Some restaurants feed you, and some restaurants somehow become part of the day you remember. We stopped by Powell's Steamer Co. & Pub while spending a Saturday afternoon in historic downtown Placerville, and it ended up being one of the highlights of the day. I'm from Folsom, so Placerville isn't very far, but it still feels like a nice little escape when you want to slow down, walk around Main Street, and enjoy the older historic character of the town. Powell's fits perfectly into that setting. It has that classic, slightly old-school feel that makes you want to sit down, order something fresh, and stay for a while. I came here with my mom, and since she doesn't really eat raw food, we split our choices a little differently. I ordered the oysters on the half shell, while she went with the steamed clams. The oysters were excellent. Extremely fresh, clean tasting, and exactly what I want when ordering raw oysters. With oysters, there really isn't much room to hide. If they're fresh, you know immediately, and these absolutely were. I enjoyed every one of them. The steamed clams were a great choice for my mom. They came in a buttery, flavorful broth with bread on the side, and it was a nice way for both of us to enjoy seafood together even though we have very different preferences when it comes to raw food. We also tried a couple of beers, which were good, although looking back, I probably should have ordered a glass of white wine or Prosecco with the oysters. A crisp Prosecco would have been a great pairing with something this fresh. Next time. The staff were also genuinely polite and welcoming throughout the meal. Nothing felt rushed, and the whole experience had that relaxed Saturday-afternoon feeling that I was hoping for when we came to Placerville. What I liked most was that the restaurant felt very much like part of historic downtown rather than somewhere that could be dropped into any city. Good seafood, an old-town setting, friendly service, and a chance to sit down and enjoy the afternoon with my mom. That's really what made the experience memorable. I'll definitely be back. Placerville is close enough to Folsom that this could easily become one of those places worth making the short drive for, especially when I'm craving fresh oysters and want an excuse to spend another afternoon on Main Street. read more

Powell's Steamer Co. & Pub - Seafood Near Me - Placerville, California

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Stop here. Really. Walk down Main Street, see the locals going in and staying. Follow them. We had the steamers and the ribs. Both exceeded our expectations by a nice margin. Get a draft and sit back. Use the bread to scavenge the garlic from the steamer broth. Be happy, go to Powells' . read more

I have been going to Powell's Steamer Co for nearly 30 years and always get their Steamed Clams. Located in the heart of Placerville's Main Street, they have been a staple for a long time. When you enter, it will mainly have local residents inside but you may see patrons who are just going through Placerville. I did get a fish taco on the side which was their special that day. They were pretty good as the steamer order probably would not fill me up. Of course, you can't have steamers without a great white wine (at least for me). If you're going through Placerville, this is a great place to stop and get a good local meal before you continue your trip! read more

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Came in on a Thursday around 5:30. This place is directly on Main Street and we got a parking space right out front. This place is nice and open with a bar. Our server was SUPER. She was so friendly and made sure she took our happy hour drink orders. We also ordered the pork ribs with house made potato salad and we were served bread and butter. The food came out quickly. The ribs were meaty and the meat just came right off the bone. They were served with a nice BBQ sauce. The highlight for me was the house made potato salad-DELICIOUS. Such great service and good food and happy hour till 6pm. I would like to return to try a seafood offering on the menu. read more

Powell's Steamer Co. & Pub - Rib dinner (full 25$) with great potato salad - Seafood Near Me - Placerville, California

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Great cozy environment. Good has that homemade feel, great flavor, large servings. Service was friendly and quick. read more

Powell's Steamer Co. & Pub - Ciapino, tuna melt, lobster bisque - Seafood Near Me - Placerville, California

The waiter/bartender was super nice! She guided us to the beautiful back patio with our dogs. The tables had umbrellas that provided ample shade. They also had multiple dog water bowls which was great for our pups. The was a creek below the deck that added to the romantic environment. Food was amazing! Loved the Alfredo pasta. The salad was fresh and crisp. The bbq ribs full rack only had six ribs but it was super delicious!! read more

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We had such an amazing experience here and can't wait to come back! Driving back to SF from Tahoe, we decided to stop by Powells for lunch. Lucky us that they do barbecued oysters on the 1st Sunday of every month. Don't miss this! They were absolutely delicious and brought a big smile to my face. They make their own BBQ sauce and had a happy crowd of regulars! The owners were very friendly and warm, sharing fun history about the town and recommendations of what to see. We will definitely bring friends and family next time! read more

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You'd think a place that is considered a seafood restaurant would have decent clam chowder. It gets a D-. Today is Saturday. It was as if they took Fridays clam chowder and stretched it with flour and water. Not creamy, no flavor of clams. Just bland, gelatinous goo. The salad was fresh but the dressing had zero Bleu cheese flavor even though we were assured that's what it was. Not coming back here again. read more

Soozie was amazing. Food was amazing. Oysters were on point. And the salad. The chowder was perfect.

