Legal Sea Foods

FYI — This Legal is officially closed! Yesterday was their last day.
There are several others out there. Definitely the place to go for clam chowder.

Regardless of the swarm of tourists here, the number of regular Bostonians who show up is certainly a testament to the reliability that is the Legal Seafoods chain. I’ve personally lost count of how many times I’ve stopped in here for lunch or a casual dinner.
It’s a busy location so wait service is always on point. I’d recommend getting clam chowder here. Do the simple grilled options or classic deep frieds. Seafood is what you should come here for – not cheese or pasta dishes.
The price is a little higher for a chain, but I don’t mind paying for reliability. Go Legal’s!

Despite the location in a mall, it’s a less tacky looking Legal than the one I’ve been to (which looked like a Denny’s) I liked the chowder, not too crazy about the dessert and did not like my Lobster Bake. I probably should have stayed with the tried and true since all of my companions liked their food. Specially the ones who got the fish dishes.
Service was very good, attentive, and prompt. We probably got more cocktails than we really need because they were so good!

I’d love to give it a 3.5, but I can’t. For service, and cleanliness, I would love to give it a 5+, but I can’t — because its Legal Seafoods, and the fried clams were over cooked and over salted, and the Steamers were over thymed (thyme, really? why?) and too gritty. Not cool. Its Legal Seafood, and you expect perfect. Not today. Lovely staff, very clean and bright. Food? Lackluster.

In our first trip to Boston, we were on the hunt for some amazing seafood, specifically lobster rolls and clam chowder. My fiancé and I stumbled upon this place during our downtown walk and was also recommended by some locals. The restaurant is clean, service was great and the food was amazing! The clam chowder was the best I’ve ever had, the lobster roll was succulent and the cauliflower appetizer was also delicious! Bread was served along with generous portions of food. My fiancé got the crab cakes and those were also delicious. My only negative is that it was a $ 65 lunch with tip, which is pricy. I was OK with paying this one time and glad I did! If you’re exploring Boston and want some good food, go here!

I’ll admit I wasn’t trying to hit up every tourist trap in the Back Bay area, and Legal Sea Foods was in my tourist purview of places to avoid. But with a conference in Hynes and my hotel room in the Sheraton, it was inevitable I would wind up here. And honestly, thank the seafood gods that I did!
The service was seriously on point. The servers, the bartender, the staff at the take-​out station– all on top of their game with friendly smiles, and that extra touch to make their customers feel taken care of. When I accidentally received the wrong takeout order, one employee chased me down in the Prudential mall to trade them out. I’ll be honest… if that were me, I would have let that shiz go. Probably one of the reasons I would fail miserable in the service industry.
The food was unbelievably good. I tried the Fisherman’s trio of crispy scallops, shrimp, and clams with a side of the jalapeño cheddar polenta and fell into a blissfully happy food coma. The seafood was so fresh, so flavorful, and the polenta was dreamy. I also had an oyster sampler, and the cioppino with lobster claw, calamari, shrimp, scallops, clams, mussels and whitefish. It was a seafood smörgåsbord of amazing proportions.
Loved it, did it twice in my week-​long stay, would do it again.

Early dinner with Princess.
Legal is our go-​to for consistently great seafood. Princess always orders the crab cakes with mashed potatoes for a side. I’m always fish and chips, with a bowl of chow-​da to start. Fish is cod with crispy batter. Fries are steak fries.
Service is always great.
Next time, I’ll order some oysters on the half shell. They have a great selection of local, all the way to NW varieties.

They were very good about my wife’s allergies. They took her allergies to peanuts and tree nuts very seriously. They double checked the order and their policy is to have the manager bring it out and inform you it is safe. Made her feel real comfortable in eating it. So good we went there twice. The first time got the spicy fish and chips. Nice kick to the flavor. The next time my wife got the crab cakes. The only disappointing thing was it wasn’t endless crab cakes. Went to the airport and saw they have a catalog to order from their website. Who knew?

