Great food, really surpassed our expectations. We enjoyed the picturesque views. We recommend Moonstone Grill!

We came in late but the server and service were stellar. We had cocktails, a mai tai and a margarita, both well made. We started with the buratta and beets. Good, beets were a bit over done for my taste but the buratta with the pistachios was very good. We tried the clam chowder and were not disappointed. This is what chowder should be, velvety and rich. You could taste the clams which were tender and sweet. Exceptional chowder! We ordered the crab fondue and were not disappointed! Creamy crabby deliciousness! My only critique would be the bread could have been more bite sized but I just cut mine and enjoyed every bite. Partner had fish and chips. Good. Rockfish was fresh and tasty. Tartar sauce was ok, I prefer mine a bit herbier. We also had Fettuccine with chicken and Alfredo. Chicken was seasoned well and cooked perfect, still juicy and tender. Alfredo was very good. Fresh fettucini was not so fresh, that was the only real disappointment of the meal. If the menu says fresh pasta my expectations are high and this was not fresh. It may have been made in house but not today. I wanted the scallops but they were out, owner said they are on him next time... I would come back either way. This is fine dining but not stuffy and over done. The prices are what I expect at a restaurant if this caliber and the service and food met that standard. I am excited to return and try the rest of the menu! read more

We went for lunch at this restaurant today. Wednesday around 12:30 pm, and the restaurant was empty at the time. The hostess/waitress/bartender seated us at a beautiful table with an ocean view, which we truly appreciated. She was very kind and welcoming. The food was okay overall. My ravioli was salty due to the amount of capers, but still ok. However, I was very disappointed with our takeout dessert. We ordered crème brûlée to go, and it was packed in small boxes that we didn't open right away. When we arrived at our Airbnb just 8 minutes later, we discovered it was not properly placed in a sealed container (like an aluminum one, as expected). Instead, it was sitting directly inside the box, which was unhygienic and unacceptable. Unfortunately, we had to throw it away. I hope the restaurant takes more care in the future when packaging food to go. This detail really matters and impacts the overall experience. read more

See all

Moonstone Grill was a big letdown. Most of the food was literally inedible. Multiple items on the menu were unavailable on a Friday night. It was odd. The clam chowder tasted like hollandaise sauce. The cioppino was equally abysmal - sauce was flavorless and seafood did not seem to be fresh. Their mushroom potstickers and beet and burrata salad were good. Probably the only quality items we had for our party of 7. The restaurant did have a high quality wine list and the views are quite lovely. Our server was solid and did a fantastic job, but it was clear he was overwhelmed on a Friday night. Maybe people called in sick or it was busier than they had anticipated... I would probably only ever go back for sunset drinks. It was easily $100 a person and only two of us had a cocktail each and split a bottle of wine! read more

Moonstone Grill - View from the deck - Seafood Near Me - Trinidad, California

See all

Wow. Where do I even begin. We got there at 7:15... ordered drinks, and got them at 8. We were here for my wife's birthday. She got a steak and lobster, it was ok. The lobster was stone cold. My mother in law, and myself. Both got the tri tip and tortellini, priced at 42$. It was Inedible. The pasta was no short of disgusting. I asked if it's homemade, come to find out they charge 42$ for 8 small tortellinis, made by our very own Cosco... the "smoked tri tip" 6 paper thin slices of pre cooked tri tip... from Cosco. Overall the food was inedible, we waited well over an hour for our entrees. And it was not even busy. Just a regular slow Monday. Definetly won't be back. $250 for some Cosco food. On the bright side the view was nice. Disappointed to see such a nice location lack so poorly in food. read more

We arrived at 7 PM on a Monday night... And they close at eight, but they were still extremely welcoming and sat us next to the window with an ocean view. I ordered the blueberry mule, but they didn't have any blueberries, but accommodated me and gave me a strawberry meal, which was quite delicious. My friend had a dirty martini and she said it was pretty good. We ordered three different appetizers. They were out of the octopus, so we only ended up getting the Poké bowl which ironically was the only seafood that we had. Everything was great, but it was really the staff that made it so fun and such a special dinner! Joshua sang us happy birthday acappella with his operatic voice! Amazing! Isabella was a charming server, only adding to the fun of the evening. What a great restaurant in an incredible location with a fantastic crew. read more

