GETTING HERE: Ventura Crab N Spice is located a few doors down from The Habit on Telephone in Ventura. The footprint is the Winco shopping center. REVIEW: First timer here (what.) and it was so good! Quiet, not too busy on the day we went (during the week). I remember in my baby years of Yelp I used to note that a restaurant was "good" if it was busy. Post-shutdown and currently 2026, it's OK to me if it's ghost town inside. :) We ordered the Clam Chowder Bowl and Sweet Potato Fries. GREAT! The chowder had nice flavor and was thick, and the clam pieces were tasty. The bread was warm and soft, so full of flavor. Service was good. Love the vibe inside, too. Love the decor and the entire vibe. As much as I love seafood, I can't wait to go back to try their other menu items. Thank you for a great meal. Highly recommend! read more

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We decided to try Crab N Spice for my boyfriend's birthday after wanting to go for months, especially after seeing their billboard around town. Unfortunately, the experience was really disappointing because of the service. We were seated at a table without menus and left waiting for about 10 minutes, which felt like an eternity because the restaurant was extremely hot and there didn't seem to be any A/C running. Once someone finally came over, we ordered our drinks and the AYCE option. Our first round of food came out fairly quickly, but we weren't given any utensils, and our drinks didn't arrive until we were nearly finished with the first round. We ordered our second round as soon as our drinks arrived, but then waited another 40 minutes for the food. When we asked about it, our waitress seemed irritated and dismissive rather than apologetic or helpful. Because there is a posted 90-minute time limit for AYCE, by the time our second round arrived, we were understandably disappointed that we didn't have enough time to order a third round. The frustrating part is that the food itself was fresh and tasty. We really wanted to love this place, and it's unfortunate that the poor service overshadowed what could have been a great birthday dinner. We left with a bad taste--not because of the food, but because of the experience. read more

Ambiance is average, can get stuffy on a hot day. Service is average too, they don't really go out of their way to check in. Food is good, but the shrimp is NOT DEVAINED. I was very surprised and disappointed. Everything else was delicious. read more

I had a really disappointing experience at Crab N Spice. We arrived around 7:50 PM, knowing they close at 8 PM. There was no wait, and we stood there for about 10 minutes without being helped. Finally, a waitress came over around 8:05 PM and told us they were closed at 8 and couldn't seat us. That doesn't make sense--if you close at 8, you should still be seating guests before that time, especially when they've been waiting and there's no line. The lack of communication and basic customer service was frustrating and unprofessional. It wasn't about the timing it was about how it was handled. Standing there with no acknowledgment and then being turned away last minute is just bad service. Definitely not the experience we expected. read more

DD order! Everything was satisfactory. Fries could have been cooked harder, shrimp was good small but tasty. It arrived hot so I had a chance to enjoy . Beignets was hot and really good . I would order again read more

Ventura Crab N Spice - Seafood Near Me - Ventura, California

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I've been coming here since 2015 when they first opened. Over the years I've see the flavor change, the portions get smaller and NOW they charge 15% on parties 5 or more, which I don't really complain about due to it being a restaurant, however, when you have two toddlers and one being exactly a year old and not eating, THAT RIDICULOUSLY. A bill for $200 then an additional $36 for the gratuity, was unnecessary. After being a loyal customer for 11 years, I will no longer be coming back. read more

Ventura Crab N Spice - Seafood Near Me - Ventura, California

Amazing place! It's not my absolute favorite spot for seafood boils, but it's definitely one of the best. It's a little pricier compared to other places, but the quality of the seafood, the sauces, and the variety on the menu make it totally worth it. I've been here a few times, and they've never disappointed. Every visit has been great! read more

Crab and spice all you can eat seafood for $40 was a real bargain. I enjoyed the flavor of the butter garlic seasoning, it was just perfect. I had crab legs, crawfish, headless shrimp, potatoes and sausage that were cooked and packed with flavor. For my second round, I just added shrimp and that was more than enough. The price was great and it matched the service. read more

Ventura Crab N Spice - All you can eat seafood $40; crab legs, shrimp, crawfish, sausage, potatoes - Seafood Near Me - Ventura, California