Tourist trap alert! Tourist trap alert!
I came here when my parents came from out of town to visit and I was a bit skeptical at first. But hey, Legal’s menu is full of interesting and delicious sounding choices! I am pretty sure I wanted everything I saw. The sriracha popcorn shrimp that we got as an appetizer was amusing as well as delicious. It comes in an actual popcorn bag, and kettle corn is mixed in with the shrimp, with sriracha drizzled on top. It definitely sounds like an odd combination, but somehow the slight sweetness of the popcorn went great with the shrimp and the spiciness of the sriracha. Don’t question it. Just try it.
My entrée was a bit disappointing, particularly in light of the fact that our server recommended it. I had the «Signature Crab Cake,» which came with a salad and one side. I found the crab cake to be slightly bland, even with the mustard, which wasn’t spicy or flavorful at all. I found myself enjoying the onion strings I got for a side far more than the entrée itself.
For dessert, we ordered the warm chocolate pudding cake and the cheesecake to share. The chocolate cake was really rich, but was so gooey that I wondered if it was undercooked. And the cheesecake was alright, but then again, I have yet to find a cheesecake anywhere that comes even close to what my mom makes at home. I didn’t expect that the version being served at Legal Sea Foods would change that!
If you come to Legal, you won’t be getting the best seafood in town. Not by a long shot. But if you come to Legal, you will get a fairly tasty and filling meal, at a reasonable price, with good service. And at the end of the day, what more do you need?

Came here on a weekday. We totally got lost looking for this place, mainly bc we were going by the address and couldn’t find 800. It’s actually inside the shopping center across from the Apple store (duh)! We didnt have to wait at all, though there was a small line. The place is actually quite large and extends to the back.
Man, food here is expensive! I got a cup of the Clam Chowder and my friend got the bowl ($ 5.50 vs. $ 7.50). We also shared a plate of the crab cakes, which came with two and was almost $ 30! Wth? Granted, most of the crabcake was all meat but still. I could have bought 2 – 3 whole crabs for that price in Chinatown probably. While I did like the crabmeat in the crabcakes, I didn’t like the mustard-​y sauce and would have preferred an aioli. I was full from my chowder and crab cake, though. The salad that came with the crab cakes was very fresh, too. The chowder was also good — not too thick and it did have a few pieces of real clams in it. The bowl is probably 1.5 as big — it looks a lot larger but the dish is actually quite shallow. We had initially wanted to get the lobster roll, but it turns out they only sell this during lunch hours and not dinner!
Service was good and the interior was nicer than I thought for a chain — it had an upscale feel to it. Overall good but probably not the best value for seafood in Boston.

I had lunch here today, take out, and was left totally underwhelmed… again. The last time I got lunch here, a crab cake and lobster bisque, everything was good except the bisque. For some reason the kitchen thought it was appropriate to put a heaping pound of chives on top of my soup making it inedible. Crab cake was good though, so back I went since I was at the Pru. I ordered the same thing and prefaced with the waitress to please not put any chives on top of my soup.
I get my lunch and head back to my desk. Soup is not only chive free on top, it is also lobster free. Amazing. I stir the soup up and notice that the lobster in the soup looks weird, not sure of how better to describe it, it just looked fake. I ate about 5 bites before I had to throw it out. There were so many hard pieces in the soup. I spit a few out and it appeared to be cartilage, so gross. The soup was also an unusual consistency and tasted really funny. Perhaps there is something to the rumor that these guys use frozen product (I just found that out today).
Fast forward to the crab cake, while decent, I should have just gone to abe and louies. They have a much, much better product.
Do yourself a favor, just skip this place. The quality is terrible and the service also leaves a lot to be desired.

Just surprisingly good.
I was worried that the mini-​chain might be a little too blasé, but a recent visit with a larger party for lunch showed that they have their A game still on.
The beer battered fish n chips was huge with big pieces of fresh haddock. So yummy. The fries too weren’t overlooked. The fisherman’s stew was outstanding, said a dining companion while another had the tuna burger and ate it all. Quickly.
Service was mostly good — the server did disappear a bit. But overall, the place exceeded my expectations. Very nice.

I live in Boston. I am not a big «fish person». My life is sad.
I came here for an event, and we had a private room and menu to order off of. I assume you can customize the menu however you want so I guess I have the organizers to thank for providing Chicken and Filet mignon options for the non-​seafood eaters. I chose the chicken which came in a lemon butter with zucchini and summer squash and mashed potatoes. It was decent. The lemon butter wasn’t very lemony at all and the chicken was a little dry so I’d give it a ²⁄₅.
This was a 4 course meal though, so I also tried the clam chowder– ³⁄₅ you can get much better chowder in Boston, caesar salad– 4/​5, and the chocolate cake– ²⁄₅ because it had very obviously just been defrosted and oozed water when you put your fork in it.
Service was 5 stars, no question. Lots of waiters always ready to get you what you need, always there with a refill, and very friendly. Best service I’ve ever had at an event, actually.
If I loved seafood, I would probably like this place much better but for what it’s worth and for the benefit of others who find lobster terrifying, there’s my 2 cents.

