SOUTH PORTLAND — Around lunchtime on the Sunday after the Fourth of July, cars with plates from New York and Georgia slowly circled the full parking lot at Willard Beach, stalking anyone heading their way with a folding chair.

On the other end of the short path to the sand, buzzing pagers summoned beachgoers to a window where workers doled out freeze pops and curly fries but also mignonette-topped oysters nestled in ice ($11 for three) and red snapper hot dogs draped in kelp ($9 with chips and a pickle).

The menu at the snack shack — recently taken over by Lady Shuckers, a catering company specializing in Maine oysters from women-owned sea farms — was the buzz of the beach that day, eliciting reactions ranging from sneers to excitement but mostly curiosity. Will a $14 kimchi grilled cheese prove a bad match for a beach whose big draw is its free parking, or is it the latest sign of just how much the neighborhood has changed?

A lot of people say that started with Scratch Baking, said Hannah Holmes, a real estate agent who has lived in Willard Beach for 24 years.

Before foodies began lining up for its road trip-worthy bagels, the neighborhood was something of a hidden gem — an aging, blue-collar community with beach access, yes, but also enough water quality issues to keep most people turning right toward the state parks in Cape Elizabeth after crossing the Casco Bay Bridge.

“It was very much a locals’ beach until quite recently,” Holmes said. “I don’t know that anyone would have gone out of their way to go to Willard Beach 10 years ago.”

Home prices had started rapidly rising before the pandemic, but “COVID kind of put it in overdrive,” Holmes said, bringing in young families from out of state with remote jobs and makes of cars that you wouldn’t have seen before.

And though she said regulations on short-term rentals have eliminated the “parade of strangers walking down the street,” there are still a couple dozen within walking distance of the beach, including a four-bedroom home listed on Airbnb for over $2,000 a night.

But if bagels are to blame for spilling the secret, social media is likely responsible for spreading the word.

City Councilor Natalie West assumes that’s the source of much of the tourist traffic she sees now and has proposed to start charging nonresidents of the city to park at Willard Beach — not to deter them, she said, but to generate revenue that could help make it even more desirable.

“If you’re in Portland for the weekend, Willard Beach is the easiest beach to go to,” she said.

For people like Maureen Martinack of Cape Elizabeth, the free parking is the reason for coming to Willard Beach, especially when she’s just spending a couple hours there alone, like she was that Sunday.

She brought some strawberries with her and planned to leave before lunch, but if she was going to eat from a snack shack, she said, she’d “prefer the more economical version,” like a cold sandwich with chips and a drink.

On the other hand, Candace Davis of Westbrook, who usually goes to Crescent Beach, came specifically for the oysters and maybe a lobster roll, which she found out about by following Lady Shuckers on Instagram.

“Not all the beaches have food options anymore,” she said.

If not for Lady Shuckers, Willard Beach could have ended up without a snack shack this summer, too.

The vendor for the last two seasons decided not to renew its lease, and when the city put out a request for proposals, Lady Shuckers was the only bidder, with an offer to rent the space for $4,000 from May 24 to Sept. 1. (It’s open 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday, weather permitting.)

There are some more basic and beach-friendly items on its menu, like the freeze pops for $1 apiece and a hot dog or grilled cheese without the kelp or kimchi for $7 with chips and a pickle, listed as the “kids menu” — though children probably aren’t the only ones who’d prefer their hot dog sans seaweed.

Still, as long as those more traditional options are available, is there any harm in offering something different, too?

Lady Shuckers owner Libby Davis doesn’t think so, though she did remove a couple items — caviar nachos and a $12 pretzel — after a preliminary menu got some pushback on social media.

“I was honestly grateful for the feedback,” she said, which was mostly excitement from established fans of her food truck, stationed at Hearts of Pine games and Summer Sunsets at Thompson’s Point this summer.

And to the people who see her menu as a sign of gentrification, lamenting a time when a dog or burger at the beach was never more than a couple bucks?

“I think those concerns are valid. I want to keep things sacred too,” said Davis, who grew up in Scarborough and hired two college students who live in Willard Beach to run the stand.

But she also wants to pay them well and provide a quality product, both for kids and people looking for a different culinary experience. To that end, she said, her prices are fair.

“Ultimately, the market will set you straight,” said Holmes, who applauded the attempt to experiment with the menu.

It could be that South Portland’s tastes haven’t changed as quickly as its home values, as evidenced by the higher-end food businesses that have vacated nearby Knightville, including the highly lauded restaurant Judy Gibson and Solo Cucina Market.

Despite the infusion of wealth, Holmes said, “it remains a down-to-earth, pragmatic, neighborly Maine town.”

And knowing what a pack of red snappers costs at the store, she said, “I don’t think a $10 hot dog is going to be a big hit.”

Davis said it’s too early to tell how well the entire menu will sell, but she had just brought in 300 oysters Wednesday for the week ahead, and even if she has to make tweaks, she’d like to stay for at least a couple seasons.

If it turns out beachgoers can’t stomach the cost, they might have to accept the alternative: nothing at all.