Fab food!! We drove down from DC for the day and stopped for dinner. Absolutely well done food... Perfect fried oysters (from a Baltimore native), rockfish (seared to perfection) with risotto, and succulent pan-seared chicken with fried brussel sprouts, and garlic sauted spinach. And great drinks! Super cold Bud in a chilled glass. Can't beat it. read more

I work within a block to the downtown location. Since their renovation, their customer service has declined drastically. Of the 3 times I have ordered from there since the change, they have messed my order up all three times. Just now I called to place an order and they just picked up the phone and hung up on me. I am VERY disappointed with their service and will not be going back. They are way too over priced to treat customers this bad. read more

We went with a large family group. They seated us quickly, and the rest of the experience was amazing. Try the Ruby Salts if you like a nice, clean tasting bring oyster. The She Crab soup was delicious with just enough Sherry added...and we had 2 kids in the group and our server went out of his way to make them happy. Prices were reasonable, portions we're great, and we'll be back. read more

This is a fantastic place for seafood and steaks. Was a wonderful dinner and our waiter Timothy was absolutely the best!! Couldn't have been better !! read more

Had been dying for good seafood.. saw the reviews for The Hard Shell and decided to try it out. If you are in Richmond and want AMAZING seafood GO HERE! We had a party of ten and ordered practically the entire menu.. shrimp, oysters, crab .. there wasn't a bad meal in this place. Our waiter Tim was awesome! He was attentive and knowledgeable and truly made our visit enjoyable. When we return to the area we will be back! Absolutely awesome restaurant! read more

This is one of my favorite places to eat at when I'm in Richmond. I love the calamari and the fried oysters.

A favorite place to go splurge and celebrate. Service can be hit or miss, but what an awesome menu for seafood lovers.

I've been eating out this entire week, but this was by far the best meal I've had since I arrived in Richmond! The servers are attentive, the restaurant is very nice, enough to give you the feel of fine dining but with extremely reasonable prices! I enjoyed the California huevos, the flavor was amazing!!! We are here for 3 more weeks and I will definitely be back! read more

I enjoyed the atmosphere of the restaurant and the friendliness of the staff, but that's the only good thing about this experience. The food was hugely disappointing, and extremely overpriced for what you get. The water appeared to have bacterial growth swimming in the glass and the water container had contaminants in the bottom. The food came out lukewarm and definitely didn't taste fresh. Overall a big $107 disappointment and you can literally eat anywhere else in Richmond to enjoy a better meal. read more

This was our best meal of our vacation so far. My wife had the crab soup and I had the arugula salad, both delicious. Entrees spanned the gamut from my son's fish & chips to my blackened mahi-mahi and again excellent. The atmosphere was a little noisy but not unusually so. The restaurant is in one of a number of converted warehouses and was modern but not out of place in a district of older buildings. They even validated our parking garage ticket which saved $5. read more

This place was fantastic! Greg was our server and he was appropriately attentive. The food was fantastic! If you're in Richmond this is a must - the crab pasta was unbelievable! read more

A+ beet and goat cheese salad. The chicken an Brussel sprouts were fantastic, didn't feel like seafood.

This is one of the best seafood restaurants in Virginia. My family and I were celebrating a special occasion and welcomed the opportunity to try various lobster dishes. The lobster combo although considered a small combo was more than enough for two. The lobster tails were excellent. All dishes were well prepared and visually appealing. The restaurant has a pleasing and sophisticated ambience. The meal price was similar to other seafood restaurants. The staff was very good. Highly recommended restaurant. read more

