Joe’s Crab Shack

Silly us, we decided to pass up the RR location today and drive 30 minutes to this location because we figured we would enjoy good seafood and an amazing view of Lady Bird Lake on a gorgeous Sunday afternoon. And although we weren’t disappointed about the view from the patio, the food was not the best. I am a little biased when it comes to seafood because in Louisiana we eat it fresh out of the water. However, this is the only Joe’s I’ve eaten at here in the Austin area where we had to send food back to the kitchen. The crab cakes tasted nothing like crabs and the seasoning that was sprinkled on top was an insult. It seems like they attempted to fry them because it was a little brown at the top but they had absolutely no crunch to them. Honestly, it tasted like a big, rubbery clump of nothing. The red fish my husband had was drowning in sauce which made it soft and a little gross to eat. My sons enjoyed their meals of chicken tenders and fries and my mom enjoyed her chicken sandwich. Maybe we will come back to this location for the view and just order some chicken tenders, fries and a few drinks. Our waiter, Jeremy, and the view are the reasons why I gave this location three stars. They were both great!

So disappointed! Beautiful Sunday afternoon in Austin. Restaurant was not busy. We asked to be seated on patio overlooking Ladybird Lake. We were told it would be a 30 minute wait for patio. There was no line and at least 3 clean and ready tables on the patio.
We sat indoors. Less than half the tables were occupied, but it still took 10 minutes for any waitstaff to come to our table. Then our appetizer arrived with our entrees. Food was so-​so at best.
Won’t visit this location again.

Food is not very good and there’s certainly places that have better food for equal or lesser price. Customer service was okay when it came to speaking with us but not good at refilling our drinks or remembering something we asked for (tarter sauce for example) and our food took almost 45 minutes to come out even though there was only four occupied tables in the entire establishment and several servers just standing by waiting for the clock to run out (it was 30 minutes before closing time) and when our food finally came out, it was cold. Wouldn’t go back to this place unless they hire a better, more caring staff.

Go for the patio. Best view in Austin of the lake, the Austin skyline, and the trail people. I wouldn’t think of going and sitting indoors.
Drinks are good and the food is ok. We always get fish and chips. One order is enough for two people.
I can’t stress what a great patio this is.

These guys offer a free appetizer on your birthday, they have the best restaurant name ever ‚& the view is spectacular; Where else would I go for the occasion! We started with that appetizer of fried calamari that comes with a wonderful dipping sauce. Afterwards we had Joe’s Classic Steampot. Ironically, I’m not much of a crab guy. Although, the little bit I did have was tasty. It didn’t convert me from my love of shrimp or calamari though. The sausage was juicy and hot. I also had a side order of fries that were crispy and not over salted. The restaurant is tidy and there are lots of décor to marvel at while you grub. As we were wrapping up our meal, our waitress along with about 3 of her peers came to me and asked me to stand up and hold a salt and pepper bottle in each hand. As they sung happy birthday, I was tasked with dancing as crazy as I could WITHOUT moving those shakers. The folks eating were good sports and sung along and cheered me on… that was pretty swell. Everyone in our party finished everything they ordered and we had no complaints. They have reverse happy hour throughout the week and stay open until midnight!

Meh. Kinda dirty, lackluster customer service, food was edible.
Go somewhere else if you can.

I grew up on Joe’s Crabshack but I haven’t been here in years. Decided to have Joe’s for dinner tonight and was absolutely disgusted. $ 19 for a crabcake (tasted like cornbread, barely a hint of crab), one piece of fish (overcooked and the grease tasted old), 3 bacon wrapped shrimp (small) and a massive pile of fries and fried onions. If this was my first experience at Joe’s, would never visit this establishment again.

What’s with all the hate???
Sure, Joe’s Crab Shack is a chain in a sea of Keep Austin Weird localvore Unilocalers just ready to give it a bad review. So, why should you go?
1. The View
2. The View
3. The food is pretty good, so chill out.
4. The View
The view from the patio is beautiful. I’m not sure you can get a better view of the Austin skyline and the lake. It’s gorgeous to watch the sunset and see the city light up as it gets darker.
Everything I’ve ever had here is good. My husband and I stuck with sharing the peel and eat shrimp appetizer and another appetizer combo. It was plenty of food and only about $ 20, so there are other options than their ridiculously priced steamers. I really liked the Great Balls of Fire — a fried ball of crab and creaminess. I also enjoyed the BBQ shrimp.
They also have a big selection of drinks, so I think just grabbing a few drinks on the patio could be fun too. My mother-​in-​law says this is the only place to get a drink in a real pineapple too, if that’s your thing.
All in all, can’t beat the view on the patio. Worth it.

