Lots of great restaurants have come and gone in Charlottesville. It’s a tough business and the competition is intense. One of the restaurants that I truly miss is the old Happy Clam.
Originally located on 29 N at the site of the old Flaming Wok, Happy Clam had kick-started in Fredericksburg, did well, then decided to expand to Charlottesville. It was an instant and huge success. I don’t remember the names of the owners, but one family from Fredericksburg came down to run the Charlottesville operation and it was to near perfection.
Happy Clam offered fresh seafood – really fresh – and on Sunday nights, they had All-You-Can-Eat specials. This was back in the late 70s when my family and close friends had the camping bug. We returned from our weekend camping adventures on a Sunday afternoon, then we gathered the kids at one house, ordered out for pizza, and the adults piled into Happy Clam and gorged. The prices were reasonable and the seafood was cooked to perfection.
Their specialty was Fried Clams, of course, but they also offered Shrimp, Flounder and Oysters. Today, seafood is so expensive, you’d have to charge at least $75 a plate for All-You-Can-Eat, but back then it was around $10 or $12 as memory serves.
Unfortunately, the owners became overly optimistic and opened several more restaurants within a short period of time and overextended themselves. Even though the Charlottesville restaurant was a mega-hit, it couldn’t support all the other locations, and the Happy Clam went belly up. But for a few short years, it was the place to go for great seafood on a Sunday night with good friends.
