Rusty Rudder is big enough to get a table and they're pretty good at serving a bigger group. This unfortunately was my 2nd bad experience so I'll have to find somewhere better next summer. Our drinks took forever, our waitress barley checked in, and the food was pretty bad especially for the insane beach prices. A salad I got a year prior was a third of the size this time around (for the same price) and I paid way too much money to have the tiniest piece of fish in my taco (see pic). It was honestly laughable. The crab bisque was also a let down, truly tasted like it came from a can! Will not be returning! read more

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A flop, this place looked good from the road so we decided to stop on our tour of local beaches. As we entered the bar I noticed the place looked a bit raunchy, while I enjoy a raunchy bar when I'm out with the boys, when I'm on vacation I prefer a more relaxed bar. One where I don't have to worry about some drunk starting a problem with someone in my group. We didn't dare try the food based on the menu lacking what I wanted, a raw bar! I had a beer and ran out! read more

Rusty Rudder - A serious dive bar on the bay - American Near Me - Dewey Beach, Delaware

Rusty is situated by a wonderful sea view -every angle you see open ocean just beautiful. Now atmosphere that exactly what I expected-didn't seem clean -bar tables were not cleaned-as soon as you walk in you see drunkenness ( I know it's a bar lol). You think this a restaurant by the ocean you expect a menu to carry a raw selection-raw oysters-clams, nope. So we had a drink and left very disappointed for sure. So what you see is not always what you get. read more

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I would have loved to have experienced this place, but it just was not in the cards. Nothing on my doing. Lets get into it. On the night of my arrival I was looking for a place to get a meal. With it being offseason the options are limited unless you want to drive a distance. And still at that you are limited. I struck out at another nearby place as it was the weekend and the wait time was just too unbearable. I walked over here to the host stand and was told I could just take a seat at the bar if I was dining alone. I did just that. When I approached the bar I took a seat that had no one near it as I liked my solitude. That rapidly changed and will lean heavily into the reasoning for this one-star review (less if I could). When I made it to the bar, the bartender saw me approach and sit down. However, that didn't deter him to ignore me for about ten minutes. Which was a good feat as there were three bartenders. Finally I am approached and given a menu, asked what I wanted to drink, and then disappeared again. To skip to one thing here, I never got my drink. As I am looking over the menu more people started to show up. What I though was going to be a great spot for my solitude quickly got encroached upon by a bachelorette party. No matter how much I kept scooching down the bar, my space kept getting invaded by the bachelorettes. What added to the confusion so much was that a group of locals showed up across the bar and knew the bachelorettes. Lots of shouting, jokes, and raunchy talk back and forth. More space invaded, more being ignored. I sat there for another twenty minutes, finished looking at the menu fifteen minutes before that, and was ignored the entire time. I know I was seen, I saw the bartender look at me multiple times. I was patiently waiting, no phone in hand. However, I just kept getting ignored. It was more important to entertain the locals and bachelorettes. Since I had been here for over a half hour at this point, I decided that it was time for me to ignore them and just leave. Food, I can't tell you a thing about since I was ignored, never had my order taken, etc. Drinks, can't tell you either since I never got mine. Service, absolutely horrible. Noise, extreme. if you are staying nearby, even on offseason, request for a room that does not face this place. I should have just skipped this place as I have done the three years prior I visited. Guess you live and learn and if or when I come back next year, absolutely not for me. read more

This is right next to the beach and water! Scenic and busy. There's live music, which I didn't like because she was singing country and I hate country lol. I blocked it out. It's very busy so I'm usually sat outside. Getting eaten alive by bugs. I got the Mega Cheese & Tots in a giant margarita glass as my meal. It was fried deliciousness, I couldn't finish it though. Then I got the Blue Hawaiin Slush at the servers recommendation, mmm it was SO good! read more

Rusty Rudder - Mega Cheese & Tots - American Near Me - Dewey Beach, Delaware

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I can only comment on the night life as I did not come here for food. We came on a Saturday night for drinks and live music and the Rusty Rudder did not disappoint. Beers/seltzers were about $9 a piece. The staff were great. There are multiple bars at this location, live music on the back patio and DJ inside, overall, would come again for the night life and recommend if you're looking for a great time and great music. Also Stealing Savannah was awesome, catch them at other venues in the area (DC, VA, Maryland as well) read more

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The turkey bacon BLT was good. Fries are good. The smoked salmon sandwich was good. Their other entrees are ok. Service was good. Convenient location. read more

Can't speak for the food as we just came for drinks on a Saturday night, but we really enjoyed the vibe here! Great band on the back patio. Loved that they had a DJ inside as well to mix up the vibes. Entrance fee came with a free drink. Bartenders were quick and courteous. Definitely a fun weekend spot! read more

