Service was great. Music was great haha. Place is big & can accommodate big parties. Garlic noodles were delicious! Shrimp were a bit overcooked & meat was sticking to the outside skin. Crackin sauce was okay. I've had better. Paid $106 for 2.5 lbs head-on shrimp, 2 lb black mussels, garlic noodles, mac & cheese. Satisfied the craving on a no-meat friday, but not my first choice cajun to go to read more

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Great flavors and choices in various formats. Mix and match. Be prepared to get a little wet when you come here, but they will give you all the protective gear (gloves, bib) you need. It's great fun for the family. My two daughters love the atmosphere. Also a fun place to take a date as it keeps you busy while you're eating. read more

I like this place a lot. The prices are decent, and the food is great! They don't have some stuff that Boiling Crab does have, fried oysters, for example, but the food is almost just as good. But here is the secret... we encountered NO LINES and NO LONG WAITS at Cracking Crab, and the drive to Montrose and parking situation were much more convenient than the drive to Burbank! So even though Boiling Crab might technically taste a little better, I would definitely endure the tiny taste discrepancy for the sake of not having to waste an hour of my time waiting in line. Also note that this place is much better than a certain other Viet-Cajun crab place in the Glendale area. Support this place for sure! But don't all come at once before I arrive and ruin my short waits! read more

FRESH DUNGENESS CRABS! Open during Covid 19 for takeout. I was feeling crabby and the Crackin Crab had LIVE CRABS, woohoo! You can order seafood a la carte per lbs or choose their house combos/platters with different types of seafood. I highly recommend the combos! I placed my order and 30 mins later my food was ready. Since it's takeout only for now, the phone lines do get busy. You can order online as well. This place is pretty similar to the Boiling Crab with that Cajun-Asian flavor profile, but without the long wait. I personally like the food better here and I love the fresh dungeness crab option, lol. Fresh is best. Service and food is great! read more

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Still dreaming about that sauce spice mix omg. So good and great service. Would definitely return! read more

Cracking Crab - Crab and shrimp combo - Cajun/Creole Near Me - Montrose, California

My daughter n bf brought me here for early bday lunch. Walking Honolulu Blvd in search of food. I eat, so I didn't care what they picked. We shared 1lb shrimp, head on, With crackin mix sauce, Mac n cheese, and fish n chips. Shrimps are as expected at any Cajun place, but there was so much sauce that I packed it up for home. Eventually bought another pound of shrimp at the market and steamed the shrimps and put the sauce on. My daughter and her bf must of liked the Mac n cheese and fish n chips cuz I only got a little bite of each and it was gone! Will be back as I wanna try other stuff on the menu! read more

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Bad tasting, bad after taste, not juicy. Regular food wasnt good either. Dry, mushy. This place is just not it. I won't going back. I'd rather wait 3 hrs for booking crab lol read more

Nos trajeron la comida en una bolsa plástica. El sabor es mediocre. El servicio al cliente no es bueno. Nos trajeron la fractura a la mesa sin preguntarnos si queríamos postre y más bebidas. Nosotros queríamos disfrutar de una buena cena pero nos sentimos apurados por un mesero a dejar la mesa libre para otros clientes. . read more

Came here on Sunday for Father's Day and had a wonderful meal with really friendly service! Located right on Honolulu Ave in Montrose, Cracking Crab is situated in a strip with other cute little stores. There's plenty of street parking, but there are also multiple parking lots for free around the area. When I came on Sunday, the street was partially closed for the farmer's market but there was still ample parking around. Although it was Father's Day, the place was still pretty empty and there were only a handful of other families inside. We ordered our bags of shrimp and crawfish as well as cajun fries. Service was excellent. Our server was very friendly and took our orders quickly. We were given plastic gloves and aprons, and there's a little trash can on the table already. Our server asked if we wanted our food in the bags (the usual) or on a plate, but we decided to go with the bags. Our food came out quickly, and it was hot and delicious. It's definitely not the same flavor profile as Kickin Kasian or Boiling Crab, but it's still pretty good in its own right. read more

Cracking Crab - Cajun Fries - Cajun/Creole Near Me - Montrose, California

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Cracking crab sauce tastes different (very thin consistency and sour) and the shrimp has a strange chemical taste to it. Covid has led to decreased food quality in restaurants and this place is no exception. I will not be returning. Edit: I dumped it out as I couldn't eat it. Waste of $23. read more

Cracking Crab - Cajun/Creole Near Me - Montrose, California

Crawfish with 'everything' sauce was delicious. It's only for someone not afraid of being messy. Fried shrimp is delicious. Server was attentive and friendly. Parking is free in a large lot in back of the building and no rear entrance. read more