See all

5 star view, 5 star service, 5 star drink, but the food was really just not that great. I was very disappointed. Husband got the steak and lobster for $80 and I got the cioppino. We got the the Asian sesame cauliflower, and octopus appetizers. The sesame cauliflower was no sesame at all it was drenched in the sweet Asian sauce that you can buy at the Asian store. No sesame flavor on it at all. The octopus was very soft which I am not familiar with. They brought it out with missing ingredients. Husband's filet was cooked great, but was so bland. No salt or pepper at all, the lobster was ok. I liked it but my husband did not. My cioppino was not warm at all. It literally tasted like the sauce from a Campbell tomato soup.y husband and I were very confused. It was such a disappointing visit. Our first meal in Trinidad we were so excited for but after $230 definitely not worth it. I would rather get my cioppino in Reno where there isn't an ocean near by. read more

See all

Good food, great views, but somewhat inconsistent service. The view is the main attraction and worth it just to have wine or beer and watch the sunset. It was quite uncrowded on a Monday night. Meal was good - salad, a terrific Grilled octopus, soup. Prices were fair (except $12 for a small bread plate?). Service was pleasant with a few misses - no plates to share the octopus, and servers weren't familiar with menu items, but it didn't detract from a nice evening and noted just to aid the owner. read more

Moonstone Grill - View - exceptional! - Seafood Near Me - Trinidad, California

See all

Stunning views, great service, perfect ambiance, amazing food. There are a wide variety of menu options and it was hard to choose, portions were also very large. My ultimate favorite was the rissoto, absolutely decadent. This is a must visit if you're in the area and I highly recommend you make reservations. The only drawback was that the restaurant doesn't have any high chairs so we all had to take turns holding my 9 month old. read more

See all

Had the coconut shrimp & scallop apps to start. So great. Steak & lobster was delicious. Service is great along with the view. Looking forward to come back to try other dishes. read more

Yikes! Not what we expected for our 25th wedding anniversary dinner! Made reservations for a Monday night so thought we'd be good to go for a window table but only had two options, a table in the back, partially behind the bar, not much of the ocean view we wanted, or a very small high top table up against the back of the bar. We opted for the high top but a tad uncomfortable. Waiter was nice enough but didn't seem super confident for a pricier restaurant. We ordered bread and butter only to be told they had run out of butter and gave a little oil instead. Didn't ask if we wanted to change our mind. Salads were okay. My husband liked his Caesar's salad my house salad with balsamic tastes decent but some of the lettuce was brown. We ordered New York Strip and Grilled Salmon. Honestly, we've had WAY better steak and salmon at Outback Steakhouse. My salmon was filled with bones really not even edible. Steak was overcooked. Sure didn't taste like a $55 steak and $45 salmon. My husband and I aren't even picky! We never complain at restaurants, like ever! We didn't complain this night either but both agreed as we walked out that our $5 In an Out Burgers the night before were 10x better than the meal that cost almost $200. I was really hoping for some locally caught, fresh salmon, but that is definitely not what I got. The kicker was my husband decided he wanted dessert and when he ordered the chocolate cheesecake and the waiter said "we are out of that", I suggested we high tail it out of there and got ice cream at Arcata Creamery (which was delicious by the way). We read the reviews ahead of time and it was a mixed bag, but we gave it a go anyway. Sadly, sitting at the high top and the heavy fog left much to be desired for our anniversary dinner! Oh well, our Mexican lunch en route to Portland in Banden, OR the next day made up for it! Super nice waiter, quick service, and only $32! Cheers! read more

The view here is easily a 10/10 and definitely the highlight of the experience. The service was alright -- nothing bad, but nothing especially memorable either. The food was okay, but not quite worthy of 5 stars. The flavors felt a little off, and overall it gave the impression of "I've definitely had a better version of this before." A bit disappointing considering the setting. I'd come back for drinks and the view, but probably not specifically for the food. read more

