This is one great place to carry your family for dinner! I'm 67 and can't remember when I didn't come here. Ned, Donna and John will feed you right. read more

Awesome food! Awesome service! Awesome experience! FYi Cash Only This place is a worth the drive. The ootions and freshness was unreal. read more

Jay's Seafood Restaurant - Front of restaurant - Southern Near Me - Albemarle, North Carolina

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BEWARE!! The food was horrible!! Got the fried shrimp & it was a dark heavy batter & had the worst aftertaste. Waitress never asked us how our food was!! When we left guy checking us out did & we told him it was awful. He said hmmmm that will be $38. No sorry or offer to discount. When I told him I'd let google know he called some lady up who argued with me & told us we did not tell our waitress & our waitress came back several times. No she did not & she never asked. Treated terrible by this lady like we were lying & we left 2 whole plates of food behind. Have never been spoken so rudely to. Stay away from this place. Hoping we don't get sick!! read more

They have great food and the service was amazing. My wife got the buffet and said it was great and the oyster soup was one of the best she ever had. I ate off the menu and wanted bone in catfish but all they had was strips. This was our first time eating there since the fire and the place looked amazing. However be careful with the chairs as they turn over very easily. My wife's chair turned over when she got up and we saw another lady turn over backwards as she sat down. In my opinion I enjoyed Blue Bay Seafood better in Albemarle than Jay's or try Captain Steve's if you're up towards Huntersville. read more

This place is definitely a must try when you're in the area. The service is amazing with a homey atmosphere. Everything we've had is stupendous. read more

The food is hot and the staff is wonderful. Been eating here for over forty years.............. read more

Jays seafood restaurant buffet is a great place to eat. The shrimp, flounder , salad and hot bar, with delicious dessert and ice cream was delicious. The staff are friendly and so helpful. The restaurant is always clean. read more

we love jays seafood good country style food buffet fresh salad bar wait staff is great cash only tho read more

Our 1st visit to Jays Seafood and Restaurant. Where do I begin?! The food was awful. My wife ordered fresh Broiled Jumbo Shrimp and Scallops, the plate was delivered with fried shrimp and scallops, definitely not broiled. Absolutely nothing Jumbo about the shrimp. Both were previously frozen and not fresh. I had the buffet. The fried fish was very dry and over cooked. The green beans tasted like a tin can. So, I went back for potatoes, gravy and ham. I would have rather chewed on a shower shoe rather than eat that ham. Jays Seafood should be embarrassed with the very low quality of food you serve. You might have the cooks sample the food before serving it to the customer. Worst dining experience ever. Oh and be prepared to pay CASH ONLY! Never again! read more

Delicious salad bar and the best hushpuppies around! The fried and broiled flounder were both also great. read more

Excellent food, but what makes this restaurant shine is their staff. The service was better than most 5 star restaurants. You can pick from the menu or eat from the buffet. This is a restaurant for seafood lovers or people who don't like seafood. Fried chicken, meatloaf, chicken and dumplings, salad bar, lots of veggies, and desserts are just a few of the offerings you can pick in addition to seafood. Friendly and competent staff and good food; you can't get any better than that. If you are ever in the Albemarle, NC area it is well worth a trip to this out of the way restaurant. read more

Amazing southern seafood, the taste, the service, the ambiance. This is a place that I will go to time and time again! Best seafood around, buffet style!!!! It's making my mouth water, just thinking about it! I can't wait to go back. read more

I've been visiting Jay's for about 30 years or more. I've had some great times with some great people. So understand this place has a special significance to me and my extended family. After all these years, things inevitably change, and sometimes, for the worst. The fish and shrimp were greasy, the veggies tasted like they came directly from the can, the Mac and cheese tasted like Easy Mac, and the meatloaf was OK at best. I will say, I enjoyed the sweet tea and hush puppies, but that was about it. The service was great; our waitress was awesome. She definitely brought that down-home charm that the fish camps of old were known for. The price was nice, as it was $15 for a drink and the buffet. It is cash only, so be mindful of this. All in all, I think that this will be my last visit. Mostly because it's too long of a drive for me to visit on a whim, but also I want to preserve my memories of Jay's during its glory days. Thank you for the memories. read more

