Steamboat Bill's DeRidder, LA — Restaurant in DeRidder

First time going back in about 2-3 years (didn't like my first experience). This time was alot better. Alot of fried seafood options. Beware- they do not devein their shrimp, so if that bothers you, I suggest ordering something without shrimp.

Location: right off the main highway, next to burger King. Large parking lot.

Atmosphere: spacious, smells good, cajun music playing. Seemed clean. It used to be a Ryan's so it has a similar layout. Table seating and bar seating. Good for casual family dinner, date, or friends. Comfortable.

Food: good variety but mostly fried. Shrimp (boiled and fried), fish, oysters (charbroiled, fried), crawfish (seasonal), alligator, poboys, loaded potatoes, gumbo, fries, salads, coleslaw, boudin balls, etc. I ordered their medium shrimp and liked it. It was breaded and fried and it came with way more than expected- about 20+ shrimp.

Prices: everything is pretty close to $12-25 for dinner items depending on what you get. For 2 people at dinner: medium shrimp w fries, 4 boudin balls, fish strips w fries and 2 soft drinks it was $45. I do think their crawfish is way too expensive ($7/lb in February 2022 where other local crawfish stops are closer to $5.50-6.00/lb).

Service: Very friendly, comfortable and made sure we had everything we needed.

Overall, a good experience. We...

We were in town to work a nightly maintenance on our network. We decided for dinner, we would go eat boiled shrimp, I ordered 2 lb's and my coworker a 1/2 lb. Menu said market price, back home (Crowley area), we can get good tasting, easy peel (butterfly), boiled shrimp for no more than $10-$15 a lb. So I assumed the price would be around $12-$16 a lb. when I got the ticket, they were $20 a lb, talk about sticker shock! If the shrimp would have been good, the price wouldn't have stung so much. They were over boiled, not easy to peel and I do not know what was used for seasoning but it had no flavor. I would have never thought one can mess up boiled shrimp, was I ever wrong. What the other diners were eating looked and smelled very good, I was doubting my decision not long after fighting to get the 1st shrimp peeled. I will eat here again, but you can bet I will NOT order the boiled shrimp, I will get the shrimp etouffee or fried shrimp instead! Our server was very polite, courteous and friendly and the restaurant was overall clean. Everything was good, except the...

We frequently went to the Steamboat Bills in Lake Charles but due to the damage from the hurricanes, both locations remain closed. So we packed the fam up and headed to Deridder to visit the one there, which is about 45mins away. And it was well worth the drive as we have yet found anyone open in LC that cook as great as Steamboat! Catfish is the best here along with the amount of Oysters you get with the platter or Combo Plate that we normally do Oysters and Catfish. We also were VERY pleased with the Mushrooms appetizer that was enough for all 8 people(6 adults and 2 kids). We love SWEET tea and we never have to sweeten their sweet tea as it's made just right! Also had the Chicken and Sausage Gumbo which is a reg or large bowl and had PLENTY of Chicken and Sausage. Someone else had Boiled Shrimp was very nice size and again cooked to perfection, atleast for us who eat a LOT of Shrimp all through the year. DEFINITELY worth the drive if you are craving seafood and end it with some Chocolate Cheesecake that we had or regular...