Do yourself a favor, stop for a cocktail before going to dinner somewhere else. Our Saturday night 6/16/18 was a nightmare. 5 couples, 8 pm reservations, no trouble being seated. Appetizers ordered by 8:25, salads arrive 9:30, Appetizers 10:00, meals at 10:30 and half of us ordered a red snapper special that arrived as haddock prepared completely different than described by waiter. The other half's food was good but if you don't mind being hassled, give it a try. Evening was still great because of great friends, beautiful weather and an experience to talk about for years to come. Something is wrong when the waiter tells you at 10pm that "the owner himself is cooking your meals!" read more

We came here with my bf's extended family, so there were about 12 of us (?). Having a baby in the party prompted an early dinner seating, but that was probably beneficial since the place seemed to fill up quickly when it got closer to 7:30PM. Service: Our waitress was pretty attentive and friendly, taking our drink and dinner orders accordingly. I know it can be hard servicing a large table, but it worked out ok. Ambiance: The restaurant itself is small, but they have a large deck/patio area and that is where you want to be. The main draw of Castaways is its lakefront deck. The views are incredible and especially on a warm summer evening, this place is perfect to watch the sun set. They even have plastic chairs facing the water in case you want to have a drink while waiting for your table. Food: The food is pretty typical. They give you simple fluffy bread rolls for the table. I ordered the salmon ($23?), which came with a choice of baked potato, fries, veggies, or rice pilaf. I asked for the baked potato and got just that -- a simple baked potato with a side of sour cream, no frills. The salmon was cooked perfectly with an interesting dressing on the side that I couldn't quite put my finger on, but it was good. I also got a starter salad included with my entree choice. My bf ordered the fish bake, which is a breaded and fried piece of fish with fries and coleslaw. He's not a big coleslaw fan, so I got to try it. It was okay, nothing special, but not bad. The fries were pretty solid and the fish was also pretty good. The breading was thin and kind of came off a bit when it was cut, but overall pretty decent. Drinks: They have a pretty decent drink selection, but I just stuck with water. Price: Definitely a bit overpriced for the food, but you're paying for the view. Would I return? Maybe, but just for the view. read more

If you come here make it a warm day like the one we had. Great setting. Food was fresh and good. Service is slow so come with patience.

I was glad to see Castaways reopen with large outdoor seating with the ability to social distance during COVID but our experience was less than satisfying. We had a party of 7, they screwed up our reservations and gave our table away so we had to wait to be seated. That wait was the beginning of a night filled with delays and unmet low expectations. Once we were seated at our table we waited 15 mins for a server to show up. Finally a waiter named Josh came over and did his best all night to make up for the deficiencies of the restaurant. We ordered wings, bruschetta, fried calamari and crab dip as appetizers. All but the wings were ho hum and the calamari had a bitter taste like it was fried in old grease. To say the least the night was not off to an auspicious start. We ordered lobster tail, 2 fisherman's platters, King crab legs, strip steak, scallops and a pasta dish. The fisherman's platters were not edible presumably fried in the same ancient grease as the calamari, the lobster was over cooked and tough. The people who had the steak and King crab legs loved them so they were probably 2 for 7 on the entrees to be fair. The orders were mixed up, missing items etc. The night was a disaster. We arrived at 7 pm and didn't leave until 9:30 pm because they were so slow. The manager did comp us key lime bc they knew it didn't go well. To top off the night, we paid our bill and were about to leave a waitress rushed over to tell us that while we waiting for our table we had a couple of drinks and those drinks were not transferred to our bill and we owed $40. We said they should eat it and they split it with us. So after an utterly disastrous experience they hounded us for $20 bucks. Needless to say this place needs new management expeditiously. It's a great location on the lake and could become a Rochester gem but with their current performance it's nothing but fools gold. The food was terrible so we thought at least we could enjoy the view of the lake, that was ruined as well by the swarms of gnats. We spent the entire night swatting them away and it wasn't just us. As we surveyed the other patrons, everyone was engaged in gnat dodging. I wrote this review hoping that the management will read this and make changes before they end up on the restaurant scrap heap for utterly abysmal performance. For potential diners avoid this place as if it were the plague. read more

The scenery was pretty, the service was good, and the food wasn't bad. I'm kind of a seafood snob, so I'm really hard to impress. For the price, the food wasn't unique or knock-your-socks-off amazing, but it was decent enough. While I probably wouldn't go out of my way to return, I also wouldn't go out of my way to avoid it, either. I'm glad we tried them. read more