Very rarely do I ever come across a restaurant where I just abhor. The Hard Shell, however, is very easy to dislike. I'll start off with the positives. The decor on the inside was very nice. It gave off a very comfortable ambience. That's the end of the positives. First off, the waiter was painfully rude. At finer establishments, such as those The Hard Shell tries to imitate, waiters usually introduce themselves as a sign of respect. That didn't happen. Usually I wouldn't mind but his later actions really distinguished him as someone I wouldn't want handling my food. A spider fell on me from the AC vent and I brushed it off onto the table and killed it. I did not want to make a scene because I know that it's impossible for a restaurant to rid every single pest. These things happen. But how the waiter handled the situation was rude and probably failed almost every health code that exists. When we told him about the situation he did not apologize or even look us in the eye. He pinched the spider with his hand, BEFORE lifting the bread basket onto our table. The dead spider was literally an inch away from the bread my friends and I were about to eat. When the waiter came back to wipe the table off (Thank God he at least knew to do that) he simply said "Sorry you guys had to go through that. Spiders are serious business." The way that statement was said was with the most disrespectful and patronizing tone I have ever heard. He never looked any of us in the eye. He never told us to notify him if we see any problems. Maybe it's just me but I don't think manners are that difficult. I then thought, maybe things will get better. Maybe the food will be amazing. I could not be more wrong. The food was laughable at best. My friends and I ordered 4 dishes, a butter poached lobster, seared fish, snow crab combo, and a scallops and shrimp dish. ALL of these dishes were sub par. The lobster, which was the best dish, was undercooked. The other 3 were overcooked and over seasoned. The grilled shrimp and scallops had an overly pretentious asian flair where they just put some cabbages, seaweed salad, and sushi ginger on the plate. A bit into the scallops and shrimp flooded my mouth with salt. I tried to the scallops and shrimp with the cabbage to cover the taste a bit until I realized the cabbage was just as bad. The dessert was also subpar. The "creme brulee" did not have a hard glaze on top. If anything, it seemed more like Jello Chocolate Pudding. This place takes the cake as the worst restaurant I've ever been to in Richmond. Avoid it like the plague. If you ever find yourself compelled to go, compose yourself and drive to the nearest Mcdonalds and order a filet o fish. The quality is about the same and the service might even be better. Or, just save yourself some money and get a frozen dinner. Also similar in quality. This place really should just turn itself into a grocery store and sell its ingredients straight to the customer. That way that wouldn't even have to go through the trouble of ruining good ingredients. read more

Had a Sunday late afternoon lunch here, not busy at all. Excellent service. I had the blackened Mahi Mahi, Rhonda had the filet. Both were perfect. Drinks from the bar were perfect! Definitely will return. read more

My family and I went to this restaurant on a last-minute quick decision for dinner and it was great. The food was great, especially the lobster tail, mussels and oysters, and the service was very good as well. We would definitely come back here for another meal. read more

My babe and I went here for dinner on a Saturday night. We made reservations, however, it wan't really busy when we arrived. We sat inside at a large booth which was nice. They also have outside seating as well. We sat at the table for about 10-15 mins waiting for our waiter so we looked at the menu. The waiter finally came over and said "we are out of the today's special but the soup of the day is__". No greeting, sorry for the wait or introduction- OK. We didn't even know there was a special as this was our first time here. The waiter (older gentleman with glasses) wasn't very friendly and seem to act as if we were bothering him. He took our drink order and we informed him we were ready to order. He said he will be back and we waited for another 5 minutes. We have been waiting so long for a waiter that we had already figured out what we wanted to eat. The waiter didn't want to take our drink and food orders at the same time- why not? We had he crab cocktail and we had to ask for seasoning on the side. It was good along with our entrees and dessert was delicious. I will return since the food was good but I will make sure not to sit in his section again! This could have been a 5 star review but the service isn't equal to the food quality in my opinion. read more

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On a Wednesday evening we had reservations with friends to have dinner. We got there promptly at 7 p.m. and ordered fairly quickly thereafter. We sat for over an hour and nothing further happened. We complained about no food, not even the salads or appetizers. We got more bread. Then when we asked for additional bread, they reported that they were out of bread! I am allergic to onions. They could not come up with one sauce for my shrimp and scallop dish that did not have onions in it. Question, where was the chef? After more than an hour, I got my Caprese salad which was uninspired tomato, mozzarella and balsamic vinaigrette lying on a plate. My partner's fried oysters were dramatically presented on the half shell and were tasty. My shrimp and scallop dinner was two shrimp and two scallops. I left hungry and the Asian cabbage slaw did nothing for the dish. The special chocolate mousse was anything but special. It was lackluster and tasteless and the bits of fresh fruit with it were the only good thing about it. Our companions had very good french fries, boiled shrimp, and pedestrian key lime pie. With the lousy service, running out of bread, a staple especially when everything is delayed so much and there is nothing else to eat, poor accommodation for an onion allergy and only a comped mussel appetizer to placate us for waiting for more than an hour for even our salads, The Hard Shell is not worth the trip or the money. read more

