Great food! We are first time visitors and so happy that we came into Half Shells. Everyone was so welcoming and kind. Since it was our first time here they presented us with a soup sampler and OMG what a great start to a delicious meal. The fried calamari was perfect, crispy, delicious. The Bayou Catfish was awesome, came with beans and rice both of which were tender and perfectly prepared. B. B. Q. Salmon tacos, so so yummy. They even have multiple IPA on tap!!! We will definitely be coming back. read more

The food and the great service made our dinner unforgettable. The server asked us to take our leftovers home for breakfast. I had a memorable breakfast of leftovers. read more

Expect to seat yourself when you walk in. They have a regular menu but they have a number of dishes that they write on the board, which are daily specials. As complimentary, they bring out warm, toasted bread that was pretty good. The blackened halibut with cheese grits was okay but I wish it had a few more things thrown into it for flavor: e.g. red bell pepper sautéed onions etc. although the spice on the fish had a good kick, the entire dish just didn't seem bursting with color and a lot of flavor and slightly a little too much salt on the grits. My tuna tacos were pretty darn good and the rice that came with it was rich and creamy but not enough salt there; however, I did get a little bit of an upset stomach following that meal. Overall the meals were okay but nothing too exciting to come back for. read more

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Half Shells never disappoints! From the boiled crawfish to all the soups and GUMBO and salads. Can not go wrong with anything here. Haven't tried their shrimp poboy yet, so that may be the true testimony. Until then we Love this place! Can't forget the oysters, I don't eat them, but my boys loved them! read more

Half Shells - Seafood Near Me - Dallas, Texas

It is refreshing to find a restaurant with some Louisiana flair that serves good food here in Dallas. They are few and far between. This place is tucked away in Snider Plaza and is small and cozy on the inside with a cute patio in the back. I've ordered both delivery and pickup from this place, and the food has always been on point. The food holds up even when bringing it home. I haven't tried a ton of items, but it is one of those places where I am looking forward to trying much more. The star so far has been the crab bisque. It is so rich and creamy and infused with sherry which gives it a delicious taste different from other bisques I have tried. The fried shrimp poboy also is a superior option because, like all great Louisiana recipes, the shrimp is fried in flour, not cornmeal. And the poboy is not overpowered by too much lettuce and tomatoes. The fried shrimp and oyster combo also held up very well when ordering for delivery. Everything has a great seasoning, and they don't skimp on the size of their orders. I am dreaming of dining in the restaurant to try oysters on the half shell or oyster nachos. This is a wonderful option for getting a seafood fix in Dallas. read more

Not a good night to order food to go from this restaurant, it's been going down in my opinion and I'm sad about that since it was one of my favorites in the past. Most of my fried shrimp were not deveined, some of the fries were raw/not cooked, no tartar sauce, no utensils (to go), gumbo container was 1/2 rice and 1/2 good stuff, minus any shrimp (like they always have in their great gumbo. They were too busy to afford me any customer service as I stood at the front entrance unattended, finally went to the bar just to have a server point in the direction to a seat at the bar that had my sack of food sitting there. Again, i'm not happy. Best wishes to this once "favorite" place! read more

Great food with a great Neighborhood vibe. Daily speecials always keep it interesting Service is good and they have a small outdoor area. Love the calamari! read more

Half Shells - Always check the board for great daily specials! - Seafood Near Me - Dallas, Texas

Decided to try a new seafood place 2 years ago and loved it ever since. I always get their oysters and their stuffed mushrooms. It's too bad they took the stuff mushrooms off the menu. I have never ordered something here that wasn't good. Try the blackened tilapia, it's delicious. The staffs are really good and the best part is they have tables outside where you can escape the loudness since the restaurant isn't that big. The waiters are really nice about splitting the dish for two, and I always have a good portion to eat. Prices are quite reasonable. read more

Half Shells - Clean and good oysters. Not sure when they have the huge oysters but they are awesome! - Seafood Near Me - Dallas, Texas

Great food and service in a tiny space. Warm and inviting ambience with a casual feel.

