FOOD

The headliner is still the snow crab legs, backed by a broad steam-and-raw-bar selection and the familiar Calabash-style fried seafood that defines so much of the Grand Strand. Steamed shrimp, crawfish, clams, green-lipped mussels and Lowcountry boil give the first plates plenty of shellfish before the fried side of the buffet starts competing for space.

From there, the seafood gets more specific than a generic fried-shrimp-and-fish spread. Fried oysters, fried scallops, stuffed scallops, stuffed clams, stuffed flounder, crab cakes, deviled crab, calamari and fried flounder sit alongside broiled shrimp, baked salmon, blackened fish and mahi mahi. Crab Imperial and Oysters Rockefeller are especially useful detours because they bring the richer, composed seafood dishes usually associated with an à la carte menu into the unlimited format.

The soup lineup deserves its own reconnaissance. She-crab soup and clam chowder are natural fits for the coast, while jambalaya and lobster bisque make the section broader than expected. A plate of hushpuppies, cheese biscuits or cornbread alongside one of those soups can become a very complete opening round before the crab legs ever enter the picture.

Giant Crab also separates itself by refusing to make non-seafood eaters settle for a token chicken tray. The carving station brings prime rib, Virginia baked ham and roast beef, while the hot-food runs include barbecue ribs, pulled pork, Southern fried chicken, beef tips, macaroni and cheese, sweet potato casserole and broccoli casserole. This matters in a large vacation party: someone can build a substantial meal here without touching shellfish.

The made-to-order stations provide the clearest break from steam-table lines. At the hibachi grill, shrimp, scallops, crab, chicken or steak can be combined with vegetables, rice and sauces ranging from teriyaki to sweet chili and Sriracha. Pasta is also cooked to order, giving the buffet two places where the plate is assembled in front of you rather than simply lifted from a pan.

The most unexpected thread is Greek. Feta chicken, spanakopita and lemon potatoes appear among the savory dishes, while baklava and kataifi carry that direction into dessert. The kataifi is particularly worth noticing: the restaurant has long promoted it as an award-winning specialty. Against a room full of crab legs and fried seafood, those pastry strands, syrup and nuts are exactly the sort of left-field item that makes a giant buffet more interesting than its headline attraction.

Dessert is correspondingly oversized, with warm cobblers, banana pudding, pecan pie, cakes, ice cream, rice pudding and other sweets surrounding the Greek pastries. The best strategy is not to chase all 170-plus possibilities. Build the meal around crab legs and a few serious seafood dishes, use the hibachi or carving station as a change of pace, and save one final plate for the foods that are hardest to find at the other Myrtle Beach seafood palaces: Crab Imperial, Oysters Rockefeller, spanakopita and kataifi.