Charlie's Place Gloucester Mass We decided to visit Gloucester in February 2026 as a way to help our relative get her new home ready for move-in. We took a Saturday off to do a little touring. After spending the morning touring Cape Ann, enjoying all the beauty there was to behold, we decided to go to Charlie's Place for lunch. It has the feel of a hometown diner without any appearance of a greasy spoon. The interior is very well maintained, extremely clean and pleasantly decorated. Staff were very friendly and accommodating. My sister-in-law had the pepper burger, which was smothered in red and green peppers and she ate every bite. She also enjoyed a cup of the fish stew. She has returned to Charlie's many times to have it again and again, it is that good! Large chunks of haddock crowd the serving while swimming in a buttery, thin, creamy broth. My husband and I made a meal of splitting three items: a bowl of the clam chowder, which has the authentic New England taste we were looking for, a simple turkey sandwich on rye and a side salad which was huge. We felt completely at ease in this restaurant which is obviously a local favorite and left feeling stuffed. The prices are very affordable. We truly enjoyed every bite in our first, but definitely not the last, time visiting Charlie's. read more

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Sadly - gone a bit downhill! Our family's favorite local restaurant since the 1980s has changed two things recently that have ruined the experience of a great lobster roll or fish dinner. No. 1 - they no longer serve Coco-Cola products - OUCH! Apparently there was an issue with the Coke servicing one time and they pulled the plug on Coke - completely ignoring their customers. Very sad to see this selfishness! No. 2 - management changes their French fries - long a staples of greatness here. Again - leasing with success and ignoring customers! Lastly, the outstanding lobster roll has been inconsistent lately. I write this review with the hope that management is listening and will revert to what made Charlie's so great for so long. Until then, we will be looking for other local joints. - Mr. Shell Shocked. read more

Went for lunch. Picked the simplistic thing - grilled cheese and tomato. Asked for cheddar, got American. Order onions rings, not cooked all the way. Yuck. Heard breakfast is good - not lunch! read more

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I'm from out of town and went to Charlie's twice, specifically for the amazing haddock chowder, which is a lot like my mother's delicious recipe that I grew up on. The price is right and the portion is ample! The fries there are pretty perfect too. Golden and crispy. I saw a lot of other people ordering dishes that looked great. And the no-nonsense servers are efficient and reasonably friendly. If I lived in Gloucester, I'm sure I'd become a regular here. What's not to like? It's a well-run, classic dinette, with a huge menu of New England's favorite dishes. read more

Recently reopened after flood issues. Food is fabulous; wait staff are the friendliest in town. Service is quick and food is really good and large portions. Some of the best fried clams in Gloucester!! Deserts are devine! read more

This was a great place for a quick stop after a day at the beach! It was busy but the servers were great and attentive. Unfortunately they were out of utensils for some reason. We got a fisherman's platter dinner, a small scallops, and mozzarella sticks. It was plenty of food for the three of us and we had plenty of leftovers. Overall the seafood tasted fresh and delicious. The shrimp was massive, the scallops were so juicy, and the clams were whole belly, not just strips! The breading was a bit on the dry side and not seasoned much, so we had to use a lot of tartar sauce, ketchup, and occktail sauce for flavor. read more

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Small restaurant cute food was straight to the point in a summer beach town .... Service was all so good ..... read more

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The service was good. We liked our server. The food on the other hand could have been better. Both of my husband and I had very bad food poisoning from there. My husband had it worse than me. I thought I was gonna have to bring him to the ER because of it. Maybe check on some of the food. Throw out expired food! Will not be returning and I will be telling friends and family to do the same!! read more

Went for breakfast. Food was good, but prices were too high. 2 eggs no meat, 2 eggs with hash and 2 coffees = $31 read more

Great local spot. Good is done correctly. Morning fancy. And hey, it's air conditioned.

