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Whale's Tale

4.4 (146 reviews)
ModerateSeafood
Closed • Closed

Whale's Tale Photos

Business Info

WHALE'S TALE ATMOSPHERE

What's the vibe?
Moderate noise
Casual
Good for kids
Dogs allowed

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Recommended Reviews - Whale's Tale

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Famous Shrimp
Tim C.

Moved into Mount Dora 9 months ago and we're trying all the local restaurants. We just made our way to WT on a quiet rainy Saturday night. I've tried fried catfish an 6 locations now and this was tied for top 2. Not drown in batter-just a light cover and not too much oil. Wife had excellent butterfly shrimp. She failed to get excited about the crab cake. Light on flavor though creatively done. BTW Cole slaw is a fish house test & it was excellent. Sweet tea yummy & price good.

Shrimp Seafood Basket...perfect for lunch or dinner...
Michelle M.

Very nice first visit to Whale's Tale - a seafood restaurant that sits in (the most) non-descript strip mall here in Mount Dora. To get in and out of any restaurant in less than 30 minutes is a feat and I pride myself on being efficient - but SHOUT OUT to the team here because my food arrived almost as fast as my order was placed! The Seafood Basket (shrimp, lightly-breaded) was a safe bet, with homemade slaw (not bad, but nothing to write home about). For an up charge, you can get the popular onion rings which I did enjoy. This simple, unassuming restaurant is a staple in the area and I can see why. The food is just fine, nothing too salty or over-seasoned. My server was great and the tunes they play here are SOLID (Jackie Wilson, Sam Cooke, etc.). I would absolutely return and bring my parents. Daily specials are available as is my recommendation to come here and have a Whale of a good time.

Steve H.

Great food and service as always. They have the best clam strips and onion rings and very good fried shrimp, fries, red potatoes and cheese grits. And the prices are less than Mount Dora's average restaurant prices. I highly recommend this restaurant!

Nancy W.

We came here Nov 2024. Small place. On a Friday afternoon we were the only ones here. Food was good. Served hot and crispy. I got the New England chowder with cream sauce, potatoes and clams. So good. I also got the lightly fried shrimp and catfish with coleslaw and grits Came with 2 hush puppies and 2 onion rings. Yum! $13.99. For the price, the food was very good I would come here again. However the decor in this place is very dated. The bathroom still has old plastic greenery with a inch of dust on them. Need to be tossed. This is located in a plaza with plenty of parking.

Fried clams and broiled catfish dinner, delicious!
Scott W.

We stopped into Whales Tale for dinner after shopping at the Treasure Marts next door. We wanted to get dinner before heading to Eustis for the annual lighting of the Christmas tree; however, after seeing pictures of the food, I didn't want to eat here because everything was fried and was just brown, where is the color?? Well we decided to eat here because of convenience and I have to say the food was pretty good, but as anticipated, fried and mostly brown. The three of us chose the seafood duo with the a variety of catfish, shrimp, and fried clams coming to $13.99 each. The plate comes with two sides, we selected grits, beans, coleslaw, and steamed carrots. Since we ordered catfish as one of the options we also received several fried onion rings and two hush puppies each. Instead of going with a piece of fried catfish I decided on broiled. Nancy and I ordered a bowl of the New England clam chowda to share for $5.99 and my mom ordered the cup $4.99. All of the food was fresh, hot, and delicious. My only complaints are that the cat fish fillets are tiny and the hush puppies were very dry inside, almost like raw flour. Our server, Paula, was very friendly and our food was out in less than 15 minutes. I ordered two Amberbock beers ($3.50),they were ice cold and Paula brought out a frosted glass for me, that was a big plus, thanks Paula. The restaurant is a bit dated and is in need of a renovation. It's in a strip mall so maybe they don't want to put money into a building they don't own?? Regardless, owner/staff could do a better job cleaning and dusting areas in the dining room and restroom. All and all, this was a good experience and if I was in the mood for this type of meal again I would come back if in the area but because I'm not a huge fried food fan and the fish portions are very small I might try another restaurant in the area or go to a tried-n-true like BTW in Tavares.

onion rings,Sweet potatoefries, tarter and Cocktail sauses, Haddock and Shrimp
Paige M.

Our server "JJ was awesome she told use what was her favorite thing and now it's mine too The food was so delicious Almost everything is homemade! The he Slaw, soup, Onion Rings, sweet potato fries, Haddock and Shrimp tasted So deliciousEven the Sweet Tea was Yummy The atmosphere is good and we will definitely return to this wonderful restaurant‼

Fried clam basket
Scott S.

Second time to whales tale and it proved the first time wasn't a fluke. The food and service where better than the first and we thought that couldn't be beat It was

Coconut shrimp with Cole slaw and hush puppies.

Fabulous food! My mother had coconut shrimp and I had blackened haddock. Both were well seasoned and cooked properly. The sides were all good as well! Clean dining area and service with a smile.

a plate of food and a fork
Joy F.