Go there for drinks. If you wait for food you're going to be waiting a while. Service is not good. And the food isn't stellar. Disappointed since I've enjoyed Castaways for years..... no more. Check out Pub 235 (not on the water). Check out Marios (on the Bay with Outdoor seating) Or check out Murphys Law (on the Bay, outdoor seating). All good service and food, except Castaways :'( read more

My guy and I had dinner at Castaways saturday of labor day weekend. First, we had to flag a busboy for our water. Next, we waited nearly an hour for our meal. We watched the neighboring table of four sit down, order, get served, and leave before we got our meal. And the food wasn't worth waiting for. My lobster roll was ok, but my guy ordered the blackened prime rib, which was nothing more than an already cooked cut slathered with an oily rub and warmed up. Ugh. The lake was nice but hardly worth the $95.00 bill. I understand it was a busy weekend but then limit your menu to items you can do well. Have a couple drinks here but skip the food. read more

Horribly dry almost inedible food. Not real butter with the lobster. Can't believe we actually got suckered into paying so much just for a view. Waitstaff was friendly, but the food made us feel awful about an hour later. read more

I have been going to Castaways for decades. Always slow slow service. We went for lunch at 2pm thinking they went be busy and may have decent service. Nope. Took 20 minutes to get a drink. Basically spent $100 pre tip for 2 of us and slow service, took 45 minutes to get bread to go with our clams which they charge for, and just mediocre food. I am never going there again. One time we went for lunch during the week and it took an hour to see food. Just completely done with this joint. read more

Great view even on an overcast day, but very slow service. Took over 1.5hrs to get meal.

Contrary to previous reviews, the service was actually quite good. We ate outside, and most of the tables on the deck were occupied and there were several servers moving briskly about. It seems they may have solved their service problem. The food, on the other hand, is another story. Other member of my party seemed to enjoy their selections, but my crab cake sandwich was not good. Mushy, over-mixed texture, overly fishy flavor, served on a bun far too large for the size of the single crab cake. And way overpriced - $17.00. I wrote a comment on the receipt, and the (owner? manager?) came out to speak to me about it. Claimed it was an authentic Maryland crab cake recipe that everyone loved. Meh. Like other reviewers, I'll only return for drinks and apps. Why, oh why can't we have a nice restaurant on the lakefront? read more

The view is great and if u have money to burn and the time to waste its worth at least one visit. Highly doubt I will be back unless I just want a drink. Bottom line u pay for the view. Note to management. Tell your water girl to smile once in awhile and for one of your buss boys this is not thug life pull them up homie. read more

This place seemed very nice, great view, seafood, steaks... so we ordered the "jumbo" shrimp cocktail, 4 for $14 taste great, Prime Rib was cold, we got the hot crab dip that started out to be very good, chips were very good. In the crab dip was a cheese wrapper, that my husband pulled out of his mouth. Everyone was nice but the food for the price was not good, we tried it. That's all I can say read more

Below average food sold at above average prices. It were not for the view of Lake Ontario, there would be absolutely no reason to go there. My artichokes French tasted as if it were made with margarine rather than butter, plus it was unbelievably salty. A fellow diner's crab cakes looked like hockey pucks. And as many other reviews state, the service was glacially slow. Not heading back to Castaways anytime soon. read more

Castaways - The view is spectacular. - Seafood Near Me - Webster, New York

Awesome location and sunset. Lousy service... I mean really lousy service, worst I've had in along time. Tables too close together for Covid. Steak was awful, asked for medium rare, got well done. Other food was okay, not great, it was overpriced. Salads, included with entree never showed up, no price break. Talked to manager, she was indifferent, got 50% off steak. I can't imagine a sunset on the lake good enough to bring me back for more. So disappointing. read more

The view is beautiful. The food, not so much. I ordered the pasta and it was VERY sour at $19.00. The salad was extremely tiny. The food is expensive and shouldn't be because it isn't good. This kind of place you will go to for an experience and never go back. read more

I have never written a review on yelp, but this experience prompted me to do so. This is an expensive restaurant considering the quality of the food. I ordered the coconut crusted shrimp and my date ordered the scallops. The meal comes with stale packaged rolls from Walmart, which were not edible. We also had salad with the meal, which was a combo of iceburg lettuce and a few baby greens - nothing special. Our fish came with salt potatoes that were almost total mush as the they must have been cooking for hours in oily margarine. My coconut shrimp was overcooked and was served with a cheap, artificially colored sauce that was pure sugar (corn syrup). My date was happy with his scallops, but although cooked well, they were drenched in margarine and had no flavor. We both walked away hungry! Service was fine, but I would not try this place again. read more

This place sucked! Horrible customer service...horrible food!! I tried giving them a second chance and was disappointed even more. More than $200 down the drain. I even spoke with the manager and she came out saying "what's the issue" that's not how you address your customers. I will NEVER come back and I will let others know not to come!!! read more