Wow, what a great place. My wife and I were told this was the place for breakfast and it is. A smiling face. Hot coffee. I had cornbeef hash and poached eggs. My wife crab cakes and poached eggs. Jeferson our server made sure we had what we needed. A place to go back to again. Inside was wonderful. Customers at the counter and tabless. Everyone seemed at easy and being at their place . read more

Good seafood, not a fan of the breading. It is unleavened which leaves it a little heavy on the gut and not much flavor. Chowder and bisque were ok. Not as meaty as most in the area. read more

Everything you want in a local diner, with and emphasis on "local" and friendly. Their fish chowder is fresh, tasty and perfectly simple, and their breakfasts rule. Plus, the Tuesday lobster roll special is a slam dunk. read more

It was busy on this school vacation day, even at 130pm. I posted my name and name and number in our party on the whiteboard in the entryway. We were seated after a short wait as they really husstled getting tables clean as people were leaving, very efficient and great teamwork. The tables were clean and the servers were friendly and very attentive. My granddaughter had her favorite chicken fingers. She said Charlies is the best, crisp and delicious. My daughter got a burger with sweet potato fries that she was very happy with. I got the coconut shrimp. They were crispy and absolutely yummy. I opted for onion rings instead of fries. They were perfect, crisp and not at all greasy. read more

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We stopped in after a whale watch tour and everything was great! The staff were very friendly and helped recommend dishes. We ordered the fish chowder (delicious buttery fish), crab cake BLT, and the fish sandwich. All was delicious! It's a pretty casual place, we would certainly come back! read more

Amazing breakfast food with really great staff. Huge portions so bring your appetite.

Great service, wonderful food just what we needed. Definitely making this a regular stop.

If you want to eat at an establishment that models their customer service after the Registry of Motor Vehicles, this is your place. Party of 6, where 4 people arrived at 11:12am and ordered breakfast as the other 2 arrived at 11:15 and was told they can no longer order breakfast, and they can't process lunch orders until 11:30. First 4 people got their breakfast quickly, other 2 had to wait 45 minutes until their meal finally came. I strongly recommend when in Gloucester you go to George's, Mom's Kitchen, or the Mile Marker. If you prefer Rockport, don't miss the great breakfast and amazing donuts at Brothers Brew. The food, service and ambience are better at any of these places. (Mile Marker in the summer can't be beat) read more

Ate at Charlie's yesterday. Spouse and I  had a cup of haddock chowder and we split a fried clam dinner (which has gotten a little pricey at $35). But it was all excellent and worth the price. Oh yeah, the coffee was fresh and tasted good too. read more

Charlie's Place - Haddock chowder - Seafood Near Me - Gloucester, Massachusetts

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This delicious and cozy spot is about 2 mins drive from Good Harbor Beach and has great parking! They offer take out for beach goers and indoor dining for everyone else! Their lobster bisque is very creamy and light! Also, (not picture) the fresh onion rings and sweet potato fries with ranch is delicious! The haddock sandwich and buffalo tender meal is great! Service and Waitresses are very pleasant and on top of service! read more

Charlie's Place - Lobster bisque - Seafood Near Me - Gloucester, Massachusetts

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First time here.. nice little spot you feel like you in a home town place.. our waitress was amazing.. I do wish I got her name so I could give her a shot out.. food was great.. whole belly clams.. Lobsta roll and scallops.. for sure will be back read more

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Located across the street from Stop & Shop, Charlie's Place has ample parking for its customers. The restaurant itself is decently clean with staff constantly taking away dishes and wiping tables down. Bathroom is reasonably clean. I recommend the fried smelts ($13 w/o tax) which was a hearty portion and came with coleslaw and french fries. The codfish cheek special ($19) is pretty good as well. The fisherman's platter has a little bit of everything ($37.99). The chowder was decent, but nothing exceptional. Everything is lightly salted so that the natural sweetness of the seafood shines through. read more

Super cute local place. The food was yummy and our waitress was the best! She shared lots of local site seeing ideas. Recommend the bisque and lobster roll! read more

food went downhill too LOUD too much plate clanking how about a noise canceller or white noise or a fan? how about better food? more variety and less unhealthy stuff? diabetics and others have a hard time here nobody wants salad as the only option be creative read more

It is ok place for a quick bite It seems to be the locals favorite. Mostly fried food . Service was ver good read more

Burgers are awful. Also kid burger and regular burger are the exact same size so you just pay more for one than the other. Portions are not good, and food does not taste fresh. Unfortunately we won't return (we have ordered for pick up 3 times and each time is worse than the last). read more

Go to place for fried seafood in Gloucester. Opinion rings are good too. Fries are usual bland presumably fro frozen. Slaw is fresh with not too much mayonnaise. Consistent for many years now. We go back several times each summer. Other things are often mediocre. read more

