If you're looking for a fine dining experience, The Barnacle is not it. But if you want a down-to-earth restaurant with great fresh seafood, this is the place. Nothing fancy - plastic cups (hope they recycle!), paper napkins, plastic tablecloths. It's a few steps up from a clam shack as far as all that goes. Fantastic seafood, great ambience, and friendly staff. The bar is clearly a locals hangout, but we've sat there as tourists and had a fun time. Views of the harbor can't be beat - you're practically sitting in it! Every time we're in M-head we make a point to hit The Barnacle (and we have the t-shirts to prove it)! read more

Beautiful location! A great spot for those looking for local hidden gems. Food was delicious and our waitress was super friendly! read more

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Food, uninspired, ambiance fabulous, staff wonderful, parking atrocious (not unexpectedly in this scenic area)

1st I have been eating at the barnacle for 50+ Years. I generally stop in for a bite when I am in town. Sadly my last meal was awful, for some reason the barnacle wonderful chowder it's seldom hot and severed luck warm at best, microwave chowder only ruins it- the answer I received was- we go through it fast- sorry folks not a very good answer- (three cod was happy to ensure my chowder was pipping hot) Seafood platter a few weeks ago was perfect... I don't say that lightly- one of the best seafood Plates I have ever had. Sadly again with chowder the seafood platter was dismissal.... Over cooked and tasteless- asking the waiter what going on, answer was- depends on who is working in the kitchen- my answer- train the kitchen staff better- What saved the evening was our wait staff, fabulous and fun! Step up barnacle, you can do better- start with severing hot chowder. read more

During our getaway in beautiful Marblehead I had spent a lot of time on Yelp checking out all of the area restaurants and found some really nice options. The Barnacle was definetly on my list but I also got a couple of really good personal recommendations for this place, and I'm seriously glad I did. Upon arrival we discovered a lovely restaurant alonside Marblehead Harbor. Inside, while not that big, it's a very cosy and welcoming atmosphere, with spectacular views. If can get a seating on the deck it's really amazing. They're locqted right on Front street and we could see right into the bustling kitchen from an opened door onto the street, and while that might be odd in other locales, it's actually part of the local charm. Unlike the south or the deesrt southwest, historically New Englanders throw open their doors and windows at the first signs of spring and they remain that way until until the very last breaths of autumn are gone & the too long bite of old man winter grabs hold. Heck I remember when I first moved to MA in the 70's I was shocked to discover that air conditioning generally wasn't a standard feature in new cars, seriously. I had lived in the south and in southern California and the idea of jumping on the car with no AC was, to say the least, indeed shocking. While cars are come standard now it is still very common to to find homes that only cooling system is open windows and a fan or two. I love fresh air and throughout many area, especially coastal New England, there's a almost persistent breeze that most often blows a cooling, I might even suggest therapeutic, ocean wind and what's not to absolutely love about that. The point is obviously that the winters are a lot longer and colder up north so opened doors are just part of the welcomed annual state of being here. :-) Patdon the ramble, now back to The Barnacle. Once seated our server was very friendly and attentive and took great care of us all night. It's a perfect menu with lobster bisque, clam chowder, and lots of locally sourced seafood, I suggest checking it out online. (there's a seafood market right next door) There's some additional choices like oysters, shrimp dishes (not here for me because I am used to fresh Gulf shrmp), crab cakes, calamari, and even steaks, burgers and wings Seriously? LOL With so many tempting choices we stated in the local zone, we had lobster bisque that was outstanding, steamers (these are a really special native clams) that were sweet , fresh and absolutely wonderful, more clams but fried and those were lightly battered and golden brown and not at all greasy and the same was true of the haddock fish & chips. Instead of salads or deserts we wanted to make sure to have room for LOBSTER, OMG the lobsters were incredibly fresh and delicious, I seriously recommend the lobster because, in my experience, there"s just nowhere that serves better lobster. This was a truly excellent authentic New England dinner, period. While the parking is a little challenging and the wait might be a thing depending on the day, weather, etc. here's the bottom line; seafood was wonderfully fresh, nicely seasoned and prepared with really good portions and reasonably priced, I only have one question. seriously folks you do know that lobster rolls come on hot dog rolls in MA right?! Just sayin' :-) read more