Rusty Rudder - American Near Me - Dewey Beach, Delaware

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The red headed bartender was so rude! Save your money & don't come here. From the other reviews I've read it seems a lot of customers have ended up "down the stairs"... stairs should be looked into read more

They had a good variety of food, and were conveniently located by the place we went kayaking. It was quick and easy to get seated. Our waiter was attentive. We got a great spot where we could look out over the water. read more

Rusty Rudder - Clam strips - American Near Me - Dewey Beach, Delaware

I ordered the Greek salad and was not impressed. There was so much lettuce and hardly anything else. The dressing was not appetizing and the lettuce tasted old. I do not recommend this item. Crab legs were skinny and cold when they came out, barely any meat. Entirely Unappetizing! The children's menu was OVER priced for kid sized meals. $19 for Salmon? The ketchup was super sweet "overbearingly sweet" and in a Heinz bottle. To top it off we had to pay $7 to park in their own parking lot. read more

This place used to be one of our go-to spots for dinner, but it has declined in quality since we last went. The indoor seating was not air conditioned and it was fully open to the outside deck. They had big fans but they were just blowing around hot air and were so loud that you couldn't hear each other speak. The food was extremely overpriced. I got the pot of clams, which were pretty small. I usually love poke bowls, but theirs was $33! Other places have them for about $18-20. I ended up getting the fried seafood platter, which was mostly loaded with fries. It had one small to medium sized crab cake, 3 fried shrimp, and 2 rockfish tenders. That was a whopping $39. The service was fine, nothing to rave or complain about. I miss the buffet and the air conditioning! You can tell people have stopped going cause it really wasn't that full. I certainly won't be going again. read more

Myself and my friends showed up around 9:30pm and my boyfriend was denied entry by the bouncer. He will be turning 23 this year and was asked for his snapchat as proof of his age. Unprofessional and absurd to ask for a form of social media. Buy an ID scanner if your bouncers can't figure it out. Absolutely ridiculous, will never spend a single cent at this establishment. read more

This is not where you come for amazing eats and service, but the vibe certainly makes up for it. The Rusty Rudder is located directly on the bay and is where you'll want to be to enjoy the sunset with a drink (orange crush, obvi) in hand. The menu is pretty standard- think burgers, fried shrimp, chicken tenders, etc. It's all pretty barebones, but again with a view like this it doesn't need to be anything fancy! There's also a kids menu with a bunch of different options. The main draw of the Rusty Rudder is the live music. They have a large stage area and the band is viewable from nearly every seat outside. There's also a ton of seating. Usually at places on the water it can be hard to snag a table, but here it was no problem getting a table for 8 at dinner on a Friday. This is probably the best family friendly spot in Dewey to see the sunset, live music and have some eats and drinks. The Lighthouse next door has it all, but the layout makes it hard to see the band / water from every spot. And then North Beach does not allow children. This checked off every box, and we really enjoyed it! read more

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Sigh. This place will forever just...suck. If it wasn't for the view and people watching, we wouldn't continue to come here. In fact, I won't come back ever again after this past weekend. This past weekend we were behind Rusty's for the Crossfit competition. Our group had a few people who have never been and for some reason wanted to try it out even though the reviews are horrendous and I provided a s-l-o-w dramatic pivot to comply with their request in hopes that we could walk elsewhere. We ordered two drinks per person -- I knew to only drink beer here since the drinks are poorly created and one entree. For some reason the food prices here are JACKED THE F UP. My friend (who was with me last time) and I cracked up and then cried because we were famished. The joke was literally on us. SIGH. We decided to split the shrimp tacos and wait to eat elsewhere. The tacos were gross, soggy, and packed with lettuce and ONE SHRIMP. The food and drinks here are always worth complaining over but the food took 42 minutes to get to us and we already knew what we were getting into... Don't eat here. If you must, grab a drink and wander elsewhere. Staff also seem to hate their jobs. Bartenders were SO unpleasant. SO rude. SO...sucky at their jobs. GET A DIFFERENT JOB IF YOU HATE PEOPLE AND SUCK AT MAKING DRINKS...You are in the service industry, seriously. Hate it here. read more

This was really fun! It's an older but large and well maintained beach party spot. Literally sits at the water so the view is the bay and there is live music everyday! Large portions and a wide range of options to choose from on the menu. The setting on the bay is perfect. Drinks were made with care and a heavy pour. Food was delicious with large portions. Everything we ordered... we loved. Fruit platter was fresh as were the greek and garden salads. Fried Green beans were super yummy with the aioli sauce. YuM! Our server was excellent! The band was fun and this spot will always be part our trips when visiting Dewey Beach. Loved it! Highly recommend! read more

