Kelly's is one of those places that takes you straight back to childhood, the kind of fish camp your parents used to pile you into on a Friday night. Family owned since 1960, and you can feel that in every part of the experience. The parking lot was packed when we got there, which is always a good sign. We grabbed a booth and the sweet tea came out right away with a pitcher so you can refill it yourself, which is a small thing but I appreciate it. Ordered the flounder and shrimp and it came piled on a paper platter with fries, slaw, and the hush puppies. And those hush puppies are seriously worth talking about. Big, hot, crispy outside, soft inside. The portions overall are ridiculous in the best way. The seafood platter is a good call if you can't decide, flounder, perch, catfish, deviled crab, shrimp and oysters all on one plate. The slaw is creamy and fresh, not the watery kind. They also had homemade cake slices up front and we grabbed a piece on the way out. There's a warmth and a character to this place that you just can't fake. Glad it's still here. read more

food not fit to eat. joke of a fish camp. plate of fries covered in thin layer of shrimp. never again at my call.

Excellent food and service. Friendly staff! Food is so good you will want to go back again and again.

Popular local fish house conveniently located on US74. Parking can be a little tight when busy. Orders are taken immediately after entering, using a large menu board behind the hostess's stand. There is little time to consider the choices when busy, and locals who know what they want proceed quickly, first timers may end up rushing their order and choose poorly. Payment is taken at a separate counter, and tips are solicited before you have received your food. Avoid choosing a table near the exit as it can be drafty and has lots of foot traffic. Drink cups are provided for self serv beverages. Food is delivered hot and fresh from the kitchen. There is a large variety of primarily fried seafood choices, with mostly fries and slaw for sides; baked potatoes don't seem to be offered. Entrees are offered in small and large sizes, and portions are large, with mounds of fish, fries and hush puppies on each plate. The dining area can be crowded and noisy, especially when returning for refills to the busy drink dispensers. If you need a to-go box, you will find them there. Overall, this bustling restaurant offers large portions in return for minimum service. Entrees are in the $15 -$20 range despite the do-it-yourself nature of the dining room. If you want table service this is not your place! read more

Old style Fish Camp Restaurant! I grew up with 3 main Fish Camp Restaurants in Shelby (Beatty's Fish Camp, Shelby Fish Camp, and Kelly's) but now Kelly's is the only main one left. They are family owned and cater to Cleveland County families and more (surrounding areas). It's a great place to take the family. Kelly's is child friendly and even has a children's menu. They also have a Seniors menu. They only have fried food though. No baked seafood nor baked potatoes. I would love to see broiled entree's and wouldn't mind paying a little over the fried food prices. As long as it wasn't doubled! LOL! So try them out. You'll love the results! :-) Their slaw is so scrumptious and their hush puppies are to die for. They also have fried pickles and fried chicken. Which my husband loves. But he also loves their fish! Cleveland County is known for their BBQ (Red Bridges BBQ and Alston's (Bridges BBQ) but our Seafood is made just as famous by Kelly's Seafood. read more

The food is good. But sometimes it all tastes the same and the individual fish flavors all blend together. The staff is friendly and the restaurant is clean. read more

Food very good .I Love Kelly's Family eats there regularly convenient for us to get to. read more

I have a dairy allergy and staff was very patient and knowledgeable! The food came out HOT and FRESH. I knew when I stepped in the seafood is FRESH! The dining room was spacious and cute. Self serve refills ‍ will be back asap! read more

No menu- pay before you eat. Self service tea and soft drinks, pretty small. Food was average at best, wife and I felt yucky after eating there. Will not be back. read more

Excellent food. Fast, hot and delicious. Friendly people and great atmosphere. Definitely will come back!

Food was good, service was good, prices were very reasonable. Will go back. Seems to stay busy , not too happy with ordering before sitting down, that would be something I would change. Never having been there before, it was a bit intimidating trying to hurry and order as not to hold up the line. read more

I half-expected Trump himself to pop out from behind the counter, surrounded by his memorabilia and coins. Tried to ignore the campaign rally vibe and focus on the fish -- but nope, even that couldn't save it. Dry, bland flounder and perch, and the slaw tasted like regret mixed with old oil. All I wanted was some decent fish without a side of politics. Didn't get it. Total flop. read more

Food is always good. I don't like the fact that you order and pay as soon as you walk in. No time to look over the menu. They will bring your tea to the table but you got to get up and get your own refill. And still put on the spot to tip a server that don't exist. read more