Had another fun, wonderful meal here today. The mussels were fantastic, as well as the lobster bisque. My family had the fried scallops, clam roll and crab roll. Everything was tasty and fresh. Highly recommend read more

For more years than I want to admit, friends have been telling me to try the Wednesday night Twin Lobster special. Last evening 4 of us did. We each had 2,at least 1.5 lbs lobsters, fries, onion rings, and for one of us,slaw. Finished off the feast sharing two huge slices of apple pie and ice cream. It doesn't get better than this. Wow! read more

I'm a frequent customer and I can say every table has a beautiful ocean view, it's right on the harbor. The food is excellent, and the young man who served us was truly professional, personable and delivered top-notch service, highly recommended!!! read more

Great location on the water, the restaurant packs in a ton of people very busy usually. Above average seafood, good range of menu options. Would recommend read more

The food was good the day I came in, but I have to say, I couldn't be more disappointed in the community of patrons who proceeded to verbally bully another requesting that a little social distancing be practiced. They weren't wrong in their request and they were met with nasty, snide comments as if they didn't have a right to be there! Even a worker was overheard bragging about how the place was packed the last weekend he worked. Someone sitting at the bar said- we don't do that here. Really? That's pretty bad- I'm a transplant, but I really thought this was a more educated, afluent community who could/should have done alot better in a situation like this. A bartender had to be asked to wipe down an area when another customer left so someone could sit there- no social distancing or sanitization going on that I observed. read more

Portions were skimpy for lunch. Fried calamari came with cocktail sauce, I found out later they do have marinara sauce but it was not offered. Haddock tasted like it had been frozen, not much flavor at all. Thin-cut french fries and skimpy portion. A can of beer was $5.00. They do have a nice location on the water. The waitress was pleasant. read more

This is a classic seaside restaurant that I had always heard about growing up. No better way to force start summer than a lobster roll by the ocean. The lobster roll was full of big chunks of claw and tail. Definitely worth its $23 value! The mayo comes on top, so you can choose to mix it in or not. Started with a cup of lobster bisque. It was creamy and delicious. No chunks of lobster but it hit the spot. The fish and chips were lightly breaded. Generous amount of haddock. Good value. They also had Bent Water Sluice Juice on tap. Really good hazy new england style ipa! The restaurant is close to Fort Sewall so you can take a nice stroll to work off all the food and drink. read more

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I ordered the baked jumbo shrimp with crumbs. It was more like mud-paste with miniature wads of vulcanized seaweed (not the good kind). I left hungry but didn't dare order anything more. The staff are nice. read more

Love this place! A dive but if you know what to order this place is the best! Stuffies, lobster rolls, lobster Caesar.

So cozy and good food. Go there for the seafood not the steak. We ordered the surf and turf and the steak was not great but then again they are known for their seafood so stick to that. Nice place . read more

A bowl of sand instead of premium steamers and pre shucked oysters, oh my! By the looks of the reviews everything should have been perfect, yet it was anything but. Oh it was service with a smile but you cannot eat service alone. Water in plastic cups. Hmmmm. Oysters were Blue Points. I should have skipped them. They were pre shucked, swimming in water and ice. The cocktail sauce was uninspired and said cheap food service ketchup to my palate. Filled with chips of the shells, each bite was punctuated by a crunch of the shell. I'd rather get aluminum foil on a filling in my tooth than an oyster shell in my mouth. I ordered the market priced premium steamers. Filled with sand, most of the shells were broken. Even with the clam broth it was tough going. I sent them back. The kitchen staff offered to "wash them off In hot water" #FAIL so..... I ordered a $ 5.95 cup of their famous lobster bisque. This thin, flavorless liquid hardly had even a smidgin of lobster meat in it. Knorr could have crafted better from a concentrate. Embarrassing and amateurish. My Anchor steam was served without a glass. "Classy" ..... read more