Family was out of town for the evening so that's when I go somewhere I don't get to go often. Jay's Seafood is a bit off the beaten path.This was my first visit since before Covid hit.Once arriving on a Saturday evening at around 5:15 the parking lot was full even with the overflow across the street.Jay's is known for their buffet.Which is why I made that trip.Jay's is old school.Hardwood floors with wooden chairs. I was seated quickly and my drink order taken and off to the real reason for my trip.On the buffet is popcorn shrimp along with flounder that's got a nicely cornmeal type breading that goes back for years in several restaurants in the area.Plus a broiled flounder.Oyster stew.Plus a really good fried chicken and chicken livers.Steak and gravy,green beans,pinto beans.country ham,Biscuits,yams,tarot wedges, fries,and some nice hush puppies. I know I have left a few out.Jays has a nice salad bar also. I found out you could ask for items not on the buffet so I asked for a few pieces of catfish.My waitress never let me glass go empty.She checked to make sure all was good with my meal quite often.My food was great as my last visit.The service was on the spot good.My tab was 15.00 even. I do see another trip soon. read more

Nice historic buffet style seafood house. Too bad it burned down in December 23. Thinking the might rebuild.

Jays Seafood was always a good buffet. Awesome owners and staff. Endless attention to detail and prices are amazing. Only issue now they are closed Indefinitely due to a fire that sustained just after New Years a tremendous amount of damage to the kitchen and dining room. God Bless the owners and that no one was hurt. read more

This restaurant is second to none as far as a large buffet goes. I don't know what they can't cook perfectly. There seafood is fresh and cooked correctly. Wait staff is the best. read more

It's a hit or miss at this place! In the past it has been good. But we went Sat night and it was horrible Fish didn't taste good, over cooked or maybe it had just sat on bar til it dried out. Dumplings taste as if they came out of a can. Livers were dried out. Spent $15 a person and didn't eat $3 worth! Will be a long time before I go back! Maybe try Jay's in town, usually better. But they do not have buffet if that is what you are looking for. Fish is good, crab cakes are good, I've heard they have the best steaks in town. read more

This restaurant is worth trying. The Buffett has plenty of fried fish, meat , vegetables , desserts. and a good salad bar. The Buffett has many selections to choose from. Prices are reasonable for adults and families. You won't leave hungry. The waitresses do and excellent job. Be aware they only accept cash. read more

Me and my family love going here. Its very family and children friendly. All the food has the right amount of seasoning and everything

Good hot seasoned fish and fried chicken. Veggies seasoned BUT MAC AND CHEESE STRAIGHT FROM A BOX-had to be honest. Ok, the Buffett bars are somewhat close together so the area gets a little tight and crowded but the service dessert bar and overall abundance of food for 12 bucks with drink included is WORT IT. The location is definitely out in the woods but it's a small country spot that leaves you full and satisfied!!!! read more

They have a lot of mediocre food with a odd stench in the air. The water had a metallic taste. Probably will not be back.

My favorite place to eat seafood without driving to the beach. It's a hole in the wall like the farmers market. But they do seafood right. A solid choice if your by yourself, don't take your Sunday best there. read more

I gave this Stanly County icon a generous three star rating. When the waitress asked if everything was okay, I told her I would let her know in 5 hours. #handsanitizerplease #TheCountdownIsOn read more

Jay's is absolutely the best seafood place in town! On most Sunday afternoons you can find us in line at the buffet and then at home on the couch in a coma later from stuffing our faces! Their flounder and popcorn shrimp are amazing! But don't count out their home cooked foods as well! The chicken and dumplings are to die for, and their green beans are some of the best I've ever had (don't tell my Mamaw!) They have cobblers out the wazzoo for dessert, and soft serve ice cream with that delicious vanilla/chocolate swirl that takes you back to your childhood! All in all, Jay's is #1 in our book! You should check it out! read more

The buffet is great. The variety of food, choices is great. I love this restaurant. My favorite place in Albemarle. Fish, chicken, sea food, fried chicken a really good Buffet. read more

I have only eatten there twice. Once,dine in,the other carry out. Both times ordered ribeye well done.The steaks were cooked perfectly,and were tender. The waitress,Becky,when we dined in was great. Definately recommend the restaurant for ribeye steak! read more

Yuck just yuck food and place is gross no thank you never again this place has looked like this since I have been a child I'm near 50 absolutely nothing put into it back in this restaurant read more

Great little fish camp. I drive from Mint Hill for the old time fish camp experience!