The Hard Shell definitely has a dark, raw-bar feel on the inside. It gets loud because the wood doesn't absorb sound the same as carpet. The service was very, very good--we had a large party and the waitress didn't miss a beat (splitting checks, making a change to an order after it had gone to the kitchen, etc.). I couldn't decide what to order, so I did she crab soup as a starter, then a salad and seafood appetizer as a main. The she crab soup wasn't good at all, which is why this review is three stars instead of four. I travel to Charleston frequently and am pretty darn picky about she crab soup. This was rich, but the only crab in it was a lump placed on top that you had to mix in with the soup. It didn't turn out to be enough crab, so I basically felt like I was eating a cup full of cream. It was rich but very unflavorful. Some spice and some more crab would have done wonders. I then got the spinach salad--which had candied pecans, a champagne vinaigrette, dried cranberries (and I think something else I'm forgetting). It was HUGE for a starter salad at a moderate-to-expensive restaurant. The salad had too much dressing, and I was a bit surprised because normally higher end restaurants go a bit easy on the dressing. But here, I definitely had a puddle on the bottom of my plate. The flavors were good though, and I would order the salad again, with the dressing on the side or a request for half the dressing they normally use. I also got the seared scallops appetizer. It came with three to an order, which isn't a lot, but is pretty much market price for scallops at similar restaurants, so no complaints there. They were quite good--perfectly tender--but they were cooked in A LOT of oil, so they still had an oily taste that isn't my favorite. I wouldn't order them again, even though I enjoyed them for the most part. Overall, it was a good experience. Folks who got the "simply grilled" fish entrees seemed to really enjoy them, so I would probably start out with a salad and move to that if I am ever back. Highly recommended for groups. read more

The food is very good and great atmosphere for a fancy date without killing your wallet. This is definitely a place to visit. The calamari is seasoned just right we couldn't stop eating it. read more

I went to The Hard Shell about a year ago.I had a pretty good dining experience at The Hard Shell.The service was average.Nothing great but not poor.The dishes I order were really good.The best part about my meal was the appetizer. The bourbon glazed ribs were delicious .I would go back for the appetizer ribs alone.A parking deck is right across the street.You can validate your ticket to receive free parking.My advice would be to experience The Hard Shell early evening before the huge crowds come down to shokoe.Ohh yeah, get the bourbon glazed ribs! read more

I am very much happy to write this rave review for the The Hard Shell. My cousin graduated from Virginia Commonwealth University last Saturday (5/13/17) and we had graduation celebration dinner at this establishment. We had a large party, approximately 25, and the restaurant was able to seat, and serve each person with the utmost professionalism, efficiency, and kindness. Meagan, the general manager, was wonderful to work with over the phone to answer questions and take our reservation. We are forever grateful to her and the staff. Our waiter, Brian, was wonderful as well! (He was one of two/three waiters for our large party). The food and drink prices are reasonably priced and if I'm ever in Richmond again, I will be sure to come back! Thanks again, everyone! read more

The food is good, bit I was seriously disappointed when we were accidentally given the lunch menu, placed our orders without knowing that, and then were charged the dinner price - with no apology. read more

Father's Day Brunch (it wasn't busy....). We've had better service at Chick-fil-A!! It took a while for the waiter to acknowledge us; once he recognized us he would walk away anytiime we hesitated when asked if we had decided what we wanted to order... The menus had been tossed down at our table, and we had two small children, so we had a sense of urgency to get them fed, however, he obviously didn't want to answer our questions. Water glasses were never refilled, food was equivalent of something served at Ruby Tuesday's for a 1/4 of the price. Don't bother! read more