Came on a Friday around 3 PM at the recommendation of a friend. We had two dogs with us and wanted to sit outdoors but their outdoor seating is not accessible without walking thru the restaurant so we decided to order take-out and sit about 1000 feet from the restaurant overlooking the water. My friend went in and the hostess took her order: one Garden salad with lobster and the grilled salmon with fries and garden salad. It took about 15 minutes to be prepared as we waited outside near the restaurant. Served in thick paper based (vs plastic take-out) containers, The lobster over salad was packed separately, the grilled salmon was with the fries and a side garden salad was package separately. The fries were shoestring and reminded me of the old original McDonald's fries. The grilled salmon was cooked well, a little more cooked than I prefer, the fries crispy and hot. The lobster was very fresh and not combined with mayo or dressing , salad greens were very crispy and fresh. Our choice of dressing was balsamic. Total excluding tip and drinks: $39. Portions fair but not big. Best part was the fresh, succulent lobster and view. read more

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It's been a long time since I wrote a review of The Barnacle, which says a lot, really- I haven't needed to. A solid place with great atmosphere and people- patrons and staff. Unbeatable view of Marblehead Harbor, seafood second to none. A really nice, reliable place you can count on. Rare these days. read more

This review is for all visitors! We yelped a place along the coast and this one looked the most authentic and cute. It's a tiny restaurant on a rock edge with beautiful views of the bay. The place was filled with locals which is a great sign. The inside is almost like a ship. We asked for recommendations to try everything and the best was definitely the lemoncello cake (the most moist lemony cake imaginable, we'be been thinking about it ever since coming back), followed by the crabcakes and scallops. Both were so fresh and melted in your mouth. The guys liked the lobster roll but it's not for me. Also, the clam chowder was slightly better than the lobster bisque. Everyone raved about the steamers....so we got them and did not enjoy them that much since they were filled with sand. Apparently the little water bowl is for you to rinse your steamer in and then dip it in the butter! Also, do not eat the little black foot! Highly recommend trying this place, plus the little town it's in is super adorable and Salem is nearby! read more

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As a former Marbleheader I've been a patron at The Barnacle for a long time. Both when I lived in town and after I moved away. It has an atmosphere sort of like transplanting Cheers out of Boston but without the obnoxious people that The Landing Pub seems to attract. I go there mainly for the drinks. The food is average no matter what the season. I tend not to eat in the dining room. I prefer the bar. The bartenders are some real characters and they all have a mean pour. By that I mean that they serve up the stiffest drinks that I have had anywhere & since The Barnacle was within stumbling distance of my former house it was the place in town to go to get wasted. After what seemed like an eternity they finally started taking Amex which meant I could go & drink more. I tried to never eat in the dining room because of the close proximity of the tables to each other. Dining on the deck is fun if there isn't a stiff breeze off the harbor. The food... well its luck of the draw. You can order fish and have it be perfectly cooked or raw in the center. The fried stuff is generally well prepared and tasty. The only dessert I ever order is the ice cream sundae, but generally the food is just to blunt the alcohol so I can float upright if I fall in the harbor. read more

Very small area with cramped tables. Not at all Covid friendly and definite fire hazard. The seafood platter had one inch long fries and onion rings that were so thinly sliced, the batter was sliding off. Four people shared two seafood platters. One couple got three fried clams. The other couple got four clams. The scallops were punched out fish pieces. The clams had a funny taste and smell as they were not fresh. Every single person became sick with diarrhea and stomach issues when we got home. A dirty restaurant with disgusting food. read more

We were in town for the annual Revolutionary War encampment - and arrived late to camp, noting that very few of the mates we expected to see were to be found. "Everyone's gone to The Barnacle" was the reason. We trooped off in search of them.We found them - heading back to camp! Entering in search of a bite, we went in anyway. We didn't venture further than the bar, and were able to put in an order before the cutoff for serving food. We split an order of fried clams, which came with a side of fries, coleslaw, tartar sauce, and lemon wedge. A generous pile of huge fat clams, fried to a perfect crunch, but tender and juicy, were just what we were hoping for. Fries, coleslaw, and tartar sauce were good - but not five star notable. You certainly won't go wrong ordering those fried clams. One would be hard pressed to find better ones. I accidentally visited the bar area men's room instead of the women's room. Phew! I was somewhat relieved when I noticed the sign on the door on the way out. I hope the women's room was a little sweeter. LOL! read more

