Alright, Shanks, you've got my summer heart. Stopped by this beachside gem in Clinton, and let me just say: it's the kind of spot that feels like vacation, even if you're only there for lunch. I had every intention of ordering the lobster nachos (because hello?!), but the portion looked massive. I will definitely be coming back for that with a friend. I pivoted and grabbed a lobster roll instead, which came with crunchy house made chips and coleslaw. The chips were so yummy and crispy and salty, I almost finished them before I had my first bite of the lobster roll. Even the water they brought over was crisp and cold, which I truly appreciated on a warm afternoon. Also, I tried the clam chowder, because if you're by the water in New England, it's practically a requirement. Clammy, creamy, and comforting...just how it should be. Again, almost finished and filled up before my first bite of the lobster roll! I felt satisfied with the smaller, 4oz roll. The roll was perfectly toasted and there was just enough butter to moisten up the plump lobster. I'm drooling just writing this. It started off pretty quiet, but the crowd picked up once the live music kicked off. The vibe was exactly what you'd want: easy, breezy, and full of locals who clearly knew this was the spot. The bathrooms outside are a new addition from the last few years. Very clean and practical. I just love the vibe of this place. Food? Delicious. Service? Wicked awesome. Cleanliness? Impeccable. Don't forget to add that the food came out in under 20 minutes. Already planning my return to try the ahi tuna sandwich and finally conquer those lobster nachos. And yes, it's BYOB, so bring a cooler and bring some wine. Then claim a picnic table, and make an afternoon of it! read more

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We've been long overdue for a trip back to Shanks! We visited on what was probably one of the hottest days of the year, but the breeze was so nice from the water that it didn't even phase us. They had live music, so it was a nice vibe that night. We appreciated that the staff brought the food up to us, and it all came out quickly. I wasn't expecting so many unique options like the crab Rangoon flatbread or lobster nachos, but they were great!! Definitely keeping this spot in mind for future waterfront meals. read more

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Listen . This is not " dinning ". It is not a rester-aunt with a bar and alcohol . It is picnic tables under a tent at a marina that you have to share with strangers . They had a guitar player and a singer that was great . I had to pay extra for the 8oz lobster roll and fries and they were Great ! My hubs got the fried shrimp that were tiny and looked like Swanson shrimp dinner . Tasteless and bland . Being able to BYOB is great . I will go back for another lobster roll . read more

Shanks Waterfront Dining - Double meat lobster roll $60 - New American Near Me - Clinton, Connecticut

First off very nice view right on the water. Nice large tent/shaded area for seating. As well as seating in the back. This was possibly my 2nd time ever eating lobster but they give a fair amount and it was nice and tender. I got the lobster nachos and while the lobster seemed good I think the nacho part of it could've been better. I think instead of chopped up avocado it would've been better as a guacamole, the mango salsa was really just chopped up mango with cilantro, could benefit adding some red onion and making it more like a salsa. Also think it should've had some sort of sauce to drizzle on the nachos to make it come together better. The cheese was stuck together shredded cheese partly melted partly not. I think melted butter is an interested side to pour on nachos. They do have corn hole off to the side. Also plus is u can BYOB. I did enjoy their sweet tea free refills. Oh and the market nacho price was $36 read more

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It's feeling a lot like Summer !! Beautiful weather, Seafood, great view! It's perfect! Shanks had a wide variety of choices on the menu to Pick from! Many of the items were able to be made Gluten Free. Just check before they have GF buns. When I went they had GF buns and GF wraps. Service was great . They had menu staff working there , all helpful. We ordered the Shanks Combo and I split it with my dad. It def was big enough for 2. The menu had burgers, sandwiches, salads, apps and more! read more

Shanks Waterfront Dining - Shanks Combo-Gluten Free - New American Near Me - Clinton, Connecticut

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Order downstairs at the boat and then sit upstairs for the view and everything music or downstairs at the covered picnic tables with room for kids and dogs. I wish I'd balanced the fried portion of our meal with a salad. I wasn't expecting the lobster nachos to be served on fried tortilla chips. read more

Shanks Waterfront Dining - Fried calamari - New American Near Me - Clinton, Connecticut