Oh boy are you in for a treat! On the first Sunday of every month (weather permitting!) it's barbecued oyster time! Tim serves up the most delicious bbq'd oysters we've ever had! Fun day! Great service! Great live music! Great ambiance! You can't go wrong! Trust me! (Full bar and great beer on tap as well!) Thanks Sheila and Tim!!! read more

Powell's Steamer Co. & Pub - Thanks to owners Sheila and Tim for such a great day of yummy food and fun! - Seafood Near Me - Placerville, California

After lunch this afternoon stopped at this establishment while my wife shopped in this wonderful town. Loved the vibe in the place and ordered a nice IPA and half dozen of oysters. I was very pleased with both. The owner was very friendly and gracious, and patrons offered good conversation. read more

Awww i just saw someone left a bad review a few hours ago. Were eeating dinner here now and everything has been great. U can't win them all i guess. read more

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Great ambiance love the crew. I've never had a bad time there. Always a blast. Sundays are so much fun. They always have a band.randim strangers play every 2nd Sunday of the month! read more

Great food and service!!! Will definitely be back. Oysters and clams were fresh and just what we wanted. read more

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It was better years ago! I stopped going there a year ago and I was a regular. I asked my server if my sandwich could be toasted and she stated "Im not going to ask the cook to do that." Service and food went downhill. Not worth the drama there either! read more

Probably my 6th time coming in and it's always great! Good food, good service and I always get the Mermaid! Highly recommend! read more

It doesn't get any better than this. I sat at the bar and ordered their chapino. It was as delicious as I remembered it from over 10 years ago. The food, atmosphere and people are wonderful. I am very glad we stopped in while we were in town. read more

My husband and I have gone coast to coast experiencing raw oysters and this place is definitely in the top 5!!! The oysters on the half-shell are on point!! Every time we come here, they serve huge delicious oysters with all the fixings-- Tabasco, horseradish, cocktail sauce, and lemon wedges that seal the deal for the perfect raw oyster experience! Plus, they serve an assortment of beers from local breweries and have a full bar, (I got the filthy dirty martini last time), and the most adorable back patio that skirts along a creek. It's our favorite place to sit outside each time we visit to hear the creek, and see the little fish (the back patio does butt up against Hwy 50, but the sound just drowns out if your having great conversation w your friends!!) . Go for the oysters!!!! Amazing!! read more

The good: the server was really friendly! The portions are very generous! The bad: The chicken Alfredo was very bland and tasted of clams when it should not. The neutral: The clam chowder was better after putting pepper and hot sauce in it, but it looked very much thickened by cornstarch, but the flavor was actually ok. I should've read the reviews before me because a lot of them were spot on, lol. read more

Great service and amazing atmosphere! If you love a historical/old-timey atmosphere and great food this is the place. The special today was a BLTA and was so yummy on a hot day. Even has a great hidden patio in the back! Highly recommend :) read more

They charge you more than the menu price. Check your receipt. It is not just about a couple dollars but its about principle. I just saw other complaints here on Yelp about the same thing. The server said it's tic for tac and then said it's the sales tax. But sales tax is also on the bottom of the receipt. It does not make me feel good being lied to. And the foods were also not tasty at all. I regret not doing NY research before walking in. You have been warned. read more

To start I want to say I only leave reviews if they are worth reviewing, this restaurant was awful. The service was extremely slow. Bread was served cold. The lobster bisque I'd rate a 6/10 considering the flavor was great but there were no chunks of lobster, they could have bought the Walmart soup and served it, that's that. The Cioppino was the worst thing out of what we ordered. It had little to no seafood, tasted like watered down great value marinara sauce, with not fresh veggies for the price. The bar tender didn't even know how to make the drinks on their menu, which is insane. The cherry on top the receipt DIDN'T match the menu prices, if you go here make sure to read your receipt. I get it's only $1.08 but that is stealing from customers and that is illegal. read more

