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Willoughby By the Bay

3.3 (74 reviews)
ModerateSeafood
Open • 12:00 pm - 12:00 am (Next day)
Updated a few days ago

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WILLOUGHBY BY THE BAY ATMOSPHERE

What's the vibe?
Casual
Moderate noise
Outdoor seating
Good for groups

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Recommended Reviews - Willoughby By the Bay

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A dive bar at the very tip of ocean view in Norfolk- Simple menu with many fried options. It's a great local spot that's welcoming to everyone!!! Plenty of parking both in private lot as well as.over flow street parking when needed! Best drink prices around ! Staff is so friendly and welcoming! Great daily food and drink specials! I had the best oyster shooter I've ever had here ! Several seeting areas, including an outdoor deck ! Brittany and Arizona are amazing bartenders also! The kind of staff that makes me want to come back !! So glad I found it

Tiny beer
Mary L.

So I'm good with second and third chances...so what can I say? I support local business and I'm sympathetic... I came here strictly for drinks...they have live entertainment and the vibe is good. The drinks are great and hit you before you know it... The tiny beer is my favorite based on sentimental reasons but I'm pretty sure I've had every drink on their menu... So cheers!

Fried shrimp
Sam A.

Really great fried and steamed shirmp that we really enjoyed here. Also really friendly service. It's a little divey, at the absolute end of Willoughby, so don't expect anything fancy, but it was a nice, friendly neighborhood spot with really good food. We had a nice meal and a good time and will be back.

Menu
Amy M.

The hubs and I were trying to head on home, but traffic was backed up on the 64 tunnel. We decided to burn some time at Willoughby by the bay. There was number of signs plastered on the door before entering with Covid mask rules upon entering. Every business has their right to refuse service to those that do not comply. I noticed it was dimly litted inside with a bar and a few tables. A bartender greeted us and handed menus once we were seated. I noticed The table had some water residue and crumbs. I ordered a half pound of steamed shrimp while my better half opted for shrimp tacos. Water followed once the menus were taken. There were Pre-Covid specials on a blackboard towards the back near the bar. I can understand some people's frustrations, and confusion from their reviews on not able to partake on those deals. It should state it on the blackboard or be erased, but that's up to the business itself. There was about 8 fat pieces of steamed shrimp in my order. Cuts of onion and celery were dressed on top with a side of melted butter. Unfortunately, the shrimp was not deveined, and it is a personal preference of mine not that it should be done. Otherwise it was a good snack. The shrimp tacos were ok. Shrimp was battered from a box a lady was holding earlier before entering the kitchen. And the fries were the frozen kind to accompany any fast food meal. We ate, paid, and left. I noticed a sign that non-tippers were prohibited back into their establishment since they are dependent on tips. Keep that in mind as bartenders and waitresses are struggling in the restaurant industry. The service given should be recognized unless it's bad then that is up to the customer. Don't mind coming back as things get back to normal. I believe they have live music coming in the future. Its a place to hang out with friends, and sit back while grabbing a drink.

Michaela S.

So this place is the epitome of a hole-in-the-wall kind of bar. It's literally right near the water on the Ocean View side of the 64 tunnel. Tiny little place with a non-descript bar, a few parking spots and a bit of an outdoor area as well. The staff was super welcoming when we arrived for karaoke. It's clearly the kind of spot that has a Cheers sort of vibe because every other person that walked in was greeted by name. Most likely a spot that locals walk to to hang out after a long day, and hidden away enough that tourists don't overrun it. We ordered a few drinks and some basic food (chicken strips and fries) -- the food was a-ok for bar food, and the "beer shot" I got was really fun! They don't have much of a wine selection, and the other drink options are limited as well. So, if you're looking for chill and don't need too many options/variety, this is a good spot to check out.

Brian K.

Yelp doesn't allow zero star reviews. Willoughby by the Bay is a dump. The owner is unfriendly and unwelcoming. The draft beer selection was terrible. There were two taps open, both of which I killed and twice, the owner tried to charge me full price for less than half a beer. The jukebox plays terrible country music, unless you pay a dollar for two songs, I'm which the jukebox will immediately go back to terrible country music. We gave the place a second chance, and walked in 12 minutes before happy hour ended. The brand new bartender said her trainer would not allow her to give us the happy hour deal, because the bar clock said 7PM.

The restaurant
Shelbie P.

My family and I came here while we were on vacation for Labor Day weekend. We were looking for some good seafood that was close to our Airbnb. We found Willoughby by the bay, and sat out on the patio. Let's just say, we will not EVER be returning here. We ordered buckets of crab legs, so excited to eat our steamed crab meat and dip them in some melted butter, until the waitress brings out our $40 crab legs, and says "Oh sorry we don't have butter for your crab legs. The buckets also came with corn and potatoes that would have also been nice with some butter, but that was not an option. On top of that, the portion was very small for the price. I would never even dream of paying this for the amount you get and not even melted butter to dip your crab meat in! Everyone working was on different pages, the bartender told me they were in the back melting butter, and then the waitress then told us one of the cooks went out to go buy butter? I of course complained and told them by the time the butter gets here, our food would be cold. Basically, all the staff is very inexperienced. Management was a young man that didn't even want to take our crab legs off of the bill, he was very hesitant until I put my foot down. I have my bachelors degree in restaurant management and have worked in restaurants all my life and I was just very shocked at each of the staffs behavior. I would definitely avoid this place on holiday weekends because they were very unprepared.