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The first time I went here was good, after that, it's pretty much been downhill. Earlier this summer I was at Shanks and ordered lobster tacos, corn and clam chowder. When the worker went to serve me my food, he dropped it all on the ground. He lost the tacos and some of the chowder spilled out. He apologized and came back a few minutes later to replace the lobster tacos. Instead of replacing the clam chowder which had partially spilled out, he didn't say anything. Also, he didn't clean up the mess on the ground. I was there with my dog so I was then trying to hold off my dog off from eating lobster tacos. She's got a one track mind when it comes to ground scores. I tried again. I went to shank's the other night and it was a disaster. We got there around 7 o'clock and didn't receive our food until almost 8 PM. So we sat for almost an hour without any food from the time that we ordered at the counter. Finally, the food came out, and it was absolutely underwhelming. My girlfriend had ordered a side of chips which looked like they had been taken out out of the bottom of the fryer. Some of them were also soggy - and they were cold. The chips that came with my tacos were the same way but slightly better. We said something to the staff and they apologized and said we will come right back with more chips. It took at least 10 minutes and I brought back more chips that were cold, and also the cheese dip was cold as well. When we got our food, we also asked for napkins and utensils, and they never brought it back. My girlfriend ended up going inside and grabbing them herself. All in all, we paid about $80 for a pretty crappy meal. I heard that there is new management and they need to get it together. Definitely not worth the money for cold chips and bad service. read more

Saw a couple of videos of people eating an overflowing lobster roll and raving about how fresh , how good! We went there last week and $75 later ordered 2 lobster rolls. Lobster was served in a cup, with a roll and over cooked homemade potato chips. Lobster was all small pieces, had a reddish butter tinge to it and definitely NOT FRESH, no taste, probably frozen? DEFINITELY NOT the rolls on that video.Not worth the $$ we spent al all. Too bad. Boat galley and outside marina seating concept is good but quality of food very disappointing. read more

This was the worst lobster roll I ever had. Tasted like frozen lobster. Not to mention two lobster rolls 8 oz supposedly and two diet cokes were well over a 100.00. Will never go back. The lobster was not fresh. Save your money. Not good. What more can I say. Ot good, not fresh and way overpriced! read more

We came in after stumbling across an Instagram video of different food on the menu. The lobster nachos stuck out in the video and they looked absolutely delicious. Also the setting and cooking and serving food out of a boat seemed really cool. We went for Saturday evening dinner. The service was great. Everyone was polite, friendly and respectful. The food was so good. I got the lobster nachos and there was so much lobster on top so you definitely get your money's worth. All of the food was cooked perfectly. You could tell it was fresh and of good quality. We will definitely be coming back to try other items! The elote corn was delicious too. Make sure you bring a cooler since it's a BYOB read more

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Ordering is fantastic- great customer service! Sitting outside at the picnic tables near the water the was great. Our wait was about 45 minutes, but we were warned about the wait time. We had a fish sandwich with house made chips and fish tacos. Absolutely tasteless. The chips were old and over fried/ burnt. The fish sandwich had a great piece of fish on it. No lettuce or anything else on it. The taco was beautiful, but the mango salsa on top had no flavor. So disappointing. read more

Shanks Waterfront Dining - Fish sandwich and house made chips - New American Near Me - Clinton, Connecticut

UNDER NEW MANAGEMENT!!!! So 12 months later, went back to Shanks yesterday The Crew recognized us from last years Horrible experience..... Food and service great !!! Last years manager is gone !!! Those college students are friendly and fun, Thanks guys can't wait to come back !! read more