The Cracking Crab is great! It's a lowkey spot located right on Honolulu Avenue and there's several things I really like about this restaurant: - The service, despite only having a couple servers on hand, is great. Servers are friendly, knowledgable, and always welcoming - The food is delicious, ranging from crap to lobster to sausage to corn - The space is large and you never have to wait to be seated Sure, it's not cheap - but you get a ton of bang for your buck. I typically come with others and we order the Crackin' Crab Combo. It comes with 2 pieces corn, 2 pieces potato and 4 pieces Louisiana style sausage topped with the Crackin' Mix sauce. It's delicious (I am salivating now as I write this review) and there's a ton of food so you get leftovers too! Highly recommend if you love seafood and don't mind getting a little messy. read more

Been here on several occasions and I absolutely love it!!! The servers are attentive and the food always satisfies that specific craving for this type of cuisine. Please come here on an empty stomach with a big appetite, the portions are more than enough! My regular orders include: -Cajun fries (please dip them in your own premade lime sauce! They bring a small container with seasoned salt and lime wedges that you can squeeze juice into, voila! Lime sauce) Cracking Mix Spicy for all of these: - crawfish - unpeeled shrimp - potatoes - corn - from time to time we do the specials that have included: Clams, lobster, Louisiana sausage, crawfish and shrimp Do order a special if your appetite allows it, it's totally worth it! read more

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This is my go to spot in Montrose food quality at a couple spots along the Blvd have started to slip but not Cracking Crab. Date night or have friends over this is where I take them. No to packed usually. And I'm always created with a smile. I do miss getting my food in the bag. Just something about it makes it hit different. The staff is always on point. Last couple times I've gone here I have had Shelby as my waitress. Definitely my favorite. (One of the main reason I come to this spot). Comes up with a big smile, Chats it up a bit almost like we have known each other forever. Super friendly and inviting. She really knows how to take care of the customer. Always making sure my food is up to par and exactly how I ordered it. I'm Never even able to get to the bottom of my drink before she asks if I'd like a refill. To me that is top notch customer service. I highly recommend coming here and if you like spice. The death sauce is pretty on point. Hopefully you'll get to have Shelby as your waitress also. read more

Great ambiance . Service is very friendly . They lose a star because I can't get my spicy fix . But the shrimp was thick and juicy. 10/10 would come back again. A lot of tables so you never have to wait like the other Cajun shrimp place . It would be perfect if they could get a spicier sauce read more

Cracking Crab - Cajun/Creole Near Me - Montrose, California

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Went here because me and my friend were craving some seafood :) We haven't had boiling crab since covid. We ordered Shrimp, clam, and crawfish. We got the combo that they offer which was a good deal for 3 of us. I don't usually eat spicy, but the sauce that they have is good. I got the mild one, but I really like the peppery taste. The ambience was hot , they dont have ac, but just like some fans lol..but I ain't complaining, their food is good. And it turns out that it's only 10 mins from Pasadena (where I live) Definitely will come back to try other stuff like their crab or mussels :) read more

I was Thursday everything was so amazing. Food very delicious large portion . Can't wait for another visit read more

Cracking Crab - Crackin' Combo 1 - Cajun/Creole Near Me - Montrose, California

What can I say good Cajun shrimp and crab and lobster place to go when you're wanting some Louisiana style food. Service is always great and the ambience reminds me of Louisiana. read more

A pricy place. Weekday night, there was only 3 other tables of people for this rather large indoor space. We ordered combo #2 with some garlic bread and white rice added on. Food was good. But this was not enough food for 3 of us, so we ordered one more pound of shrimps. read more

Called to order some king crab legs. I asked what the price was and how much is included (lbs). So the price is $75 per order. But they couldn't tell me a weight instead that it comes in "5 large legs". So I put in an order 1 plus some other stuff. After picking up my order and going home I noticed they had only put 2 medium size crab legs. What a joke and a rip off. And their peeled shrimp was chalky, not edible at all. Def won't be coming back if this is how they price and serve. read more

We wanted to like this place! The reviews seem telling of a great dining experience. Quite the contrary. We drove from Pasadena with 3 kids to check it out. Won't be back and don't recommend. Big, spacious, and clean. We had a girl with glasses great us and take drink orders. Then we had a Hispanic lady who was unfriendly with a younger guy she was training. What a horrible person to have train the staff! The garlic fries were horrendous. Like, punch you in the throat garlic overload. I love garlic and had to spit it out. We would have loved another round of drinks but the servers rushed passed constantly. We also had the fish n chips...eh...tasted frozen not fresh. Fries tasted frozen, not fresh. I ordered the mussels (1lb) and 14 of the shells were closed! Then the server says she could bring a cracker to open them. Uhhh....you aren't meant to eat them if they don't open up. That's shellfish 101. We were missing one of my husbands orders . When we mentioned it to the original server she said "oh ok I'll go check". 10 minutes later nothing and I ask for the check...she then says "yea he forgot to put the order in".. still nothing. I told her what a horrible experience this was and her response was "yea, we are short staffed. Sorry". Very weird customer service. The place wasn't even that busy...maybe 4-5 other tables. I can't imagine what a sh*t show it is if they are busy. Definitely won't be back. Loads more options in Glendale- Alhambra - Pasadena, etc for crab boils. read more

Check out this place. The food was good and the service was awesome. Definitely coming back.

