Oyster Serving Tray
Oysters on the half shell have one packaging requirement above all others: they must stay level.
View tray & get pricing →Sushi & Seafood Trays
Shrimp Cocktail Trays
- Centre sauce well
- Radial arrangement
- Chilled display
The shrimp platter is one of the most instantly recognisable formats in food retail: a ring of prawns arranged tail-inward around a central pot of cocktail sauce, under a clear lid. It has barely changed in decades because the geometry works — every piece is equally accessible, the sauce is central, and the whole thing reads as abundant.
What varies is the size, the sauce arrangement and how well the platter copes with a chilled cabinet.
- Centre well sized to your sauce pot or formed for direct filling
- Radial arrangement that presents every prawn tail-outward
- Construction specified for chilled display and condensation
- Round and rectangular formats
Pricing starts from $0.30 per tray
The unit price depends on the size, board, printing, finishing, quantity and delivery country, so every quote is worked out for your specification rather than taken from a list.
Get pricing for shrimp cocktail trays
Send the size and the run length. We reply with pricing, material options and a production date — usually within one working day.
01 — Specification
Specification at a glance
Every element below is set when we quote. Nothing here is a fixed catalogue entry — if a line does not match what you need, say so and we will change it.
- Formats
- Round and rectangular; centre or corner sauce well
- Sauce well
- Cut to your pot, or formed for direct filling
- Sizes
- Individual portions through to large event platters
- Lid
- Clear fitted lid or film seal
- Labelling
- Flat panel for barcode and legal information
02 — Build the spec
Design this tray in five steps
The same five questions we would ask on a phone call, with the shrimp cocktail tray already selected. You get a properly detailed brief at the end, which is what makes a first quote accurate rather than approximate.
Prefer the full builder with a live sketch? Open the tray designer.
03 — In detail
Why the ring arrangement persists
It is not nostalgia. A ring gives every prawn an equal position, presents the tails outward so they can be picked up without touching the others, and puts the sauce where everyone can reach it. Nothing that has been tried since arranges a shared cold seafood course better.
It also, usefully, makes the portion look larger than the same number of prawns piled in a bowl, which is why the format survives in retail where perceived value drives the sale.
Sizing the platter
Count the prawns, not the weight
Prawn grading varies enormously, and a platter designed for a 16/20 count looks sparse with a smaller grade. Lay out the actual count you sell in a ring and measure the diameter it forms.
Then add the sauce well
The centre well is measured from your pot, at its rim and base. A well that is a fraction too wide lets the pot tip when the platter is carried, which spills sauce across the prawns.
Then the border
A clear border outside the ring gives staff somewhere to hold the platter, and it makes the arrangement look deliberate rather than crammed. A finger width is the minimum.
Chilled display considerations
Condensation
Every surface in a chiller collects condensation, and on a clear lid that hides the product. Pack fully chilled and consider anti-fog lid material for retail lines.
Free liquid
Thawed and cooked prawns release liquid. A construction that absorbs or channels it keeps the platter looking fresh rather than wet.
Stacking
Retail cabinets stack platters. The lid has to carry that load without pressing on the arrangement below.
Label placement
Chilled seafood is a regulated category. Plan a flat panel for the barcode and legal information before finalising the shape.
04 — Nearby
Trays that work alongside this one
Chosen because operators who buy the shrimp cocktail tray usually need one of these in the same order, not because they happen to sit in the same category.
Corrugated Crawfish Tray
A crawfish tray carries several pounds of hot, wet, seasoned shellfish, often with corn and potatoes, straight out of a boil.
View tray & get pricing →
Crudite Tray with Dome
A crudité platter has a problem that other platters do not: the food is meant to stand up.
View tray & get pricing →
Corrugated Sushi Platter
A sushi platter is a flat presentation surface that has to stay flat.
View tray & get pricing →05 — Questions
Shrimp Cocktail Tray questions
How do I size a shrimp platter?
Lay out the actual count you sell in a ring and measure the diameter, then add the sauce well and a clear border. Prawn grading varies enormously, so a platter sized to a nominal weight will look sparse with a smaller grade.
Should the sauce go in a pot or a formed well?
A pot for retail, because it gives you a seal and a shelf life. A formed well for catering and event service, where the platter is eaten the same day and one fewer component is worth having.
Will the sauce pot tip when the platter is carried?
Not if the well is cut to the pot at both its rim and base diameters. A well that is a fraction too wide lets the pot rock, and sauce across the prawns is the result. Send us the pot.
Why does the lid fog up?
Product packed before it is fully chilled, or a platter moving between temperatures. Pack cold. On a retail line where fogging persists, anti-fog lid material is available and does work.
Can these platters be stacked in a chiller?
Yes, if the lid is specified to carry the load. Tell us how many platters are stacked in your display, or the lid will press the arrangement in the platter below.
Round or rectangular?
Round for the classic ring arrangement and for maximum shelf impact. Rectangular where cabinet space is tight and the platters have to tessellate. Round wastes more material per sheet, so it carries a small premium.
What about liquid released by the prawns?
Cooked and thawed prawns release some liquid. A construction that absorbs or channels it keeps the platter looking fresh. Tell us the shelf life you are working to and we will specify accordingly.
Can the platter be printed?
The border and the rim can carry print. Most retail seafood platters use an applied label instead, because it also has to carry the barcode, weight and legal information, and a label is easier to change.
Before you order, read
- Catering Tray Buying Guide — Specifying catering packaging that survives the whole delivery journey.
- Food Tray Size Guide — What tray sizes mean, and how to pick one from your own portions.
Who buys this tray
Ready to price the shrimp cocktail tray?
Send the dimensions, the quantity and the country you want it delivered to. We come back with a full quote — material, print, finishing, freight and a production date.