"Wooden ships on the water, very free and easy Easy, you know the way it's supposed to be" (Crosby, Stills, Nash) When you place your order at Shanks, you'll probably notice that you're ordering on a ship. You're not tripping, the owners bought a boat, a decommissioned 42-foot lobster boat, transported it from New Haven to Clinton, built out a commercial kitchen, tacked it onto a building and made Shanks a very cool restaurant experience for your dining pleasure. They have three dining rooms -outdoors under a tent, outdoors on a roof patio, and indoors in a dining room. We ordered from two smiling high school age young men that were very professional. We each went for a small lobster roll with chips. Lobster rolls are offered in three sizes - $29 for 4 ounces, $37 for 6 ounces, and $48 for 8 ounces. As the first young man was ringing us up, the seconds one jumped to make our beverages. In fact, the thing that stood out to us was the staff as a whole - a big group of smiling courteous young men and women with great personalities. I saw one young lady bring over a bowl of water for a customer's dog on her own, and thought that was pretty awesome. She also checked in on us during our lunch and that's always a plus in my book. After we ordered, we took a seat under the tent and placed a small wooden buoy on our table -a signal for the server to bring our order, and when that order came out we were very happy with what appeared to be a heaping mound of 100% claw meat on our sandwiches. The rolls are served hot with melted butter "Connecticut Style" as opposed to cold with mayo "Massachusetts Style". They were served with a lemon wedge, container of melted butter, and a big portion of homemade potato chips. There's a side table by the tent with a ketchup dispenser, and "to go" boxes for any leftovers, that's something I rarely see. We certainly didn't have any left over lobster, but we did take home a good amount of chips for tomorrow, There are so many lobster and seafood shacks on the CT shore and we've been to half a dozen of them. But, I don't think any of them gave us a better overall consumer experience than Shanks did. Well done! read more

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Update: Shanks now has dedicated GF Fryers, making GF fried seafood much safer! They said the fries are also all put in the GF fryer. read more

Shanks Waterfront Dining - Clams and lobster grilled cheese - New American Near Me - Clinton, Connecticut

Service was fast and friendly! We love the ambiance here and stop every summer. We enjoyed watching the boats while trying new items on the menu. This was our first time trying to crab Rangoon and we thought it's a nice addition .The Shank Combo was also good. Fried scallops ,shrimp, fish, and clams with French fries, coleslaw, cocktail sauce and tartare sauce. Big enough for both of us to share! I just wished they improved the lemonade recipe but I love that they have local sodas and of course BYOB!! read more

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Looks like a great assortment of food! Soggy lobster rolls due to expediter delivering it sloshing the butter cup to spill all over the bottom of recycled paper plates. Butter cup congealed and HUGE amount of salt stuck on bottom. Chips browned to the point of burning; a couple actually undone and chewy. "Service" practically non-existent but they charge you a s3 pp BYOB fee Because everything was so haphazardly basic, feeling price gouged re the lobster rolls. I seriously doubt they weigh them, as we had two of the"same' which were markedly different. Music blaring upstairs. Lots of screaming children running around downstairs under the tent. There are no real bathrooms here either. You order at a counter after walking through gravel walkway, less smooth than the driveway next to it read more

Shanks Waterfront Dining - New American Near Me - Clinton, Connecticut

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Stopped here with my husband. Ordered tuna taco and the flatbread. I don't think they use real tuna or any seafood or maybe it comes frozen in a bag. The so called house made chio were. Old and stale. Not to mention how overpriced everything is. The service poor and this place is very dirty. read more

Went there because my hubby has celiac. GF they do well, no after distress but my haddock sandwich was bland and both meals were too salty. Fries were so so and tartar sauce was like a slimy mayo consistency. read more

Got a tuna sandwich, so bland and stringy I couldn't even eat it. It was a gross piece of tuna on a roll and they charged 18$. No thanks so many other better seafood places. I do not think anything was fresh. read more

Shanks was the perfect waterfront location! Excellent service and delicious lobster roll with house made chips! Can't wait to come back to this spot!! read more

Shanks Waterfront Dining - Lobster roll - New American Near Me - Clinton, Connecticut

Sorry Shanks, we high high hopes! We didn't mind the wait for the food, but when we got it it was terrible. I just got a buff chick wrap and it sucked. Nothing buffalo about it. 1 tiny nugget of chicken on half of it. My wife got a $32 lobster BLT and again barely any lobster and the bread was so soggy and gross. Never again. Oh and the fries were hard and cold when we got them. read more

Place is absolute garbage. Cold food, long wait and when i posted a bad review on Facebook they blocked me..do not waste your money here

Drove 45 minutes to get there. Waited in line for 30 min and finally ordered. We found a beautiful table right on the water. Then the food came.....the lobster roll was very good but cold. The lobster bisque was barely warm, and the fish tacos were soggy and very bland. I could not even eat them. My wife got cold clam strips, ice cold fries and her street corn was cold, hard and tasteless. Really disappointed because the view was great and the e staff was very friendly! read more