A little nostalgia ain't a bad thing. Most of the time. When I was a kid, the Barnacle wasn't much to write home about. It was pretty rustic; all I can remember ordering were grilled cheese sandwiches. It even may have had a Fanta soda machine, the kind where you had to pull out the bottle by the neck. Now the Barnacle is a tiny, upscale restaurant with picturesque views of Marblehead Harbor and the Neck. It has a lively bar scene in front and a cozy dining room in back. There is also a deck for those interested in dining al fresco. One thing I will say is that the mussels are fantastic. Go to this place for the mussels. The broth was enhanced, I read, by a touch of honey, and this makes quite a difference. As for our meal, I had the jumbo shrimp scampi, which featured five or six plump and juicy flayed shrimp that arrived on a bed of buttery rice pilaf. My wife had the special, which was grouper, and it was quite good, though also served with the buttery pilaf. The downside? The noise. We were seated next to a boisterous four-top, two couples who were babbling at top volume about this, that, and the other thing. We moved over a table. I have to say, though, even if we hadn't been seated next to the annoying table, it still would have been difficult to carry on a conversation, as the place was packed. As a result, what started out as a "date night" became a "let's eat our meals and leave so we can talk" night. read more

2 stars for the location. Unfortunately the points stopped there. I ordered stuffed shrimp and my girlfriend ordered fish and chips (how can you screw that one up, right?). The shrimp were not so much "stuffed shrimp" as 6 rubbery jumbo shrimp placed upside-down atop a mountain of soggy, mushy, reddish (wtf?!?!?) breadcrumbs with zero taste. The broccoli they came with was cold and still somewhat raw. There were two hairs in my mashed potatoes. On to my girlfriend's fish and chips, a classic staple for a seaside restaurant. They were uniform square nuggets, not filets, so no points for presentation. The batter was reasonably crispy but zero flavor to it at all. And the fries were terrible. Totally limp, no crisp or crunch, cold and dry in the middle and no flavor there either. And the coleslaw was warm. Triple whammy. Unfortunately service doesn't get any points either -- no one came to refill our waters and took forever for our waitress to notice we were done eating. And the windows we sat in front of to watch the boats go by were filthy. Needless to say, we definitely won't be back. No recommendations here. read more

LOVE THE BARNACLE! No, this is NOT fine dining, or fancy dining or fast food dining. The Barnacle, has remained unchanged for decades. It is old New England style, down to earth seafood fare. Lobsters, clam chowder, (NO! MANHATTAN CHOWDER!!) They serve hot or cold seafood dishes, creamy chowder, fried seafood, coleslaw and french fries. I have read some of the complaining reviews, about this not being fine dining. WHY??? Does everyone need Fine Dining, all of the time? This is a local restaurant, it has been this way for years and years. It is easily walked to, on a cold, frosty night, where the beer is on tap, the chowder is HOT! and the seafood is great. There is a harbor view in the summertime and I wish that I was eating there, this evening! The decor is old, wooden and very, very antique looking. NONE, of the locals mind this at all. If it was updated and changed into some glitzy eaterie, no local would be caught dead in there. Everyone, who is anyone in Marblehead, eats at the Barnacle. It is NOT a tourist attraction! If you are a Tourist, eat here and sit back to enjoy real super fresh lobster, and nice local waitresses/servers. Tourists, STOP!!!! the complaining, sit back and enjoy where you are. Enjoy, what you are eating. You will not get better, or fresher seafood, served in the New England style anywhere else. Or served in such a quaint, cozy setting. YUMMO, for the Barnacle! read more

I've been to this place twice and very satisfied both times. Very good food. Mostly seafood with a pretty good selection. The location is gorgeous looking out over Marblehead harbor. Only downside is a somewhat limited beer list. They were quite busy this evening but it wasn't terribly noisy even so. It is a great place to come for a really good dinner. read more