See all

| Moonstone Grill - Trinidad, CA Date of visit: 10/03/2025 My husband and I had a wonderful evening at Moonstone Grill last night! The combination of great food, exceptional service, and unbeatable ocean views made for a memorable dining experience. We sat outside on the deck, and the weather couldn't have been more perfect. Watching the sunset over Moonstone Beach while enjoying dinner was a real highlight. Our server, Joshua, was fantastic -- attentive, friendly, and knowledgeable. The hostess, Noah, was also especially kind and accommodating, which helped set a positive tone from the moment we arrived. I ordered the salmon which was cooked perfectly and full of flavor. My husband ordered a big bowl of clam chowder and a fresh salad, and he loved both. We started with pre-dinner cocktails, and our wine with dinner was excellent -- a great pairing with the meal. The only small letdown was the lack of calamari on the appetizer menu, which we were hoping for. That aside, everything else was spot on. The price point is on the higher side, but it felt worth it given the quality of the food, service, and setting. We'll definitely be back and would absolutely recommend Moonstone Grill to anyone looking for a special dinner with a view in the Trinidad area! read more

Moonstone Grill - Seafood Near Me - Trinidad, California

We stopped by here for dinner on our last nights in town. This is a quaint restaurant off the coast. Our waiter was excellent and friendly. We were hoping to order oysters but they were out for night so we opted for crabcakes. They were good (3/5) but nothing special or worth the $30+ price tag. We got a soup with our main course and it was good. Our main course was yummy! (4/5) Our ribeye was nicely cooked and seasoned well, the portions were huge. The price was also reasonable at about $35, there was enough for left overs. A perfect spot for catching the sunset at dinner or a date night! read more

See all

Moonstone Grill could be so much more than it is, a total disappointment and over-priced beyond belief. Their only vegetarian option is a tofu pad tai but they use cheap rice noodles, not even pad tai noodles and there was no fried egg. Over salted peanut sauce and no depth of flavor. $33 for this!!! All of the other food we got was over salted and lack luster. The views are amazing and I think they lean on this and don't care about the quality of the food. It is really bad. I wish that Trinidad Eatery could take over this location! Or Larrupin Cafe! Or anything! read more

Went two years ago and had a bad experience so we were hesitant to give this place another try but we remembered the view being incredible and not a lot of places to find food so we did. Let me say we are so HAPPY we did!! Food was great, environment was cozy and the view was stunning. Our server Casey was friendly, attentive and helpful and the food portions were generous. Happy to have a new experience here to place the old. If you've gone and had a bad experience in the past I would give this place another try. read more

Avoid the pad thai. It was too salty. The grilled salmon tasted like it was fried rather than grilled. The service was good and friendly.

Our view was amazing! It rained the entire time but I prefer that weather anyways especially being up north in the forest camping. Their menu is surprisingly diverse for a smaller city and very well designed. The oysters were a bit smaller than I expected but I loved the tastes they gave. They have grilled, or raw oysters. The sides are extremely well thought out as well! read more

See all

I try hard to give good reviews based on how difficult and judgmental restaurant business is. Moonstone is only good for the sunset view. And a mediocre drink. And the drink is more fluffy than a good quality drink. The price point for what you get in quantity is not bad, but for quality, not good. The fish and chips was a 4 out of 10. The prim rib was 2 out of 10. The temp (see noted), was okay but the flavor was flat! My wife cooks a better prim rib in our house oven that's 40 years old. -noted , when I called the waiter back to clarify the prim rib temp at med rare, he stated "the cook preps all the prim rib at the same temp med rare." That makes Joshua qualified to fill water glasses. Sorry moonstone. But you need to improve a lot of items. read more

Good menu. Easy to drop off dairy. Wonderful view of Northern California coast. One of best servers - Marques - ask for his station. We will most certainly return. BONUS: tour the village of Trinidad, especially the waterfront and The Head. read more

overall very nice experience!! it's a very cute and very small restaurant right on the beach so the ambiance is so nice here and gets a BEAUTIFUL view of the beach!! ITS A SMALL PLACE SO MAKE UR RESERVATION AS SOON AS YOU CAN! tofu pad thai- very yummy but a little salty for some of my family. has a lot of tofu & veggies but not a lot of noodle chicken fettuccine- flavor is so good and has a lot of chicken!! new york steak- very yummy but our server didn't ask how we wanted our steak done so let them know if you have a preference! read more