Okay, been coming this place for several years now. Used to really love it. This was the first visit in a while, probably a year or so. Anyway, it was only myself and my sister-in-law. We ordered the Pirates platter or whatever it's called. We asked the server to make sure our shrimp was peeled. We did the all in spice and medium level. We waited and waited and waited...it was almost 45 minutes for our food. Mind you when we walked in there was only a hand full of people. By this time the place was packed. Finally the food arrived, we opened it up and put in the tray, the shrimp was not peeled...okay, fine it's a mistake. No big deal. We wave down the waitress and ask about it. She apologizes, takes it back and then returns a few minutes later with peeled shrimp just lying on top of the food. So basically they removed the unpeeled shrimp from our tray and then put a bunch of cooked shrimp, just laid it on top. Not cooked in the spices or anything, just plain, cooked shrimp. Okay...so we have to flag down the waitress and ask for a fork, so we can mix up the food and get the spices on the shrimp ourselves. As we are eating, we start pulling out mussels that had not opened. At first it was just a few, but then we dug around in the tray and found all of the unopened mussels, a total of 8, out of a pound of mussels. That's like half...we flagged the waitress down again and showed her the mussels. She said she would take them to the back and get them opened for us. We assumed that meant cooking them so they would open up. No, that's not what she meant. She meant, they would just open them up, like an oyster or something. Uhm, no...that's not how you do mussels. Another waitress, perhaps the manager, was near and heard the conversation and she stepped in to make sure that WE knew that was how you did it for mussels and continued to argue with us about it. Look, I've never been one to believe that the customer is always right. I worked in food service at the beginning of my work life...and know just how bad it can get. As a result I have always tried and maintained a standard of being extremely polite, friendly and respectful to the wait staff at any restaurant I go to. THIS, however, was a different situation...neither of us were rude about our intentions of the mussels being cooked, but the other waitress with her tone, body language and demeanor and the way she was telling us, that basically that's how it was going to be, was a different story. I didn't feel comfortable eating them after just being opened. They should have been steamed and cooked to open. Sorry, not sorry. Our actual waitress, requested to get us a discount because of all of the trouble we had and she was having to explain everything to the other waitress, again I assume a manager, and really had to push to get the discount. The only reason I know this is because our table was literally right next to their "stand" and I could hear their whole conversation. And the manager waitress made some offhand comments about us not even eating the muscles after they went through the trouble of getting them opened up for us. Uhm, duh, I told you I wasn't going to if you guys didn't steam them to open them up. Yeah, just no. Like if you want to make comments about your customers, at least wait until they are, like, not sitting right there where you can be heard. Although I'm pretty sure that her intentions were to make sure we heard her. Just rude...I'll not be back ever. In this day and age when there are more options of this type of restaurant around, I'll take my money elsewhere, thanks. I'm giving the 2 stars, because even though our waitress was kinda spacey, she at least was nice and tried.... read more

My wife wanted to try this cute place. We got the high end Castaway seafood boil with medium heat and ate until we exploded into a smile. All was fresh and good including table service. Thx, I'll be back! read more

The owner was very rude and hostile please do not come here!! The owner is disrespectful I don't recommend!! read more

I just went in to reserve a table but it was not clean place at all NO AC !!! Skill not good with that heat !!! I didn't try the food though I'm not sure Sorry but this busy place should have a AC read more

Love this location! The seafood is always so delicious and the sauce and spices are addictive! I appreciate how kind and attentive all the staff is. Really great and convenient service set up with the mini trash and shells bucket and gloves and bib they provide. This is a super fun and silly way to enjoy a delicious meal with friends and family. They recently changed some of their package deals and they come with lots of extra stuff and it's worth the price! LA seafood boil is double triple the price easily and half the quality. 10/10 will yum here again! read more

Your food is delicious and I have been here twice. I plan to return again! The fact that you started in Ventura is an added bonus! My only concern was, at the time of paying my bill at counter, the cashier seemed confused when issuing the change ($30.16 bill, $40.00 tendered ($9.84 change owed)). At any rate, it got resolved and I will definitely be back! read more