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While stationed at DAFB my wife and I went there for valentines day some time back and were treated to the worst service and food I have ever had. The waitress was a complete snob and got my order wrong twice and messed up my wifes as well. The steak I ended up with was so fatty and laced with grizzle that I could barely eat it. After that disaster she bitched that we only left her a ten dollar tip as she was a terrible waitress and should find another line of work (one that does not involve dealing with the public). The manager was very insincere and condescending when apologizing that I swore we would never revisit their establishment and tell all our friends. Stay away; find any other eating establishment. "Salud" read more

This place is a place to party, not to eat. The venue is spacious, on the water, and has a stage for live music. It has a gorgeous view during sunset. That ends all the pros. While it was nice for our large group to be accommodated, we were seated so close to the speaker my ears were ringing. The seafood is over priced, underwhelming, and a waste of money. The crab dip was cold and the chips were stale. The coleslaw on the side of our entrees was rancid, and the chips came in a bag. Would avoid coming here again for dinner. read more

Racist. That nothing else to say. I've never felt more disrespected with my friends in my entire life. I was there for a wedding after part and all I was met with was utter disrespect. Disgusting. read more

This place has gone down hill, prices are outrageous $10 for a bottle of Stella that's barely cold. $4/ hour to park. Dewey beach has lost their minds. Still a couple off reasonable places to go like Woody's fair prices. Customers need to wise up enough is enough. read more

Went here for my little sister's 21st birthday... security's card reader was down, and they could not verify her age so they kicked us out. They were incredibly rude and literally pushed me down the stairs to leave. Would not ever recommend anyone coming here- security looks for trouble and treat customers terribly. If I could give 0 stars I would. read more

What a disappointment. Turn around and go somewhere else. -The chips for the nachos were stale and the 'pulled chicken' looked boiled and was cold. -The fries looked like they would be good but they weren't cooked enough and were too mushy. -the crab dip tasted like it was straight up cream cheese and was lukewarm, served with stale chips. -The fried shrimp was all batter, and soggy on the inside. -the server gave us our food and disappeared for 20 minutes. -server didn't even ask why most of our plates had most of the food still on them. - No manager stopped by the table to check in, too bad because we had a few things we would have talked to them about. -They also charge 2.5% more to use a credit card. If you made it to here, thanks for reading, and enjoy eating literally anywhere else. read more

It's a great place food,music was good it's a great place will come back and our server was great and the sing took a special song request for us. read more

My brother, mother, and I came to Dewey beach for a couple days to mourn the very recent passing of my grandmother. On Thursday, May 18, 2023, we ate dinner at Rusty Rudder. At approximately 9:10PM, I stepped out onto the balcony and steps outside of the restaurant to make a phone call pertaining to a grandmother's funeral arrangements, which are this coming weekend. Upon doing so, as I began dialing the funeral home, I was screamed at by one of five staff gathered by the entrance and told that I could not leave with a plastic cup. I clearly explained that I was holding Seltzer ice water, as was clearly visible, nevertheless one employee proceeded to foist himself upon me, grab my cup, and violently crush it while it was still in my hand, crushing my hand, and leaving my shoes and feet covered with water. This is assault. And, without question, completely unacceptable. I requested the name of the aggressor involved yet was merely laughed and jeered at. As you will see below, they not only laughed but waived and gave me a thumbs up. I have never encountered such callous, unprofessional, and violent behavior in any dining establishment in North America, South America, Europe, Asia, or Australia. I have reached out to management (Megan Holdscall) regarding this aggression and await their response. I would like to note that the aggressors were all Caucasian, and myself and family, Latino. I urge all to avoid this establishment. read more

Rusty Rudder - Assault - American Near Me - Dewey Beach, Delaware

Such great ambiance. The sunset was incredible. I had the huge fries . Fabulous if you're into greasy food ( I am lol ) . The wait staff was great. The prices not so great for what you're getting. All in all good time. The prices are a bit off. read more

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Got my ID stared out for 3 minutes while with my 30 year old siblings and then he proceeded to ask for my settings on my phone to prove it like I didn't have an ID in front of me. All 6 of us left within 1 minute, he completely ruined the vibe and we went somewhere else. read more

We stopped in for happy hour on a Saturday. The day was slightly chilly and the crowd was slim. They had live acoustic music but the setup wasn't ideal to enjoy it. You could hear them but only the first few barstools could see them. The drinks are pretty pricey. We ordered the pretzel bites with beer cheese and mustard appetizer and shared an order of fish tacos. There were 2 tacos with a small ramekin of coleslaw. The fish tacos were DELICIOUS. There was a crunch slaw mix on the tacos that really made them different- so good. I've been here in season and I know it gets really crowded. I think we were there on an "off" day. One note that I don't remember from my previous visit - the parking lot is pay to park. read more

