The Yabby Hut — Restaurant in Lakewood

Awful. Terrible food. Poor Service. Loud as a mosh pit. NOT what I call a pleasant dining experience.

The waiter couldn't hear us over the way too loud music blasting out of the speakers. Everyone in the restaurant has to yell to be heard over it, so the overall noise is unbelievable. He missed half our order, and didn't have the common sense to bring more than one set of shell crackers and tools to the table. We had to ask for another set. There was only one size of meat pick (large) and no small nut meat picks for the smaller crawfish entrée. The nutcrackers they brought out were not the nice flat ones that allow you to crack tiny shells, but the big curved ones for large nuts. Totally useless for anything smaller than 1/4 inch in diameter.

The menu is pathetic. Yes they have seafood, but nothing in the way of seafood dinners. It's like going to a market or a street wagon and buying seafood by the pound from a vendor. Unfortunately, when you order your food prepared with garlic and butter you get a bag full of paprika covered shellfish. Even after asking them to rinse off the deep red pasty mess, there was an overpowering sting of heat. You can't even taste the pricey seafood for their obnoxious spicy "seasoning" that they slather on everything. And that's after saying you wanted NO heat. Their seasoning completely masked the seafood flavor and did a terrible disservice to the delicate flavor of the sea. I've spent time in NO, and the food didn't taste like that.

Sorry, but I've lived in the Pacific NW, and along the coast in New England. I got spoiled by real seafood places, where you can get langostinos and Niantic Bay baby scallops, blue crab, snow crab, monk fish, and steelhead, or the daily catch fresh off the wharf. I get that we're a thousand miles inland, but why can't their food be served as a meal the way they do in most seaside eateries? I'm used to getting my seafood served with at least the traditional accompaniments, whether it's in a white tablecloth restaurant or on a picnic table on the boardwalk. Even the open air boardwalks serve the seafood with all you can eat watermelon and manhattan clam chowder to compliment the pound of steamed/grilled whatever you happened to order.

Seasonings shouldn't mask the subtle flavors of the seafood centerpiece. Unless your palate is so unsophisticated as to require the gastronomical equivalent of being hit over the head with a 2x4 to register any flavor.

Overpriced, and questionable sanitation. (my son got terribly queasy 15 minutes after leaving the restaurant and spent the next 40 minutes in the bathroom..) I didn't get sick, probably because I could only stomach part of 3 crawfish before I sent the bag back to dispose of properly. I wasn't going to eat another bite of bad food. We were hungry after leaving the restaurant and ran by Arbys to pick up something to take home to settle our stomachs. (it wasn't the spice....I like Thai, Indian, and NuMex cuisine, but the food handlers in Colorado don't require certification and we've seen some terribly unsanitary practices in this state, compared to many others.). I will NEVER go there again. Why should I pay through the teeth for bad food, bad atmosphere, and bad service (had to ask for everything, from drink refill to utensils to the bill)?

Denver, if this is what you call good seafood, you seriously need to get out of...

I was born on the banks of the Chesapeake Bay (well not literally but you could see it from the hospital), Lived in VA; NC; & GA. Have spent considerable amounts of time in SC; LA; MS; AL; & FL, I'm a United States Navy Veteran, and I worked on commercial fishing boats out of Titusville and Port St. Lucie, FL. Not bragging, just qualifying. I am of the volition that I may just perhaps know what GOOD seafood tastes like. I had GOOD seafood tonight.

When I came to Colorado I came with Steak on the mind and I found it, and it was good, and so it was written. But when you have ADD and travel as much as I have, chain restaurants become boring at warp speed. Long ago I became a sucker for two things while traveling: 1) Local culture, hospitality and flair and 2) GOOD local food.

Tonight I found it all. Excellent knowledgeable & friendly staff, willing to take the time to deal with our motley crew. Food that was not only hot & delicious but served in a unique fashion, reminiscent of the "Low Country Boils" in SC or the "Crawfish Boils" from Cajun country I've had the pleasure to partake in. Atmosphere like that of the old oyster houses my Daddy took me to as a child. The one thing you won't hear though is the clanking of silverware and china. Mostly just lot's of laughter as your party and everyone else in the room is up to their elbows in Cajun spiced shrimp, lobster & crab along with potatoes, corn & sausage. In addition, we also had salads, and a nice size appetizer platter of fried shrimp, fish, calamari and fries. All that plus drinks for $129.00. For a party of 4 to have that much good food and an even better time I think $32.25 a head is CHEAP. And to think we were going to spend half that to go thru a haunted house. Boy am I glad it snowed.

Although I've been two thirds of the way around the world, I've never been to Colorado until this trip. I knew the Tex-Mex and steaks were going to be a treat but I had no idea some of the best seafood I would ever have would be on this same trip.

I would like to thank the Android app Urban Spoon for giving us the skinny on them (and directions), the snow gods for putting the kibosh on our plans for the haunted house & of course the staff & mgmt of the Yabby Hut for showing us great food and a great time. And If you're ever in Denver for longer than a layover before your next flight and DON'T eat at The Yabby Hut you should be drawn & quartered...well at least analyzed cuz you're not right. And if you LIVE in Denver and have never eaten here....well, just move! And make room for someone...

I gave this place a Five Star ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Came here this evening 5th October 2019. My first time coming here aside from the family they have been here before. We came here for a Birthday Celebration for two family members. We had made reservation for a Party of 17 total and before arriving they had called us to see if we were still coming which was great we were on our way there like 5-10 minutes away due to heavy traffic along the way. We arrived and our table was all set and ready for us. We had two servers Marina and Erica both were excellent thank you ladies for Excellent Service!! Being my first time there I read up on the reviews and got a heads up as to what to expect. The service we had was great awesome it was good! The food was great. For myself I could not eat the Crab 🦀 I am allergic to crab but not to shrimp 🍤 or lobster 🦞 which were my choice of seafood. I took the Shrimp and chip Basket with a side order of Shrimp and Sausage Fried Rice which was superb. It was awesome 👏🏼. Everyone else had their choice of their favorites. So here if you order the crab, lobster it is brought out to you in a plastic bag and you spread it out in front of you and it’s all hands on deck, messy smelly, and juicy so FYI bring your own Handi wipes which I brought myself. It kinda helps wiping down before heading to RR if you need to go to wash your hands out properly. We were given gloves 🧤 and bibs of course it was put on us by Marina and Erica. Then they brought out the treat for the two Birthday Celebrants and they sang with us. We had an Exceptional Service and it made our evening great. We thank the Staff here at The Yabby Hut. I would surely recommend this Place to Family...