Captain D's — Restaurant in Hopewell

I really love this place! The people working there are friendly, work so fast, take such good care of you, and it's just a lovely family place where you can bring your kid when you're too exhausted to cook yourself and just need some adult conversation with your spouse and something to eat you didn't have to shop for and make yourself. And when two adults and a child can enjoy a nice dinner for just under $35, drinks included, that's not bad at all!

The range of sides is simply amazing compared to other restaurants in this price range, with lots of fresh and steamed vegetables, cole slaw, corn on the cob, salad, just plenty of healthy choices, so you don't feel too completely indulgent for choosing them on the side of a lavish seafood platter with a lush variety of fried or grilled delights.

They have just delicious shrimp, battered fish that you dream about, chicken that isn't all dry like so many fish places, no, good and tender, with the correct spices (I don't care what anybody says, you spice chicken and fish differently, and this place actually knows that,) their hush puppies aren't burnt and oh, their condiment rack is a revelation. Several different sauces in dispensers! Hot sauce! Malt vinegar! You could order the same thing every day for lunch for a week and not get bored of it because they give you so many options for condiments.

And they keep a nice dining room! No pooting about with one tiny napkin dispenser next to the ketchup up front for this place, no! On every table, you'll find a dear little metal sculpture thing, which holds the pepper, the salt, and deadass a whole roll of unbleached, natural paper towels. So if your kid is still learning forks or the lid doesn't quite work on their drink cup (not the local staff's fault, they have to work with what the chain sends them,) you're well prepared to manage any eventualities with sauce or soda. (It's a Pepsi-products establishment, I know that makes a difference to some people.)

The décor...well...if you've ever bought a Beach Boys album or seen the show 'Octonauts' and felt happy about that choice, you'll be entirely comfortable here. I have a five-year-old who is in the midst of a bit of a fandom phase re: both and she was utterly enchanted. It's quite a new building, they keep it delightfully clean, and the only thing you might want to keep in mind when you visit; if you're pulling in from the Winston Churchill Boulevard side heading northbound, you'll want to drive around the restaurant building once without pulling into the drive-thru before you park rather than making an immediate left, as the parking lot spots are angled to favor people coming from the Oaklawn Boulevard side, southbound, or making the little loop around. They did space them nicely, though, and the accessible parking is nice and close to the door, though I haven't tested their wheelchair ramp yet.

A lot of locals, me included, use Captain D's as a movie-night-in takeaway, though dining in is delightful, too. You just want to eat it sooner rather than later, as fried food is most delicious hot. You'll love the people working there! Really, this is one of the nicest places in a surprisingly fun...

One of the Best Captain Ds Ive ever dealt with! (And Ive been thru a lot). The food is always fresh, the order is always accurate, and the Sweet Tea is always just right. I want to give them a super shout out for being open today in this surprise ice storm (or WHATEVER kind of weather this is today 😂), 3 young ladies making it happen in there, like its a sunny summer afternoon day.

PRO-TIP: Food is hot so open the lids when you get it. And let it catch a little air, so it retains crispiness! Otherwise it will get soggy. Turn a seat heater on to keep some heat in on the drive home.

I had the 10pc Fish family meal, 4pc chicken meal, green beans, fries, hush puppies and jalapeno poppers & fried okra. Fish was crispy, chicken was as well, green beans have just enough taste to not need anything else on them, fries, hushpuppies and okra was fresh and lightly crispy as well! Jalapeño poppers were pretty good as well.

The drive thru speaker is kind of suspect, so speak clearly and be patient, but thats on ownership!

Other than that nothing bad to say, I...

Yesterday 11/17/19 I bought a fried Catfish dinner. I didn’t open the food carton until late Sunday night. By then Captain d’s was closed. To my chagrin and shock I had three sardines masquerading as Catfish fillets. My husband told me that the lady who prepared my meal said that she gave me three fillets because they were so small. So, I told him I appreciated what she had done. Well, that would have been funny if I were not so mad. Those fillets were the size of sardines in a can, probably smaller. Shame on You Captain d. Those fillets shouldn’T have been sold as fish order portions. That was a ripe off for real. At least people should have been told that you’re getting three nuggets instead of fillets. Then the customer could have decided if they wanted to get something else instead. I don’ think I will be going back to Captain d’s anytime soon. No integrity in the quality of food they sell. I would have given 0 stars if...