients
Many traditional insurances taken. Plus, third party financing available. Emergency Services Available
ATLANTIC DENTAL
COSMETIC & FAMILY DENTISTRY
12308 Ocean Gateway, Suite 6 Ocean City, Maryland, 21842 410-213-7575
Kristen Mazzei, DMD
Lawrence Michnick, DDS Brice and Shirley Phillips in 2006, at their business’s 50th anniversary.
“They used to sell [crabs] all over in the Baltimore market until the people in Baltimore started taking advantage of them, so then they opened their own restaurant in order to sell their own crabs,” Cathell explained.
The family hit the ground running, even putting their two young sons to work in the front of the house, to develop what began as a crab takeout business. Before too long, they realized the demand was for dine-in, and See PHILLIPS Page 6
rHome is where e your St ytor beegins...
Kari Story
