The Reel's menu has onion rings, which are a new menu item, and Cobb salad. (Courtesy The Reel Seafood & Grill)
Local restaurateurs David Caddell and Kelly Caddell decided to open a seafood restaurant in New Braunfels in 2015 because they saw a need.
Meet the owners
The couple unknowingly began their career in the restaurant industry, when Kelly Caddell worked at Clear Springs Restaurant and Pat’s Place Restaurant. David Caddell also worked at Pat’s Place.
After graduating from New Braunfels High School and Canyon High School, the duo moved away to attend Sam Houston State University, which is when David Caddell started his 21-year stint with Pappas Restaurants.
The Caddells opened their first restaurant, The Reel Seafood House, in Spring Branch in 2013 before opening The Reel Seafood & Grill in 2015. When opening The Reel Seafood & Grill, David Caddell said it was “nerve-wracking" because he was not sure whether the community would accept it. Luckily, they did.
The husband-and-wife duo ended up selling their Spring Branch location in 2017 and opened Dos Rios Mexican Bar & Grill later that year.
Popular menu items
The Reel Seafood & Grill’s most popular dish is the seafood fondue. The restaurant’s most sold item is its fried shrimp, which is stripped, butchered and hand-battered in-house. The restaurant also offers wild caught fish such as mahi and flounder, and sustainable, or farm-raised, fish.
The Reel's flounder and scallops comes with flounder, shrimp, scallops, spinach with Cajun cream sauce and dirty rice. (Courtesy The Reel Seafood & Grill)
The Caddell’s daughter, Kayla Caddell-Harford, who is also a key player in the business’s growth and development, said all of their sauces, such as Bordeaux and Pontchartrain, are made in-house daily and can dress their naked fish plate.
“We’re not just a seafood restaurant,” David Caddell said. “We have lots of options other than seafood.”
For the land-lovers, The Reel serves chicken fried steak and chicken-fried ribeye with scratch-made gravy along with a vodka Parmesan cream sauce that complements their pasta dishes. The Reel also has its Reel Burger, which is made with a blend of brisket, short rib and chuck.
One more thing
The owners also take pride in mentoring staff and making sure employees leave with a skillset.