Decided to try ... husband is always looking for fish camp type places he loved in Shelby and Gastonia when he was young. More than just a disappointment. After circling the building looking for a handicap accessible entrance, we parked and went in a back door. We decided to try the bar even though we couldn't see it. A waitress offered us a table and asked us for our drink order. No problems with service. When we got to the bar, a girl was restockIng the fried chicken. My husband took one piece. He also took some of the meatloaf. The meatloaf was awful. I mean awful. It had the consistency of canned dog food... mushy. It was full of some type filler And the only flavor was from green peppers. When my husband picked up the chicken breast, the skin and breading just fell off the meat... never seen such a mushy piece of what was supposed to be fried chicken. No use going any farther... a couple vegetables were basically right out of the cans and none of them were more than Luke warm. i don't expect a buffet to have fancy food but after inedible chicken and meatloaf... I choose to move on. read more

Went for seafood they only had shrimp and fish on the buffet. It was not good. I went to go get some ice cream it tasted like the machine hasn't been cleaned in awhile. I wouldn't recommend. we walked in and we're told to sit wherever definitely read it as a restaurant and not buffet. the forks and stuff didn't look all clean. I wouldn't come back here ever read more

This is a great little country seafood restaurant. Yes, they only have popcorn shrimp and a few fish items but those were so good. My family loved fried chicken, sides, salad bar, dessert bar and ice cream. They offer regular meals too. My son had great S&P catfish. My mom had a small chicken fingers plate with onion rings and hush puppies that could have fed three people. The onion rings were the BEST I've had since Herlockers closed on Hwy 29. Fresh, beer battered. read more

My boys & I love the old school fish camp motif of this place and the food is the best southern flavor in the greater Charlotte area. A definite win for your tastebuds, not so much for the waistline . Do yourself a favor and go eat at Jay's seafood. read more

Jay's Seafood Restaurant - a family sitting on a bench in front of christmas decorations - Southern Near Me - Albemarle, North Carolina

Awesome must try weekend restaurant very good very affordable service is good and plenty of room to sit

The food here was really good. I really should've ordered off the menu instead of the buffet. I thought a seafood restaurant had seafood on their buffet. All they had was shrimp and flounder. That's it. They did have oyster stew but people took all the oysters out. I am sure they did this because there were no oysters on the buffet. This place would be so much better if they had more seafood on the buffet. Fish, shrimp, oysters and scallops would rock. And make the oyster stew to order not out where people can freely drain all the oysters out. We drove over an hour to check this place out. Can't say I'll be back. Not that the food was bad but there just wasn't enough seafood for me. They are a cash only place too which kinda sucks. I had to pay an extra $2 to draw cash out of their ATM. read more

Tea and ice cream was good.. but that's about all. Food not up to temp, HD would of had a field day.

Our third time going and the buffet was delicious! A lot of home cooked food & friendly faces.

1/16/2015 3 people Likes: -Good coffee -Great servers -Friendly atmosphere Dislikes: -Not at all accommodating for the elderly. Everybody knows that elderly people like to eat seafood. The building is up on a hill, with steps. We brought my mother with us. It was a very bad experience getting her in and out of the restaurant. -Very disorganized. Everyone was in everybody's way. The tables in the dining area are not spaced correctly so a lot of bumping into each other. We were not comfortable at all while eating. -Too much paprika on my seafood. -The salad bar was pitiful. Hardly any fresh vegetables. I ended up with lettuce, cheese, and some type of square meat. No cucumbers, no peppers, broccoli, cauliflower, etc. Overall my food was ok, and the pricing was what we expected. However, we will not go back due to the reasons listed above. read more

Great fish camp style restaurant with buffet. Old building, but clean with friendly staff. Buffet has great selection with salad bar, seafood, chicken, and dessert. Less expensive than other seafood restaurants in the area. read more

Down-home, stick-to-your-ribs, Southern food! The Sunday buffet is phenomenal! Servers are on the spot with refills! What really makes it is that everyone--staff and other patrons--are super friendly! Just don't go between 1 and 2 p.m. on a Sunday. That "after church crowd" is right surly, probably because their blood sugars are so low. I tell ya, it's like feeding time at the zoo. People are jostling and butting into each other, it's rude and sad. It ain't fancy, but it's feel good place that won't hurt your wallet! Sunday Noon buffet with tax and drink cost me $11!! read more