Food was horrible!!! Very dirty and outdated !! Don't not go! Beware And highly overpriced

OMG.. Seriously.. Best view of the water in the area, but food is diner food.. Great view, horrible food. Too bad.. I am speaking from 4 times of trying to dine there. I have never had good or great food here. read more

Great sunset. The seafood bisque was very good. Menu offered some "man" size meals. I went with the salmon salad. Very fresh and tasty. read more

Castaways - Seafood Near Me - Webster, New York

Went for lunch on Monday, loved it. The weather was beautiful, it's right on the lake, you had choice of sun or shade. I love to sit outside here the view is amazing and very relaxing for me. I got the fish tacos, I don't do gluten so I just ate the insides. Fish was blackened and served with coleslaw, very good. They were served with homemade potato chips that I wish I had never tried, chips will never be the same for me. They were still warm with perfect amount of seasoning. My aunt got the salmon salad, she enjoyed it. The salmon portion was large and served warm over the salad, she didn't even need the salad dressing it was served with. read more

While I admit the service was definitely slow, they were obviously very busy and pushed out a lot of food. For a Saturday night, we got right in without a reservation and got our drinks within 10 mins. The shrimp scampi was possibly the best I've ever had. Drinks were delicious (and dangerous:) ). My son had the fish fry which was a full size..he ate the entire thing. My boyfriend's steak was delicious! We will definitely be back! read more

Castaways - Seafood Near Me - Webster, New York

See all

We love this restaurant and setting!! It is right on the water of Lake Ontario and for an evening dinner, it is romantic! We usually have one of their seafood entrees and it is always delicious! The owners are delightful and participate in the hosting and checking in, especially if you are a regular like us! It's not unusual for them to give their regular customers a free dessert! read more

Very surprised about the low ratings of the restaurant. Was hesitant about going because of it, but went for it nonetheless. The food was decent. I got the haddock French, not excellent, but good. The atmosphere is great here, right on the lake. The best view of any restaurant in Rochester. An added bonus is while I was there there was live music, a man playing guitar and piano while singing. He was very good and it really added to the dining experience. read more

Amazing views! Perfect place to relax, take in the view and have a bite to eat... or a drink...

Let me start with the downside: food was not outstanding, and we waited at least 40 minutes for it. Yes, there were 5 of us with several fried things to come out, but the restaurant was not busy and the waitress only checked on us once. The food wasn't good enough for that long of a wait. Despite that, the waitress was nice, the drinks were beachy and delicious, and the views can't be beat. They also have boat docking on the bay side. Those are certainly the highlights. I had the SoCo Hurricane and really enjoyed it. And they had juice perfect for kids. I had the haddock sandwich and really enjoyed it. It was flavorful and cooked well. The fries were average. I'm picky on fries, so they were only ok. We had my 2 y/o nephew with us. There isn't anything for kids to do for a 40 minute wait, but luckily the other patrons were chill while he ran along the railing and pretended to count while climbing nearby stairs. read more

*Slow service *mediocre food *inattentive staff *overpriced My boyfriend and I came in on 9/2/17 around 4 pm. We were surprised that there were so few tables occupied but figured that would mean we would have excellent service and caught them before a dinner rush. We were wrong. We were invited to seat ourselves and chose a seat off to the side with an unobstructed view of the lake. It took 15 minutes for someone to ask us if we had been offered drinks (we hadn't). We ordered margaritas and 10 minutes later they brought us the margaritas (one of them was wrong and had to be reordered). Half an hour after we sat down someone nonchalantly put bread and cups of water on our table. Shortly after we got the bread someone finally took our order. It took another 20 minutes to get our food. It was an hour after we had sat down before we finally got our food. There was another table that came in 20 minutes after us who were greeted and told the specials and even served before us. Had they been busy it would have been understandable; however there were clearly enough staff to wait on the few tables that were occupied. This was our first visit here, we came with high hopes but we will not be frequenting this location ever again. read more