Very good food! Came in right before Christmas for happy hour! Manager was very knowledgeable about Celiac and my GF options and was very accommodating! We will for sure be back! The oysters and hot shrimp appetizer were terrific! read more

I was in the mood for seafood and didn't want to pay an arm and a leg,so we trekked to Snider Plaza for dinner. This place is tiny! Like less than 20 tables tiny. Luckily I came at the right time and we were seated in a booth after just 2 minutes. The menu is simple but they have some interesting looking specials daily. I ordered off the regular menu and got the shrimp and grits. They were delish. Cheesy, buttery with crumbled bacon and a little cilantro for flavor. Only complaint is the shrimp they use are small but they do give you several. Hubs got the fried seafood platter and it was pretty blah. Cornmeal batter didn't have much flavor and the shrimp were small too. Service was just ok, our waiter took so long to check on us a manager had to be flagged down to get extra tartar sauce. I would go back, but I'd try something off of the specials menu like crab stuffed flounder or the shrimp and sausage Mac and cheese. read more

Half Shells - Shrimp and grits, thumbs up. - Seafood Near Me - Dallas, Texas

What a great joint. Low brow, kind of hipster place to dine at, no need to dress up. They had a great selection of 5 different oysters that day . So we decided to order one of each. Since everything is fresh and delivered daily they rain out of two oysters varieties. We had Katama oysters, Blue Point oysters, and jumbo Gulf Oysters. I do wish we'd had all five to try, but I'm OK with them running out because everything was extremely fresh. I would rather have fresh fish fun out than have stale fish on hand all the time. Our handsome and very knowledgeable waiter Drew pointed out the wonderful fresh daily menu! Drew described each of fresh fish menu items with great mouthwatering detail, Which we ordered the softshell crab of of. It's been years since I've had softshell crab and forgot how scrumptious it was. I will definitely be back to see Drew. read more

Half Shells - Drew is TOP NOTCH ! - Seafood Near Me - Dallas, Texas

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I've been going here and their related restaurant Fish City for about 20 years. Both have fantastic food with wonderful, knowledgeable staff. The fish is always fresh and the cooks are always willing to blacken fish if you request it (within reason, of course).  They have a variety of seafood dishes.  Their different oyster side dishes are awesome.  The management and staff are always awesome and attentive.  The staff is great at making suggestions of what specials that I might like since they know my tastes. read more

Half Shells is in a league of its own! I enjoy coming here and basically eating everything that's fried, grilled or blackened. Sandwiches to tacos to baskets to plates you can't go wrong with an entree! The soups are wonderful. The appetizers/starters are excellent, I enjoy the calamari, lump crab cakes, nachos, and smokin shrimp. To top it off the customer service if off the charts and makes the experience that much more enjoyable. Will continue to come to this joint and certainly always recommend it! read more

Our offices just moved here from downtown and I am absolutely addicted to the grilled oysters! I also tried the oyster nachos that are to die for! I can't wait to sample everything on the menu! The waiters are awesome, as well!! This is a must-try, especially if you like seafood!! read more

Hadn't been back for quite a while but popped in for lunch with a colleague. I had the shrimp po' boy and it was quite good. The shrimp were cleaned, a big plus, and I got them grilled. They were not dried out or over-cooked. My colleague got the beer battered cod sandwich and said it was good, tasted fresh. Service is good. A reliable place for lunch. Will return sooner rather than later. read more

This is one of my go-to seafood spots! It's cozy and quantity and conveniently located in snider Plaza. From the soups and appetizers to the entrées and desserts, I haven't tried anything that wasn't amazing. The portions are great too. I definitely recommend this place if craving seafood! read more

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Horrible fish and chips. Fish pieces were tiny and soggy and bland. Same for the fries and hush puppies. Drenched in oil and zero flavor. How in the hell could they sell this crap to customers? Not even my dog would eat this garbage. Totally unacceptable. Total crap. Avoid this crap hole. read more

Half shells leads the pack as the best restaurant in snider plaza. The food is so fresh and hand crafted, the atmosphere warm and the service excellent. It's hard to be a great, N'orleans style seafood restaurant so far from the sea, but half shells has achieved it. The oysters here are legendary, I always order them and am always impressed. My favorite is the oyster po' boy. A good portion of fried oysters, red onions, tomato, Cajun remoullade and an okra spiked through the top... So good every time! Perhaps the best part is the roll it's served on: perfect balance of crispy outside with a soft, chewy inside that compliments the overall sandwich. The size is just enough to house the innards, but not enough to unhinge your jaw trying to fit it in. My favorite part of half shells may in fact be their soups. Clam chowder, roasted jalapeño, gumbo and **drumroll** THE CRAB BISQUE!!! The CB is the best soup I've ever had! EVER! I have to get it every time I come. Plenty of crab meat in a creamy, slightly spicy broth. Absolutely perfect for when you're just feeling like a warm bowl of soup. The restaurant space and atmosphere seals the deal. Small and quaint, half-shells has that feel of a pieced together restaurant that's been around, a space that makes you feel comfortable. My favorite is the outside "patio", which is really an alley with tables and a cover overhead with plenty of festive, norleans-style decorations. Definite must-haves: fried artichokes, oysters, crab bisque or roasted jalapeño soup and bread! read more

