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    Waterman's Restaurant

    3.2 (482 reviews)
    ModerateSeafood, Steakhouses
    Closed 11:00 am - 9:00 pm

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    Waterman's Restaurant Seafood Restaurant Photos

    WATERMAN'S RESTAURANT ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Moderate noise
    Casual
    Good for kids
    Happy hour specials

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    Recommended Reviews - Waterman's Restaurant

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    View from the patio.
    Mar O.

    3.75 stars The food was really good. We got a seat on the patio with a beautiful view. Once the sun goes down the mosquitoes come out of nowhere. If you're coming after sundown - sit inside. Service was really slow. But I think it's because they're a bit understaffed. I'm coming on offseason (October). So that's understandable. Despite service being slow - staff was very kind. The inside of the restaurant had a really nice ambience as well. We'll be back again.

    Martini
    Melanie K.

    Seated immediately on a Sunday evening at 7:45. Sat outside but the wind came up and we were easily seated in doors. Nice waitress that allowed us to divide the check easily. I had the crab cakes, salad, and crawfish Mac and cheese. Food was nice and hot and we were able to finish up right before closing. Got easy to go containers. It was Father's Day and my dad's 85 birthday. My dad fell down the stairs onto my sister and two employees quickly came to his aide and help him up. Of course that's when we saw the elevator!! Nice place

    View from our table
    Elise M.

    Underwhelming experience. We came back to Waterman's during happy hour and were told they were not doing happy hour during spring break. Doesn't make a lot of sense when they were completely empty and over staffed but ok. Maybe use some of that staff to put that information on your website so that people know not to come here. They were also out of a number of menu items. Despite being one of the only tables, service was slow. Food was nothing special. The best part of Waterman's is the atmosphere and views. Otherwise, go somewhere else for good food and happy hour.

    Salmon and shrimp Alfredo
    Chris G.

    The food is a little overpriced but decent. Typical Galveston prices for the summer season. Service was slow at first but they picked up the slack. Inside is very casual but you over look the bay and the sunset is amazing!

    Blackened Red Snapper with green beans and cheesy jalapeño grits
    Mark G.

    This is our second visit to Waterman's in 30 days. We had such a good experience the first visit that we were drawn back when visiting Galveston again. For starters, the ambiance is fishing lodge nice. Nothing stuffy since it is at a marina. Lots of wood and space. The views are great and we saw a gorgeous sunset on our first visit. Regrettably there were too many clouds on our second visit. No fault of Waterman's. The service is generally attentive and knows when to leave you to your conversation or drop by to take your order. Overall, the food is good. I had redfish for my first visit that was cooked properly with good seasoning. My second visit I had the Seafood Treasure Chest which is angel hair pasta with a lemon caper sauce and topped with shrimp, scallops and lump crab meat. Lots of food and no skimping on the seafood. Other guests had the grilled shrimp with cilantro rice and vegetable of the day (green beans). Appetizers were a small miss and I might just skip them next time. Wine list is sufficient with good prices. We will return and hopefully get the sunset we saw the first visit.

    Ahí tuna appetizer
    JoAnna D.

    The food, atmosphere, and service were all fantastic. The crab cake appetizer was absolutely incredible - the best crab cake I've ever had! We also really enjoyed the ahi tuna appetizer and the filet mignon with crab topping, lobster ravioli, and pecan crusted red snapper with lump crab topping entrees. Everything was delicious!

    Me and my son.
    Mike C.

    Great place for some afternoon snacks and cold beverages. Came by boat on a beautiful summer day. Live music is really good. Service is very attentive and friendly. Coming back for a nice dinner soon!

    Lauri B.

