Cappy’s Chowder House

Cappy’s was a dining/​bar experience that was just fine. The chowder was very good, and we had sandwiches and burgers that we all just fine. The beer selection was good, but not outstanding. The atmosphere was good, as was the service and the overall experience.
The problem with Cappy’s is where it is. Along coastal Maine, from Portland north to Camden — the bar for dining is raised. This area is full of really good restaurants — from diners to fine dining — there’s just lots of really really good places to eat.
Cappy’s lacks anything special. Like I said — it was just fine. If it served that food with that atmosphere in a small town in the midwest, lots of stars. But here in Camden, it was nothing special. Nothing to complain about, but it was just fine. Just, fine.

We were there Saturday during Christmas celebration in town.
The waitress that served us up stairs was so lame, didn’t know what came with meal and she took forever to get to us and others around us.
My Salmon was disgusting. The potatoes were dry and burnt and it was all over priced.
The new name of this place for me is Crappys!
Try the Drouthy Bear if you want great service and a meal worth the price!

We had a very pleasant dining experience at lunch (worth the 10 minute wait). We had a table near the window overlooking the harbor. I had the lunch special which was a seafood chowder, very thick and satisfying. Served with a small lobster roll. I enjoyed the stout beer from a local brewer as a plus. Nice service and good atmosphere.

After hiking a couple of hours at Camden Hills State Park, my husband and I decided to stop here and eat. It’s a Wednesday evening (5:40p).
The restaurant looked spacious from the outside, but there were more than a few doorways. We walked into the bar area, although there was supposedly an upstairs and a side to the restaurant.
When we walked in, we were greeted and seated at a table for two near the bar. It’s quite a small bar area, but not too small where you’re in anyone else’s space.
Supposedly, they were short staffed. The bartender, Jeff, was in charge of our table… But he sent the hostess over to take our drink and dinner orders, then checked on is later. They worked well as a team and still served us in a timely matter, although they were busy!
I noticed everyone else had huge mugs of soup/​chowder. I ordered the special of the day: «Chowder Flight». It consisted of 3 small bowls of Clam Chowder, Haddock Chowder, and Seafood & Corn Chowder. Each came with its own pack of oyster crackers. The Clam Chowder was pretty good. Fresh and not as salty as canned chowders. The Haddock Chowder was so-​so. Not as much flavor, had a more soupy texture. The Seafood & Corn Chowder though… Really flavorful! Best for last, this one was packed with sweetness from the corn, saltiness from the seafood (mussel, scallop, shrimp, clam mix), and tasted fresh! If I were to go back, I’d order a bowl of this.
Husband had their Chicken Quesadillas which were cooked perfectly too. Lots of chicken & cheese in flour tortilla, grilled to a nice, crispy texture.
Service was nice & attentive. Atmosphere touristy. Space was sort of cramped. TVs with the baseball game on provided a place to stare, as well as all the memorabilia on the walls.

Good traditional New England seaside fare with classic fisherman /​port appeal.
My husband & I popped in on a rainy chilly fall day & the warm cider we started with hit the spot! He ordered the turkey pot pie, a stick to the ribs delicious delight that filled the soul as much as it did the belly. I got lobstah roll special with a cup of (white) clam chowdah was everything I hoped it would be. The lobster was tender & flavorful & the chowder was yummy & unique. I’m from Rhode Island — I eat a lot of chowder… This was sweeter & among the most delicious I’ve had.

If you’re a good Unilocalerizer, you rarely give bad reviews because:
1– you get smart in choosing your places beforehand.
2– you hate to do so unless there is something seriously off.
This place closes at 11 pm. We arrived at 9:45 pm. It wasn’t busy and only few people were there. We stood for more than 5 minutes where it says wait to be seated and two waitresses were walking around, obviously not helping anyone and didn’t look or acknowledge us. We had to walk to the bar and ask the barista if they were open or closed. He said, yes, we’re open. I’m still wondering why we didn’t leave right away.
The food was great (I ordered a lobster roll). The bun was perfectly buttered and grilled. Lobster meat tasted fantastic! However, the service was so poor enough to ruin the experience. Cappy’s Chowder House, your waitresses were crappy! If you work on this, it would make a wonderful place.