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I've been to half shells snider plaza twice in the past month. THis past weekend wasnt what expected. They happy hour they offer was great drinks as well as appetizer. The problem came when I order my main entree. I chose to get the seafood platter with grilled shrimp and an added side of cod. My food came out promptly and it looked amazing. the problems started when I got to the grilled shrimp. It was rancid and tasted awful I immediately brought it to the server closet to me and she went directly to the general manager with my complaint. Now mind you this a seafood restaurant and that seafood can make some extremely il. The general manager Frankie never came over to me and I was sitting at the bar to find out anything about the issues concerning the bad shrimp. I had to track down the kitchen manager after sitting there for 20mins and not being able to speak to Frankie I was completely disappointed that tge seriousness of the issue wasn't addressed in a timely manner and to top it all off once my shrimp was replaced with more cod Frankie literally packed up and left for the evening in the middle of dinner service without ever apologizing for the issues or anything. needless to say this was the send bad experience with this location I tried to give them the benefit of the doubt but in between the rancid shrimp and spoiled oysters from another visit it's safe to say I will not be returning read more

Used to be outstanding! Not anymore. Ordered from Favor. Ordered the catfish, oysters and shrimp. They were out of catfish,really? The rest tasted like aminoa. Looks like someone had a nice holiday. And they forgot my potatoes. Never, ever again. It's a hole in the wall. Sadly disappointed. read more

Stopped in for lunch after the kids went to Mathnasium down the street. When we walked in we were kindly greeted. The server asked us if t was our first time there and when we told them it was, she very kindly explained what they were about and what were some of the popular things to try there. Then something happened that I've never had happen in a restaurant of any kind. They brought out samples of all their soups and their popular apps to try before ordering! My daughter ordered the kids cheeseburger and when our food came out the server stated the cook felt the burger was too overdone, so they apologized and were in the process of already remaking it. I don't know about you, but I call that caring for the customer. They were on top of the entire dining experience. Now to the food: everything tasted wonderful and was made as described. The restaurant is smaller and has a dive bar like feel which I liked. Don't expect fancy presentation or anything like that, because it's not what they are about. It's a friendly, cozy environment and definitely plan on coming back soon! read more

Half Shells - They brought out free samples so we could try their popular soups and apps since it was our first visit here! - Seafood Near Me - Dallas, Texas

Great keeping coming back FRIED OYSTERS is a Must ! CUP GUMBO is good. SOFT SHRIMP TACOS are excellent !!! The Texas Ranger WIN ON OPENING DAY was fantastic as well. I was stuffed and went home. read more

Half Shells - Today's Specials Board Always deserves a look over - Seafood Near Me - Dallas, Texas

OMG. We came here because we were feeling seafood and like to try new restaurants. THIS PLACE IS AMAZING. We couldn't decide what to order. We started with the lump crab cake and the charbroiled oysters. Delicious. Next he got the shrimp tacos and I got the Nashville hot chicken sandwich and a cup of crab bisque. Everything was perfectly made and flavorful. Finally we topped it off with a key lime pie. It was delightfully tart but not overwhelming sweet (which they can be sometimes). We took most of it home, so dinner will be just as great as lunch. Our server, Candy, was friendly, knowledgeable, and made an already wonderful dining experience even better. 10/10 would recommend this place. read more

hmm, where do I start? First of all, the waiter was the most creepy motherfucker I have ever come across. He made odd remarks the entire time. Second, this place is too expensive for what it is. The bathroom is also FILTHY and not fit for a long john silvers let alone a place selling $12 spiked lemonades with takka. read more

There's a reason you should venture off into the little unknown restaurants! The gumbo and crab bisque were delicious, we should have gotten a bowl instead of a cup! I had the herb crusted cod with roasted potatoes and asparagus. The cod was well seasoned and flavorful! My grandmother had the blackened seafood platter with catfish, oysters and shrimp. She had no complaints and cleaned her plate. I'm glad we chose to stop at this random spot for lunch. I will definitely go back if I'm in that area. read more

