Klein's Fish Market — Restaurant in Belmar

First visit time at Klein’s Fish Market in Belmar, NJ, with my husband and we left extremely disappointed and frustrated. We are new in the area so we saw this place and thought it must be good since it is so crowded. The line is so long. Pretty chaotic. After eating here, gosh, we regretted it and feel like fools! This place is highly over rated, over priced, over crowded. People flocked here maybe it’s next to a little water area or they don’t have other places to go.

Food sucks and over priced. Got fried calamari…nothing special. Can get the same or better at many other restaurants. I got the crab cake sandwich with waffle fries. So much fillers in the crab cake…can’t taste any crab meat and it was mushy. The waffle fries were hard as rock and dried! Over fried or just old. My husband ordered the scallops rice platter with veggies - tasteless! Scallops were small and rice and veggies were just steamed or whatever. Completely a waste of time and money! We couldn’t wait to get out of there.

Incompetent: We were told the wait would be about 45 minutes. I gave the elder lady my name and phone #. She said I will get a text immediately and when a table is ready, I will get a 2nd text. She asked if I got the 1st text and I said no politely. She looked annoyed and said it will take a while so for me to wait.

We waited for 1/2 hrs and politely told her I never got the first text. She looked very annoyed and told me I will definitely get the 2nd text when table is ready.

Now, we waited 1 hr and 15 mins and another lady is there now (also rude)! I politely told her what happened and she said that my name and phone # are NOT in the computer! I don’t exist on the waiting list!! She just pointed to the back and told me to go see a guy there. I got to the back and it was chaos. There were other customers with the same problem as me. Finally, they seated me and my husband.

GOOD TIP: Make sure you get the FIRST text. If you don’t, that means you’re NOT on the waiting list.

BEST TIP: Do NOT go there! You will thank me for saving you money, time, and...

I’m so upset . My daughter and I eat here at least twice a week but it’s always during the weekdays . I love the food , the view the wait staff are very friendly . However , today is Sunday my husband and I my daughter and her boyfriend went for lunch. I’m totally distraught at the manners of one of the hostess’s today I didn’t get her name , unlike the wait staff they do not wear name tags. She was short with blonde hair anyway as usual we have a favorite table , we ask for it every time we come and the girls are so accommodating . But today it was different. We asked for our table and the one hostess refused to let us have it . It was empty , we were 4 people but she was so rude and refused it. She left us standing there for fifteen minutes wouldn’t seat us and said we had to take the table she said. I explained we always have that table when it’s available I had called prior to homing and was told no reservations were needed the table was vacant . Finally , we asked for the manager another girl went away came back and said it’s fine but the original rude hostess continued to say we needed to sit at s different table than the one we chose and by now the original table for 4 she said we must sit st was given to a couple . We had to sit at another table , and she wouldn’t even seat us the other hostess was very nice . Finally as we waited for our order 4 other families came in . They chose their favorite tables and this same nasty hostess was very accommodating to them . I guess straw that broke the camels back was , every table that came in after us at least 5 tables were all served before us two of the families had even finished and left. My husband went to ask for the manager and was told the manager wasn’t there. I’m sadden by this behavior. This behavior is...

Bottom line: Great meal by the water for this visit to Klein's Fish Market and Waterside Cafe. Good service, tasty appetizers, and delicious entree in the Fish & Chips but the standout was the crab cake I ordered as my side, awesome. I am a fan! The Deets:During this year's "birthday season" spent in Asbury Park, we decided on going to Klein's for an evening meal. Klein's is a very large by-the-water restaurant and fish market complex in Belmar nestled between the bridges there. I like the open atmosphere and we sat outside on this rather brisk September evening, good thing we grabbed our hoodies before we left! Our server Jennifer was right on point the whole night, great service. We got drinks going and decided on a variety of appetizer/starters including the Mediterranean Calamari special, Spicy Tuna Tartare, and Gyoza. Each were very good, of what I had of the tartare and the gyoza hit the spot while I heard the calamari was also very good (I, myself, not a calamari fan did not sample). The tartare was not overly spicy to my delight, and the gyoza were a great surprise being pretty tasty. I went with the choice of Fish & Chips for my main entree, with a side of a crab cake. The Fish & Chips were delicious, and although steak fries are not my favorite fries choice they did well here. The star of the night for me was the crab cake, and I was so glad I went with this item for my side...perfect taste and texture, I really think if I am able to come back in the future I might get the crab cake entree here after enjoying this side choice. I topped the evening off with a slice of Key Lime Pie...a bit more tart than expected but still enjoyable, and nice finish to the meal. I liked this initial visit to Klein's, and hope to see them...