Chris Martin has a mission. “I’m always pushing back when I hear someone say that you can’t make a great dish out of redheads and other diving ducks,” says the owner of Bay Flats Lodge. His lodge sits on San Antonio Bay, a hot spot for the migrating red-head ducks that swarm the Texas coast in winter. Unlike puddle ducks such as mallards that feed in shallow waters, diving ducks thrive on underwater vegetation and prey, leading to a reputation that they’re not as tasty. “But all ducks are really good,” Martin insists, “and we don’t waste anything here.”
Located near one hundred thousand acres of protected wildlife preserve, Bay Flats Lodge sits in the crosshairs of some of the best saltwater fishing and waterfowling in the country. Guests can go all in on a waterfowl quest—redheads are one of various species of ducks that use the bay—or mix it up with airboat rides to remote marsh flats to cast for redfish and trout. No matter the schedule, guests filtering back to the lodge are greeted by the rich aroma of Martin’s duck soup, a beloved family recipe. He remembers his grand-mother making the soup, and then his mother. “We’ve tweaked it for twenty-five years,” he figures. One of the most significant changes: adding salt pork, which helps bind all the flavors. Also key is the real-deal duck stock. “The stock, the vegetables, and the meat—it’s like a holy trinity,” he says. “It only works when you put them all together.”