Every time I go to Camden this is the place I go. Brought relatives from away here last week. I ordered the same thing I always do the seafood stew. This time there barely was any seafood. A couple small shrimp and a few mussels. I was very disappointed and told the waitress which didn’t say anything but will let the management know. No offers etc and a $ 14 bowl of broth, tomatoes and sausage is not worth it.
You can’t get any better views though.
Maybe the waitress/​upstairs bartender didn’t no how to treat repeating customers.

Came here about 130 on Labor Day. Sat in the pub area. Waitress took her time to get to us even though there appeared to be plenty of staff and not many people eating. We wanted fried clams, mkt price was 21 for «not that many clams» our waitress says. We ordered haddock sandwich for $ 15 with fries for $ 3 extra, overheard another waitress ten minutes later tell her table that there’s another section that’s the restaurant side with a different menu… would have been nice to know this. Our waitress didn’t even tell us the specials.
We get our food and it was mediocre at best, not a very big portion of fish for $ 15. We eat out a lot and this was the worst place for the price. I can name plenty of places in this state where the fish is fresher, bigger, and cheaper with much better service. Don’t waste your time or money here.

We were looking for a place for breakfast and on this particular day the bakery downstairs from cappy’s Chowder House was the only game in town… The baked goods were decent but overpriced and not worth the expense… I had to heat up my own egg & cheese croissant in the microwave in the back. And because the front door was left open the flies drove us crazy. The location is great and the service was pleasant but unfortunately it left us wishing we had a better option for breakfast.

Cappy’s has a great location and a view of inner Camden harbor. That’s what you pay for. Food is mediocre, small portions, and expensive. We each had the seafood platter, about $ 30, which was fairly small and came with a house salad. I’m glad I also asked for some bread. Although it wasn’t busy, our server finally got to us, and after we placed our order didn’t check up with us until we had polished everything off. I remember thinking I would have a second beer, and maybe desert. But when your dinner is all done and you lose momentum you just want to leave. Cappy’s spends a lot on their own flair and story telling, but not much on a great experience. Glad we finally checked it off the list.
Go if you want a mug or a magnet. Wish I could give a better review.

This is my second time at Cappy’s. They have the best clam chowder! You can get it with additional sea goodies such as shrimp, mussels and lobster. I got the bacon wrapped scallops and they were insanely small which is why I’m not giving a five star rating.
It’s on the corner of the main street in the area. Beautiful spot. They have a little bakery/​shoppe right next door. This place is a must if you’re in the area.

We had ourselves a really good lobster roll in Portland, ME, and were looking forward to another. We ordered a lobster roll and calamari to share, and a half carafe of their house Cabernet Sauvignon. The calamari was good, but the lobster was a disappointment. For the $ 18.99 price, you would think that it would be good. But nope. I thought it was very bland and the bread was greasy, which took away from the taste of the lobster. The half carafe was more than enough for two. If you’re not sure whether to get the whole bottle, or the half carafe, go with the carafe. It’s almost the size of the full bottle.
Our waitress was new, so she wasn’t able to help us much. Every time we asked her a question, she had to get back to us with as answer, as she didn’t know any off hand. Can’t fault her for that, at least she’s making an effort. Hopefully, she’ll be more knowledgeable of their products as she gains experience.
I would not be back here in my future visits to Camden. There are many other restaurants to try.

Arrived on a rainy day and there weren’t many people there. We excitedly wanted some Camden seafood and they sat us up in the Crow’s nest. Fun atmosphere and decorations. The bartender was confused and disorganized although pleasant. We had great clam chowder, but it was the steamers that give this place 2 stars. I have never smelled anything worse that didn’t look to be rotting. The second the smell hit my nose I actually gagged. Trying to give the benefit of the doubt, I choked down 2 of them. They were sandy. Inedible not only due to the smell, but they weren’t cleaned properly. That smell will never leave me.