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Service was good and fast, helpful staff. As for the food, it looked appealing but eating it wasn't the best experience. The po boy shrimp fell apart easily as the thick bun seemed to be holding all the ingredients however the sauce soaked up at the bottom of the sandwich split the bottom. Needless to say the sandwich got messy so I decided to eat the shrimp, lettuce and bun separately with a fork. Still had good flavor. As for the lemon pepper chicken wings, there was little hint of lemon but enough to taste on a first bite while also, some chicken wings were juicier than others. On top of the experience, ambiance was decent for a Wednesday after but didn't appreciate the open entrance door that brought it flies to my table. Food was good but may stick to getting the seafood they're known for: read more

Ventura Crab N Spice - Lemon Pepper Chicken Wings - Seafood Near Me - Ventura, California

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My husband and I love the boiling crab but unfortunately the closest one is at least 50 mins plus. We decided to find something local and hoping for liking it to return here and avoid the drive to LA. We like it but didn't love this place. We got shrimp which is our usual, rice, corn and Cajun fries. So the shrimp was good, we for medium bc we told the server what we get at boiling but we didn't feel it was spicy enough. The fries were okay, some were overcooked/ burnt flavor. The flavor was okay. Unsure if I'll return here or not read more

I don't and rarely even write any reviews but I will write one for the first time here.Service was non existent. Barely handed us any utensils. Took a very long time and the server did not even want to be bothered just kept walking and serving the other tables except of us. We waited patiently and I had to grab our own gloves from the other hostesses. It was my husband's birthday. Never coming back here. Don't waste your time and money here. read more

The food and service were exceptional, making for a truly enjoyable experience. The space was impeccably clean, and we left completely satisfied. This is definitely a place we look forward to visiting again. read more

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We visited Crab N Spice on Father's Day and expected it to be busy, so we were prepared for the estimated 1 hour and 30 minute wait. However, what was frustrating was seeing how slowly things were moving inside the restaurant. Tables sat uncleared for long periods of time, customers waited a long time just to receive menus, and the overall service seemed very unorganized and understaffed for such a busy holiday. Based on how slowly tables were turning over, it looked like we wouldn't have been seated until around 7 PM. Since the restaurant closes at 8 PM, we felt that even if we were seated then, we would have had to rush through our meal or not have enough time to fully enjoy it. Because of that, we decided to leave. I understand holidays are challenging and restaurants get busy, but better staffing and organization on peak days would make a huge difference for customers who are willing to wait. read more

First Time & Hopefully Not the Last! This was my first time at a seafood boil spot, and I was a little unsure of what to expect--but my daughter loves these places, so we gave it a shot. I'm so glad we did! Natalie was our server and she was amazing--so patient, personable, and genuinely kind. She made us feel completely comfortable and walked us through everything. The food was incredible, and the whole experience felt relaxed and welcoming. Natalie really made our visit special. Looking forward to coming back soon. read more

Ventura Crab N Spice - Peeled shrimp, sausage, and corn - Seafood Near Me - Ventura, California

One of my favorite seafood boil places in California HANDS DOWN! I've been to this place countless times (ordering in-store and online) and it never disappoints. The atmosphere is always lively and busy and the staff is always very attentive. I think it's always worth getting the AYCE option because it comes with as many sides as you want like potatoes, corn, sausage and ordering them individually actually adds up quite a bit. (Also the AYCE price included a free drink and a cluster of snow crab legs PER PERSON) One thing I will note though, I've had AYCE for a party of two and I feel that it's just too much food to go through for two people and u end up not being able to enjoy it as much. For parties of 4 or greater- I think that's where AYCE hits the sweet spot and it's like the perfect number of people to enjoy everything without feeling exhausted of eating . Just a heads up, the AYCE menu does not include clams (but does include mussels, shrimp, and crawfish) so if you're primarily a clam eater- just stick to the normal menu :) The food is always so hot and flavorful; I usually get the "crab and spice medium" sauce and IT SLAPS. I dare say that it is better than boiling crab... simply because it is just as flavorful but not as salty! Overall, it's a yummy "get your hands dirty" kind of place- I always bring my friends visiting Ventura here and they always love it! read more