I travel a lot and I'm not a picky eater, but this place was underwhelming enough that it actually made me question whether it was worth the price. read more

I attended Moonstone Grill as part of a wedding party. I was actually photographing the wedding, but the couple invited myself and my officiant/husband to join. The food was surprisingly good and the views were amazing. The staff was very accommodating for our larger party and even held and served the cake the couple cut at the end of the wedding celebration. I would definitely recommend this spot for groups both big and small! read more

See all

Best happy hour with a view! Delicious wine, beer, cocktails and appetizers for a great price. Gorgeous views of the river and ocean. Friendly atmosphere and bartenders. John and Ari are the best! read more

See all

I was looking forward to a nice meal here, but couldn't wait to leave from the moment we sat down. It was just so uncomfortably hot.. everyone fanning themselves with menus or staring right into the sun through the sheer "window shade". Just miserable. No windows open, no fans, no A/C, just stifling heat. Impossible to look across the table without shielding your eyes somehow from the direct sun in the face. Then the most pernicious flies everywhere.. just ramming into everyone's face and buzzing around everything. There would be fewer flies if I ate outside on the lawn. Even turning your chair to face the other way, away from the sun, your view is of the coffee service station and equipment. I mean, the vibe works at Waffle House, but here? The Chef's (charcutier) Board was really good -- excellent selection of cheeses, artfully arranged. Unfortunately, it only comes with four crostini, and that's a lot of good cheese, meats, fruit.. so you have to buy more bread for $12. That bread was also very good, but now it's a $42 board. Anyway, that was all I could stand of the heat and flies, so we called it quits and went somewhere else for dinner. read more

Amazing views, the restaurant is very close to moonstone beach. The food is always phenomenal, my favorite is chuck roast, but tried the crab cakes and it is a new favorite! The servers are always attentive and the bartenders are willing to help you find your drink. This is more of a special occasion type of restaurant, than casual dinning. read more

We had an absolutely delicious dinner here and the view is breathtaking. It included salmon wontons, carpaccio, clam chowder, spinach salad and ahi tuna over noodles with a light peanut sauce. My only complaint is this: we ordered a $42 bottle of Chardonnay and waited over 10 minutes for it arrive. Instead the waiter came with a small glass of Chardonnay and we were told they were out of our wine of choice and invited us to try this alternative. I asked what the difference in price was but the waiter didn't know and so went off to find out. It was $89!!! We passed on this option and picked a nice Trefethen Chardonnay for $65. My point is I felt potentially taken advantage of. Had I not asked the price, $89 would have been added to our bill. The restaurant should have offered us an alternative at the same $42 price as it wasn't our fault they were out of our first choice. As it was, with tip our bill was $250 for dinner for two. read more

Moonstone Grill - Moonstone Beach seen from our table. - Seafood Near Me - Trinidad, California

See all

If you are used to the "Old" Moonstone Grill, be prepared for a surprise... 1- Our table, that we requested since we have eaten at that specific table, many times over the last 20+ years, was not ready, had people still there, and we were even a few minutes late. 2- If you ask for coffee, please don't bring it lukewarm. And then, when politely asking the server to warm it up, she was very put out, and unhappily did what we had asked. 3- FIFTY FIVE minutes after placing our order, my wife's Salmon was so undercooked, we were honestly worried about Salmonella, so she didn't even eat a good portion of it. My New York steak was ordered medium rare, and it came so rare I'm surprised I didn't hear it scream when I put the knife and fork to it. All this for the measly price of $131.00 ?????? It's unfortunate, but they have lost some 20+ year customers. We had heard that since our last visit that everything about the "old" Moonstone Grill had changed, but were we hoping that wasn't the case. Sadly, it was. read more

