Northampton Neighbor Article: Big Cab's Crawfish Cabin

When I sat down the week before Christmas to interview Julie Hendrix, the owner of Big Cab’s Crawfish Cabin, they were not yet selling crawfish.  They expect to begin selling it in early to mid January.  There are places you can get crawfish in December, or even late November.  Why not here?  “It’s hard on the environment”, says Hendrix.  Crawfish are sold by the pound, and before January they are small and immature.  This means that many more crawfish must be harvested to fill an order, lowering the yield later in the season.  Julie and her husband Robert Cabarubio (Big Cab) put that kind of thought into all aspects of their business.

Crawfish is of course the mainstay of their business, and they sell a lot of it during the season.  They often have long lines for their crawfish, especially on Wednesdays when they sell it for $3.99 a pound, much less than most places.  But they have many other tempting items on their menu.  My personal favorite is the gumbo—wonderfully rich in flavor, with plenty of shrimp and other ingredients.  Their roux is some of the best I’ve ever had, and it’s not easy to master.  They also have boiled shrimp, and boudin balls that they make from scratch and sell on their “off season” menu (September-December—they take a couple of months to be with family after crawfish season).  They have also started a “snow crab Sunday” special that runs during crawfish season.

The couple have deep roots in Spring—Julie was born and raised in this immediate area, and they live on a wooded property near Gosling Road.  Robert worked as an executive chef at Woodlands Country Club and Willow Creek, then at River Plantation for several years.  Julie’s background is in heavy equipment sales.  They started the business in 2014 after being encouraged by people who enjoyed the crawfish boils they would do for family and friends’ events.

Julie and Robert sweat the details on their truck.  The last three inspections score 100-99-100 (she was upset about the 99).  They have a covered dining area, and feature live music on Fridays and Saturdays in crawfish season.  They will cater, usually having clients come pick up the food.  Favor Delivery will deliver their food to your door.

The future is uncertain for Big Cab’s.  Julie and Robert love operating an independent food truck on their own schedule, and are not really interested in moving to a storefront or food truck park.  Growth is intensifying along Gosling--they may not be able to stay on their current lot after this season.  It’s best to come enjoy them now, while our neighborhood still has them.