To be honest, I had no idea how to eat crawfish before visiting Crawfish Factory. Luckily, when we found our way into the casual, family-style eatery, we also found the waitstaff to be just as informative as they were friendly. 

We settled in at one of the tables topped with butcher paper (the first sign that things were going to get messy) and easily picked out calamari as the appetizer of choice. 

Calimari

 The waitress was quick to explain the menu—you order your choice of seafood by the pound (mussels, shrimp, crawfish, clams, Dungeness crab, king crab legs, snow crab legs, lobster tail), then you choose your sauce (Factory Signature, fusion Cajun, lemon pepper, garlic butter, Cajun Louisiana) and finally you choose your level of heat. Your selections get steamed to perfection with your favorite sauce (she came bearing sample cups of each flavor) and then brought it out in a bag with a bucket for shells and scraps. For the indecisive, or the adventurous, there are also combo options that give diners the chance to try a little of a lot of different seafood offerings (along with corn and potatoes!), which is what we opted for. 

The delectably crispy calamari came out swiftly, but it wasn’t long afterward that our steam bag arrived and took center stage. Admittedly, it can feel odd to dig right in—though they give you plastic gloves to keep yourself relatively clean, it’s still a full-contact meal—but is definitely something kids and hands-on diners are bound to enjoy. 

Shave Snow with Strawberries

Word to the wise: The kids (and some squeamish adults) may be a little thrown by the fact that the shrimp come intact—yes, that means their heads are still on. You can special order them sans heads if the idea bothers you or your little ones. 

 It’ll seem impossible, but try to save room for dessert. It’s counterintuitive, but they have a surprising milk tea and shave snow selection (it’s like ice cream, by the way). There are plenty of combinations, but the slightly nutty taro shave snow with sticky condensed milk and Oreo chunks proved to be an unusual but deeply satisfying sweet end to a memorable meal.