The view was amazing (6 out of 5), but the food was pretty awful. We ordered "fresh" raw oysters, but the oysters were super dry. The clam chowder was salty and we found hair in it (they comped). The crab cakes were mushy. The clams were meh. The best thing was the ahi tuna, but it was in rice noodles that weren't really cooked (didn't really understand what was going for). The salmon thank god was cooked properly, but the sauce that it came in looked like a bowl of soup, which was all pretty confusing. They had an abalone for over $100 and I can't imagine what that would have been like. My recommendation is they need to relearn the basics and figure out how to season things and charge probably $10 - $30 less on their dishes. read more

Food- bad Service - terrible View is good. Management is terrible If there was no view then they would be out of business in a week. read more

Meh. I really wanted to love this place, the location and view are amazing. That said, when you walk in, you feel like you're transported onto a boat dock that's half submerged! You don't want to roll a marble on the floors in here, you'll never find it again! It almost made me dizzy with the overwhelming smell of mold and must. Once you settle in (and get accustomed to the slanting floors and smell), the menu is nice, albeit very expensive!! If you order an Old Fashioned, don't expect a nice bourbon cherry, it's maraschino cherries which really surprised me for the price tag. The food was extremely slow to arrive and mediocre (at best) and we all left feeling that we had way overpaid for the experience, even with the view. Maybe it was an "off" night, but we likely won't go back, too many other places to check out. read more

It's a bummer to write this- but I would give zero stars if possible. We ordered moonstone grill to-go over the phone for my boyfriend's birthday on 7/5. To start with, the very kind hostess helped us place our order which we arranged for USVetsdeliver to pick up. We were given a 35 min wait time and sent our driver to go get the food.... 35 min go by and I get a call from the hostess. They "got busy" and wanted me to tell her again what we ordered. I had to repeat the order to her again and our poor driver had to wait there an additional 45 min for the order to be ready (we tipped him handsomely for the inconvenience of waiting more than double what was quoted to us). We were so excited when our food finally arrived.... Except for the food was just horrible. Cioppino in a cardboard box that spilled all over our bag. 4 "prawns" that were actually smaller shrimp than the frozen option at Safeway. Bay scallops instead of "scallops" advertised. A few clams and a chunk of unknown white fish. Then the $40 chicken pot pie- I literally counted 5 one inch cubes of chicken on completely raw puff pastry.... Crab cakes were fishy and so were the soggy fishy fries. To top off this experience, I was charged THREE TIMES for my meal. OVER 400 DOLLARS instead of $144 I was expecting. I called back and asked to speak to the manager and was told he was busy bartending and would call me after close.... Lo and behold 30 minutes after closing I still hadn't received a call. I called and spoke to Ari who literally had no interest in finding out what went wrong and told me "we were busy we shouldn't have taken your order in the first place. Text this number your order total and we will refund you" 2 days later it finally refunded, but not all of it. I texted the same number following up stating the other two charges had not been reversed, no response. AGAIN I called today only to be told the manager wasn't there and he could see on his end I was charged multiple times, but couldn't refund me because he didn't want to get in trouble. What a bummer. Honestly horrendous service and grossly overpriced. Such a shame. Still waiting on my refunds. Photos attached read more

Moonstone Grill - 3 charges on card for one meal - Seafood Near Me - Trinidad, California

See all

The food is overpriced but good ($34 cod for the fish & chips is a lot! We ate the same thing at the Lost Coast a few nights before for $18!). The waiter we had was nice. The ambiance is what we were willing to pay for--gorgeous views. read more

For some reason, I always thought this place was a "burgers and beers" type of grill, mostly, because of the word "grill." My partner and I heard mixed reviews, so didn't bother checking it out in the last two years that we've lived up here. I got invited to dinner with some friends here, and said, what the heck, I'll try it out. Holy cow was I wrong. I honestly don't understand how this place could have mixed reviews? The setting is STUNNING. Easily the most gorgeous dining venue in the county. The staff is friendly and wonderful. The food? The food is incredible. It's fresh. It's innovative. It's complex even. I ordered the beet and burrata salad *chefs kiss* that has different sauces and pistachios... and the seared ahi with crunchy peanuts and sauce and gorgeous zucchini noodles... I almost licked my plate. This place is on the higher side of prices, but at least it feels worth it. The plating. The quality of the food. The cocktails? It's delicious. When you have a special occasion... this is the place to go. Can't wait to bring my partner here and treat them. Treat yourselves and don't miss this place! read more