Came here after a hike and was in the area. Was seated right away. Service was quick and attentive. Food was amazing and was quickly served. The seasoning was one of the best we've had as we both chose the all seasonings but with different levels of spiciness. Great place to watch a game with some beers and seafood as there were plenty of tvs to view. Not too intimate of seating but still spread out enough for a date night, if not worried about being messy when eating. Definitely would go again. read more

Absolutely love this place food on point !!! And always nice and friendly staff !! Would recommend

Really mediocre all around. Service AND Food-wise. Don't get me wrong, servers were very nice but not at all knowledgeable. We weren't given silverware until we asked (twice) and when we got it, they were filthy. Shell buckets were lined with bodega "have a nice day" trash bags and lobster arrived fully intact. Not even the claws were cracked. I think the servers try but just don't know any better (training is lacking). Just not at all what I expected. There may be ppl who would enjoy this kind of thing but I am too disappointed to ever return. read more

Cracking Crab - Lobster arrived completely intact. Not even partially cracked. Also, no silverware until we asked for it - Cajun/Creole Near Me - Montrose, California

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So happy we gave this place a try. My family of four ordered the crackin combo # 3. It was plentiful and was super tasty. The seasoning was finger licking good, seriously! There were moments of feeling like a darn savage with seeing our hands all messy. We were given gloves but they were slightly too big for me and my kids so we ditched them. But that's part of the experience in my opinion. I love that the seating is ample and spaced out. And my server was very attentive and nice. Looking forward to our next visit! read more

Awesome spot for you cajun style seafood! Bag of shrimp with the sauce on the side so I can dip rather than peel and get my hands dirty... which happened anyway. Clean restaurant, the shrimp were big and juicy and the best part is there was NO LINE! They have healthier options as well. Definitely would recommend this place and I would opt for this spot over boiling crab any day! read more

Cracking Crab - Veggies - Cajun/Creole Near Me - Montrose, California

Came here on a Saturday night I think this is the worst dinner I've ever had. The service was OK but the food was a complete waste. I think the only good thing was the half off for Yelp Check in of the appetizers which was the chicken wings those are pretty good. I ordered the shrimp plate with the broccoli and corn the broccoli was overly salty didn't even have a good flavor. I returned it back to the kitchen and I'm usually not too picky but I could not eat the broccoli. I then ordered a Caesar salad to substitute for it but it tasted like the lettuce was drenched and mayonnaise instead of Caesar dressing. :/ There wasn't even any cheese on top. My boyfriend ordered the seafood platter so I decided maybe I'll eat some of his food. I asked him to give me a piece and he said "If you want" He didn't enjoy his food either. To my surprise he said his food was horrible as well. We ended up just eating nothing. I brought it up to our waiter and he said that the crab was just a live a second ago but the flavor tasted like it was old. I've eaten an many seafood restaurants from the Dominican Republic to here in Downtown LA, this food was not fresh at all! This is a "I won't return place" Our bill ended up being about $150 and we pretty much ended up going somewhere else to eat after this I will not recommend this place at this time. read more

Cracking Crab - Browsing the menu! - Cajun/Creole Near Me - Montrose, California

I love this Cracking Crab Restaurant! Honestly in terms of flavor and quality of the marinade, it's the closest thing to Boiling Crab that I've experienced and I thoroughly enjoyed the entire dining extravaganza! What stands out the most is their FULL SERVICE BAR! Literally you have an entire liquor station and such an awesome selection of beers! It's really incredible! I've never seen this at any boil seafood place, and I give this place the upper hand because of this exclusive liquor experience. You can literally drink a refreshing beer alongside eating incredible seafood, what more can you ask for? If you're throwing a major party, you can literally take shots here! it's pretty awesome! Also this place is HUGEEE!!! There are so many seating areas and tables and I love the ambiance of this place! The waiters and servers are INCREDIBLY FRIENDLY and their service is 10/10! They are very attentive and their attention to detail is impeccable! I really enjoyed eating here and I highly recommend it! read more

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Had the "Lemon Pepper Fried Chicken Wings" & a refreshing Modelo. Perfect for a hot summer day! The chicken falls off the bone perfectly. Will revist again soon. read more

Cracking Crab - "Lemon Pepper Chicken Wings" - Cajun/Creole Near Me - Montrose, California

