Our roots
The Kickin’ Crab starts with Jan Nguyen.
In 1975, after the fall of Saigon, Jan and her family fled Vietnam and came to the United States as refugees. She was just 11 years old when her family began again in a new country.
Living in the States, Jan missed the food she grew up with. As a young girl, she taught herself to recreate the dishes and flavors of home.
As Orange County’s Little Saigon grew, Jan saw a community of refugees who shared that same longing for the food they had left behind. In her twenties, she decided to turn that connection into something more.
In 1991, Jan opened Com Tam Tran Quy Cap, a restaurant specializing in traditional Vietnamese broken rice dishes. It quickly built a loyal following and became a success of its own.
But Jan wasn’t done. With one successful restaurant behind her, she was ready to try something completely different—something saucier, a little messier, and a whole lot more fun.
In 2010, that idea became The Kickin’ Crab.
Jan opened the first location near South Coast Plaza in Southern California, giving the Cajun seafood boil a kick of her own. Seafood was cooked to order, tossed in her signature sauces, and served hot and ready to crack into.
Word spread quickly.
What began as one restaurant in Southern California has grown into more than 40 Kickin’ Crab locations across the country. A lot has changed since 2010, but Jan’s original idea still defines The Kickin’ Crab today: great seafood served with plenty of sauce and...