Kelsey our waitress was extremely nice. Not busy at all but she was on top of our refills, food and always had a smile on her face. It took a while for the hostesses to know we were right in front of them (the YouTube video musta been super amusing). The food is pretty. Bad. I had a crab cake sandwich that had absolutely no flavor. The fried calamari all you could taste was the fried and no flavorful calamari. It’s sad cause the Joes in FW is so great. This one lacks effort and genuine customer service front of the house and back.

Kelsie was amazing! I run restaurant and food and service was on point! Even preggo wife loved it all! View is awesome… Good job Kelsie! I drink Diet Coke fast and it was always full!!!

The food was great and our server was very helpful. I and my Wife went there after bat tours from livelovepaddle for our dinner crab cravings. Our server helped us pick the mix of spicy blend sauce and boy was that good. The only gripe I have is that we sat outside and the insects bite my wife and she has rashes all over her leg. Anyway, the lakeside view of the Austin downtown is good. You can even see the OWL building look like OWL from there ;)

Recently decided to go back into the trenches of the ol’ Crab Shack… I have been back a few times since, not gonna lie, but haven’t posted because I didn’t think they were doing any better or any worse since my last review.
Anyway, newest experience just a few days ago, sat at the bar with my partner in tow. We were greeted and taken care of by a lady named Faith. She was very friendly and helpful with the drink menu, as we were looking for something frivolous to drink, preferably a bright hue, and not reeking of rum… She pointed us in the direction of one of her favorite cocktails the Island Tea Time (Jack Daniels I think was the main ingredient) and a Sangria of some kind for my oh so macho man. Really good drinks!
She also explained they had a couple of new steam pots on the menu and few new appetizers to choose from. We asked her to choose for us, since she made a great impression with the drinks and after asking us a few questions about our preferences ended up ordering us a Shrimp Boil and some Great Balls of Fire (crab balls with jalapenos and cream cheese I think– so freaking good).
This experience was so much better than the last time. I am not sure if its new management, new staff or what, but they have their stuff together people (finally)! We will be back for sure!!!

OMG this food literally made me sick. The food was so overcooked it was like eating dust

Not really what I was expecting. Lovely lakeside seating outdoors, but service was exceptionally bad. Our waiter took our drink order and brought 3 out of 4 wrong. Then brought out food, but didn’t come back with silverware. I finally had to get up and get it myself. Food made Res Lobster look like 5 Star. Not impressed at all.

Never have I been so taken back by the complete lack of customer service or common sense. Called in at 9:50 on Friday to place an order for pick up .The phone rang for a total of 7 minutes before I hung up. I commenced to call back 3 more times each call ringing for at least 4minutes && 2 of those phone calls were ANSWERED and HUNG UP. Mind you I wasn’t feeling well so calling to order was supposed to be more convenient than going to the restaurant itself. After at least 18 mins of ringing I was finally able to place my order. 25 minutes later I arrived to 3 lady standing at front and not one had any idea if my order was even put in…
First call was placed at 9:50 I walked back into my apartment which is 1 mile away at 10:55. I could’ve walked there eaten at the restaurant and walked home and it would’ve been faster.
This was my second time getting food from this location. My first experience was not any better if not worse.
Two weeks ago I came to eat here with a friend of mine we decided to split a $ 36 tab 16 on my card– 20 on his. Our server must not of spoken the same language because she charged $ 36 to my card after which my friend took the receipt back up to her to have it corrected. The next day I checked my card and surprise surprise it was still charged $ 36 to which I STILL have not been refunded. Not sure how she misunderstood that if two people give you their cards and tell you how they want it split. did you just think it was a joke or for shits and giggles.
Extremely disappointed, by the lack of attention lack of common sense and lack of customer service I experience with both of my visits to this location.