Food was ok, but don't tell them you're on your way through or they'll add a tip to your bill that you didn't authorize. That's how their $10.99 flounder plate comes out as $17.30 from your account. They'll write "Jesus Loves You" on your bag as they steal from you. Pathetic. Won't be back, and too bad, really. I pass through there once a week.​ read more

Delish & Filling! Flounder was great! Okra....wow! Great friendly service & staff, totally cool! Even though I ordered a lot, didn't eat all of it, but tasted everything! Next time I'll try the scallops!! read more

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I've grown up eating here. It's always good. The flounder and shrimp is what I always get and its right off the highway so its easy to get to. get there before 5 so you beat the line. read more

Portion size was great! Food was delicious! Staff was kind and warm. I really liked the "Jesus loves you!" Note on my to go bag!! read more

Kelly's Seafood - a sign in the back seat of a car - Seafood Near Me - Shelby, North Carolina

Always good seafood here! Friendly service, great desserts too. Good chicken livers too.

Fish so good! We love it! We order perch and flounder. We will order again!!!!' Salt and pepper is awesome.

Very good seafood and chicken livers. Highly recommend perch, flounder, Alaskan whitefish and chicken livers. Food is piled on the plate... definitely enough for 2 meals. Plates are delivered to the table and tea and lemonade refills are self service. We eat at Kelly's weekly. read more

Our first time eating at Kelly's. We had always wanted to stop but it was always crowded and its a small place. We went after restaurants had been open for a while after covid. The host took our order as soon as we walked in the door. Kinda rough for a first time visit. They weren't too busy and we were seated quickly. Food came out fast. Server was on point. I got the fantail shrimp with fries, hushpuppies and coleslaw. The shrimp was delicious. Fresh, crispy and a nice size portion. Fries were good as well as the hushpuppies. The slaw was ok. I had to add salt for some taste. I only had one gripe and its a biggie for me. I judge fishcamps by their tartar sauce. I like dill tartar sauce. Theirs is made with sweet cubes/juice. I just couldn't. I was glad I dipped a hpuppie instead of a shrimp first. I want to go back but when I do, I'll take tartar sauce from another fishcamp. read more

Visiting Shelby for a wedding and found this restaurant near our hotel. The prices are reasonable and the service was great. We ordered to-go. Everyone was friendly. Great portions! 5 pieces in small and 8 in large (large has enough to feed 2). Slaw and hush puppies are good. You get both with the meal. The fries are regular and the fish could use seasoning (salt, pepper, old bay). But overall definitely worth a visit! read more

Kelly's Seafood - Small flounder - Seafood Near Me - Shelby, North Carolina

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Flounder, perch, shrimp & chicken are all delicious! I recommend the okra!! Also... LOVE that they ALWAYS write "Jesus Loves you" on the bag! read more

The wife and I stopped by for a Sunday evening dinner. The service and it was wonderful. We both had a combo platter and the food was great and there was a lot of it. The menu has something for everyone. read more

Kelly's Seafood - A lot of food - Seafood Near Me - Shelby, North Carolina

The flounder was hands down amazing and so meaty! I love it when I get flounder that doesn't have a lot of bread! I will definitely be going back to get more flounder, hush puppies and fries! read more

The place is small, and the interior is a bit outdated, but, all the food tastes amazing. The portions are rather large, so take that in mind. Great price for the amount and quality of food you get. It tastes amazing, highly recommended. read more

"My kind of place" was the quote from my boss post visit! Diner atmosphere, family style, LARGE portions (even the small was large). Deviled crab was fabulous! 10/10 would go again! Also the Jesus accents were appreciated. Such friendly staff! read more

Kelly's Seafood - Menu - Seafood Near Me - Shelby, North Carolina

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The fish is always good here. I personally love the salt n pepper perch & the salt n pepper catfish plates they r so good! The hush puppies are always big plump and hot and fresh and they dont skimp you on the fish with pieces. This is why I slowed down going to fishermans feast and other local fish joints in shelby because they were too high priced and skimped you on fish but not kellys! Ive been happy every time I've eaten there! They are always nice to me. Ive been out of town a year now but I make sure when I am home I go to kellys. I usually place a call in order for pick up because Its so small inside but I'm always a happy customer! I also like the fact they sell cakes at the register. The strawberry was good! The fries are good. Everything here is good & the customer service is always on point! Thanks kellys for being my #1 go to for a hot fresh delicious fish plate! I give you 5 stars for that alone. Now i do wish you were a Bit bigger and not so close to yamatos but you're convenient and it is good!!!!! read more