If I can give zero stars I would. This was one of the WORST places I've ever been to here in Rochester. It was recommend to me. So I took my boyfriend for his birthday. The view at this location is beautiful but that's pretty much it. We started off with the calamari. It was good, not the best. I ordered the lobster roll and changed one of the sides to the house salad, it was an up charge. Not a problem. When it was brought to me, the server just put it on the table then went to serve others. Didn't even say here's the house salad or anything. Service was AWFUL from the start. But the salad literally had ONE slice of a cucumber, and it looked like they just threw it on the plate from a leftover pre-made salad mix. It looked like scraps on my plate. I told them to take the salad back. I don't know how they could serve this. I'm not paying for something that doesn't even look edible. So we decided to just cancel our entire order. Mind you usually mangers ask why you would cancel the order, she didn't even care to ask. Just asked what did we order. Didn't apologize, offer to take it off the bill, nothing. I did pay for the calamari, like I said it was good. Not for me to come back though. Also for the amount/quality of food you get, it's over priced. I never mind paying for food when it's worth it. If you're considering going here, don't. Keep in mind to ALWAYS look at reviews before you go somewhere and consider the bad ones. There's restaurants in Rochester that offer fresh seafood, better service, and an environment that's actually worth the price. read more

Nice location for outdoor dining. Inside seating is "tight". Food and service are good. Worth the visit.

This was the longest I have ever waited for a table in my entire life. Arrived at 545 and finally sat at 805. Asked 4 times to make sure they had not forgotten us. Someone needs to re think the way they seat people at this place. I will never go there again. read more

Don't waste your time or gas to drive here. I got the fish fry and my French fries were Heavily greased. Our waiter didn't come back until my fish was gone and my husband was done. We were never offered bread, everyone else had it. When the waiter did come back I told him and he replied, "they look great to me." Well, the busboy thought they looked "awful." He offered more fries, but we were clearly done. I went in and asked for a manager and this young girl said she was, I said, really, I don't think you are. She stumbled around with her words and said, "well, I can be." What the heck does that mean? Then she past a very young man and she said she was looking for a manager. He snatched the comment card out of her hand and said he was a manager. I'm certain he wasn't either. He said he was sorry our dinner wasn't more enjoying and offered more fries. I then sent an email and the person emailed back right away and said that I was offered a gift certificate or dessert and I declined. No, I wasn't offered either! First, I would t want to come back and spend a lot of money for less than average food and a staff that clearly can't be honest. read more

The seafood was delicious, scenery was spectacular! and the server Hassan was awesome!!

Food was fair but unremarkable, service was abysmal (an hour and a half wait). Do not plan to return.

Don't go for the food or service! The sunset was spectacular!! Too bad we wasted our money here. We went on a Friday night and I get you are busier but it took forever to get food order out and when we did our baked potatoes were burnt, steak overdone and lobster cold with barely any flavor other than the butter I tried to revive it in. Trying to get our servers attention was ridiculous. Way overpriced for the service and food. read more

Great variety on the menu and the food is delicious. The views spectacular and the best sunsets around!

Overall the experience was good. The view of the lake was great, wait staff was nice, etc. However, the parking situation wasn't great, as there is only one small lot for a couple different establishments (we ended up parking on the side of the road, along with a number of others). Also, the restaurant isn't the nicest place in the world, having a bit of a 1970's bar/restaurant feel to it (but without any recent updates). We were seated at 6:45pm and ordered around 7pm, but didn't receive our food till around 7:45pm, almost 45 minutes for a place that was seemingly only half full. Granted, two of us ordered fish (three ordered crab cake related dishes) but I can make any one of said meals in a much shorter period of time. I personally had the Coconut Tilapia (I think is what they call it) which was essentially a breaded filet with what looked liked dried out coconut shavings that were baked/fried with the breading. It was cooked well, but the coconut added little to no flavor. I had the steamed summer vegetables and rice on the side (both recommended), but they were nothing to write home about, no flavor and pretty basic. Good though. Overall I would have given this place 4 stars if the food had been delivered quicker. Not a bad joint, but not a place I'd go out of my way to visit again. read more

Went there with my husband and three friends. Had reservation for on the deck under the cover but there was no room for us there so they say us on deck. Too cold so we went and sat inside. We were one of two parties in the entire place on a Friday evening at 7PM! I was shocked at the menu prices! Higher than most places for fine dining! Four of us had the fish fry. Fish was fine but the fries were cold. Service not the best. Sorry, but a house wine in a small glass for $8.00 is robbery. Won't ever go back. read more

Terrible servers. The host and server had no personality. The food was average and way overpriced. Came here once before and only came back because we had a gift certificate. Will give away the gift certificate before we come back again read more

Ate here this evening. Horrible food. Strip steak was expensive. All fat. Also Seafood Saute was flavorless. Appetizers were calamari and coconut shrimp. Shrimp was overcooked. Our bill for 4 of us was $200. Only 2 beers ordered. Awful. Would never eat there again. Overpriced and blah. Update: called the restaurant this morning and person who answered phone began talking over me and yelling about how hard it is to keep a restaurant going With only 10 weeks in the season. I agree. But still no reason to rip off customers with mediocre food and ridiculous prices. Offered to have me come back. No chance read more