We actually made the 2-hour trip to Trinidad for dinner to head to another restaurant but they were booked so we happily stumbled upon Moonstone. We were seated promptly and just before they filled up, too. We were famished do we tried a little of everything. Their crab cakes were amazing and so filled with crab and the corn and lime salsa were a lovely accent to them. Their bread is freshly made and the House salad beautifully dressed with nuts and dried cranberries. My partner had the halibut and I had the filet. We enjoyed them both with a glass of local wine and loved everything, including the raspberry crème brûlée at the end of the meal! read more

See all

This is rated a 4-star, so I'm comparing our experience with that rating. We had a reservation and were seated quickly. There is a nice central bar area; we did not use it but saw others enjoying it. There is a varied menu with choices to suit different tastes (meat, fish, pastas small plates and entrees). Good selection of wines by glass and bottle. We ordered salmon entree and two small plates: dinner salad and scallops. We had the crème brûlée for dessert. The salmon and scallops were well prepared; the salad had some lettuce pieces that were slimy and should have been removed in the cleaning/prep process but I removed them and ate the salad. The service was competent though a little slow at a few stages. The restaurant is right on the beach and in daylight, a great location. The building is showing its age. The bathroom needs a thorough cleaning and some minor repairs. The prices were high but we acknowledge that getting some foodstuffs in this slightly remote area is costly. read more

We chose this place solely off of reviews so I had to leave one. This place is not kid friendly. No kids menu. I ordered root beers for my kids, well behaved 6 and 9 year olds too mind you, and wasn't told that they were artisan grossness, neither kid would drink them and was charged $5 each. Luckily my daughter did like the $33 Fettucini that she could only eat half of. I understand having adults only restaurants but this should definitely be advertised. read more

We decided to visit the location specifically because it claims to be pet friendly. The hostess seated us outside on what appears to be a mini deck. Two people could not stand side by side without bumping into the rail on one side and the wall of the restaurant on the other. Plus there was one three top table and ours. That is all the outdoor seating for a restaurant that claims to be pet friendly. So you can imagine my surprise when the hostess sat the two of us along with our 80 lb Husky. We started with wine which of course the one I ordered they were out of. Why would the waiter not mention that at the beginning instead of waiting until I ordered it? The other waiter serving the three top kept apologizing everytime he had to pass us and step over our dog. We ended up ordering appetizers which were okay but nothing to write about. We ended up not even ordering a second glass after for the 12th time of us moving our dog so the waiter could get by and he still ended up kicking our dog in the head. Check please! It was the most uncomfortable places. Why does a place advertise they are dog friendly when they cannot accommodate the people let alone the dog? There are much better places with way better food with better prices. read more

Great service, but food was overpriced. We got here at 6:15pm. The view is fantastic, but be prepared to have the sun burning your eyes throughout the whole dinner or have the view blocked by shades. The intense heat through the large windows was making the room very hot and we were all sweating throughout dinner. Maybe it's best to go here right at sunset or after dark. The crab cakes were definitely worth getting, but everything else was average for the price being charged. They're using good ingredients, but the linguine was bland. Shrimps on the surf and turf was great, but steak was a little overdone (ordered medium rare and got medium), and asparagus was hard at the stem (not peeled). The halibut was under seasoned as well. Thankful for the very friendly staff, especially after seating us an hour before our reservation. Great big parking lot. read more

See all

Had lunch there with my daughter...I will NOT be back, at least for lunch. I ordered the Korean ribs -$24. My plate arrived with 2, burnt to a crisp rib bones, I took one bite - no flavor, at all. I told the server I could not eat it. I really wanted to speak to the chef and maybe ask if they would eat it...and ask if they were embarrassed to serve something like that. When the bill came, they charged me $8 for the slaw and $8 for the fries...taking $8 off the $24 charge for 2 burnt, tasteless ribs (the slaw and fries "came with the ribs") Very disappointing and disgusting. I won't be back. read more