The Shrimp Boat Restaurant and Seafood Market — Restaurant in Ocean City

I went to Capt. Joe's Shrimp Boat for an early dinner (Aug.2023). They bring you (each person at table) a head-on steamed shrimp to try their seasoning and steaming. It is really tasteful and if you like steamed shrimp, order some! The day I was there, they were having a steamed Crab special (pricing) for ½ dozen or dozen. So I ordered ½dozen XL Crabs, ½ lb. Head-on Steamed Shrimp, along with one of their salads, and Key Lime Pie for dessert(which I took home).(I drank locally brewed Root Beer). The salad was very flavorful and even dipped my picked crab meat in the extra dressing. Even though the steamed crabs were hot, full(heavy), and had good seasoning (good flavor), I would not recommend ordering. As I said, I ordered XL Male Crabs, which should be about 7 inches in size. Just so you know, the knife they bring you to use is 6 inches. 4 of my crabs were about 1 inch shorter than the knife and 1 crab was about ½inch shorter-- which when going by the standard sizing chart through MD Natural Resources or Extension office, means the crabs were more Small-Mediums (S/M) in size, not XL. (5"-5½" Small, 5½"-6" Medium, 6"-6½" Large, 6½"-7" XL; anything above 7" are Jumbos/Supers,etc.) The last one of my six, was 7 inches. I did say something to the waitress before I started eating them,and her reply was,'No, you got the right size, and look, you got a jumbo.' I'm guessing she didn't realize I've been enjoying steamed crabs for over 40 years and just had some Large/XL crabs from another place 2 days before. Plus, I double-checked my thinking online (sizes above) and kept the knife to measure back at my place. (Yes, I measured the knife, and it is/was 6 inches. I also overheard another couple complaining to themselves about the size of their crabs.) I highly recommend the Steamed Shrimp, salad, dessert, and other seafood dishes my family and I have had in the past. BUT, don't order the crabs if you want what you are paying for. (Not sure if I can give names here of where to get great steamed crabs, check other reviews) Also, you can buy raw seafood (shrimp, fish, oysters,crab,etc) to go, from The Boat and cook it at home to enjoy. The prices...

I can’t possibly say enough positives about The Shrimp Boat Restaurant. I have been visiting O. C. since I was a kid, and had never heard of this restaurant. I heard only recently via 107.7 radio station. This restaurant is a hidden gem. Better late than never for me. My daughter and I visited on Friday 8/30. We decided to try the crabs. We waited for a table, but that was fine. This only confirms what an awesome place this is. Once seated, we were quickly greeted by the owner. I can see why this restaurant does the business that it does. Joe, the owner sets the tone. He visits tables, and converses with guests. What a fabulous personality!!! Then, Kayden, our server, who I can only say Wow! Wow! Wow! We had such a wonderful conversation. Kayden is the real deal. I could have easily have had Joe and Kayden sit down with us and join us for crabs. Visiting this restaurant for the first time definitely didn’t feel like a first visit. It was like visiting old friends. You are truly welcomed here. So let’s talk about the crabs. We chose to purchase the $2.99 medium crabs. Again, wow! Growing up in Baltimore, I know crabs. These crabs were the best I have ever eaten. So much meat, and they are crabs from MD, not elsewhere like many other restaurants. Due to the whole wow of this visit, we returned on Monday 9/2 for crabs again. Within 5 minutes, Joe was visiting again. Another nice conversation with an owner who truly cares about his customers. Kim was our server, and she is so attentive. I am always observing my surroundings, and I can see that Joe only hires the best. Again, he sets the stage for nothing less. This time, there were only $1.99 small crabs available. These were amazing. Just as fabulous as the medium crabs. This place has such a following that they ran out of crabs before 2pm. People were waiting for more to arrive. I can’t wait to visit again. The Shrimp Boat has easily become my new favorite restaurant in O. C. I eat at a lot of restaurants, and I will tell everyone that I know to visit this restaurant. You can get a meal anyplace, but this restaurant gives so much more. Thank you, Joe. You have a great team. I’ll see you...

New Review: It's been a year since we ate at The Shrimp Boat Restaurant, and what a difference a year makes. We decided to give this restaurant another try based on all the positive reviews people were leaving on Facebook, and let me tell you I was very pleasantly surprised. I will even go as far as saying that I was wrong, and that the other people were right. Maybe the place had an off day the first time I went, but this time they were on point!

Our waitress, Chrissy, was attentive, courteous and immediately connected with us. The food was tasty, plentiful, delicious and so very satisfying. I had the crabcake, shrimp combo with mashed potatoes and coleslaw. Let me tell you the crabcake was unlike any other I have had. It was full of crab meat, with little or no fillers, and it had a nice spicy kick to it that I appreciated. The coleslaw and mashed potatoes also get high marks.

Moral of the review, don't judge an establishment by your first impressions, but rather give them a second chance to do better, which I have, and am glad that I did.

Kudos to you Shrimp Boat Restaurant. I'll be back!

Old Review: I had high expectations for this place, but I was left high and dry. The Shrimp Boat needs to be sunk.

I ordered the seafood Gumbo soup as an appetizers, but it did not taste fresh. It seemed they just rushed to reheat it, and, leftl pieces that were still cold. The tuna taco entree was no better. The tuna itself looked brown, dry and unappetizing. The flower tortilla was also very cold. The side of hot mashed garlic potato dish was also disappointing. Even the water I asked for to wash all this subpar food tasted unpleasant.

If you want fresh seafood and a cleanly environment in which to enjoy your food, stay away from this place, I was very generous in giving this place a 1 out of 5 stars. In reality, this place deserves something much lower.

PS

My wife had the shrimp taco, and practically left her entire meal intact. The shrimp were overcooked and...