Kelly's Seafood - Large salt n pepper perch plate! So delicious - Seafood Near Me - Shelby, North Carolina

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I ate at Kelly's this past weekend for the first time; I'd stopped there before but they weren't open. The menu offers a wide enough variety for a small family operated restaurant. The food was good and plentiful, and I thought the prices were in line with the quality and size of the portions. Service was good and tables were being cleared promptly. The place was neat and clean, but this is more of a fish camp type of restaurant than one with a certain ambiance. So if you want to take someone here for a first date to impress them, don't; but if they really like fish then maybe you can get away with it. The food is all homemade. The cole slaw and hushpuppies were very good as was the fish. I had only two comments on the food, that being that I wanted a nice THICK piece of fish which I've not found since I've moved to NC. The whitefish was typical 1/2 inch thick filets like everywhere else. I'm looking for a good 1 to 1-1/2 inch thick piece of cod, grouper, etc., when I want a fish dinner. The only other problem was that the food was a bit greasy. I know they fry everything in peanut oil which I normally really like, but they were constantly busy and it tasted like the temps on their fryers got about 25 to 50 degrees too low due to them trying to keep up with the crowd. All in all a three star review. If they had nice thick cod or grouper steaks and kept the fryer temps up, definitely a 5 star meal. read more

This was some of the best seafood I have had in a long while. When we picked our food up, I was so pleased to see the bag in which the food was placed. On it was written "God Loves you " ...I definitely will go back. read more

I met a friend here for lunch and we both had a great meal. Service fantastic, meal good portion. The fish isn't greasy, might need to get the grease hotter for the fries. I will be coming back! read more

The fried oysters were perfect, service was fast and polite and the fish tasted so fresh!

To me the best seafood in this town. Gives nice size portions. This is a family owned and run business, everyone here is super nice and very friendly. I highly recommend it. If you haven't tried it, you should! read more

The catfish is pretty good. I plan on trying the lemon pepper next time. The hush puppies are delish.

Restrooms. are right where garbage is thrown out! Food was good however eat everything you order because you get a paper bag to carry home your leftovers in , so your car can have grease all over! read more

Thus place us awsone good food prices are in range ni small portion here Friday and Saturday night its please eat and get the hell out small place but worth the trip will be back and soon read more

This is an old family owned-and-run business. There is no ceremony here, you sit, you order, and you eat - LOTS of food. The prices are very good and the quality is above average for a small restaurant. Be prepared to sit family style if they are busy (share your table) and bring cash. Try the fried dill pickles. There are poultry options for non-fish eaters and corn dogs for the kids. The sweetened iced tea is clear and cold. The desert tray is simple fare, but worth the small charge, and one piece is plenty for two adults to share. It is a treat when the owner is there - he is a wonderful host who keeps on top of everything. read more

I've never had a bad experience here and the food has been consistent for many years. It is your typical, average fish camp but that's ok. Sometimes we just need comfort food. However, they do walk around with a tray of desserts as if they are giving it out complimentary but it gets added to your bill. I did not appreciate that. read more

Where do we start with a place that advertises Jesus and then makes jokes about cheating on their wives to strangers. Well let's start out with the food. It was bland all of it except for the slaw. I ordered scallops that not only were bland but tasted off. At first I thought it was just the breading flavor so I asked for ranch to dip it in after about 8 minutes i got up to get it. Nope it was the scallops so I stopped eating them. My husband ordered shrimp and catfish. He got his catfish about ten minutes after he got the rest of his food. The sides that I did eat ran right through me so I went to the bathroom and my husband went up to pay the bill after asking for to go bags. So what did they do? They threw away our drinks and food. Then refused to take money off the bill and insisted that we stay and they would make more. It wasn't good to begin with I was going to take it home and remove the breading and try and fix it. So we paid $32 for fries hush puppies slaw 3 scallops and some ity bitty deep fried shrimp. I'm all about supporting local businesses but not ones that don't deserve it. read more

If you're in to overpriced, greasy seafood served with a bad attitude then this is the place for you! Ate here for the last time tonight. Food was ok but overpriced, service was awful. Restaurant was mostly empty and nobody was getting service while waitress was talking on her cell phone. Told cashier as we were leaving that service was bad. She says sorry but I can't do anything about that. Well I can do something. I'll find my seafood in Shelby someplace else. read more