HM Restaurant Group celebrating National Yucatan Shrimp Day at Fort Myers Beach restaurants

The National Yucatán Shrimp Day celebration is expanding, with HM Restaurant Group bringing the May 24 festivities to Doc Ford’s Rum Bar & Grille on Fort Myers Beach and Sanibel, as well as Dixie Fish Company and Bonita Fish Company at Fisherman’s Wharf on Fort Myers Beach. Festivities include YETI cooler giveaways at each restaurant, a chef-driven “one-bite” tasting competition along Fisherman’s Wharf on Fort Myers Beach and a 7K race on Sanibel.

Honoring the restaurants’ signature Yucatán shrimp – heralded by The New York Times’ ‘Cooking’ column as a “vacation on a plate” – the national holiday originated in 2020 by parent company HM Restaurant Group and is celebrated annually every May 24.

“We created National Yucatán Shrimp Day to celebrate the dish that has long defined our brand, and it’s grown into something much bigger,” said Joe Harrity, a partner with HM Restaurant Group. “Each year, we’ve expanded the experience and now it’s become a signature event that brings our restaurants and the community together.”

Beginning May 1, customers who purchase a Yucatán menu item or a bottle of Gloria’s Yucatán sauce at Doc Ford’s, Dixie Fish Company or Bonita Fish Company,.will be entered for a chance to win a YETI cooler filled with restaurant swag, including T-shirts, koozies, a bottle of Yucatán sauce and a $100 gift card. Each restaurant will draw a winner on May 24.

Fisherman’s Wharf on Fort Myers Beach will serve as the hub of a waterfront block party along Matanzas Pass, highlighted by a chef-driven “one-bite” tasting competition. A dedicated event tent will be set up in front of Doc’s House, between Dixie Fish Company and Bonita Fish Company, where chefs from Doc Ford’s, Dixie Fish Company and Bonita Fish Company will each present an original Yucatán shrimp-inspired dish. Guests can visit the tent to sample each bite and vote for their favorite. The competition will take place on Sunday, May 24, from 2 to 5 p.m., and is free and open to the public. Each vote also enters guests into a raffle to win a YETI cooler.

“We’re excited to see what our chefs prepare; they’re all very talented,” said Harrity. “The winner could become the newest Yucatán item on our menu.”

Yucatán shrimp, Doc Ford’s most popular dish, pairs steamed peel-and-eat shrimp with a savory spicy sauce made from butter, fresh Key lime juice, garlic, cilantro, Colombian chili pepper sambal, salt and pepper. The Yucatán flavor profile also appears in baked oysters, shrimp tacos and a bloody Mary.

Doc Ford’s on Sanibel is hosting its second annual 7K race at 7 a.m., Saturday, May 23. The 7K format was inspired by the seven ingredients in the sauce. Last year’s inaugural event attracted 350 runners and walkers and raised $7,500 for the Sanibel-Captiva Conservation Foundation’s Sea School, an immersive environmental camp for high school students. This year’s goal is to raise $10,000 for the nonprofit J.N. “Ding” Darling Wildlife Society.

Registration and donations are available at runsignup.com/docfordsnationalyucatanshrimpday7k.

Doc Ford’s Rum Bar & Grille two St. Petersburg locations are also celebrating National Yucatán Shrimp Day.