Capitol Oyster Bar — Restaurant in Montgomery

I was really looking forward to my first visit to the famous Capitol Oyster Bar, for a dose of Sunday afternoon blues, while in Montgomery to see the lovely and talented Heather Gillis, at the nearby Alexander City Jazz Festival, on the beautiful shores of Lake Martin, on 8/9/20. It was a cool, funky, rustic little dive on the water, and was easily accessible, being close to the interstate, just north of downtown Montgomery. Even though there was a wait to be seated, it seemed to fly by while we giddily browsed all the blues memorabilia in the crowded lobby. Sadly the music came to a halt about a month before we got there because of the Baloney Virus. But that's not the worst part, the worst part was the service and some of the food! I estimate there were less than 40 people in the restaurant including the patio. I counted no less than six servers and two people behind the bar. Yet our server acted like she was constantly in the weeds? It was like pulling teeth to get her to find the right size and bring us three $20 t-shirts to buy, even with the help of the bartender. I thought I was helping by spending money, not being an annoyance! She always acted like we were taking up too much of her time. We were just trying to get answers to a few questions we had and order. She was always ready to drop the water or plate on the table and run away. We would be trying to tell her our order as she was literally moving backwards. I might add that even with the shoddy service she still got over a 20% tip on the food and drink! Not overly hungry but wanting to try a sampler of their fare, we chose several things and ordered them all at the same time. We first asked about the "shrimp jammers" & subsequently ordered the delicious stuffed, fried shrimp appetizer, which was the first thing to come to the table, after a lengthy wait. Curiously there were only five pieces, not four, not six, but an odd number for a couple to fight over? We also ordered some raw oysters, which were some of the most delicious I've ever eaten, but they made it to the table last, roughly 1 hour after ordering them, even though I asked about them at least twice! How long does it take to shuck a half dozen oysters anyway? Oddly the people at the table next to us, that came in an hour after us, somehow got a fried oyster po' boy within minutes!? The shrimp po' boy we ordered to share, was workable, but not spectacular, as the presentation was very lacking! Just a sandwich about the size of a hot dog, cut in half and plopped onto a plate. They were even skimpy with the lettuce, and seriously, how much does lettuce cost!? But the worst offense to our palates, was the boiled and chilled, peel & eat shrimp! In retrospect neither one of us could believe we actually ate it and didn't send it back, but quite frankly I was afraid that if I did, it would take another hour to get out of the place!! I have lived in and traveled to many places adjacent to the sea in my life, and I have to tell you that seriously, this was the worst shrimp I've ever eaten in my life! It had a very mealy texture, like it had been frozen way too long & the shells were mysteriously welded to the flesh, which I'm guessing means they were grossly overcooked! They were also tasteless and unspiced! Thank God there was cocktail sauce to drown them in! I guess I should have sprung the extra 50% more for the fresh steamed and spiced shrimp, but I really wanted cold shrimp not warm! Should they ever get the blues music going again, and I am in the area, I would not hesitate to return, but I also will not hesitate to return substandard food, and my tip will be inversely proportional to the length of time it takes to get my order, so to the management & staff of the Capitol Oyster Bar...you are on...

This was our first time eating here. Upon pulling up, my husband was a little skeptical, but I told him I'd seen FB friends post about going here and it was fine. We proceeded to go in, we were right before dinner rush, so got seated immediately. Our waitress was super friendly. I can't remember her name, but she made drink suggestions and answered any questions we had about the menu. She even allowed us to move from the inside seating to outside, when a table became available (this was shortly after being seated and we only had our waters). We ordered our appetizers: gator tail, gumbo and crawfish cream sauce and she said she'd wait because we might be full. Well, we wanted the whole experience so when we got our appetizers we placed our entree order. She was right! We were already stuffed! When our food came, catfish platter and a 1/2 order of fried oysters, and chicken fingers, we sampled each item and the sides, but ultimately had to get a to go box. My husband was very impressed at the size of catfish and said they were so good. It was just an overall wonderful experience. The sun was setting and the scenery was beautiful. We even got to speak to a gentleman as we left, that we feel was the owner. He asked about our experience and told us that Sundays are when they have the live band. We will definitely be going back. It's not often you have such a pleasant experience and everyone seemed to thoroughly...

Party of 5 adults with an 11yr and a 1yr old. Seated promptly, and even outside! The heaters were awesome!! We truly enjoyed ourselves and the food was good. A few things here: We were seriously short on napkins and utensils after appetizers. The server would come and go so quick, it was hard to get a chance to ask. I was wrapped up in feeding a very hungry toddler❤ So alongside that, we had stayed a while and having to socialize and mostly feed and entertain my 1yr old, I was not able to scarf my meal down how I had wanted. While the rest of the table asked for to-go boxes, that was my chance to eat. Well, when the server came back I was tending to my daughter, the server took my whole piece of fish and side of grits and started to take others trash to put on my plate. I still wanted my food! I love to eat and its hard going out with such a young child and all. I wasn't asked, and I wanted my food. I understand that time rolled along and it seemed like we were all done, but I wasn't. This definitely isn't so awesome. I was looking forward to finally finishing my meal, cold or not! Haha! Mom has to eat when she can. So, just be mindful. It may seem okay, but it does not...