I live nearby and had always walked by and thought that this was a very upscale establishment. The clientele always seemed dressed up, and I had assumed it was a nicer place to go, and the prices on the menu seemed to reflect this as well. Unfortunately, the food and the service did not. The meal even started off on the wrong foot with the server having to make five trips to the table before taking our drink order (one to seat us, one to bring water, one to tell us about the specials, one to tell us they were out of a particular menu item, and finally one to take our drink order; he then brought the drinks and left and returned again before taking our food order for a grand total of seven interruptions before we had ordered). This is probably nit-picky, but made him seem poorly organized, which didn't bode well for the rest of the evening. We made our selections, and waited for our appetizers to arrive. When they got to the table, my water glass was half full, and once we were finished with them, my glass was almost completely empty. Yet even when the table was cleared, no one offered to refill the waters. When the entrees arrived, I had placed my water at the edge of the table, and the food runner (someone other than our server) brought them out, he mentioned that he would be right back with some water for us. He never returned, nor did he let our server know that we needed water (or if he did, our server didn't act on it). Halfway through the entrees, my date was able to flag down our server and ask for some more water. He returned and filled her glass, but not mine, which at this point didn't even have ice in it anymore. The story was the same for the drink glasses. I placed my drink glass at the edge of the table, and our server walked by and grabbed it on his way past, but did not ask if we wanted a second round. And finally on to the food. I had ordered the stuffed lobster with the expectation that this would be what a restaurant with a lobster on their logo would be known for. Perhaps my expectations were too high, because I was sadly disappointed. My entree came to the table luke-warm at best, although my date's was steaming, which leads me to believe the entrees were poorly timed. The crab-cake which came with the lobster was delicious, as was the salmon which my date had ordered, although the lobster itself was lacking. It seemed like it was nearly unseasoned, and was a little tougher than I would have liked. In all, the raw bar was on point, the desserts were excellent, but the service and the lobster left a sour taste in my mouth about the restaurant. I might go back for the raw bar since it is one of the only ones in the area, but if the service is the same a second time, I will not be returning. read more

It had been a long time since we had eaten at Hard shell. We decided to give it a try tonight and I am glad we did. It was great. I had she crab soup as an app and it was delicious. My husband had the blackened mahi with rice and asparagus. I had the simply grilled Mahi with brussel sprouts and asparagus. The brussel sprouts were amazing. The ambiance was great and the music was just the perfect level so you couldn't hear every word of the table next to you. We will he back again. read more

I love crab legs and the Sunday special typically satisfies that craving. I've been a few times and had oysters (which were so fresh) and celebratory dinners here. Service has always been good nothing really stands out for me there. They have a nice selection of wine and the atmosphere is usually professional. I'd recommend going on a night where you can people watch on the patio. read more

I came here for restaurant week and I was not impressed. Selection was limited on the pre-fixed menu because many of their items had run out. The quality of the seafood was just so-so for the price (the lobster was a bit dry/chewy and my friend's steak was overcooked). Service was slow (probably because it was restaurant week and it was crowded). Overall, I will not be coming back. read more

I recently went here for lunch while down in Shockhoe. It was very...decent but lacked anything really stand out. I had the blackened tuna sandwich ordered medium rare. The portion was small with four pieces of ahi style (although they make no claim that it is ahi grade) tuna on a hard french roll. The bread was fresh as was the tuna but their definition of medium rare is more like medium. The blackening was adequate. I also noticed that the crab-cake was similarly smaller than I would have liked. One bright spot was the french fries which appeared to be hand cut. The location was good and pleasant but I think there are better places to eat in the area that are less pricey. The service was good. I won't say it was a bad experience but it was like a 60 degree day in that no one will remember it. read more

Amy and I visited The Hard Shell on Friday for Valentine's weekend and had a terrific experience. We arrived to find no street parking but remembered reading they will validate your card at the parking garage across the street. We had reservations and were seated right away. We informed our server Brian that we are going to share a few things off the menu and bring them out when ready. The kitchen must have been on overdrive cause each dish came out so quickly.. We started with the creme brulee. It was spectacular! Next we tasted a cup of the She-crab soup and oysters Rockefeller. She-Crab was hearty but not too creamy. I love the flat crispy bread that came out with it.. we had to ask for more. Next came out the ceasar salad. I was so excited to see that it had a few anchovies on top.. The croutons were noteworthy. I usually don't eat these but I ate every one. Lastly, came out the Stuffed Lobster with asparagus and croquetttes. It was excellent! Lobster dinner, appetizers, dessert, two glasses of wine and validated parking for $75 was a great deal. We dined like a king and queen. Thank you Hard Shell for the fabulous experience and making our Valentine's memorable. read more

I ordered the mini crab cakes and the lobster with string beans. Wow, what fresh ingredients and great flavor. The services and drinks were also top notch, as was the ambiance. Will definitely be back when I return to Richmond. read more

