Mike Manitta - Photos by Wen Mcnally Gerald’s Pig & Shrimp on Tybee For such a small island, Tybee really does have a little to offer everyone, with dozens of eateries that each focus on their own specialties. Gerald’s Pig and Shrimp on Tybee is a sure fire go-to for some of the best BBQ and Shrimp that the Lowcountry has to offer. Owner Gerald Schantz has been a staple in the Savannah area since the mid 80’s, getting his early start catering for TV and movie productions, as well as corporate events. This enabled him to purchase his first custom grill on wheels, which launched his mobile catering service, Gerald’s Chuckwagon. Next, there was Gerald’s Diner in downtown before the lure of the beach brought him to his current home on Tybee. Gerald’s offers a wide array of seafood and BBQ combination’s, ranging from traditional Lowcountry Boil to Brisket, pulled pork and ribs, award winning fried shrimp, as well as panini’s and hoagies, smoked wings and some of the best dang fresh squeezed limeade I’ve ever tasted. A super casual and eclectic environment is offered in an open-air environment, which delivers just what you would expect from a restaurant coined as “Tybee’s Favorite Roadside Eats.” Alaina, Wen, and I were super lucky to be able sample an array of favorites on our visit, which included their famous Smoked Chicken Wings, the Brisk N’ Bleu Panini, Gerald’s Cuban Panini, the Big Combo for Two and fresh squeezed Limeade. Needless to say we had leftovers, hooray!! The Chicken Wings are smoked and then fried, and we opted to try the homemade Hot Tybee Sauce. I have to say these wings were super scrumptious with a phenomenal smoky flavor that shone through and was perfectly complemented by their spicy and sweet homemade hot sauce. I don’t like super spicy food and this sauce was perfect to me with a hint of mango and a slight heat from habaneros; I finished every last one, and they also offer Duck wings! Next, we sampled the sandwiches. Alaina insisted on the Brisk N’ Blue Panini, and I was eager to try Gerald’s Cuban Panini and they were both stellar. The Brisk N’ Blue consists of brisket, blue cheese, and homemade coleslaw & BBQ sauce. Sweet and salty is one of my favorite combos and those blue cheese crumbles and BBQ sauce on that super tender brisket and slaw were scrumptious. Love, love. I had heard so many raves about the Cuban Panini and I can totally see why. Pulled pork, ham, Swiss cheese, homemade cucumber 24 TYBEE BEACHCOMBER | JULY 2017 salad and mustard, pressed into that fresh bread, yum. The Cucumber Salad is like super thin homemade pickles combined with that pulled pork and ham and delivers a delightful combo that your taste buds will dance for. Add jalapenos for a spicy kick. I see why I’ve heard so much about it. Finally, the Big Combo for Two delivered Pulled Pork, Brisket, Ribs, double fried Shrimp, two sides, hush puppies and bread. Whew. A pile of food. The BBQ was perfectly moist and delicious and the ribs super tender, with several options of tableside homemade BBQ sauce to dress it up with. We couldn’t get enough of the fried shrimp, fried perfectly with a crispy outside and tender inside, sweet and delicious - you really can’t beat our local Georgia shrimp. I also see why they’ve won the Foodie Award for best fried shrimp in the Lowcountry, two years running. We chose the cucumber salad and baked beans as our sides, and both were awesome. They actually put corn in the baked beans and I loved how they add texture and a sweet crunch, unique and tasty. The hushpuppies were also delish, crunchy and tasty; they also offered chopped jalapenos inside. Packed to the brim, we washed it all down with a Homemade Limeade that was so freaking refreshing, perfectly sweet and tart. This really is one of the most unique outdoor eateries I’ve ever sampled, and our server Zoe took great care of us, super friendly with tons of great menu suggestions for us. Gerald’s is open Thurs through Sunday for lunch and dinner, located on Highway 80 at McKenzie Street. Gerald still offers mobile, as well as on site catering, and you can also check them out on the web at www. tybeeBBQ.com. If you haven’t tried them yet, add it to your to-do-list, now you’ll be glad you did.
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