Harpoon Harry's Crab House - Tampa — Restaurant in Tampa

Kinda disappointing, at a few different aspects- service, food & timeliness. Right away you get your drink and food menus. Me and my wife were in the mood for cocktails, but wanted to stay sober since we were out with the kids. We asked for a ‘mock tail’ and the waitress gave us a confused look. I explained further and pointed to a couple drinks from the menu. I asked instead of vodka or rum, could they just add Sierra Mist or ginger ale for us. She said they weren’t able to do it? I never really ask for that at places so maybe it wasn’t a popular thing? We go to order our food and my son asks for the pizza. Our waitress says “no, you don’t want that, pick something else”. We all look at her confused and he says- but I don’t want anything else, I really want the pizza. And she replied “no you don’t. How about chicken or macaroni?” I was getting the idea maybe the pizza wasn’t good?…. So I convinced him to choose something else. But she never explained herself and we’re still left wondering why not honestly…. The bread rolls took just as long to come out as an entree would at a regular restaurant. And there were plenty of extra tables around us so I know they were THAT busy. Service was very very slow without anyone moving fast. My other sons cheeseburger came out without the cheese. They took it back and the slice that was now applied was dark orange and almost looked plastic. The bread was of less quality than Walmart’s great value even. Not even warm or toasted. Then we get to the icecream, how can that go wrong, right? I’ve never had my kids turn away from sweets but I’m pretty sure it was freezer burnt. None of them even cared for it. The chocolate wasn’t very smooth- it tasted sort of like cocoa powder, bitter and unsweet.

I chose this restaurant from the photos and reviews for my wife’s birthday and brought the family from an hour away because it appeared tasty enough for a celebration. I was actually quite embarrassed that I got her so excited about the place and spent her birthday somewhere less than ordinary. Very...

Our daughter had recently gotten a job at Harpoon Harry's and had been asking her dad and I to please visit there. It was a bit of a drive for us from our home so we had put it off. Well we decided to have a date night and why not go to the amazing place our daughter keeps talking about. Wow. It was worth the drive! Ok..I'll start with with the very sweet valet. He was such a sweetheart. Then your greeted at the door by very excited to be there employees. The decor and atmosphere are breathtaking. I can't even say enough about that. Then we met our waiter (Brian) whom knew every inch and story of Harpoon Harry's, and he really gets into telling the story and pulls you in while describing the reclaimed wood from the Tennessee fire. He is definitely the one to ask for. Drinks never went dry which is saying alot. We order our food and.... How do you even describe food from Heaven? We were so full but once again here comes Brian and he's talking about dessert. And again he pulls you into the story and you just can't say no. You would almost think the way he describes the food that he makes it from scratch himself with more pride than a new mother. So yes... we ordered once again. I don't know where the owner finds the chefs but he did an amazing job picking them. I highly recommend Harpoon Harry's and my husband and I agree that the drive will be worth it for more date nights in the future. Hands down one of the best restaurant experiences we've had. Thank you to the entire staff and crew. Incredible!

Added edit- We went back for a 2nd date night. I didn't think it was possible to out do the first visit but they did! We were afraid trying different dishes from the first time might be a mistake but rolled the dice and both ordered different dinners from our first time. I can not explain how they make every bite better than the one before but they do. Tonight our server was Tracy and once again I walked away from dinner with no regrets from the drive. Excellence is the word to...

After my experience, I would not eat here again. I was staying across the street at Embassy Suites and decided to order carry out from Harpoon Harry's. I ordered 2 meals (1 fried shrimp dinner and 1 grouper sandwich) and 2 kids meals (1 cheeseburger and 1 hamburger). I got there to pick up my food and was immediately given the 2 kids meals and the fried shrimp and was told the grouper sandwich would be out shortly. While waiting for my order to be complete I decide to check the food I was given. I saw that they put cheese on both burgers. Not a big deal, I point it out to the host and he takes back one of the cheeseburgers and quickly brings me a fresh hamburger, but I am still waiting on the grouper sandwich. I had to wait 10 more minutes before the grouper sandwich came out, with no explanation as to why it took so long. How long does it even take to fry a grouper filet? At this point I'm about to walk out with my food when a manager walks by, a big fat bald guy who looks like Humpty Dumpty. He says to me "Be careful, that grouper is hot!" So I decide to ask him why there was so much time between my meals being ready. His seems confused. I point out that my other 3 entrees came out more than 10 minutes before the grouper sandwich and simply ask him how this happened. Did they forget to make it? Was it burnt and had to be remade? I would have accepted any explanation really, things happen and I understand that. His only response was "I don't know". "You don't know?" I asked him, "Aren't you the manager? I'm just curious how they came out so far apart." Again, his only response is "I don't know" accompanied by a blank stare. At this point I walk out, I can tell he just doesn't get it. Of course, when I get back to the hotel room I get to enjoy cold soggy fried shrimp while my wife has to wait for her sandwich to cool down...