    This place is big! A great spot for live music, water views and a comfortable atmosphere. We sat downstairs in the main dining area. They were setting up for a wedding, so I couldn't see the top floor. At the entrance, they have an outdoor side bar area which I would assume is for overflow on busy days. I was surprised how much space they have at the place! The service was a little slow, especially for not being busy. It seems like it was more in coordination with the drink orders. It took way too long to get a wine, a beer, and a Bloody Mary to our table. I would have ordered a third drink, but it was seriously getting on my nerves that it took so long. I gave her 2 tries, but it seems there was an issue of some sort. She looked to be very young, so maybe it was a generational thing. The food was great. I had the coconut shrimp, one friend had the fish and chips and the other friend had the regular shrimp. We all enjoyed our meals. Everything was delivered promptly to our table. Big portions, hot and fresh. Their fries are extremely good! Best fries I've had in a long time! The water view is fantastic! The downstairs is completely shaded, so you don't get too hot. I was very happy with the ambiance. The live music was awesome. Don't forget to tip your entertainment! Ryan Guidry was on point with a great mix of songs with an excellent voice. Thoroughly enjoyed his music. They have a tiny t-shirt shop at the main entrance, a small marina, rocking chairs in the shade near the dock, and multiple dining spaces. People launch their boats here, and if you catch fish you want cooked, they will prepare it for you for a cost (don't recall the price; I just remember seeing it noted on the menu.) For all 3 of us, with 5 drinks total, our bill was $109.51. I thought that was pretty good for the view, live music, and good food. Side note: they are dog friendly. I saw one person with their pooch. Love dog friendly places. They are family/friends too!

    Amazing crab cakes

    What a nice, final vacation dinner! Ms. Phatty made sure we had every single thing we needed! The food was amazing. Our table had a filet, ribeye, pasta, crab cakes and the Texas style redfish and each of us believed our dish was the best. I appreciate that the wine was not ridiculously overpriced and loved the view. We will be back!

    Grilled shrimp

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    27 days ago

    Excellent bisque and Shrimp and Grits! Great service. Perfect place to sit and relax!

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    1 year ago

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    Jeff E.

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    7 months ago

    Best seafood in Galveston! Service was top notch and we loved the outdoor seating. We will definitely be back.

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    10 months ago

    Best food on the island! Excellent service, highly recommend for enjoyable evening. Mix drinks were awesome.

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    11 months ago

    Expensive den a mf. 50 bucks for a small ass fillet of red snapper and some lil spinach leafs and mac n cheese. Go somewhere else.

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    9 months ago

    food is meh, the service is pretty good if your not in a big hurry. but the perfect place to sit and have drinks and watch the sunset.

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    Page 1 of 13

    Ask the Community - Waterman's Restaurant

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    Amazing Egg Rolls- Honey Mustard Sauce to dip em in and a sweet tangy red sauce! Incredible…read moreAppetizer Baja Shrimp Taco - masterfully off the chain! Crunchy Shrimp loaded with Bang Bang Sauce, fresh greens, fried wontons in a warm tortilla. Hot fries as the side. Top it off with a cold Tiki Wheat and call me a cab! I ain't walkin outta here because I'm Stuft!

    The Great- That place is decorated to the TEETH! There is not a blank space on the walls nor even…read morethe ceiling. The atmosphere there is ABSOLUTELY ELECTRIC! They have Tombstone (top 25 movie of all time in my book (leave me alone)) playing on repeat on various TVs in the restaurant. That's pretty legendary! I'd go as far to say that it made my entire week (and I have had a great week thank you very much). The Good- Service was great and attentive! Daphne at the bar was super sweet and proactive in refilling drinks and getting food out on time! Also, the portions are ABSOLUTELY MASSIVE! I've never seen anything like it in my life at a restaurant. The amount food per dollar is definitely worth it. THE MID- I've seen a lot of reviews on how the food is fantastic. This is simply not true. Whatever those people were on writing those reviews... I want some of that! Seriously though, the food tasted like frozen food (I CANT PROVE THAT), and if it's not, then at best, it is seriously bland. When calling a friend later that night, I recall touting the restaurant as "The Target Version of Applebees". It's definitely better than an Applebees or Chilis... but not by much. In short... if I was rating on food alone... 2.5-3 stars. But the atmosphere and the omnipresent Tombstone on the TV cranks this place up to a 4. I won't be back, but it was 1000% worth it to go once.

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    Number 13 Prime Steak and Seafood - 20 ounce colossal lobster tail