Wow - the food here was delicious! We both had the seafood basket with fried haddock and hush puppies and coleslaw. Lightly breaded, not greasy fish and hush puppies, homemade coleslaw. The ice tea was freshly brewed. The young lady who served us was friendly and efficient. We will definitely be back! Note the attached picture- you can see how much my husband enjoyed his food.

Fried Haddock was very good.

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1 month ago

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4 months ago

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20 days ago

Service excellent! Food came hot! I had the fried oysters, onion rings, and sweet potato fries. All delish. Will be back.

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2 months ago

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4 months ago

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1 year ago

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2 years ago

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11 months ago

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6 months ago

Food and value great been going there for years it's like being with family as they know my name and I know theirs

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1 year ago

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1 year ago

The atmosphere was horrible. It wasn't clean and service could improve. There wasn't any other restaurants in the area so we ate there.

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11 months ago

Great food. Great service. Out of the way gem. Fast service and large portions. Onion rings and hush puppies are awesome.

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2 years ago

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3 years ago

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4 years ago

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2 years ago

Excellent Shrimp Basket dinner. Great service at a cozy, small diner. A real gem of a place.

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4 years ago

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7 years ago

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5 years ago

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4 years ago

Consistent, fried seafood, small portions, not cheap, unpretentious menu, haddock, shrimp, crab cakes, chowder. Good food.

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3 years ago

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7 years ago

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5 years ago

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2 years ago

Very clean. Great staff. Wonderful food. Best shrimp, onion rings, French onion soup in the area!

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4 years ago

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10 years ago

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Red Crab Juicy Seafood - Eustis - Snow Crab Legs

Red Crab Juicy Seafood - Eustis

(67 reviews)

WARNING: Be cautious when ordering the raw oysters, here. The server had a "I don't give a F…read moreattitude" when I had my first bite of half-dozen raw oysters. The one oyster I started to bite into was the WORST tasting I've had in a long time. It was gritty and tasted like it had died, before it was caught. I asked the server to let the manager or cook know this, as I was concerned for other customers' safety. She gave this look like it was me who was the problem. No manager bothered to come to our table, to ask me about it, either. She also scoffed at my reaction when she said that the Alaskan King Crabs market price went up to $92 / lb - which I thought was way overpriced for a place like Red Crab. So, I got the snow crab legs, which were excellent, as well as the boiled potatoes. The generous amount of butter had an off-putting flavor, but still went well with the crab legs. The corn on the cob sucked, as it was soggy, from clearly being kept in a warming oven or pot for too long. The cheesecake was small, but really good, although I did have to ask about desserts when the server was ready to give us the check. She was also slow in bringing out the dessert and updating our check, but nicer towards the end of the dinner. This is about the 5th time I've been to Red Crab - and just this location. They need to work on food quality consistency, better training on the servers, and take seriously when a customer nicely complains about raw oysters, that don't taste fresh and clean.

When we visited Lake Dora, we came across this restaurant while going to Publix. It has to be the…read morebest Cajun boil I ever had in Florida. We had the juicy special with extra two pounds of Crawdads which had scallops, clams, mussels, lobster, crab, red potatoes and corn. The spices were amazing and the chef cooked it to perfection. Service was on point, quick and they even had a full bar. Try the mango margarita, delicious.

The Nauti Lobstah - 1-1/2 POUND BOILED ~ OR ~ BROILED MAINE LOBSTER
 Served with Drawn Butter and Lemon, Coleslaw, and a Choice of Two Sides

The Nauti Lobstah

(382 reviews)

$$$

Wekiva Springs, Horizons West / West Orlando

We've seen reviews and videos about this restaurant and made a point to make our way there during…read moreour Florida vacation. Amazing dining experience!!! You can't make reservations and we were lucky that there was no wait time when we got there. Our server Noelle greeted us as soon as we were seated. She was an additional highlight to our visit for her warmth and friendly personality. We started with the clam cakes and stuffies and both were delicious. The super highlight of our visit was the 2 foot lobster roll. My partner added 1/2 lb of lobster to our order as he (and we) love lobster. What we got was a Wow experience from the time they brought it in - my mother was pure smiles and that was before we tasted it. We went with half New England and half Connecticut style. Absolutely the best lobster roll I've ever had and I've had many living in New England most of my life. This was an absolutely delightful experience. We couldn't finish the roll between the 3 of us and had great leftovers for dinner. The place is busy and you hear the sounds of people talking and enjoying their meals. We even got to meet Chef Mike and what a pleasant person he is. A total unforgettable dining experience that I'd like to repeat someday.

Drove a considerable distance to go here on a fairly busy day. The customers are mostly locals and…read moreparking lot is cramped. Food portions are on the smaller side while prices are steep. Taste is not extraordinary but presentation is good. Seating is comfortable and spacious. Services is very hospitable and accommodating. Unfortunately you could leave here hungry.

Whale's Tale - seafood - Updated May 2026

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