I want to start off by the great the service at this place. The servers are so friendly and attentive. And the food, the food is SO good! The shrimp with all the sauces, just amazing. Definitely will keep going back. read more

They don't clean the shrimp It was so salty and pricy for what we ordered. This order was on 8/12/23 So I had to clean each one to eat it We also ordered clam lots were closed I'm sure they notice when putting the order together read more

It was my first time to this restaurant and I was amazed. If Anthony Bourdain was still alive I'm sure he would've loved this restaurant. The service was great and there was a big group of 20 people that I joined. The service was fast and the food was delicious and I love the concept of putting seafood in a plastic bag and just serving it to you. Definitely it's one of my favorite restaurants in LA now.Definitely a fun great casual dining experience. I ate the New Zealand mussels and also the garlic broccoli The price was well appointed too and I was expecting a much larger bill. I couldn't even finish the whole bag of mussels. . So good! Thank you! read more

The service was great, but the food was sooooo salty. I would go back if I get just basic condiments. read more

Odd dichotomy; the food was better than the service. The interior is cute, seemed to be clean, and the menu has lots of interesting choices. We never really felt welcomed, though. It was as though our being there to dine didn't really mean anything to them. It became off-putting during the course of the meal. Dear management: Your dining patrons are like guests in your home. They would like to feel welcome and appreciated. Your staff could use training on how to properly serve and be attentive. We were only provided forks. Knives would have come in handy. No condiments were on the tables. Normally don't need salt or pepper, but the garlic noodles were under-seasoned, so we had to flag someone down to request parmesan cheese plus the shakers that weren't on the table. The waiter never came to ask about how our food had been prepared. He seemed to be painfully shy, barely engaging with us. Other team members were involved in dropping off food, but with very little interaction. Everything is a la carte, including bread. The garlic bread was quite good, as was the salad dressing on the salad we split. Suggest passing on the green tea macaron ice cream sandwich. The mango version was much better. Each item was reasonably priced, except the macarons. With the a la carte pricing, the end total was larger than expected. Ouch! read more

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This place is okiedokie~ I'll just get into it: Service: I've read below that the service wasn't too great, but I had a different experience. We had great servers and the staff checked in on us regularly... a little too regularly... but I'd rather be checked on more than not at all. Happy Hour: Idk what time it starts, but it ended at 7 p.m. There are reduced prices on oysters (like 12 for $12), sweet corn, crawfish, and wings. We were able to grab the oysters. They came on a bed of ice with a sweeter black sauce (which i think might've been soy sauce? i honestly couldn't tell...) and a cocktail sauce. We also got tobasco sauce in the bottle but the bottle was kinda caked with gunk, so i had to napkin that thing so i wouldn't touch the bottle... The food: The hubby and I each got a pound of shrimp and we shared a half pound of sausage together, and 1 corn. We got the crackin mix in medium and spicy. I couldn't tell too much of a difference with the sauces' spicy levels. The amount of food was just right (with the oysters). We ended up finishing everything, but were completely stuffed afterwards. Overall, the food was good, but not great. I appreciated the Dodgers game playing in the background. There weren't too many people rolling through on a Wednesday night at 7 p.m., so it was a quiet environment. I'd say this is really good for groups since the space is huge! Also, you can park on the street (if available) or just around the corner at the free lot. This is a cute street to walk on as well with dessert nearby. read more

The seafood is Great I will refer Crackin Crab to all. The service was fast no long waiting. Clean and welcoming ,going back tomorrow

Very expensive and messy. Not a good place to introduce yourself or others to seafood for the first time. Service is okay.

Service was ok , the food was excellent especially the crab it come straight from the tank

Do you like Sarny TV, or Eye phone? -------------------------- Because that's what this place is... a copycat of boiling crab. Close, but not quite the same. As long as you keep your expectations in check, I suppose this place will be acceptable. My boss lady called me after work and said, "I'm tired, can you pick up some boiling crab on the way home?" Quickly realizing that none was nearby, we Yelped our way to this place. First, the parking. It is on Honolulu Ave, the downtown of sorts for La Crescenta. There is a free three-hour parking lot in the back but it was jam packed; had to circle three times to get a spot. Next, the ordering process. So they wouldn't honor the free fries despite Yelp check in, and didn't tell me of a 10% discount with an online order. Hmm... Finally, the food itself. The sauces were again ok, not great. Probably was made with an oil base versus butter (the shrimps weren't as aromatic). Lacked salt - again not usually a problem, but here none of the salt penetrated the shrimp itself. The shrimp was somewhat mushy (meaning it was hard core frozen before cooking.) I liked the cracking sauce which helped salvage an otherwise forgettable takeout. Add a blue moon, and voila - dinner is served!. Just remember how the parking is tight, and this is a knockoff of the real thing read more

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