Service was slow. They brought one of our 2 appetizers before we had water, other drinks and SILVERWARE. So we sat for about five minutes to eat our stuffed mushrooms. We ordered on shark bite (a drink) that was very watery.
When our food came, our shrimp boil was fine. One in our party ordered a burger, that was very bland. The steam pot that another in our party ordered was supposed to come with corn and potatoes. Nope, we had to ask for those items.
So, in summary, terrible service, terrible food and a bad drink. We won’t be back.

It was a Friday afternoon, and when my friend and I decided on a whim to go to Joe’s Crab Shack instead of one of our own typical locally owned haunts. I was SO pleasantly surprised!
Our waiter and bartender, Orlando, was incredibly attentive, gave us great recommendations, and threw in extra crab to our order. The food was tasty, the view of Town Lake and the Austin skyline was unmatched, and the service was impeccable. I would go back every week.

Horrible experience. Service might have been the worst I have had in austin. Watched 5 servers continually walk past my family and ignore us. After 15 minutes we left hungry and disappointed.
I wouldn’t waste my time with this place.

Been wanting to hit this place for quite some time. Took for daughter for her birthday. Mentioned it was her birthday and the server said «I’ll see if we do anything for that» — what? She never did let me know so I wound up buying a dessert.
No bread was offered at the outset — another kind of strange thing for a restaurant. Not only that, you can’t order any if you want it. When I mentioned it the server said «I don’t think there is any on the menu.» Again to –this is something she should know. Lunch options were very sparse and did not include smaller steam pots or anything — just a bunch of cheap crap I would never order in a place like this. They charge dinner prices for lunch here, another oddity. Early in the day, they really should have better options.
There was quite an offering of dishes available, really something for everyone, even those who do not like seafood. The prices are decent for what you get, too.
Despite the fact that it was a Monday afternoon and almost no one in the restaurant, it seemed like the server was AOL a lot of the time and while she was nice and good, she really could have attended to our needs a little better. I can’t imagine what it would be like if they were really busy. I’ve noticed this ad a theme in Austin in general — lethargic and slow service everywhere, from restaurants to office stores. It is like I have to hunt people down. Not used to that in Chicago and L.A. Perhaps there just isn’t enough competition here to motivate good service.
We decided to order a salad to split since it didn’t come with dinner as a side. The
Crab Cake Chipotle Caesar featured romaine lettuce one of huge lump meat crab cake, black bean corn relish, tortilla strips and chipotle Caesar dressing. The crab cake could have been a bit more crispy but otherwise it was very good. One of the first chipotle dressings that didn’t burn my mouth off in Austin — another theme here that I find very unnerving. The food in general is way too spicy for an average person and there is usually no warning.
I ordered the plain snow crab steampot with a side of corn and french fries. No baked potato is offered — another strangeness for this kind of dish. It was flavorful and plentiful, such that I could have easily shared it. My daughter got the JK Steampot with wine sauce, crab, mussels and scallops, red potatoes and corn. One of the mussels was dead, but other than that she really enjoyed it and was able to eat the whole thing.
She was too stuffed for dessert, and nothing was offered for her birthday — would it have killed them to offer a scoop of ice cream and a candle? I ordered the turtle sunday and found there to be less of the dark chocolate cake than the picture, mostly consisting of ice cream. It was delicious but I expected more cake on the sides.
My daughter said her white wine was decent, however, there was no mention on the menu that it was even available. As something many people have with a meal like this, it seemed a bit odd not to have it on the menu.
When you’re dropping over $ 100 for lunch, you expect a little bread at the outset while you wait and a dessert to celebrate a birthday. Other than that, was very happy with the experience. However, as is another theme in Austin — chintzy, chintzy, chintzy! The music was way too loud for these prices, making it hard to talk. TVs everywhere were distracting, too. More like a sports bar ambiance. There was a nice area on the water to eat at, however it was too breezy for me and it would have been nice to have a heater to sit next to.
I’d go again — because the meal overall was quite good.

If you are going to be doing defensive driving school, where else would you go to, but Joe’s Crab Shack off Riverside! First, great view from their conference room! Second, lunch is part of the defensive driving fee! and lastly, the staff are really cool and accommodating and tasty catfish fry!