Food good. Actually for fried seafood pretty good fish seemed very fresh! But who is hiring these kids. Every summer I come for food and scenery and vibe, and the kids hired ruin the experience. Girl taking the order couldn't be bothered. They hand you the drinks right when you order, we got two, they give me one and instantly forget the second. Like I literally watched her say lemonade to the guys standing behind her. Nothing.. so let me hold up the line waiting... Ordered grilled haddock tacos for my mom, they bring out fried. They take it back, my kiddo and I are done eating still no two tacos to be seen. After 20 minutes had to remind them. For 100$ dinner and can't enjoy it at the table with my family bc they forgot. I waitressed in high school...I know they can do better. It's not that hard. A little hard work and having to pay attention is not a bad lesson to learn. read more

Awful today . My husband and i have been coming to Shanks for over 5 yrs and have loved everything about it, today we brought our son and Daughter we were in line at Lobster landing (they love it there) we said they should try Shanks, we waited over an hour and half for our food, no one came over to explain the issue , i went to ask why we were all waiting and the girl just said we are busy .... Nothing else We weren't the only ones.... At least 20 other parties were waiting over an hr and 1/2 too. The ladies room was out of order, the mens room had no toilet paper, we were very disappointed today. I hope this is a one time issue My son said he will never come back My husband and i may come back. But may not So disappointed read more

There are several lobster shacks (well known and otherwise) in the area so if Shanks Waterfront Dining is not on your radar - it needs to be. I am sure it get crowded during peak summer hours but the hubs and I lucked out after our yearly kayaking expedition. We always grab lobster rolls post-kayaking so it was a no-brainer when it was our turn to order. We both worked up an appetite so I was pleasantly surprised at not only the different lobster roll size options (4/6/8oz) but also the variety of other land and sea options. We both went with the 6oz with sweet potato fries and decided on a whim to split the lobster rolls. The price was a pretty penny but we only get lobster 1x per year so we threw caution to the wind. We headed up to the outdoor seating and soon enough our meal was brought to us and boy did it taste good!. Hot buttery lobster, extra butter, and a buttery roll - I was in heaven. AND not to be outshone - the lobster taco was delicious. They definitely did not skimp on the lobster! It was a gorgeous day so the view of boats passing by was wonderful entertainment as well. Free refills on fountain drinks were a nice plus as well. They do have dessert available but we were so stuffed that we had to skip it (this time). read more

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Not good start to the season. Our party of three ordered at 7pm and left at 8:40 hungry b/c our food never came. Watched two tables get food and finish their meals and they arrived a while after us. Also, watched 3 groups get up and walk out. Unacceptable. At least the management replied to my comment on their FB page. Though I never returned. MANAGEMENT REPLY: Alice, I would first like to thank you for coming on opening night. It was a rough start for us!! This was my first shift as new manager with my new crew. There are a few bugs that will be addressed immediately. I am disappointed in your experience. If you would allow me too, I would like to invite your group again. Please contact me if you would be willing to do that. Thank you. read more

Shanks is great and has wonderful fried seafood, but here's the best part: they now have a gluten free dedicated fryer!!! (Established 2024). You can even see that the gluten free food has a slightly different fry to it (if your food is lighter in color it's GF). They keep safety in mind by putting all fries through the GF fryer as well! The fried seafood is crispy and salty without being over bearing and they have tons of varieties waiting for you to try! read more

It's ok, not the best we've had... Our families have been vacationing 3 Summers now in different towns of CT... and this year, we're in the town of Clinton. Our first stop was at Shanks and it was our first day here... kids were hungry and so we settled. They take your order and then you head over to find seatings upstairs or down by the marina. We sat upstairs where the sun was blazing. We got the lobster rolls (large with 8oz), lobster grilled cheese (ok, cheese overwhelmed the lobster), marinated chicken sandwich (dry, not good) and a Buffalo chicken wrap (meh, had better). The lobster roll was overstuffed and it should be with 8oz... but the lobster wasn't very sweet. They have a server on the deck helping with water & beverages, that's a nice touch. Overall, a solid 3 on food. Enjoy your coastal vacation! read more

