In the small coastal town of Essex, Massachusetts, a colossal culinary creation came to be: fried clams. While they are now easily found in restaurants of all shapes and sizes along the East Coast, fried clams were first imagined and created by Lawrence "Chubby" Woodman and his wife Bessie in 1916 at their roadside food stand, Woodman's. The story goes that when Chubby and Bessie were venting about business being especially slow, a patron and friend suggested they try frying clams.
While other customers were shocked by the joking suggestion, the Woodmans received a jolt of inspiration: Why not fry clams? That same day, the first fried clam was successfully cooked, and the Fourth of July marked its first successful sale. There was no way of knowing that their little clams would make such a big splash on the culinary landscape of New England. The joke that changed the coast Before Woodman's made it big, it was a small concession stand selling groceries, fresh clams, and potato chips.
Tarr, a friend and patron of the owners, was enjoying their potato chips when, according to the Woodman's website , he jested, "Why don't you fry up some of your clams? If they're as tasty as those potato chips of yours, you'll never have to worry about having enough customers." His suggestion is proof that delicious things can come from a good joke. Shortly after its creation, fried clams took the East Coast by storm.
In fact, it only took a year for fried clams to find their place on supermarket .