    Number 13 Prime Steak and Seafood

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    Came here the day before Valentine's Day for an early dinner and it was such a good call. My…read moreboyfriend had been about a month before and kept talking about how much he liked it, so I had high hopes...... and it honestly still exceeded them. We started with the yellow fin tuna and WOW. It was insanely fresh, super clean and buttery. The aji verde gave it an herby kick with just the right amount of heat and the ponzu added salt and citrus so it was a nice combo. It was light but packed with flavor. The perfect way to start the meal! For our entrees we split the 8oz filet with mac and cheese and Brussels sprouts, and then the seafood pasta. Everything was amazing, I truly cannot stress that enough. The filet was cooked exactly how we asked, juicy, tender, and full of flavor but not too heavy. The mac and cheese was SO cheesy and actually piping hot... our waiter was not kidding when he said it would stay hot until next Tuesday lol. It had that creamy and rich in the best possible way. The brussels sprouts surprised me ....They were shaved instead of whole so they had this great texture. Mixed with little pieces of pork and raisins so it was crunchy, savory, and slightly sweet. Such a good balance! Now for the best part... the seafood pasta. I was craving pasta and since we were by the water it felt like a no brainer but I had 0 expectations. I was NOT prepared for how good it was. It came loaded with crab and lobster and then topped with an actual lobster tail. And when I say loaded, I mean PACKED. I really appreciate when a seafood dish actually has a lot of seafood in it. The sauce was rich and cheesy and buttery but not overwhelming and everything was seasoned so well. I was genuinely blown away. You NEED to try this if you go. On top of all that, the service was great. Our waiter was attentive, friendly, and exactly what you'd expect at that price point. The restaurant itself is gorgeous too which was perfect for a date night. Overall I was so impressed. 10/10 would absolutely recommend.

    I went for dinner and on the outside, it's not a very impressive establishment. It sort of looks…read morelike any other generic spot of the water. At the entrance doors, you can see the attached bar called, "The Hideout." There are these very tacky wooden mermaid statues that made me raise an eyebrow. The outside decor seemed more fitting of a tourist spot on Seawall than a more upscale dining experience. I suppose the place is meant to be a combination of the two so in that regard, they were on theme. Just threw me off that's all. On the other hand, there are a lot of parking spots. The inside atmosphere looked a lot better. There were lots of seating with large windows that spanned half the restaurant looking out on the water which let in natural light. Service was good, staff were kind and conversational. I got the 6 oz filet ($49), mac & cheese ($15), & the broccolini with bernaise, shallots, buttered breadcrumbs, & serrano ham ($17), and the strawberry basil cocktail (I don't recall the price, perhaps ~$16). We were given complimentary popovers and butter to start, which was a pleasant break from usual bread options from other establishments. I ordered my steak medium rare but it came out medium well and SUPER FIBROUS. It took so much effort to cut into it. I didn't want to make a big deal out of it but it was incredibly bland and disappointing. My friends ordered other steak dishes cooked at the same requested temperature, including the 16 oz bone-in filet ($92), but did not have a similar experience. My friends thought I was exaggerating initially when I complained, but when they tried my steak they said even the best part of my steak did not compare to the worst bite of theirs. At that price point, I was very unsatisfied because it essentially tasted well done which isn't my preference. The price really rubbed the salt in the wound though. Per my friends, the 16 oz bone-in filet was good but not anything to write home about. The side dishes were made with good quality ingredients and well seasoned. When it comes to mac & cheese, I can be a bit of a critic but this met my basic standards. The sides were on par with other good restaurants I've went to but nothing unique or notable. The mac & cheese & broccolini serrano were not so great that I would seek out this restaurant again to eat them again though. I did enjoy their strawberry basil cocktail though; it did not taste incredibly alcohol forward. Overall, I'm glad I got to try one of the most popular spots on the island but I don't see myself returning or recommending it to others.

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    Katie's Seafood House - Dockside oysters, grilled

    Katie's Seafood House

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    March 2025 visit This restaurant is located next to the…read moreGalveston Channel, Ocean Star Offshore Drilling Rig and Museum, and the cruise terminal. Free parking for the restaurant. Pay attention to parking lot signs at the cruise terminal next door. There is a tall flight of stairs leading to the entrance of the large room with TVs at the bar. Instead of waiting for a table during the busy lunch crowd, opted to sit at the bar instead. Friendly busy staff serving entrees.....made for a short wait for my 3 delicious fresh fish tacos. Definitely will visit again.

    The reviews posted here are perplexing and the only thing I can assume is they are either mot very…read morewell traveled or friends/employees of the rr. Had the "best" fettuccine- it's literally named this- and had to send it back. Pasta was undercooked, lukewarm, unseasoned, sauce, and yet hard on top for some weird reason. Honestly, the fettuccini from Olive Garden is 10x better. Even the fettuccini from Costco would be an upgrade! They did take back the fettuccini after 3 bites. I replaced it with a bisque crab soup. The flavor was nice but there were literally only 3 tiny pieces the size of my pinky fingernail in the whole bowl. Something as easy as 1/2 sweet tea and all 3 of us who ordered it sent it back bc it was over the top sweet/undrinkable. A coke was less sweet! The other meals at the table were just ok but not spectacular. For the appetizer, we had some kind of wings made of fish. These are such a hazard. They had many bones- not bad tasting but difficult to eat. The boudin balls - awful. More like a weir flavored soft meatball to be honest. I'm so sorry to be this negative but the food was not good especially after all the positive reviews..

