Among texans in the know, it’s something of an unspoken rule: no trip to Galveston Island is complete without stopping for dinner at Gaido’s, the Lone Star State’s oldest, most celebrated seafood establishment.
Perched on Galveston’s famous sea wall, overlooking the bountiful coast, the upscale eatery has become a point of pilgrimage for seafood connoisseurs across the nation — a place where tourists and locals alike meet to indulge in treasures of the Gulf as they were meant to be enjoyed: fresh from sea to table.
“Other seafood restaurants will serve you frozen fish and tell you it’s ‘fresh,’” says Gaido’s executive chef, Luigi Martinez, “but at Gaido’s, the fish we cut today was in the water not 24 to 36 hours ago. In fact, I could tell you what fishing boat it came from, who its captain was, and what pier he landed in.”
That unwavering commitment to quality — coupled with a signature blend of southern deep-frying, south- west open-flame grilling, and rich Creole flavors— has set Gaido’s nautical-miles ahead of its competition.
The story of Gaido’s commitment to serving only the freshest seafood begins well over a century ago, when San Giacinto Gaido, an immigrant from Cercenasco, Italy, arrived in Galveston at the age of 2. Orphaned not long after arriving on Galveston’s shores, Gaido struggled to earn a living, taking various food-service jobs across the island. It was here that the young Gaido would learn the ins and outs of Galveston’s seafood business, as well as the importance of serving only the freshest cuts. Armed with a wealth of acquired culinary knowledge, San Giacinto opened the first Gaido’s cafe in 1911, which, at the time, operated from the inside of Murdoch’s Bathhouse, another historic Galveston institution that stands today as a seaside gift shop.
Gaido’s has been serving up fresh fish for more than a century. When it opened in 1911, it was operated inside Murdoch’s Bathhouse (left photo). San Giacinto Gaido (at left in right photo) arrived in Galveston from Italy at age 2. He learned the seafood business by taking service jobs.
Though no longer operating out of a bathhouse — having moved to its cur- rent location in 1941— Gaido’s time-tested family recipes, meticulously crafted and passed from generation to generation, have earned the restaurant a level of suc- cess far greater than San Giacinto could have imagined. In fact, Gaido’s food is of such renown its famous crustless pecan pie — a top-selling recipe perfected by third-generation owner Paulie Gaido — can be found listed in the exclusive Neiman Marcus catalog. Inside the establishment, walls adorned with various awards, accolades and photos of smiling celebrity patrons serve as further testament to Gaido’s decades of popularity. “We’ve hosted Frank Sinatra, Alfred Hitchcock, both President Bushes,” Martinez enthuses. “I’ve even met the Fonz here!”
While Gaido’s reputation as one of Galveston’s most popular attractions may precede it, the seaside eatery has never lost the unpretentious, family-owned feel that first attracted beachgoers in the early 20th century. Under the watchful eye of current owner Nick Gaido, great-grandson of San Giacinto, the kitchen staff continue to prepare various entrees, soups, salad dress- ings and desserts all from scratch, diligently following recipes passed down from one generation of Gaidos to the next. “We’ve always stuck to our family roots,” Nick says. “That’s why our customers keep coming back. They want to enjoy that same piece of snapper they had 20 years ago, or that same fried shrimp they enjoyed on their honeymoon 35 years ago.”
Though day-to-day operations have changed hands many times over the venue’s 108 years, Gaido’s ownership has always remained in the family, ensuring the same commitment to freshness that has historically distinguished Gaido’s from the rest.
Today, the restaurant’s seafood continues to live up to the high standard set by San Giacinto Gaido himself, and the unspoken rule rings as true as it did four generations ago: If you haven’t been to Gaido’s, you haven’t been to Galveston.