Price/​Food
— Came here to grab a beer and something to munch on. I ordered a dozen oysters to share with my friend. The oysters were decent. We had a variety and most of them were too briny for me. Oysters not too fresh but not bad either. This place is a tourist spot so if you want authentic seafood you should avoid this place. Overpriced for subpar food.
Location
— Franchise place so there’s many locations in Boston. This place is similar to Yard House but a seafood version. This place has a bunch of TV’s for people to watch the game.
Recommendation
— The oysters are subpar and overpriced. However, this is a great spot to hit up if you’re trying to grab some beers and chill!

What can I say? Perfect Seafood however you like it. Excellent Service. The Best Quality Oysters around. Great New England Clam Chowder! Great Place to eat seafood in Boston. I highly recommend it!
Enjoy, Chef Gary!

I was visiting in Boston on vacation and my family and I were looking for a good spot for seafood. That’s why you come this way right ??
So, we came here on a whim, granted my uncle had already been here before. We called ahead of time to confirm the wait time, as they did no reservations I believe.
We got there, and I think the place is cute, with a nice aquarium inside. The wait wasn’t too bad, around 20 minutes. We get seated by a great waiter, who takes the time to explain everything according to what I’m looking for. I ordered the seafood casserole that had shrimp, scallops, and cod, with a crumbly topping, with a great white sauce. Pretty good, but could have used more flavoring. I also ordered these sweet pea cakes, which is just like it sounds for my side. Very good for the palette! Overall, it was good!
Great ambience !

This restaurant is a chain with quite a number of locations in the Boston area. This was our first time to Legal Sea Foods on a trip to Boston that we had last month.
I had a Harpoon to start as I like to try beer that I can’t really get locally which was a nice change. We started with the fried oyster appetizer which was something different because again it’s not something I see at home. It was served fresh and hot and it didn’t take very long for it to arrive.
Both my wife and I had went with the wood grilled fare. I had went with the Tuna with a skewer of scallops on the side and my wife went with the swordfish.
Both meals were cooked fine. The swordfish I found a little dry but that’s how that fish is I supposed.
It’s a little pricey but the food is decent. I can’t say the value is that great but the food met my expectations for a seafood restaurant in a seafood kind of town.

Reconfirms that the only Legal worth dining at in Boston is Legal Harborside. Lobster was subpar as were the rolls.
Crab cake was the highlight

Granted, my food was delicious. I had an assortment of grilled shellfish and fish, with a side salad and brown rice. The fish was perfectly grilled and very very fresh, as expected. However, my plate was sad-​looking and didn’t bring anything new to the table, very literally. The brown rice, salad and fish were all cooked well, but pretty standard fare. The dessert, which was a fruit tart, was excellent. I’d go for a business lunch, or if someone else was paying. As it happens I was taking out an old friend who was visiting Boston, so I wanted to show off a bit.
Service was excellent. Can’t fault them there. If you didn’t know the restaurant was in the Prudential, you’d have a hard time finding it by just going to Boylston St, as there are no signs making the location clear.

Frankly, I don’t go to Legal Sea Foods expecting to be impressed. Don’t get me wrong, it’s clean and presentable, service is professional, the space is large and very accommodating to large parties, and they make a solid clam chowder but it just doesn’t get me excited about eating and reading their menu doesn’t make me feel giddy– it’s simply an a-​okay option for when I’m feeling unimaginative and in need of something convenient but still nice.
There are a couple of things that are better than a-​okay though:
1. Their complementary rolls are fantastic– a nice crunch on the outside and so hot and soft and delicious on the inside. Slap on some butter and I can’t help but get halfway full on them every time.
2. The clam chowder really is very good.
3. And for my «main course,» I always order the crab cake appetizer– I highly recommend this. It is simply sizable chunks of lump crab meat with minimal filler-​starches seasoned lightly with mustard and paired with a simple salad with craisins and julienned green apples dressed in what tastes like a light honey balsalmic. You definitely feel like you’re eating real crab in this crab cake and that’s always a good thing. Nothing else on the menu is nearly as impressive as their crab cake.
This was my first time at this particular Legal Sea Foods, rather than the one in Kendall Square. My two complaints: 1) the locks are broken on quite a few of the bathroom stalls and 2) we ordered three crab cake appetizers and we each had 2 – 3 pieces of seriously wilted greens in our salad – like wilted to the point where they are slimy and oozing brown liquid – not appetizing.

Excelente lugar. La atención muy buena.