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    Shark Shack Beach Bar & Grill - Grilled Shrimp over Fettuccine Alfredo!

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    Cutting across Texas to New Orleans, I knew we would be skimming the shore of the Gulf of Mexico…read more Shut up. My review, I can call it what I want. That being said, it had been some time since I've gotten some proper fish-n-chips. I had to remedy that. Especially since the BBQ fiasco the other day, I was going to go on a hunger strike, but once I made the sign, I got potato chip fingers on it and started to eat it. So, I decided to fight fire with fire, and figured I would eat myself happy again. Which I'm never mad about. Sometimes I make myself angry just so I can eat myself happy. And now, the rest of the story. I have learned that I enjoy Cod fish for my fish-n-chips. And I think also Haddock. I am not a fisher nor a fish. So it's hard for me to say. But I know Cod is one for sure. I also sometimes have baby mouth and am afraid of new things. I do know I love my fish battered and deep fried. I also know that Shark Shack had good reviews for their fish, so, that was all I needed to hear. Plus, it was a perfect little eatery with bar seating, table seating, and gifts! So you can bet your bottom dollar tomorrow I ordered the English fish-n-chips. Boy oh boy. Just like how Britain colonized all those countries back when it was the cool thing to do, these fish and chips colonized my taste buds. Respectfully. This plate came with FIVE logs of fish. FIVE! Maybe they were tubes of fish? Honestly, I don't care what shape they came in, they looked perfectly crunchy and perfectly brown and perfectly fish. The super cool extra bonus? These fish came with CRISPIES! I've only ever seen crisps with fish from Long John Silvers, whose fish is probably as far from Cod or Haddock as legally possible. I actually think one of my pieces of fish from there had shoelaces. Didn't matter. Still ate it. Respectfully. (If you aren't privileged enough to know what fish crispies are, there little batter pieces that fry or fall off the fish as they cook. Basically little crumblies. If you make a wish over a fork of them and get the forkful in your mouth without dropping any, your wish will come true). Homemade tartar sauce was good, but there was a certain flavor profile that I wasn't a fan of. It was still good to use on the fish rods, it just tasted a little too much out of the tartar sauce field for me. The meal was wrapped up nice and tight with lovely square-cut fries. Perfect doneness. Perfect Ketchup vessel. I could just stare at a pile of them all night. Mostly because I'm weird. Perfect Fish Capsules: 12/10 Ideal Fry Sticks: 12/10 Times I Would Re-visit: Infinite

    It has taken me a little while to write this review purely because I am so torn on the rating. Some…read moreareas of our visit warrant a 3-star rating, and some a 4-star. I decided to lean more toward the 4-star side, so here we are. While in Galveston for a quick weekend getaway, we wanted to go out for dinner. Katie's was my first choice, but the wait was too long, so I pulled up Yelp to see what else was recommended. Shark Shack had great reviews, and when we arrived there was zero wait, so we went for it. The one area where I docked a star was the service. We were seated immediately but waited quite a while for our server to appear, and then even longer to get our drinks. I was so excited for a margarita, but when it arrived in a plastic cup, I was immediately disappointed. Plastic cups are for the beach and nightclubs, not a restaurant with a bar. And that's not where the awful drink experience ended -- it was so weak and just not good at all. Our server seemed so disinterested in everything: taking our order, answering questions, and when it came time to pay, we had to wait ages to see him and wave him down. The food was decent with no major complaints. It wasn't "blow your mind" amazing, but it was good. The owner -- well, I assume he was the owner -- came and spoke to us when he found out my husband was military, and he was really nice, friendly, and very supportive of the military community, offering a very generous military discount. That definitely raises the rating and is much appreciated, so thank you. Overall, the big fixes for me would be the service and the drink situation. I can't say we would rush to come back just because we love Katie's for the service, food, and drinks..

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    Waterman's Restaurant - seafood - Updated May 2026

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