We are a long time and frequent customer of fish city grill Preston royal. Always great service and food. Decided to try half shells last night for the first time. 1. Waiter extremely nice. 2. Got there at 6:30. Ordered at 6:45 3 Manager who was also nice comes over and says I have the last wild salmon left and they are out of the spaghetti squash noodles. Enough for my entree but not enough for the others that ordered it as an option. 4. Now one of us had to reorder entree and sides. Kind of odd that you would be out of entree and sides by 6:45 on Saturday. Entrees come out and I had the most expensive thing that was on the board. The last Alaskan wild salmon they had left. It was completely over cooked and hard. Not flakey. I literally could pick up entire piece with the fork and it stayed together. Manager again nice and comped my dish and one other due to all the confusion and having to change order twice. I just can't understand how you are out of specials by 6:45 and it wasn't even crowded. And how you can take the most expensive thing on the menu and over cook. Something must be wrong if this is a Saturday night. Preston royal fish city has never run out of a special ever since I've been going there and it's the same menu. Is the food not fresh? Doubt I will go back. read more

Samantha our waitress was very personable and friendly. The food was cooked perfectly. The atmosphere is very cozy, casual and laid-back. I had the grilled shrimp and shrimp and cleaned my plate! Ill have to come back to try the bread pudding... Samantha insists it's worth it. read more

Half Shells - Dinner time - Seafood Near Me - Dallas, Texas

I recently decided to visit this Half Shells/FCG location on Snider Plaza since I was in the area and I occasionally visit (and enjoy) the new Fish City Grill on Skillman Rd. I expected to find the same if not better service due the popularity of the Plaza itself. Upon arriving I was assigned, to my horror, a waitress who clearly was under the influence of what seemed like cocaine, and was named S***a (I will not expose her name in this review). I decided to look beyond the service instead of walking out. Big mistake. My cup of sweet tea had stains on it which I couldn't figure out if it was water stained or not. I asked for a different drink which she gladly gave me but once my food was brought out it was very sloppily prepared compared to the other FCG location. It looked nothing like the artsy photos on yelp! Who knows what else goes on behind the scenes here!? Needless to say I will not be coming back to this location nor recommend it to anyone else until they hire a new staff and do a better job of drug testing/training ALL the workers who come in contact with food and drinks. I expected more! If you want to sit down and enjoy yourself, I highly recommend the Fish City Grill on Skillman Rd instead, their staff has it together!!! read more

David our waiter was very helpful. The environment of this place had a southern comfort and taste. Great portion sizes. read more

Half Shells - Half shell $1 oysters only on holidays. - Seafood Near Me - Dallas, Texas

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Rancid food? Unhappy servers ? Hostess telling you BYE GO HOME ITS CLOSED? NOT HERE! Came in 10 min to closing time. Do you know what they did ?!? They happily took in my order and made it fresh! I know that was wrong of me, but life happens .I got out late from work and was craving seafood . :(. Luis came in clutch and saved the day ! Along with the great kitchen staff and awesome manager Cole! Thanks guys!! No, seriously I came in hangry and left with such peace in my belly, That I came again !!!! and found another gem at the bar named Lesslie ! So there ! now you know, whether your hangry or thirsty come on in ! They will take care of you !! read more

Absolutely love this place. Service is so friendly. Food is great. Had the gumbo which was very good followed by the Grilled Salmon. The entire meal was outstanding. So looking forward to eating here again. If you haven't been here, you should try it. read more

Great food. Reasonable prices. They accommodate most requests. Two thumbs up! -- Try the salmon tacos and substitute the cornmeal taco with lettuce wrap. That shizz is HOT! read more

This place has the friendliest staff in Dallas. I asked my waiter what he recommended since I was from out of town and he gave me an appetizer sample of 4 soups and the shrimp just because. Then the manager came and handed me a seafood enchilada to try! I was full before I even ordered, but then they said the fried green tomatoes and fish tacos were really good, so of course I had to order that! Reasonably priced, clean, good location and delicious! Great experience. I'll definitely be back! read more

Def a new spot that I will have to frequent. Food is great esp the grilled oysters. The service is spot on and very good looking