Neat interior vibe but the wait staff is inexperienced and a little disorganized. The clam chowder was pretty good but something was off about the steamers that we got. They were very sandy and weren’t that fresh. They have a large selection of wine and beer though.

It’s good. It has a family-​esque vibe and old east coast sports bar atmosphere.
I’m giving this a 3 star review only because the atmosphere didn’t really wow me that much — and that’s personally a big factor for me — kinda reminded me of a TGI Fridays mixed with an old Eastern bar.
Really great chowder and great views of the harbor though :).

The wings were not that great and I would not buy them again. However my wife loved the lobster roll and seafood chowder and she is a tough critic of lobster rolls. They do have gluten free options.
The staff was very friendly especially Cheryl, loved her!

While in Camden for the National Tobogganing festivities, my friends and I stopped by Cappy’s Chowder House for lunch. It’s a lovely water-​side restaurant with a beautiful view. I ordered a half-​chowder and half-​lobster roll lunch which was delicious. I really enjoyed the opportunity to try both menu items. I was also pleased with the service. All-​around, Cappy’s offered a nice dining experience.
Verdict:
I will return whenever in Camden, ME

We came here for lunch to experience the lobster roll, and even now, I’m not sure why I didn’t get a lobster roll…
We walked in, put our name on a list, and headed for the upstairs bar. While at the upstairs bar, we were asked if we wanted to be seated, and we got a perfect table upstairs overlooking the harbor.
We decided to get the fried lobster nuggets, lobster rolls, clam chowder, and I got the seafood fra diavolo.
The fried lobster nuggets were a miss. Yes, they were big chunks of lobster, but it would have been much better to have broiled lobster instead of the fried.
The bite I had of the lobster roll was terrific. I loved the buttered grilled bread on the roll against the yummy lobster. Delicious. However, it came with an inedible side of cole slaw, that really looked like broccoli slaw gone wrong (it was brown and smelled terrible).
My seafood fra diavolo was a ridiculous portion for one person. Even with three other people helping me, it didn’t come close to being finished. I picked out some of the good seafood, but left most of it behind since it wasn’t that great. The garlic bread had raw garlic on it; it stayed on my lips for days to come. Mercy. The salad that came with my pasta dish was pretty good.
We had odd service. While we had a waitress, there were other folks too — it seemed like folks were pitching in for each other, but that meant things like drink refills and other requests went unanswered. Just odd.
Overall, I’d pop back in to eat a lobster roll and have a beer and wouldn’t sample other parts of the menu — just go with what they’re known for!

Atmosphere– 5 stars
Lobster Mac and Cheese– 5 stars times a billion
Dirty unwashed lettuce with bug in it– 1 star
Service– 5 stars
Uncooked sweet potato fries– 2 stars
To sum up– I would go here again, but I would prob only stick with the lobster Mac and cheese and stay away from the salad and fries

we arrived at 6pm on Sunday and were courteously and promptly seated upstairs with our choice of great views.
Erin was our fantastic server (I think she is also the bartender upstairs?) and did a fine job. Friendly and efficient — my two favorite words when dining out.
We ordered the clam basket and fish tacos. Both were good if not outstanding. They need to rethink the tacos. The haddock was fried beautifully, but using lettuce is just not good. It wilts immediately and disappears. Cabbage/​cole slaw is a much better accompaniment or even fresh cilantro. I swiped some of my hubby’s slaw and instantly my tacos were that much better.
Really try if you can to leave room for dessert. We split a piece of strawberry rhubarb and it was close to perfect (crust is always a little tough when warmed up). Slightly tart with plenty of rhubarb chunks, it was like being back in my grandma’s kitchen.
The views are gorgeous, overlooking the harbor. Again, come slightly early if you can and you should get a good table, no problem. We paid $ 68 for 2 (before tip) for 2 entrees, 3 drinks, 1 coffee and 1 dessert. Not bad at all, especially for Camden.