Best place in Marblehead for a great meal and an unbelievable meal. Bartenders are great and the service is exceptional. Friendly and fun atmosphere. Highly recommended!!! read more

This place is tucked away next to the ocean. It is small, not fancy, but they serve great seafood. The stuffed lobster was excellent. My wife had the Haddock Au Gratin, it too was cooked great. The staff is very friendly and helpful with ordering. In the entry they have a bar to visit before ordering your food. read more

Checked yelp for recommendations for a place overlooking water... This place far exceeded our expectations! Perfect for what we were looking for. The bartender, James, was the Best!! read more

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Not the wonderful place it used to be. The food actually sucked!! Oh well, the dream isn't always real. And the service was proportionally bad. read more

Great ambiance overlooking the beautiful Marblehead coastline. Service was great and was only matched by the food.

First time visiting Marblehead we mainly chose this restaurant for it's location. The view is spectacular. It is a very small restaurant with a lot of families, so it's quite loud. The lobster bisque was good as was the jumbo shrimp cocktail. Those two get a 3/5. The fish and chips however, was the most bland dish I have ever had. I'm not a big fish fan and I'm very particular with smell. The fishy smell really turns me off. I must admit that the fish did not have a smell ... But the breading was very odd. I could tell that the fish was fresh but didn't have much taste. Even the tartar sauce was bland. With all of that said, you get A LOT of fish in small pieces. This dish gets a 2/5. The service wasn't anything special. We had too many people "taking care of us" - though we didn't get water until we were done eating our apps AND was mid way through dinner. read more

The Barnacle Restaurant - Seafood Near Me - Marblehead, Massachusetts

My mom and I wanted to stop somewhere local after some intense Christmas shopping ...surprisingly never been to The Barnacle, despite the fact that we've lived in the area since 2001, and we wanted steamers... Sadly, there weren't any steamers, but the food we received made up for that small disappointment! The restaurant is small and beachy-- but not by any means a dive bar like scene. We got there around 9PM as the kitchen was closing, but the chef said no problem. He whipped us up some lobster bisque, the fried fisherman's platter, and mussels. Everything was so delicious! The lobster bisque was perfection. The mussels were clean, sweet, and delicious (not to mention the enormous portion we received ), and the fisherman's platter was light and yummy-- not covered in grease like some places. Our server, Noah, was so sweet and gave us great service. The bartender was equally as great, and made an off the menu martini (that was incredible) for me. Altogether, we thoroughly enjoyed The Barnacle and will definitely be back soon! Thank you Barnacle crew read more

Don't know if it can be more awful than that. Wait is horrible. We were told 45 min, ended up waiting for an hour and then when we sit down were waiting for another 20 min because a waiter forgot about us. After we ordered, we were not served water for another 20 min. Lobster roll was very small and there was a bunch of mayo on top of it. Steamers are the worst!they were not cooked properly, very dirty, and just undercooked (you see it because they were not opened, and it was hard to open them ourselves) Bad quality food, awful services, just go somewhere else! read more

The Barnacle is a phenomenal joint for a good view and a strong drink. Service is great, but unfortunately the food lacks. Even the chicken on my caesar salad kind of tasted funny. If you do happen to stay for dessert, however, the Champagne cake is incredible. read more

I came here on the recommendation of my airbnb host when I was visiting Marblehead. I got lucky and snagged a deck seat (side deck, but still a nice view) I got the fish and chips (haddock) and it came out super fast. Like 5 minutes. The people near me ordered unfried food and like the menu says, it takes about 20 minutes. At least they warn you. My fried fish was nice and hot and perfectly cooked. The fish was flaky and the breading was just right. The only downside is that they didn't seem to season the fish or fries so I basically had to dump salt, malted vineger, and lemon juice on it to get flavor. I think this was just a fluke because my airbnb host was surprised when I told her, since she goes to the Barnacle a lot. Otherwise, the service was fast and friendly and the view was fantastic. read more