Ventura Crab N Spice - AYCE - Seafood Near Me - Ventura, California

I liked the flavors. We came on a Sunday for lunch and it was a little busy. There was no diet coke/pepsi when I went, I think they ran out since the menu had that listed as an option. They only had coke zero. We will definitely come back here as the food was good. There's only one single stall bathroom and a sink outside to wash your hands. read more

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i was hoping to find a seafood restaurant near me because driving to LA is tiresome but i don't think i've landed on it quite yet. i don't think this is the taste for me. the shrimp were a little too cooked or something it was hard to peel because the skin would stick to the meat so it made the experience a little annoying. the cajun fries were pretty good along with that sauce it comes with to dip. my steamed rice was a little hard. read more

We went for dinner party of 10. The place was packed but they only have 2 servers, so the food took forever for everyone. The rice seems like a low quality rice, or maybe from yesterday's rice or batch. It has some hard stuff and it didn't taste good. Maybe it's a cheapest version of rice, not sure but I know it's not the best white rice. We order variety of shrimp, mussels and crabs. We had calamari, fries & garlic noodles.. we ordered Cajun pasta but never came (did they forget?) so they just gave us a small cup of it free of charge. We left at 9pm, we were not the last ones there. Please hire more staff. read more

Ventura Crab N Spice - Seafood Near Me - Ventura, California

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Food was decent. Not the best. Was definitely ruined by the dogs inside the restaurant growling as people walk by. Just because they're small doesn't mean they're trained! read more

It's seafood time!!! We had the mussel and crab seafood boil and it was so fun and tasty!! We added the potatoes to our seafood boil and ordered a side of garlic noodles. The seafood sauce tasted incredible but it was def more on the saltier side for me. There was a wait to be seated and service took some but it was anticipated as there was a large crowd. read more

Ventura Crab N Spice - Seafood boil time!! - Seafood Near Me - Ventura, California

Delicious! Stopped by coming back from our trip. First time coming and very good service! read more

Ventura Crab N Spice - Seafood Near Me - Ventura, California

Good taste very good, service wise was good the girls are super nice and I think it depends on what time you go at is how the mood will be there read more

Great food , service and cute place to go eat. My son and I enjoyed their seafood boiled. read more

Ventura Crab N Spice - Crab legs, shrimp, crawfish, corn, potatoes, sausage. - Seafood Near Me - Ventura, California

Outstanding seafood choices and flavors!!! Worth the drive (I'm from San Diego)! Cajun butter is so garlicky!!!! read more

Ventura Crab N Spice - All u can it seafood boil!!! Loved the Cajun flavors! - Seafood Near Me - Ventura, California

One of my fave spots in Ventura. I love their shrimp boils and Cajun fries! I do prefer boiling crab, but this is much more convenient. read more

Ventura Crab N Spice - Seafood Near Me - Ventura, California

I placed an order for Mother's Day the day before because my mother-in-law absolutely loves crab, and I wanted to make sure we got something special for her. I live about an hour away from Crab N Spice, but I thought it would be worth the drive to make her happy. We ordered everything to go so we could spend the rest of the day at the park in Summerland enjoying family time together. When I called ahead, they mentioned they couldn't take reservations because it was Mother's Day, which I completely understood since it was a busy holiday. What was really disappointing was that when we finally sat down all excited to eat, both my order and my mother-in-law's order were missing the crab -- the main reason we drove all the way there in the first place. It completely ruined the experience for her. I immediately tried calling the restaurant because I was even willing to drive 30 minutes back just to get the missing food, but nobody ever answered. The voicemail box was full, and I kept trying several times on the drive home with no response. It was such a bummer because the whole point of the trip was to treat my mother-in-law to her favorite food on Mother's Day, and unfortunately it turned into a really disappointing experience. read more

