McElroy's Harbor House — Restaurant in Biloxi

We had picked McElroy's Harbor House to celebrate our 25th anniversary and drove down from Jones County. After being seated, we were greeted by a waitress who didn't appear all that happy to be there, but hey everyone can have a bad day. My 1st question was in regards to their beer selection, and she had no idea what it was, so I asked for a beet menu and she made some kind of comment along the lines of they had one, but she wasn't sure she could find it, so I asked if they had any Stouts, to which she replied that they didn't have draft, well now I ask her is she would find out what dark beers they had and when she came back Southern Pecan was my only choice & I told her I would pass and we gave her our appetizer order. While waiting on our appetizer order, we asked another waitress for a beer menu, and in under a minute she returned with one, but even then there were no Ale's or Stout's on it, so when our Waitress returned I ordered a Corona, that when I got it was just barely above room temperature, which made me decide that I wouldn't be ordering another one nor any mix drinks either. D had ordered Fried Pickles for her appetizer and I had ordered a Bowl of Seafood Gumbo, well her Pickles were fine and my Gumbo looked good, but it went downhill from there, as it had no taste from neither the stock nor seasoning, it did have a good mouth feel as far as the gravy/liquid element went, but then nothing, this was a real disappointment, because I had high expectations of a GREAT Seafood Gumbo since I was at a Seafood Restaurant, I mean you would have thought that they would start with a really good seafood stock made from the fresh seafood scraps, and even if their fish is coming in dressed from their fish monger/purveyor, most mongers/purveyor's will give the carcasses to the restaurant, because they paid for them in the cost of the dressed fish. Last but not least, the only seafood I could find in my Gumbo were some small rubbery shrimp... When our entrees arrived things started looking better, but it ended up being only slightly better. D had ordered Fried Red Snapper with crab stuffing on the side, a loaded potato, and onion rings, plus it came with hushpuppies. Now the star of the show was wonderful and the crab stuffing played a great supporting character, while the potato was just a potato, the onion rings appeared to be of the frozen variety and were cooked so hard that she couldn't eat them, then those hushpuppies, well they would have made much better fishing weights, as they had to be the densest hushpuppies I have ever had the displeasure of eating. Ok, on to my Blackened Snapper with lump Crab Meat and a Creamy Sauce(Ponchatrain Sauce Maybe), and it was as good as I had hoped the whole meal would be, portion size was nice, seasoning wad good, crab meat wad plentiful, and I would have preferred a bowl of the sauce over the wannabe Gumbo. Now that Broccoli I had ordered, should have stayed in the freezer, it came out in a bowl with about one inch of water in the bottom and was as rubbery as rubbery could be, which I'm pretty sure only happens in a microwave, and not in a steamer or even boiling water. That said, all in all, this was a very disappointing meal to have celebrated our 25th anniversary with. Now the view at this Restaurant is phenomenal and the Seagulls flying around where we were eating and stealing food off of a table they had scared all the women away from, was well priceless. I would like to say that I would be going back here sometime, if not for the food, then at least for cocktails and the view, but the above experience at a cost of almost $100,...

If you’re rollin’ down Beach Boulevard and see this big ol’ seafood shack propped up like it’s tryin’ to dodge the next hurricane—pull over.

That’s McElroy’s Harbor House, and brother, that place is a goddang institution. Ain’t just another tourist trap slingin’ frozen fish sticks. Naw, this place has roots.

The McElroys start small—1957, root beer stand in Biloxi, probably with some poor fella sweatin’ behind a counter and prayin’ the ice machine holds out. Fast forward to ’72, they scoop up a little snack shack down at the harbor, just rebuilt after Hurricane Camille tried to send the whole Coast to Jesus.

Then in ’74, Mickey and Jane McElroy do the damn thing—they crank out a full-blown seafood joint, right on the water, just like God and Jimmy Buffett intended. It runs strong for decades till Hurricane Katrina shows up in 2005 and wrecks the place like a drunk uncle at a wedding. But the McElroys ain’t quitters. In 2012, they come back stronger, higher—literally. They raise the whole damn building 29 feet up like it’s Moses partin’ the floodwaters. Now it’s got the best view in town of Deer Island and every shrimp boat with a cracked hull and a story to tell.

Alright, here’s the play:

Starter: Chargrilled Oysters. They come out still hissin’, ridin’ shotgun on a cast iron plate that smells like heaven got a Cajun cook. They’re sittin’ in a shallow pool of butter, garlic, and parmesan so rich you’d think it owns oil rights. The edges of the oyster get all crispy and golden, but the middle stays silky like it’s whisperin’ sweet nothings to your arteries. You sop that juice up with the French bread they throw on the side and suddenly you’re speakin’ in tongues.

Main Course: Shrimp Po’ Boy, Fully Dressed, With Fries. They ain’t skimpin’. Whole damn baguette jammed with golden-fried Gulf shrimp that still taste like the ocean whispered a secret to ‘em. Lettuce, tomato, pickles, and mayo so thick it’s practically a dairy product. One bite and the whole thing tries to fall apart in your hands—like it knows it’s too beautiful for this world. Comes with a pile of fries that are hot, salty, and fried just this side of crispy, like they know they’re just backup dancers to the main act.

They don’t just serve seafood—they serve a show. You sit out on that deck lookin’ over Biloxi Beach, watchin’ shrimp boats cruise by while seagulls scream at you like tiny, feathered meth addicts. Inside, it’s got that old-school Gulf Coast feel—wood beams, salty air, and a waitress who calls you “baby” like she’s been doin’ it since Vietnam.

Locals, tourists, sunburned gamblers from the casinos—it don’t matter. Everybody eats happy here.

Bottom line: McElroy’s Harbor House ain’t just good—it’s grandpa-told-me-about-it good. If you’re anywhere near Biloxi and you don’t stop here, I’m honestly just worried about your decision-making skills.

📍 Location & Hours • Address: 695 Beach Blvd, Biloxi, MS 39530 • Phone: (228) 435-5001 • Hours: Monday–Saturday: 11 AM – 9 PM • Lunch Specials: Monday–Friday: 11 AM – 2...

So you need to take caution when you go to this restaurant and maybe some others because we went there today because the previous time we noticed it was $1.68 charge for using a credit card and we like to pay cash so we went ahead and had removed from the check on me paid at the front and this time we went we had to wait staff person who was very very good and we enjoyed a delicious lunch however we told her in advance that we were paying cash for everything and we did not want the dollar 68 credit card usage fee added to the bill so when she tended us to check at the end of our delicious meal the $1.68 charge for using a credit card was already on the bill so we discussed it with her I went inside and talked to the main cashier she explained stuff and did make any logical sense at all so they said if you pay this amount at the bottom they'll take it away and it doesn't go on the bill but they bring you the bill with the exact tendered amount which is inclusive of the credit card charge usage so it doesn't make any sense and they're logic is well if you pay it then it goes to the wait staff my view of it is it pays it goes on there you don't know if it goes to the wait staff or not so when you dine here make sure you have to go up to the cash register they get the amount removed from the bill or you just going to Forfeit that amount and be cautious when you go to many places now they're doing this

Such a wonderful property. The staff us so warm and helpful. Thank you all for committing to have the fortitude to keep a job and make our experience memorable. The food selection is better than any other Restaurant. The scallops were delicious. Buttery and tender and grit free. The drinks were delicious ious. The view is worth all of it. Breathtaking. Stunning. We want to thank Mr. McElroy. We have watched you through vovid and staffing issues. Kudos. Hard decisions were made. It works very well. Me and my entourage were very happy. We will return soon. Thank you. I strongly recommend this establishment to anyone. You will not be...