Cap'n Jack's
Your own special island!
706 Succotash Road, East Matunuck, South Kingstown
(401) 789-4556
capnjacksrestaurant.com
capnjacksrestaurant@gmail.com
Opened by Peter Piemonte and his son, Jack (for whom it was named), in 1971, Cap'n Jack's is one of the largest restaurants in the Matunuck/Jerusalem area. The property boasts two dining rooms, an outdoor patio, and a location backed up against the scenic Succotash Salt Marsh, a quahog shell's throw from East Matunuck State Beach. Looking at it now, you'd never guess that when the Piemontes bought the original building for $20,000, it was a twenty-by-thirty-foot burger barn called Granny's. The Piemontes started out simply with clam cakes and chowder and fish and chips, and expanded from there.
As large as it is, it wouldn't be a shack without take-out. At Cap'n Jack's they've set aside a whole room for the purpose. We hear the line sometimes extends out the door at peak times. The extensive menu includes stuffies, clam cakes, calamari, New England or clear Rhode Island clam chowder, steamers, lobster salad rolls, fish and chips, and more. We definitely recommend the clear chowder—it has great clam flavor, lots of shreddy bits of clam, and potatoes so perfectly cooked they practically melt in your mouth.
They also have an amazing selection of baked goods—cakes, pies, pastries, and cookies—made by current owner Jack Jr.'s mom, a graduate of Johnson & Wales University. The chocolate éclairs are as big as a man's size ten shoe. And hey, is that grapenut pudding I see? Yes, please.
Cap'n Jack's is open Wednesday to Sunday, 11am-8pm year-'round.
Awards
- One of the ten best clam shacks in Rhode Island, Rhode Island Monthly, 1997.
- Best Fish and Chips in South County, Rhode Island Monthly's Reader's Poll, 2004.
- Best Fish and Chips in South County, Rhode Island Monthly's Reader's Poll, 2005.