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We have really enjoyed the wonderful food at this charming restaurant. The scampi is delicious with big succulent shrimp and I have totally loved their fish tacos. The service is fast, friendly and professional consistently. Thank you Powell's Steamers read more

What a friendly "Cheers like" restaurant (full bar). The BBQ oyster on the first Sunday of the month are delicious. When they have lobster bisque, also wonderful. The tuna melt and pastrami melt for lunch are great. The staff are a huge draw with Sheila and Patti carrying the main daytime shifts. read more

Ordered a tuna melt and it tasted rotten & the potato salad was terrible! Had to throw it away! $40 for two sandwiches and had to throw one sandwich away. What happened to restaurants? I'm giving up on eating out! read more

My sister and I stopped in tonight for some of their special lobster bisque. Everything on the menu sounded great and I was was not disappointed with my Lazy Man's Cioppino. It was flavorful and chock full of yummy seafood, but one thing surprised me. They serve sourdough and butter while you wait and we were expecting toasty , crisp rolls, and butter. We got sourdough, but it came as a few slices of par-baked soft sourdough with pats of butter. My sister's crab and avocado "sandwich" was loaded with the good stuff...on top of the same soft, crumbling slices of cold sourdough. We both agreed that based on the menu's description, we were expecting warm, crusty roll. I know this is primarily a bar, but changing the bread would be a simple change for the kitchen, a minimal cost increase for the owners, and a HUGE improvement for the customers. I owned a very successful restaurant so I know what the cost to make a change like this would be. It's just a recommendation. Otherwise, our service good and the ambiance, although on the loud side, was fine. After all, people were there having fun and drinking together so it should be on the loud side. It's a good sign :-) read more

The food is great; the staff is very friendly and provides excellent service; and the venue has a fun relaxed atmosphere; and the live music is also very good. It's on Main Street in the beautiful town of Placerville, CA - a sweet town in the foothills of California, about 35 miles from Sacramento, the state's capitol. read more

Powell's Steamer Co. & Pub - Seafood Near Me - Placerville, California

My family and I went for the day to visit Apple Hill. We had decided on our way home to find somewhere to eat. We came to downtown Placerville to check out the scenes and grab dinner. We parked in their parking garage. Free parking..not something you'll find in the Bay Area so it was a pleasant surprise. We then started walking and checked out a few places and landed here. All the other places we walked passed were full. I kinda had a feeling why this place was empty. Anyhow, we were seated immediately. We threw a couple of tables together since we were a party of 6 adults and a baby. Waitress came over and was nice and welcoming as could be. She left us with our menus after whisking away to grab our drinks. They are a pub so had a decent selection of beers on tap. Husband chose an IPA. Along with our drinks our waitress following it up with some bread and butter. We ordered: 1. 3 cups of clam chowder as appetizer: soup was ok. Came out hot with a side of oyster and saltine crackers. I think I got one morsel of clam in my cup. 2. 2 chicken fettuccine Alfredo: those whom ordered were not happy. The pastas came out in gigantic bowls. They looked good. Those whom ordered pasta couldn't wait to dig in. Only the Alfredo sauce was bland. The chicken was bland. It was all swimming in a pool of unflavored white sauce. I tried to doctor up my husband's bowl with salt, pepper, parmesan cheese and Tabasco but there was no salvaging it. 3. 1 chicken fettuccine Primavera: my son ate some of his noodles as he was starving. But his too was pretty bland. The only thing that saved his was the tartness of the tomatoe sauce. 4. 1 veggie fettuccine Primavera: please see #3. 5. 1 crab and avocado sandwich: my daughter said it was OK. 6. Children grilled cheese: my granddaughter seemed please. Bread was grilled nicely and cheese was melty. 7. Bbq Ribs: a platter of huge ribs came out with a side of potato salad. The potato salad had a nice consistency but needed some salt, pepper and a dash of pickle juice. The ribs. The ribs weren't bbq's , they were probably oven baked. Without seasoning. Whomever made these ribs thought the tart bbq sauce was enough seasoning. I feel like they ladled the bbq sauce over the ribs to try to mask the lack of grill marks and seasoning. The ribs were fall off the bone but that's why I suspect they were baked. Unfortunately forgot a few photos as you can see. We didn't take anything home. The waitress even commented that some of it didn't even looked touch. The one star is because the waitress was so kind, bubbly and attentive. If it wasn't for her I would have disputed the $200 bill. Someone may wanna call John Taffer and his crew from Bar Rescue because this place needs an overhaul. read more