Maggots in a kids drink (yes he swallowed some!) and another vomiting immediately after leaving the restaurant last night! The managements resolution? Take 1/3 off the bill and still charge us over $400! Reporting to the health dept is the next step so no one else gets ill! Shameful! read more

Absolutely horrendous behavior from the bouncers. Looked at my ID for 2 minutes then asked for my Snapchat to confirm my age? Proceeded to deny me ( I have been to rusty rudder multiple times and never had a problem) for no reason. I hope you do better because me nor my friends will ever be returning. read more

I enjoyed the food. Skyler provided friendly and efficient service. The restaurant was also conveniently located. I definitely recommend!

Perhaps the only pub/bar/restaurant that I have ever gone too that has no prices on their cocktail menu. And the reason became clear when I got the bill and paid $9.50 for a can of session IPA and $7.50 for a can of Mango Cart. Intentionally deceptive and outrageous! read more

Food delicious. Seriously. We had George as a waiter and he is great! There were more than 10 of us and he handled it like a pro. We would come again and again. Good fish tacos, awesome crab cakes. I think everyone cleaned their plates or took it home. Salads, pizza, salmon, coleslaw! read more

Drinks, meh. Live music nightly. The place just gets bigger and bigger Kind of lost its magic. read more

Rusty Rudder - American Near Me - Dewey Beach, Delaware

Serious disappointment! Took my family, 4 adults, 3 children. Not the Rusty Rudder it used to be to be...all just bar food. Had crab imperial, struggled to find any crab...was more like a tuna melt. Drinks all watered down. My wife had to ask for more booze in a lemon crush. Still just as pricey $$$ as it always has been. Gotta be making a huge profit margin. Service was just adequate. So many better restaurants don't waste your money going to the rudder in Dewey. read more

They served my 11 year old son two alcoholic beverages!!! We ordered him a virgin Pina Colada and he said it tasted funny and sure enough it was filled with rum. The waitress was sweet and apologized and brought another one which ALSO had rum!!!!!! If our son didn't realize, it would have been a really bad and dangerous evening! The food was good and atmosphere was nice but beware of ordering virgin drinks for your child. read more

My family and I went for Musik Monday to see Kono Nation. They were so good! We got the Buffalo chicken dip and a mudslide, both were delicious. My mom and sister got clams that they really liked, and my dad got the Maryland crab soup. All of the food and drink was so good! Our waitress was really kind and helpful, and all of the other staff were attentive, too. We sat outside by the water, which was stunning. The place is cute and colorful. I will definitely be back! read more

My husband and I stayed in Hyatt recently which is right across the street from this awesome establishment. Food is pretty good, decent and filling crab cake (can't get enough crab cakes in Dewey!). I really enjoyed their late night rockfish fingers, french fries with old bay (my husband loved them so much we went back for more!). Probably their tastiest snack on the menu is their crab and artichoke dip- worth the calories :) . What they are best at and most well known for is their high quality live music. Staff is friendly and attentive, really enjoyed the laid back style. Hands down definitely worth a visit, but be warned, place gets pretty crowded at night. read more

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We wanted to find a place that was affordable and close to Dewey Beach. It was close to the bay and seemed very popular. We waited at least 15 minutes before someone came to our table. Then another 15 before we got our food. Our meals did not come with utensils and condiments. We had to ask for them , not paying attention to details. Food was average, The best thing about our experience was the view and the band that was playing, it was a nice backdrop to other mishaps. read more

FYI- Will only split the bill between 2 cards!!! Apparently it's stated on the menu too- ‍‍ Decent food, crappy service. Stood in front of the check in booth for 15 mins. After asking when we might be seated they told us they we're waiting for the whole party... "they only counted 5", lol. After pointing all 10 out we were seated with the laziest waitress ever. She took the order and we never saw her again...Until the bill came! Gratuity included- do not add any! read more

First time here... completely chosen at random... not overly blown away with atmosphere- but the staff was friendly and the servings and quality of food were impressive. We came around 4 pm on St Patty's Day... seemed slightly chaotic (they had just opened) and there was a loud 'band' (a couple guys?) singing on the patio (we were inside) but the ridiculously HUGE glass of fried pickles and fried green beans was impressive and delicious, as were our meals - shrimp platter and corned beef cabbage and small potatoes. Downside: crazy, screaming drunk guy hollering like he was losing his ever lovin' mind because we were pulling out of the EXIT of the parking lot- we think he thought we were coming out of the entrance?! Who knows?! Lol Nothing the restaurant could do about that! Lol But we did pity whoever came across his path inside the restaurant and later! read more

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