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Lobster landing next door had a big line so decided to try Shanks, we ordered a 6oz lobster roll - the lobster rolls you can pick from 3 sizes which I think is great so you really get what you pay for. We also ordered the lobster bomb which is lobster bisque in a bread bowl with 8oz of lobster meat and lastly the crab Rangoons. Lobster roll- was very good, basically all claw meat, perfectly toasted and buttery roll with extra butter and lemon on side, only downside was that it came which chips which weren't very good, not very crunchy Crab rangoons- these were okay, tasted like fresh crab meat but not the best I've ever had Lobster bomb- pricey at $54 but just like the roll had a ton of lobster meat, the bisque itself was okay but definitely the most lobster I've ever seen in a bisque (which it better be for the price lol) Other: view is great, they have picnic tables to seat yourself and have water, sunscreen, bug spray, etc for everyone. It's BYOB too which is another plus. Staff was very friendly and attentive as well. Overall the lobster roll was worth it but would skip out on the bisque and try a different app next time but lobster was fresh and delicious! read more

Shanks Waterfront Dining - New American Near Me - Clinton, Connecticut

The Lobster Rolls were pretty good but everything they offered with it were a complete miss. Super simple, you walk up to this cool boat converted into a shack/service counter and then you take your little table marker and take a seat upstairs or around the corner. The views were great. Water, boats, beach houses, docks, you're in a marina. Then you get your food. The Lobster Rolls were fine. Meaty portions but my bun was a little soggy prior to adding extra butter and the greasy fried onions do not help save my case. Seriously I know what I signed up for but the onions just weren't good. Greasy, soggy, tasted like oil. Now for their special Lobster Nachos. It sounds amazing but everything except the lobster itself was way below my sometimes low standards. There just wasn't any effort in these nachos. Best way to explain these nachos is an even younger inexperienced version of myself putting a random shredded cheese on top of some old tortilla chips that I found in the pantry, microwaving it, putting a scoop of store bought salsa on top and asking my mother or father to give me some lobster meat because I felt like it. The entire plate of nachos was just stale. I paid for the lobster. It just didn't feel right adding lobster to the most depressing plate of nachos I have ever had. There has to be a way to make it better. But other than that the service was great. I had a good time with the marina views and the only thing I enjoyed food wise was the lobster itself. Not the soggy bun, not the greasy onions, or the depressing nachos. Just the lobster. Safe to say to they did one thing right at least! read more

Shanks Waterfront Dining - Medium Hot Lobster Roll - New American Near Me - Clinton, Connecticut

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I'm writing this review in the hopes that the owner sees this and takes action before Shanks inevitably closes down. I want to preface this by saying that I've come to Shanks for years and have encouraged friends and family to do the same when they are looking for good seafood with amazing views. Up until this year, that is. The decline in food quality/consistency and service this year is a shame. My first time coming this summer after hearing it was under new ownership was "fine" - the fries were no longer handcut, the fish taco salsa was weird, the lemonade was a downgrade but it was "fine". I even came back THREE more times this summer, each time worse than the last. I've come when it's busy and dead (only table on a Thursday night is a red flag in itself) and regardless the food, specifically the French fries are ice cold. I my fries back once and was handed a "new" basket of fries that tasted like they were 3 days old that had been sitting under a heating lamp. Fresh French fries out of a fryer should be hot the touch and glistening with oil, I'm convinced they cook the fries in advance and put them under a heating lamp. The kicker is that no one came by to see how the new French fries were, probably because they could tell they looked disgusting. This past week was the last straw for me. After sending my food back two different times, I left hungry because I couldn't even eat my dinner, it was THAT bad. The people behind us commented "ours was just as bad" and the couple in front of us threw out their food and headed to lobster landing. The manager was no where to be found to "make things right" and the poor teenage girls were running up and down the stairs trying to fix a very broken business system. After I left I sat at the picnic tables by the exit to enjoy the weather and saw 20+ people (not an exaggeration) come and go because the line was moving so slow. Again - where was the manager to help his team? There were 3 confused teenagers trying to manage the madness, in previous years Ang was always front and center getting shit done and keeping the line moving. My intention is not to bash a local business because I want nothing more than this place to improve but if something major doesn't change this place is a sinking ship. I'm done with shanks for this season but I'll give it a try next season if they are open. read more

