Crab Feed Maniacs Attack Bodeag Bay Grange
Bodega Bay Grange member Jim Moore stirs the 20 gallon cauldron simmering with fresh crab and rich Cioppino sauce.
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BODEGA BAY, CALIFORNIA, January 20, 2008 --- Bracing against the shocking bay breeze and intoxicated by the sweet smell of the simmering feast waiting just inside, the sea of fanatics ornamented in red-orange crab hats clamors around the entrance to the Hall. Behind the doors, a crew of twenty frantically prepares for this fourth and final onslaught of the day.
Finally, the moment has arrived. The hungry crowd spills into the Hall, driven to a feeding frenzy that will last the next ninety minutes, as they gorge on crisp garden salad, buttery garlic bread and luscious bowls of Ocean-fresh crab bathed in rich, red Cioppino sauce.
As reliable as grunion, they return year-after-year to enjoy the delicious bounty that is the Bodega Bay Grange Annual Crab Cioppino Feed. Held the 3rd Sunday of January, loyal flocks from all corners of the State descend on this seaside hamlet, made famous in the Hitchcock thriller “The Birds”. They pay $38 each for the enjoyment of this tradition that has carried-on since 1953.
This year’s harvest was good. Bodega Bay Grange served-up 670 dinners in little more than six hours, raising $25,400. How many pancake breakfasts does it take to make that kind’a dough? You’d have to own both Park Place and Boardwalk with three houses on each to match that revenue stream. The proceeds fund the Grange’s scholarship program and other worthy causes.
Pleased as punch, Granger Glenice Carpenter works alongside Granddaughter-in-law Mandy. Quite comfortable in this familiar kitchen, Glenice is a founding member of the Bodega Bay Grange and this is her 55th annual crab feed. She is the trusted guardian of the secret recipe for the fabulous Cioppino sauce (It is rumored that one night, early Italian members of the Grange developed the recipe by careful scientific method encouraged by a few bottles of wine).
How do you get 670 hungry crab lovers into a Grange Hall? In four shifts. Proudly, Grange Master Dave Lewis conducts a grand tour of the operation. The Feed Team works as fast and efficiently as a Nascar pit crew. Local high school students volunteer their time to help Grange members put on the feed. It’s very much a community happening.
A bus pulls up outside. Yes, a bus! Beaming ear-to-ear, about 45 seniors from a retirement home get off the bus and stride across Coast Highway 1 and into the Hall.
The dining Hall is packed and noisy. No diner is without a bib, roll of paper towels, bowl of Cioppino and saucy smile. The crab is messy, clumsy, downright ugly at times, and absolutely delicious. All day long it simmers, immersed in five 20 gallon steel kettles filled with the bright orange Cioppino sauce. Over and over, the mixture is turned with wooden stirrers the size of boat paddles.
“Before we took reservations, the crowd used to get quite rowdy,” shares cashier Joan Lewis. “People would wait for hours outside and start drinking the wine they brought with them. We had more than a few fist-of-cuffs,”
When people fight over their place in line, you know the Cioppino’s gotta be good.
The BodegaBay annual Crab Cioppino Feed is held the 3rd Sunday of January. It always sells out. Best mark your calendars for next year. For more information call Dave at (707) 875-3695.