I can't believe I am looking at any positive reviews. This 2 star rating is being generous and a small sampling of people walking out had the same thing to say. We are in from out of town and it was recommended. We ordered take out and knew we would not get the whole experience. We pulled up and walked into the most unwelcoming hallway where we were greeted and stopped. She had our order in three bags that were not really packed well. Items were on their sides and not in any particular order. They ran our credit cards and that is when I asked people coming out how everything was. Not good. Got home and realized the bottom of the bags were covered in butter or other sauces. The sideways stacking let everything seep out of the containers. Same with the soup. Really? We can't figure out that soup should not be thrown in sideways? Three people got steaks and they were cooked to order. Nice flavor and good sized portions of mashed potatoes as a side. Three got the seafood casserole. For those who are thinking of going with this $24 entree, please save your money. We opened the box and wondered if that was it. Two scallops, two shrimp and we are not sure what the fish was. It was cooked together with breadcrumbs on the top. No flavor, too small and overdone. Sides of rice were disappointing to say the least. Still don't know if this was cooked or warmed up. One order of Salmon. Crazy dry, but it could be that all of the butter or sauce was at the bottom of the bag. That individual decided to eat the mashed potatoes and add in pieces of salmon so the fish would be edible. One order of scampi. We couldn't find it. We called the restaurant and they said it was in a soup container. Oh, there it was. 5 medium shrimp sitting soaked in butter with a couple mushrooms. What made that dish worth $20.00? That is like $4 per shrimp and I can tell you it wasn't worth it for all $5. We ended up using the butter to dip the pieces from the seafood casserole into it to give it a flavor. 2 orders of lobster bisque. Oh my. Opened it up and saw that it was the consistency of water. I stirred it and no chunks of anything could be found. I drank it because the spoon was ineffective and I filtered out any solid pieces to see what this was made of. Total seafood in the bowl of bisque would be less than half a tablespoon of what seemed to be crab pieces since it was stringy. What were they thinking. $6 for bisque flavored water is what we got. Not sure what the thinking is here. I believe they got a name for themselves back in the day, but they stopped trying from what I see. I will not be returning unless someone tells me there is a complete overhaul. The two stars was for the steaks. The beef is the only thing that saved this seafood restaurant. read more

A crowded little place that's got tables with painted wood like your grandmother's picnic table. But that's exactly the ambiance: low key surroundings where there's nothing left but to see the beautiful ocean view out the windowsill, and enjoy tasty simple fried seafood dishes. Great for a date or even a solitary diner. Staff friendly too. read more

The Barnacle Restaurant - Window seating - Seafood Near Me - Marblehead, Massachusetts

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We came here on an overcast Saturday for a late lunch - having a bowl of clam chowder each and splitting the mussels. We would definitely go back - wish it was nicer to sit outside. The cons: The decor is rustic - the inside really could use a fresh coat of paint. There were a few flies buzzing around the dining area. The clam chowder was warm, not piping hot as we would have preferred. The pros: The outstanding view. I mean, if it weren't for this, I would not have given it as many stars. The mussels were the best I have ever had - the butter/garlic oil with bread was just a perfect finish to the dish. Service was quick - both in taking our orders and serving. We walked here from the town center - highly recommend walking over to Fort Sewell for some great views. read more

The Barnacle Restaurant - Seafood Near Me - Marblehead, Massachusetts

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I wanted to love this place. Great location with beautiful views of the harbor. Unapologetically original, old school. The waiter was a good kid and worked hard. There was no wait, we were seated immediately, and they accommodated our slightly messy one-year old baby. That said, it's very small. Bordering uncomfortably so for me. A wheelchaired individual would not be able to get in to the dining room, deck, bar, or restrooms. ADA nightmare. There is no parking. Is what it is, just something to know before you go. Drinks were OK. What was probably just a one-off issue, every food item they'd brought to the table had an overpowering taste of dish soap. The table next to us complained about the same thing. We sent our meals back three times with the same complaint before eventually giving up that they could serve us edible food on that day. Mistakes in food prep / handling are one thing, but it was repeated over and over. Lucky it wasn't something worse than soap. A manager never came over, though it wasn't overly busy... no one seemed to care. Not sure why. Really surprising. Most folks look to have had great experiences here. We did not. read more