Waited 30 minutes for the food, even though the place was not crowded at all. By the time the food came it was ice cold. Eating cold fries is just not fun. The fish was cold as well. We had no serving utensils. Drove an hour out there will not be returning. Spent $80 on a long ride for cold food. read more

My food was delivered in a small plastic basket on top of a small tray that had smeared grease and mustard (?) and other food on it from a previous customer. Definitely pretty dirty and unwashed. I asked the runner to remove it immediately. Very disappointed in the lobster roll today. $30 for 4 ounce Lobster roll. My lobster roll only had very small claw meat pieces, which had no flavor. No tail meat and it definitely did not look look or feel like 4oz. It was awful. On the way out, I mentioned this to the manager. He looked me in the eye and said I'm sorry, no offer for a replacement or any comment, just sorry. I would avoid this restaurant. I was a frequent customer, but this is the 2nd time the lobster roll sucked and at $30, I'm done. read more

For the past two weeks, my wife and I have been exploring the east coast from Maine to Virginia in search of the best seafood possible. We saved up enough to pursue this passion so we would not have to skimp on our gastronomic pursuits. We arrived in Clinton early this afternoon for two days of exploration and feasting, After asking around, the consensus seemed to be Shanks, so that's where we headed. Shanks is located right on the Clinton Marina. It is the most unusual of places. This is a place where you order at the window, get a number (on a buoy) that you take to your table and then you seat yourself at one of three places. Inside, outdoors under a tent or on the deck. There was a significant line, but it only took 20 minutes until it was our turn to order. We each ordered a wedge salad. My wife ordered fish and chips and I ordered ahi nachos and fried calamari. This restaurant does not serve alcohol, but one is more than welcome to bring it in for personal consumption (of course you must be at least 21) and then the server at the table charges $2.00 fee for each drinker. We chose the patio overlooking the marina for our dining experience. All our food came out within 15 minutes. Everything looked beautiful, but ... my nachos were cold and there were literally ten tiny pieces of avocado in the nachos, plus the ahi was overdone and our "wedge" salads were little more than a few leaves of Romaine. It did have a generous amount of bleu cheese, cherry tomatoes and bacon, but certainly not a wedge salad. That was disappointing. The calamari was the best part of our dinner. Our server seemed to be absent and I had to get up and walk into the restaurant on two occasions for lemons, for salt and pepper and for to go boxes. It was busy, but not an unmanageable busy. Keep in mind that a three star review is not a bad review. It's just average. We were on the lookout for some of the best of the best that the northeast had to offer but if fell short here. read more

Overpriced, small portions nothing to write about I find it insulting that when you order they asked for the tip upfront 8 ounce lobster roll $72 eating on a picnic table. The only nice thing about it with the staff was fairly pleasant. read more

If I could give more than 5 stars I would! Wife and I split a shanks combo. Everything on it was fresh, crisp, and tastes great. More than enough food for Two people. Staff is great! Very polite and knowledgeable. We ate on upper deck with a great view. Tables and area are kept clean and there is somebody in attendance if you should want or need anything else. I would highly recommend Shanks to anybody I know! Try them out, you won't be disappointed. read more

The prices are outrageous- $54 for a lobster roll plus additional money for fries!!! Roll was soggy so I could not pick that up and was eating with fork and fries were served cold. Told them about cold fries. They just " acknowledged ".. didn't replace them or refunded anything for. Left them with soggy bread on a plate... Awful experience for lots of money. read more

We waited in line for 45 minutes to order and another hour and a half for our food. Everyone was served after us. Told them we are still waiting and reassured we were next but not the case. The food comes out cold. We ask asked for fries and no one got fries. The lobster rolls were cold and bread soggy. You couldn't even eat them without a fork. The fries were cold and soft! The lobster tacos had no flavor just mayo. Will NEVER go back again. A waste of money and time!! Too bad. We had high hopes! 3 hour fiasco! read more

We were so disappointed with our food today. We had to wait 1 hour in line to order then 1 hour to get our food. Everything was wrong with the food. While in line we heard the kitchen mention there were running out of lots of thing in the menu. Let me tell you when we saw our food we were shocked of the amount of food we received plus the clam strip platter was overcooked so hard to eat plus the fries were not good- very hard also. We spent $90 including 2 hot lobster rolls and had to throw my food away. Going back to Captain Scott for seafood next time read more