I saw this place on Insta and they were actually advertising the one in Las Vegas, but when I searched it up, I was ecstatic to see that there is also one locally in Ventura! It's so awesome that this location is also doing all you can eat Cajun seafood. My bf and I got the all you can eat and it did not disappoint! I love how there is such a variety of different things that you can choose from. I love that they have both shrimp and scallop with no extra charge. I also decided to add a snow crab leg cluster and the meat was really fresh and did not stick to the shell. All the other seafood was well cooked and tender. The appetizers were also yummy too. I really enjoyed the lemon pepper wings and Cajun fries. On top of this, the all you can eat also includes one free drink! Our server was really helpful in explaining the menu. She was super friendly and was really proactive on getting our orders in and reassuring us on when our food will come out. I thoroughly enjoyed my eating experience here. I will definitely be coming back here again. read more

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From the moment we walked in we were greeted and seated immediately. The first thing I noticed was how clean the business was. We were seated at a nice booth on the left side of the restaurant. Our waitress was outstanding! The service was fast. She explained the entire menu so well! And their prices are MORE than fair. My group went with a few things. King crab legs with potatoes, corn and sausage. In their house sauce. Which is a spicy Cajun garlic butter. OMG SO GOOD! Crab was cooked perfectly. Potatoes, sauces and corn absolutely perfect. Fresh, tasty filling. We also got the shrimp and clams. Again fresh, cooked to perfection not a single issue. The staff here seemed very professional and courteous to their guests. Always attentive and always helping the guests. I want to write more! But I'm going to let the pictures speak for themselves. This place is absolutely delicious. Highly recommend if you want a seafood boil. There isn't many in the area so this place is definitely the go to. Enjoy! read more

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Food is consistently good, as well as the service. Fun atmosphere. Clean and neat. I like going here by myself or with friends. Staff is always friendly. read more

Went at 1pm, very light staff and had to wait for a table to be cleaned despite multiple tables open. Took 15 minutes to have our order taken, got the AYCA which was a good deal at $39 apiece... the fried green beans are good, and they came out first, sauce was amazing! When the first serving of boil came out, had two clusters of crab, we got mussels, crawfish and shrimp as well. Very good flavor, everything was tasty, picked a different flavor for the second round. Overall good, could be speedier at order taking, but food was great. Tables were slat style booths though, which had not been cleaned in a while so they had detritus stuck in between the slats. read more

Love love love this place bc where else are we going to get our seafood boil fix!?!?!?? The quality of seafood is hit or miss but not too bad to the point where I wouldn't come back anymore. Service is good n friendly. The space or ambiance of the restaurant is like a crab shack with tv's for games. read more

Came here around 6 pm on a Saturday after going to Channel Islands National Park. There was plenty of space to park. We waited a few minutes at the host stand bc there were already some parties there but we were quickly sat. We decided to get the Castaway combo, spicy, all in sauce (all their sauces combined). It's $90 for 2 lobster tails, a pound of snow crab, a pound of shrimp, a pound of mussels, 2 corn, and 2 potatoes. We decided to get an extra order of potatoes. We also got an order of fried calamari for $11. My partner also got a michelada. The food came out super fast. The fried calamari was alright, but I regret getting it. It was nothing compared to the seafood we got. My partner liked his michelada and drank all of it. We were so happy with the amount of food we got and for the price. Absolutely a steal!!!! The seafood was fresh and delicious. I only had about 3 mussels that didn't open. Other than that, all the other seafood was tender and cooked perfectly. The sauce was super delicious, however it wasn't spicy at all. Maybe it was forgotten (the employee helping us did forget a few things sometimes that we had to ask for again bc she was busy). I thought it was unique to the crab boils we have in the valley because of the coconut and pineapple flavors from their coconut and Hawaiian seafood boil sauces. You can't get a better deal than this. I would drive all the way to Ventura just for this crab boil alone. Will be back 100%. read more

Ventura Crab N Spice - Castaway combo - Seafood Near Me - Ventura, California

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Solid seafood boil. Large and sweet shrimps. Service is good. We like to order them for take out on busier nights. read more

Ventura Crab N Spice - Seafood Near Me - Ventura, California

Busy location and long wait, but the servers are usually attentive and greet you when you walk in. Ordered crab fries and boiled seafood. Both were good. read more

Ventura Crab N Spice - Crab fries - Seafood Near Me - Ventura, California