The Seafood Steam Pot, Explained
A seafood steam pot is a ready-to-cook kit that includes fresh seafood, vegetables, sausage, and seasoning — all packed together and designed to be steamed at home in a single large pot. You add water, bring it to a boil, and in about 40 minutes you have a full coastal seafood feast: shrimp, crab, clams, corn, potatoes, and more, seasoned and ready to eat.
The format takes the best part of a traditional lowcountry boil or crab boil — fresh seafood, a big spread, a table full of people — and removes everything that makes it hard: the sourcing, the seasoning, the timing, the cleanup. Everything is prepped and portioned. You just steam and serve.
Topsail Steamer created the seafood steampot kit format in 2017 and remains the only seafood steampot franchise in the United States.
Why a Steam Pot Kit Beats Cooking It Yourself
No Equipment, No Expertise, No Mess
Sourcing fresh seafood, getting the seasoning right, managing the cook time — a traditional seafood boil takes equipment, knowledge, and a fair amount of cleanup. A Bay Bucket from Topsail requires none of that. Everything is prepped. The seasoning is done. All you need is a large pot and a stove.
Restaurant Quality at Home — For a Group
A sit-down seafood restaurant for six people gets expensive fast. It also means coordinating a reservation, sharing a table with strangers, and eating on someone else’s schedule. A Bay Bucket feeds the same group for less, in your own space, at whatever pace the evening calls for. It’s the meal that works for the beach house, the backyard, the family reunion, or a Tuesday night when someone wants something special.
Ready in About 40 Minutes
From pickup to table, the whole process takes under an hour. Steam for 40 minutes, dump it out, eat. It’s not a meal prep project — it’s a gathering.
What’s in a Topsail Bay Bucket
Topsail offers five signature Bay Buckets and a Build Your Own option. Every pot includes a combination of fresh seafood, corn, potatoes, sausage, and proprietary seasoning — packed together and ready to steam.
The Five Signature Options
- The Topsail — shrimp, snow crab clusters, clams, corn, potatoes, and sausage
- The Wrightsville — snow crab clusters, clams, corn, potatoes, and sausage
- The Low Country — shrimp, corn, potatoes, and sausage
- The Clam Bake — clams, corn, potatoes, and sausage
- The Shark Bite — shrimp, snow crab clusters, clams, mussels, corn, potatoes, and sausage
Two Sizes — or Build Your Own
Each signature pot comes in two sizes: serves 2–3 or serves 4–5. The Build Your Own option lets you choose your seafood and build the pot you actually want. For larger gatherings, the Party Pot scales up significantly for groups of 8 or more.
View the full menu to see current options and seasonal availability.
Find a Seafood Steam Pot Near You
Topsail Steamer has locations across the East Coast and Gulf Coast — and ships nationwide.
Coastal locations (pickup):
- North Carolina: Surf City, Wrightsville Beach, and more
- New Jersey: Ship Bottom, Sea Isle City, Ocean City
- Delaware: Rehoboth Beach area
- Alabama: Gulf Shores
- Florida: Anna Maria Island, Palm Beach area
Inland locations (pickup):
- Charlotte, NC
- Raleigh, NC (coming soon)
Nationwide shipping:
Can’t make it to a location? Order a Bay Bucket shipped fresh through Goldbelly [⚑ insert Goldbelly URL] — available across the continental U.S. A good gift for any seafood lover.
The Story Behind the Steam Pot
Danielle Mahon opened the first Topsail Steamer in Surf City, NC in 2017. The idea came from a simple observation: people love a seafood boil, but most of them will never make one at home. Too complicated. Too much gear. Too hard to source fresh.
Her solution was to do all of that work in-house — source the seafood, portion it, season it, pack it — and hand customers a pot that was ready to steam. No cooking knowledge required. No special equipment. Just the meal.
From one location on Topsail Island, the brand has grown to more than a dozen locations across five states. It appeared on Shark Tank Season 16, where it earned investment from Lori Greiner and Todd Graves, and has been featured in Forbes. It remains the only seafood steampot franchise in the United States — a category Topsail created and still owns.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a seafood steam pot?
A seafood steam pot is a prepped, ready-to-cook kit containing fresh seafood, vegetables, sausage, and seasoning — designed to be steamed at home in a single large pot. At Topsail Steamer, these are called Bay Buckets. You pick one up, take it home, steam for about 40 minutes, and serve. No special equipment, no prep work, no expertise required.
What seafood comes in a steam pot?
It depends on which Bay Bucket you choose. Topsail’s options include combinations of shrimp, snow crab clusters, clams, and mussels — paired with corn, potatoes, sausage, and proprietary seasoning. The Build Your Own option lets you choose your specific seafood.
How do you cook a seafood steam pot kit at home?
Fill a large pot with water, bring it to a boil, add your Bay Bucket contents, cover, and steam for approximately 40 minutes. Detailed instructions are included with every order. Most vacation rental kitchens have everything you need — no special equipment required.
How many people does a steam pot feed?
Bay Buckets come in two sizes: a smaller pot that serves 2–3 people and a larger pot that serves 4–5. For bigger groups, order multiple buckets or ask about the Party Pot for gatherings of 8 or more.
Can I get a seafood steam pot delivered nationwide?
Yes. Topsail Steamer ships Bay Buckets nationwide through Goldbelly. If you’re not near a physical location, you can order online and receive fresh seafood delivered to your door. [⚑ insert Goldbelly URL]
Is a steam pot the same as a lowcountry boil or crab boil?
The concept is similar — fresh seafood, corn, potatoes, and sausage all cooked together — but a steam pot kit removes the preparation entirely. A traditional lowcountry boil requires you to source each ingredient separately, season it yourself, and manage the cook. A Bay Bucket arrives pre-portioned and pre-seasoned. The experience is the same; the effort is much less.
Where did the seafood steam pot concept come from?
Topsail Steamer created the ready-to-cook seafood steampot format in 2017 when founder Danielle Mahon opened the first location in Surf City, NC. The concept has since expanded to more than a dozen locations across five states. No other franchise operates in this format — Topsail invented the category.
What makes Topsail’s Bay Bucket different from other seafood boil options?
Three things: freshness, format, and simplicity. Topsail sources fresh seafood at each location, the Bay Bucket is portioned and seasoned in-house, and the whole kit is designed to require nothing from you beyond a large pot and about 40 minutes. There’s no equivalent franchise concept in the U.S. — this is Topsail’s category.
Thinking about bringing Topsail Steamer to your market? Learn about franchise opportunities.
