Zachry's - The Perfect Jekyll Island Restaurant for Familys on a Budget

Zachry's may be the perfect Jekyll Island restaurant - one of the best kid friendly restaurants on the island. If you want a cheap restaurant with wholesome, plentiful food, this is the place.

When my boys were young, we really played hard when we came to Jekyll Island. My wife Martha is an energetic, fun-loving redhead who likes to do everything in 3 days. Trying to match Martha's boundless vacation enthusiasm, it didn't take long for us all to work up healthy appetites. My boys especially could really pack away the food.

With bellies growling, we'd all head to Zachry's Restaurant to stoke our furnaces.

Zachry's is a family-friendly, family owned Jekyll Island restaurant, with a casual ambiance and a budget that won't deflate your wallet.

When we're on Jekyll, Zachry's good food and fair prices lure us back time and again.

If you're finicky for fancy, pass Zachry's up. Zachry's is one of the oldest restaurants on the island. They're located in Beachview Shopping Center, across from the Convention Center.

And they make no pretensions. They're a bare-bones, working class, blue collar style eatery. No elegant trappings. No fancy place settings. For Jekyll Island, a relatively cheap restaurant. If you want great food at a family price, you've found the spot.

We usually eat at Zachry's 3 or 4 times while we're visiting. The food is better than some of the more expensive restaurants on St. Simons, and you avoid that long drive with a backseat full of ravenous kids chewing on your neck the whole way.

Stroll right in. A hostess will seat you (in the busy season, it can be difficult to get seats - there's usually a line of hungry folks waiting to dig in). They serve lunch and dinner, from 11:00 a.m to around 10:00 p.m., seven days a week.

My wife Martha is partial to their crab cakes and delicious home made onion rings. I like all things seafood, and there's no shortage of fresh seafood at this Jekyll Island restaurant - everything from fish (flounder, trout, and more), shrimp (cooked anyway you want it), oysters, scallops, and deviled crab. Yum! The boys could eat anything on the menu (usually the most expensive thing).

Hey, wait - they still can. At least now they can pay for their own.

Zachry's seafood is fresh and caught locally. I've heard there's a secret to why Zachry's seafood is so fresh - they own their own shrimp boat, the Miss Angie.

Check out their Wild Georgia Shrimp. You'll get a great meal while supporting Georgia shrimpers and the shrimp industry.

This Jekyll Island restaurant also does fresh salads and sandwiches, along with appetizers, including my nemisis - calamari. I hate calamari (but don't let that keep you from trying it - Zachry's squid stuff might really be good. I just can't bring myself to order it after a few bad experiences in other restaurants. None on Jekyll Island, mind!)

Surf and Turf, Anyone? -

Want steak, or surf and turf? Zachry's has it. Or if you really want to pig out on seafood, order their Seafood Platter, which comes with sea trout, scallops, oysters, shrimp and deviled crab - all for $17.95.

Ready for dessert? Josh, my oldest son, recommends their peanut butter pie. And I say order the Key Lime - very tangy and tasty - and what's an island vacation without Key Lime pie? They also offer pecan pie, cheese cake with cherries, and something called Turtle Cheese cake (haven't tried it, so can't recommend it).

Zachry's doesn't require reservations, but we have had to stand in line a few times in the high season. You might want to call ahead to see what kind of crowd there is. Their number is (912)635-3128.

So feed those hungry kids. And the wife (especially the wife - if Mama ain't happy, ain't nobody happy!). And have a great time at Zachry's, - a favorite Jekyll Island restaurant.

Jekyll Island Family Adventures "Wow!" Rating:

• Ambiance: 7.0
• Cleanliness: 8.0
• Service: 9.0
• Food Quality: 8.5

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