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11 months ago

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1 year ago

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3 years ago

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1 year ago

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5 years ago

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1 year ago

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1 year ago

Straight people are not welcome, nor are visitors from outside of the area. Food sucks, and servers like to play dress up.

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4 years ago

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5 years ago

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2 years ago

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2 years ago

Love this place food and service are amazing. Love the staff and the drinks def get a tiny beer!

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7 years ago

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4 years ago

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5 years ago

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7 years ago

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9 years ago

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4 years ago

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3 years ago

A hidden gem!Good service, great food and drinks. Nice outdoor seating. Enjoyed the entire experience.

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6 years ago

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5 years ago

Looking forward to having dinner there again. The view is spectacular and the food is delicious!!

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5 years ago

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4 years ago

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9 years ago

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5 years ago

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12 years ago

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7 years ago

Delicious food in a relaxed super casual atmosphere offering a pool table and tv and bar area

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6 years ago

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The Deadrise - Flounder and fries with a shot and beer. GREATNESS

The Deadrise

4.0(778 reviews)
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Cool spot with outdoor upper deck seating. I don't know how people who can't climb stairs get up…read morehere, so be prepared if that's you or someone you love. My only thing was the top part of the deck should all be high tops, so you can actually see over the railing. It was difficult to see the beautiful water and tunnel construction on the upper deck with the low tables. I got the salad, and it was nice portion. I look forward to returning and sitting right on the edge near the water.

The Deadrise is my go to in Hampton for a quick bite of authentic seafood. They have lots of…read moreoptions, great service, and a beautiful view. This past weekend, I visited, and it happened to be Restaurant Week. My go-to meal is their crab cake sandwich and fries, but I ventured out and tried their special: New England Clam Chowder and Seafood Mac and Cheese. The chowder was okay. The clams were a little chewy and it lacked flavor; needed a few more dashes of salt at the least. The seafood Mac and Cheese had potential. The crab meat on top looked enticing. The noodles were cooked to perfection. But the flavor was also lacking. It was not cheesy enough to call a Mac and cheese and again needed more salt and/or other seasonings. There also wasn't much seafood to boast about. Maybe a scallop or 2, a very small quantity of shrimp....the crab meat and roll were the highlight. 3 STARS (for this visit). The service was GREAT! Attentive, fast, and friendly. But I was disappointed with this dish. I'll be back. I'll get my crab cake!

Photos
The Deadrise - The inside vibe.

The inside vibe.

The Deadrise - She crab soup (front); steamed shrimp (back)

She crab soup (front); steamed shrimp (back)

The Deadrise - Patio area

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Patio area

Fuller's Raw Bar - Steamed crab legs

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I can definitely see why this place has the hype it does. At first we came in and it seemed kind of…read moreeh and there was no one in the restaurant but then our server came over and blew us away. Her name was Jen and she was amazing!!! I would totally go back to be served by her. The food was amazing I got 6 "laughing king" oysters and oyster chowder. My husband got the oyster po boy which he would rate an 8/10 (there was a lot of bread but still great) but the shoe string fries were easily a 10/10. I will definitely be back for this downtown corner cute wharf-like vibe!

My daughter picked this location when we were on a road trip for the day. She had a taste for…read moreoysters and we were looking for some local seafood by the water. While this restaurant isn't on the water, it's definitely close (2 miles) to a beautiful beach. The ambiance of this place has a great vibe. The interior decor has a great bar setting where you can sit up and watch TV and order some ice cold oysters. Or you could grab a table inside or outside and visit with family. We opted for the outdoors as we had a quick glimpse of sun on this rare April day, and got to sit under the umbrella patio. Our waitress was super accommodating and brought us our four oysters and tuna salad with shoestring french fries very quickly. My daughter ordered the fried fish sandwich that had melty cheese and some tartar sauce on it. It was a solid sandwich, nothing to write home about, but definitely gave us a beach ocean feel vibe. Four oyster sampler went from sweet to salty and didn't disappoint! They were fresh. They were cold and they had a great minionette and spicy horseradish to accompany.

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Fuller's Raw Bar - Streetview

Streetview

Fuller's Raw Bar - Bourgogne fries

Bourgogne fries

Fuller's Raw Bar - Plenty of sitting, but we were told it gets pack on $1 oyster nights.

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Plenty of sitting, but we were told it gets pack on $1 oyster nights.

Willoughby By the Bay - seafood - Updated May 2026

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