The majority of our menu is fresh, local, made from scratch & contains the special ingredient: LOVE ♥ Gaskill, Jr., was an entrepreneur & trailblazer on Virginia's Easern Shore. If you knew him, you probably called him Big Richard. If you knew him really well, you just called him "Big." Big would get an idea for a business, then go about putting wheels into motion & involve his whole family in the
endeavour. Everyone in the family brought a different talent to the overall success. In 1965, Big and his family began the Wiggly Piggly grocery store in Exmore, VA. The Piggly Wiggly grocery chain, already established, contacted him and felt that name was too close to theirs & requested he change it. Through a local contest, the store was renamed Meatland with 4 locations on the Shore. Among their many endeavours, the Gaskill family also began The Trawler Restaurant in Exmore in 1980, featuring famiy recipes from Granny, Barbara (Grandmom), Rockin' Rick & Steve Gaskill. The Trawler was "the place to be back in the day" and many, many great meals & memories were shared there. After dreaming about it for years, Big's grandson, Richie, and his wife, Kelley approached Grandmom, Rockin' Rick and Steve Gaskill in 2008 with the idea of opening another Gaskill family restaurant. They were advised just how much work goes into a restaurant: you breathe it, eat it, sleep it, wake up to it, dream about it, plan for it and live it 24/7. Through a lot of hard work and dedication from family and close friends, the dream became a reality. Things began to fall into place and Big's Place opened in September 2009. Today, the family comes together again- with added generations through children and grandchildren- bringing back some of those good Trawler Restaurant memories and meals. Incorporating old family recipes with "more modern" recipes (that Grandmom sometimes just shakes her head at), the Gaskill family proudly continues the tradition of fresh, local offerings and delicious home cooking. Big's Place has a comfortable, ecclectic atmosphere that makes you feel immediately at home. The friendly staff and Southern hospitality add to the ambiance and total experience. Voted Best Seafood Restaurant 2009 and 2010, Best Crab Cake 2010, Best Overall Restaurant 2011 and 2012, Best Overall Value on the Shore 2012 and Best Crab/Seafood Chowder 2012 by the readers of Shore Secrets Magazine. Come, discover what your friends and neighbors are raving about.