Maybe I was just lucky to have encountered none of the problems other yelpers have. It was my first dinner experience in Richmond, and I cannot think of one aspect in which Hard Shell disappointed. We made a reservation for 7:30pm on a Saturday night, had to change the time on a late notice just before 7 to 8:45. The person on the phone gladly changed our reservation. When we arrived 10 minutes late at the venue, we got seated right away, and had a waitress come serve us immediately. I had the mixed berry mojito and grilled shrimp and scallops. Both the drink and food were exquisite. The mojito was a decidedly summery drink that's fruity but full of the essential rum taste. The grilled shrimp and scallops had three pieces of shrimp and three scallops, served in a perimeter around a bed of veggies with a small portion of white rice on top. The speed of service could've been better, but we had nothing to complain about when the food came. We were seated indoors at a corner table, so it was very intimate, although there was a big group in the center of the room. Menu items were on the pricey side, but it's only reasonable given the quality of the food, the restaurant's location, and overall ambiance. I didn't find the place too loud, even though we didn't finish our dinner until after 10. There are plenty of post-dinner activities in the area in Shockoe Bottom neighborhood on weekend nights, and we went for drinks afterwards at a bar just a couple of blocks up the street. It's a good place to start your weekend night out since you don't have to drive around after dinner to find a place for the city nightlife. read more

Not a place I would take someone to introduce them to dining in Richmond. A number of places w/ better seafood, good atmosphere but not excellent service either. I have been there on a number of occasions, won't return. read more

Nice atmosphere, busy and bustling but otherwise mediocre in every way. The fried oysters were decent but have had better ones, The pan seared mussels were quite good, The crab cakes were not bad, have tasted better though, My blackened mahi mahi with rissotto and asparagus was good, The fries were too oily, The vegetable chilly was dry lacking broth, The creme brulee was ok too. Definitely pricey but I guess that goes with out saying for sea food. You can give it a try but if you are a sea food lover like me, you definitely would have had better than this. Average! read more

Excellent service, atmosphere and food. Was there for prime rib night and it was delicious! I asked to substitute my salad for she crab soup and they made it happen! I substituted my potatoes for Brussels sprouts and it was Amazing!! The Brussels sprouts are flash fried...yummy!! I would definitely go back. read more

I like this place. I've only been 3-4 times, but never disappointed. Sesame seared tuna salad is pretty good. The wasabi vinaigrette is great, with just the right amount of punch that it doesn't overpower the salad, but you know it's there. The wait staff is friendly. Attentive. Ambience is nice. Old building, lots of wood & exposed brick (typical for this area, I know). But it's one of those places where you can go in with jeans and a t-shirt and not feel underdressed or in a cocktail dress and not feel overdressed. Appetizer order of Fries, Seared Tuna salad and iced tea ran me $20. Not sure where some of the reviewers who say that it's "overpriced" usually eat, but I can't complain about the prices. read more

I am strictly reviewing the midlothian restaurant and not the one in shockoe whatever. The midlothian one has great food, service, ambiance and everything. The shockoe one may have good food but my only memory of going there was being ignored for 15 minutes by the hostess whom we were standing right in front of. She was a class A snob. Go to the midlothian restaurant unless you enjoy being treated rudely. read more

The Hard Shell gets a hard NO. The only thing that was good was the lobster chowder. Well the wine was ok, totally not worth 48 bucks. However we all now they super inflate the prices of wine at restaurants. Anyway, I ordered the king crab, so very disappointing. It was over cooked, dry and rubbery(some legs were dry others rubbery) and really salty. They offered me two free desserts, which totally makes up for it(enter sarcasm). We had the cheesecake there, holy yuck. It tasted like old frozen thawed cheesecake. I've yet to try the key lime pie, but I'm not holding my breath. I just wanted to have a nice mothers day dinner. Should have just went to long horn, at least I know what I'm getting there. read more

WOWZA!!! We had our rehearsal dinner at the Hardshell and OMG it was amazing!! It exceeded every expectation and everything from the food to the ambiance to the staffing was amazing!!! Everyone enjoyed their meals and the staff was on it! They were ready with refilling our drinks, they provided great background music and they were very receptive to requests for temperature and volume adjustments! If you are looking for a place to host a private event YOUVE FOUND IT!!!!!! The price point was really reasonable!!! Im still thinking about that pasta dish and the crab cakes!!!! read more

Came here for seafood and was disappointed. Lobster tail significantly over cooked. Would have anticipated better from a seafood restaurant. Dessert was also just average and didn't rise to expectation. Wouldn't recommend read more