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So frustrating ! We used to come here every Sunday afternoon for a great Lovie salad, clam chowder...almost everythingon the menu was great. And fantastic live music. We quit coming cuz it went downhill after covid. We tried again today. AWFUL. No Louie on the menu. Clam chowder looks like thickened corning starch and the lack of chowder favor is disguised by overwhelming spice. The shrimp cocktail was too spicy to finish ... gobs of sauce a big layer of shredded celery and a small portion of tiny shrimp. And the prices have tripled!! But the music absolutely ruined it. So loud we couldn't hear our server or talk to one another. That might have been ok if one of the singers seemed to be unable to carry a tune. The guitar playing was amazing, but it couldn't rescue the bad singing and overwhelming volume. I left with ranging ears as though i was in the front row of a Metallica concert. Just sad.... read more

Let's start with the positive. The oysters tasted fresh and they were shucked fairly well. That's it. The crab and shrimp sandwich tasted like what you'd expect a seafood sandwich from a gas station would taste like. Bread was dry, tasted old. The clam chowder was not New England and not Manhattan. Skip it. The pasta was nothing to write home about. Boxed noodles. Added "prawns" but they just tossed in a few precooked small shrimp. Sauce was tasty but there was not enough of it to overcome the rest of the issues. The male bartender that took our order was nice and attentive for as long as he could be (the bar got busy). They waitress that took over didn't know what she was going, read more

Cute bar with oysters and seafood dishes. Selection of 24 different beers. Took a while to get waited on but waitress was polite. Live music nearly every day. read more

Powell's Steamer Co. & Pub - Live music - Seafood Near Me - Placerville, California

We stopped in and was so excited to get to try the bbq oysters. Let me just say they were out of this world!!!! Everyone said it was the best bbq oyster they ever had. I would definitely agree . Amazing! The staff and owner are so friendly and kind. Every time I walk in I feel so welcome. We sat on the back patio over looking hangtown creek really beautiful. If your lucky sometimes see fish and occasionally crawdads. Thank you for having us. Can't wait to go again and again. read more

Powell's Steamer Co. & Pub - Bbq oyster's - Seafood Near Me - Placerville, California

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Oysters on the half shell, music, company and wine!! Wonderful owners!!! birthday party on back patio was set up! Very nice!!

most overpriced and mediocre spaghetti & Alfredo. as a pasta lover, I was severely disappointed. they will NOT refill your water, even if you asked (I got ignored). music is far too loud and the bathrooms are kind of gross. read more

I love the Lazy Man Cioppino here. You get more seafood and not deal with a ton of shells. Plus the price for this ($25) is very reasonable as this can be $36 in a lot of places. Great Placerville establishment that has a ton of character. read more

Powell's Steamer Co. & Pub - Lazy Man's Cioppino with French Bread - Seafood Near Me - Placerville, California

I finally got back to try the cioppino and it is great. my wife had the special lobster bisque and it was so delicious she didn't even want to give me any. If you are going past Placerville this a great place for a stop and a great bar as well. read more

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We came in the early afternoon for lunch with a group of 8 and the service was bad. They were not very busy but everyone got their food in a staggered way, and I was the last one after more than an hour to get my soup and simple appetizer. we will not be going back. read more

So we've eaten here 3-4 times and gotten drinks there 3 separate times. The drinks are always good, affordable and quick (they're also open late and serving drinks to go on nights like Oktoberfest and the Block Party) but the food is a 2/10. It's always over cooked, seafood is flavorless; they're cutting corners on quality. Service is usually pretty good, quick and very friendly. We'll come back for the drinks but unfortunately I do not recommend it for food. We've gotten everything from the crab burger, shrimp salad, shrimp scampi, clam chowder, and of course the 1/2 shell oysters. If I said unremarkable, it would be a compliment- it's all pretty remarkably bad. read more

Powell's Steamer Co. & Pub - Alfredo chicken - Seafood Near Me - Placerville, California

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The doors were open but kitchen not open until 12 so we had a drink while waiting. I had 1/2 lazy man's chiopino, no shells, it was excellent served with fresh bread. Our waitress was friendly. The place was clean. read more

Fun vibe, good selection of seafood. The server was friendly and helpful. The iced tea was weak.