I'm giving this place 5 stars based on one visit. But I can tell you I will definitely be back. My roommate and I stopped here after the gym today for brunch. It wasn't packed, but it was definitely a bit busy. We sat ourselves and the waiter (Arturo) quickly came over to give us our menus. He asked if we had been there before, to which we responded that we hadn't. And then he quickly pointed out his favorite items on the menu. He recommended drinks and told us the specials, recommending a couple of those as well. He took our drink order (strawberry mojito, delicious, wish there was more; Bloody Mary, perfect, also wish there was more) and walked away. He must have told his manager it was our first time because two minutes later, the manager brought over a sample of their soups, beans, and oyster nachos, all of which were to die for. When it was time to order (which took us awhile because everything looked so dang good) we got a half dozen oysters to split as an app, she got the crawfish, and I got the flounder with jalapeño cream (one of their soups), red beans, and rice. They also brought us some bread. The oysters were shucked to order and very good. My roommate is not a huge fan of oysters and she ate them faster than I could. The crawfish were perfectly cooked, had a nice Cajun seasoning on them, and came with corn and a potato. So good! The flounder was not super flavorful (its flounder), but the mix of all the other ingredients made the flounder's lack of flavor unnoticeable. The dish cohesively was hearty and delicious. We really wish we could have taken Arturo up on the key lime pie. But we were so full. It looked amazing as it was ordered by other patrons. Before we left, he asked if we wanted a tea to go on the house, which was very nice. Great experience here: Delicious food, outstanding service, homey atmosphere. The price was a bit steep, but it's seafood, and on the SMU campus. We will be coming back, and I believe they may have made regulars out of us. Can't wait for a full order of oyster nachos. read more

I've been having a taste for lobster bisque for a few days. This place wasn't too far and had great reviews so I decided to try them out. I started with the soup sampler and picked the bisque. I also wanted to try the trout because I had never tasted trout before. Food came out pretty fast and looked delicious. My first bite was quite disappointing. No seasoning on my filet so I picked another section to try and then I tasted the lemon pepper flavor. Basically it wasn't completely seasoned. Not sure why because there was only 1 other couple there and they already had there food delivered to their table so there was no other orders in the kitchen. Green beans were good and tasted really fresh. The cheese grits were average. Got home and heated up the lobster bisque because I ordered it to go and it was too salty to even enjoy. The only reason I'm giving them 2 stars instead if 1 is because my waitress was a doll. I thought about ordering a cocktail and she gave me a sample and it was a 5 star drink. Titos lemonade. I would come back just to get the drink and for the cool down to earth staff and decor. Not sure I would eat there again though. read more

Half Shells - Seafood Near Me - Dallas, Texas

Best seafood in town. Great service! Great drinks! We go to this restaurant at least once a week. Have tried other places and always gravitate back to Half Shells. read more

Small restaurant with good food. Great oysters too. They have kid's menu. I recommend it.

*sigh* Ya know when you go to a new restaurant and everything is so perfect and you're so happy and you can't wait to go back and you swear that you've just found your new favorite restaurant? But then you wonder to yourself how it's possible that everything was so perfect and you hope it wasn't a fluke? Yeeaaah. Our first visit to Half Shells was perfect. Perfect food, perfect service, perfect bill. We gushed to ourselves that we'd eat there once a week. Whelp, we didn't eat there every week. In fact, we waited a couple of months before we paid Half Shells another visit. And it kinda sucked. Man, I hate when that happens. To start, our server was very confused. Or maybe we were confused. No, we were definitely confused. We had 2 waiters for the first 20 minutes or so and each of them were doing double duty trying to get our drink order and upsell us an appetizer. It was only a little annoying and they finally got it worked out. Unfortunately, we ended up with the slower and more inattentive of the two. Bummer for us. The boys didn't want to share the Beach Party Platter with me, so I got the Crab Leg Platter and substituted all of the sausage for more crab legs. When the platter came out, I had the 2 sets of legs that come with the platter, 2 extra legs, one corn and one potato. Let me just explain that by 2 extra legs I mean 2 single legs, not the extra set like before. *sigh* It was still pretty good so I was willing to overlook it. My husband ordered the Herb Crusted Sole with a tomato basil crème sauce from the specials chalk board. It came with chipotle mashed potatos and steamed veggies. To be blunt, it was horrible. The crust was extremely overpowering and tasted like they threw in every herb from the garden, the fish was pretty dry and overcooked and the chipotle mashed potatoes were inedible. Our server came by to ask how everything was as my husband was throwing in the towel and I couldn't get him to say anything about it. He just wanted to be done with it. My son ordered the hamburger and thought it was pretty good. When I took a bite I immediately knew why. It tasted exactly like a school cafeteria soyburger. If you attended public school at all you know exactly what I'm talking about. I ate those things for 12 years and can identify that particular taste in my sleep. I'm hoping that we hit Half Shells on a bad night. The boys did agree that we should've stuck with the Beach Party Platter. You can bet your sweet ass that's what we'll be getting next time. Fo' sho'. read more