I wish I could give this place zero stars. I went there with my family of six. We were seated and given menus. During this time, another table of three was seated after us. We waited for about 10 minutes for someone to greet us and take our drink order. By this time, I'm starting to get annoyed. A few minutes later, a waitress greets the table next to us and proceeds to take their drink order and deliver it to them. Note that not one person has come by our table. I flagged another waitress walking by and let her know we haven't been seen only to be told that her shift is over and someone would be over (no apology, no help offered). A few moments later, the same waitress who served the table next to us comes over and says I'm here don't worry. I kindly let her know that we've been waiting for a while and that the table next to us was served before us. She got defensive and said she wasn't taking their order just getting their drinks to which I replied we haven't even given our drink order. Again no apology just dismissed the concern. It was at this point we should've left but we didn't. We ordered and the food was terrible. No flavor at all on anything! The breading on the seafood was tasteless even with salt. The chicken was dry. It was terrible. The bill was well over $100 and a complete waste of money. Also, I should note that she did end up taking the order for the table next to us even though she claimed she wasn't. I'm not sure where the overt lack of customer service stemmed from.... Don't wanna to play the race card but we were the only brown people in there ‍. If it walks like a duck... In summary, terrible meal, terrible service. Visit at your own risk. read more

Good solid eats with a side of attitude. Disclaimer: maybe our waitress was having a bad day because everyone else seemed very friendly and it was near the end of the day. But she got part of our order wrong and when we pointed it out, she pushed back and argued that she was right and we were wrong. We are absolutely sure we ordered clam chowder but were given fish chowder...anyhow it was corrected but I can honestly say I've never been treated quite like that anywhere else and it certainly did make the meal less enjoyable. Food was good, not spectacular. The chowder was ok, fries ok, but lobster roll was very good. read more

Atmosphere is nice, and the lobster roll was absolutely loaded. The bun was perfectly cooked as well, and I have nothing bad to say about this restaurant read more

Charlie's Place - Lobster Roll - Seafood Near Me - Gloucester, Massachusetts

Never got to order. Waited for 20 minutes. Everyone was confused as to where to place to go orders. Do you order outside or inside. The answer is you don't order at all read more

Best breakfast place in town. If there is a wait it's quick and the food is good. And they take CC

Dinner on Thurs 9/8 was terrible. Whole belly fried clams were cold and not crispy. Fries were cold. Clam chowder had virtually no clams. The waitress was surly. The one bright spot was the Apple Pie alamode. 100% different experience from 2021. read more

If you're looking for a diner like experience featuring solid fried seafood this is a solid bet. Pros: Close to Good Harbor Beach. Fish chowder & codfish cheeks A+. Cons: No booze! read more

Had Fried clams and clam chowder. Clams were very good but the chowder was horrible. Warm milk with hardly nothing else. Good think I had a little bag of crackers. I am very disappointed. No potato Just a few diced up clams. $8.00 for a 1/2 pint. Been here many times and always very good. Lobster roll $23 was delicious per the wife but that is a lot of money. 2 weeks ago it was $18 I should give you 2 stars but I am hoping that your cooks just had a bad day. read more

While in town for a wedding, four of us were looking to have lunch in a nice simple place with good food. We chose Charlie's not knowing much more than the Yelp reviews. All four of us had a very delicious lunch in pleasant and comfortable surroundings. The wait staff was helpful and friendly as well so this is a place where I would certainly visit again if the opportunity arises. read more

My husband and I came here last night for some fried seafood. We were not disappointed! A very small town homey vibe, which is a nice change if you live in the city like us. The portions were HUGE- we each got a basket of fried food, him squid and me clams. It included fries, onion rings, and PLENTY of fried fish, for $13.99 each! By the time we were finished I still had another meals worth of leftovers. We easily could've shared one. The staff were very friendly and quick. Quite on a Friday night and plenty of parking. We'll definitely come back next time we're in town! read more

Charlie's Place - My husband with his squid basket! - Seafood Near Me - Gloucester, Massachusetts

Excellent breakfast, including my western omelette. We also had dinner here and everyone raved about the fish chowder

Lunch - Great food (bowl of clam chowder - LOTS of clams - and fried clams entree with French fries and onion rings), efficient service, simple ambiance. Large portions at reasonable prices. Charlie's does breakfast menu until 11:45, then lunch and dinner. Seating at counter or tables. Got the sense that this is where locals eat. read more

Good reliable seaside diner. One of few places fish cheeks are regularly available. Chowder is good and BLT is excellent. Always clean and friendly and bright. read more