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- The remaining contenders include Blount Clam Shack in Warren, Roy Boy’s Clam Shack in North Kingstown, Champlin’s Seafood Deck in Narragansett, Gardner’s Wharf Seafood/Chevy’s Shack in North Kingstown, and Benny’s Clam Shack in Narragansett.
- Each clam shack offers a variety of seafood dishes, including clam cakes, clam rolls, fried seafood platters, and lobster rolls.
- Some clam shacks also offer additional treats like ice cream or New York System hot wieners.
Rhode Island’s newest clam shack has upset the most historic one in the latest round of voting to find Rhode Island’s best spot. Roy Boy’s Clam Shack knocked out Aunt Carrie’s to make it to the final four in The Journal’s bracket challenge.
Voters chose Roy Boy’s, which opened three years ago on busy Post Road in North Kingstown, over Aunt Carrie’s, which is celebrating its 105th season in Narragansett. The vote was 68.11% for Roy Boy’s to 31.89% for Aunt Carrie’s.
The closest race in the second round of eight was tight right down to the wire. Gardner’s Wharf Seafood/Chevy’s Shack in Wickford squeaked by Benny’s Clam Shack in Narragansett 50.88% to 49.12%. Just nine votes separated the two.
In a matchup of titans, Blount Clam Shack in Warren collected an overwhelming 78.11% of the votes compared to 21.89% of the vote for Monahan’s Clam Shack, which has seaside location in Narragansett and newer, second site in Charlestown.
The last of the final four shacks is a historic spot in Galilee. Champlain’s Seafood Deck bested Jim’s Dock 65.98% to 34.02%. Champlain’s is celebrating its 69th year.
Now it’s time to chose: Blount’s and Roy Boy’s for one side of the bracket and Champlain’s and Gardner’s Wharf Seafood/Chevy’s Shack on the other. Start your clam cake eating to determine who makes it into the final round.
Because ranking these choices is hard, we started by placing the names into an online randomizer to determine the first round matchups. You can find the first round results here and the second round results here. Voting in the third round will continue until noon on Wednesday. Final round voting will begin Thursday morning.
Blount Clam Shack
335 Water St., Warren, (401) 245-3210, blountretail.com. Blount’s has big views and all your fried platters, rolls and sandwiches, and two sizes of lobster rolls. It’s easy and summer-ready, and Wright’s Dairy Farm has an ice cream cart there in summer.
Roy Boy’s Clam Shack
6710 Post Road, North Kingstown, (401) 885-8640, royboysclamshack.com. This is a suburban clam shack along the busy Post Road, but they’ve made it so comfortable for you to sit and enjoy your clam cakes, clam rolls, baked stuffed shrimp or scallops casino. They have tables and booths under a tent. The adjacent Frozen Cow offers ice cream for dessert.
Champlin’s Seafood Deck
256 Great Island Road, Narragansett, (401) 783-3152, champlins.com. It’s located at the entrance to Galilee Harbor and all the fresh fish that comes in on the boats. They’ve been feeding Rhode Islanders for just shy of seven decades. They offer all three kinds of clam chowder. Champlin’s is one of the few spots you can have a personal clam bake with lobster, steamers, mussels and linguica.
Gardner’s Wharf Seafood/Chevy’s Shack
170 Main St., North Kingstown, (401) 295-4600, gardnerswharfseafood.com. The market in historic Wickford sits right on Narragansett Bay, where fishing and lobster boats pull up to their back door. Their Chevy’s Shack has a full menu including lobster rolls, fried clams or strips, chowders and fish and chips.
