Meridian’s Gas Station Seafood Stop Serves Big Po’Boys

A gas station is not where most people expect to find a shrimp po’boy that nearly takes over its takeout box. In Meridian, though, a seafood counter inside the station has built its following on sandwiches piled high with fried shrimp, hot seafood straight from the fryer, and a quick-moving operation that suits a lunch stop or a meal picked up on the road.

It is easy to overlook from the outside if you are expecting a separate seafood shack or a sit-down restaurant. The counter is inside the station, and the setting is plainly casual and functional. Then the food arrives, and the modest surroundings become a much less important detail.

This is a place for a fast, filling seafood meal rather than a long evening at a white-tablecloth dining room. Many orders leave in bags and boxes, but there is room for an informal meal on site, too.

The fried shrimp po’boy is the standout order. Fried shrimp spill from the sandwich in a portion that has been described as exceptionally large, with one po’boy filling a full takeout box alongside its sides.

The appeal is not just sheer scale. The shrimp are well seasoned and cooked to order, with a clean, properly fried texture rather than a heavy, greasy one. For somebody making a quick stop between destinations, it is a serious sandwich—more lunch than snack.

Fries make the obvious companion, and hushpuppies deserve attention rather than being treated as filler. They have their own following here, a useful detail for anyone who judges a fried-seafood counter by the little things on the tray.

Tartar sauce is among the familiar accompaniments, and the meal format makes ordering straightforward: choose your seafood, add the sides that sound good, and carry the results out hot.

Shrimp may get top billing, but it is not the only route through the menu. An oyster-and-shrimp po’boy brings two fried seafood favorites together in one hot sandwich, while fried catfish is another popular choice.

Menu selections have also included oysters, chicken, butterfly shrimp, frog legs and fried okra. That range gives a mixed carload more to work with than a one-item roadside stop might suggest.

The catfish has earned particular notice, including for being identified as U.S. catfish rather than a substitute such as swai or basa. It is a small menu distinction, but one that catfish regulars tend to appreciate.

A seafood platter is another sensible way to sample the fryer, especially when the group cannot settle on just shrimp or fish. The kitchen’s reputation rests on seafood that arrives fresh, well seasoned, and hot rather than on elaborate presentation.

The counter also moves beyond fried baskets with boiled crawfish, served with potatoes and corn. A larger crawfish order can make the stop feel less like a hurried convenience-store meal and more like a hands-on seafood spread.

Live or boiled crawfish may be available in season, including for parties. Availability is seasonal, so crawfish should be confirmed before making a special trip for it.

The potatoes and corn are not an afterthought in a crawfish order. They belong in the pile, soaking up the same seasoning and giving the meal a little more to pick through after the shells start accumulating.

Meridian travelers use this stop as a practical meal break, and the service style fits the role. Orders move through a quick-service line, with hot food assembled for takeout without much ceremony.

The restaurant sits roughly 10 minutes from Interstate 20/59, based on a traveler account, making it a plausible detour for people passing through town. It has also become a repeat stop for people returning to the area, which says something in a region with no shortage of fried seafood.

Service can move briskly even when there is activity around the counter. At popular meal periods, though, a line can run out of the service area, so the stop may be lively and a bit loud. Conversation is still possible, but nobody should mistake it for a hushed dining room.

Portions are a major part of the appeal. A shrimp po’boy plus sides can easily become the whole meal, and the seafood is priced in a range that has commonly put individual spending around $10 to $20.

That combination—substantial food, reasonable prices, and quick counter service—makes the place useful for more than an impulse stop. It works for an easy takeout dinner, a lunch picked up between errands, or a road-trip meal that does not involve another chain sandwich.

The gas-station setting also brings a few ordinary conveniences. The public restroom has been kept clean, and there is a free parking lot, though parking can be harder to sort out during a busy visit.

The key practical point is simply knowing what you are looking for. This is not a standalone building with a giant seafood sign out front; the restaurant operates within the gas station.

Once you find the counter, the choice gets pleasantly simple: a shrimp po’boy for the full-size specialty, catfish or a platter for a fried-seafood meal, or boiled crawfish with corn and potatoes when the season allows. A box of hot seafood is a fine reason to give a gas-station stop a little extra time.