J. King’s Steak & Seafood Restaurant

A two-​star review means «I’ve experienced better,» not that it’s horrible, and that’s what we found. We went there for lunch today, and the first sign of problems was that there were two people in the restaurant when we got there who left within minutes. For the rest of the time we were there for lunch (arrived around 1:30 PM on a weekday), we were the only ones there. We had been to Kaufmann’s many times years ago, but had avoided J. Kings’ reincarnation based on poor reviews, and today reinforced that. The crab and cheddar dip served in a bread bowl? Tasted like melted cheese mixture with a little seafood seasoning, barely discernible crab. At least it was served hot and the presentation was attractive. We then split a steak and cheese sub, one of the lunch specials. It was OK. The fries were good, also served piping hot, probably the best part of our food, and my wine and husband’s beers were served cold so were also good. Considering the prices are pretty high (the bread bowl crab dip was over $ 15), I would expect more quality. Perhaps it’s time they closed at lunch and just concentrated on a decent dinner service. They can’t possibly be making money at weekday lunchtimes based on our experience. It was still disappointing. (We were trying things out in anticipation of out-​of-​town guests who fondly remembered Kaufmann’s, and we will steer them away this time.)

Food isn’t that good and it is very much overpriced. The beer selection is sad, really just the basics with a few craft beers. The crab cake is okay but you can get better elsewhere. The only thing this place has going for it is the out door patio area in the summer.

New to the burbs, our restaurant choices have been drastically reduced. Lots of chains and local losers. However, J Kings breaks that trend and gives us hope for a solid, go-​to spot that is locally owned.
We’ve been there 3 times in past 4 months and come away pleased after each experience. Twice, we’ve taken the kids for wing night (Wednesdays) and had a great time. We all love the wings and the place has enough space to let the kids roam a bit after they eat. Friendly service and food comes out fast. Only drawback is that prices are a bit high, but portions are large. Nice outdoor patio that we look forward to enjoying in the spring.

I have attended this restaurant in three different occasions and each time the crabs were fresh and meaty! The service was very consistent! The all you can eat crab price is reasonable and the drinks are amazing! Highly recommend this spot for crab lovers in the Bowie/​Crofton area!

Awful experience — don’t go. Hate to even give one star. Ordered steamed oysters. They came out slowly with ¹⁄₃ of them unopened. When an oyster is cooked in the shell, if it didn’t open it means it was dead before you cooked it. its not safe to eat! The waitress didn’t seem to know that. When I sent them back they took the dead oysters and reheated them again! Not new fresh ones!
No apologies or explanations. After I inquired, it was explained to me that at the bottom of the overpriced check there was an adjustment.
Will check with Unilocal before I waste another evening like this.

First time here. I loved the wings and the crab dip was amazing. and the flat bread was ok it was good flavor but a little heavy (alot of toppings). Great atmosphere.

Maybe it’s because I’m from out of town, but I disagree with the overall rating. I rate it higher. The crab cakes were delicious and the sides were good as well. I give it 4* because it is a good venue with live music, indoor outdoor seating, and good food at a reasonable price. Good for the family or just friends hanging out. Overall a good value for your $.

Overpriced. Talent of staff does not match the price. Kitchen staff is obviously unqualified. Ordered a med/​rare steak and a piece of charcoal showed up. Not much compensation from management. Just a rough overall experience.

We used to love J. Kings for crabs but this year they changed a lot. I went last week and the crab feast is now $ 40 per person, you are time limited to 2 hours, you get ½ of an ear of corn and an 18% gratuity is automatically added to any bill even for just 3 people. I would have tipped 20 to 25% but since they made my tipping decision, I let it stand at 18%. The crabs were small and the shells on most were broken. That is usually a sign they reheated the crabs. The Tuesday special is now $ 3 per crab and the waitress said they are the same crabs as the crab feast. I would never pay 36 for extra small, barely legal size crabs. I will not be back again. There are crab stands, carry out placed and restaurants all over the place. I’m sure I can find a new favorite place.

Food is ok. Would have liked it to not come out all at once. Appetizers came out with the meal, salad after. Great place for outdoor drinking. Live music was great inside. They could work on the seafood smell both in and out.

Unilocal has a great $ 10 for $ 20 voucher to J. King’s. I used this option when I dined here and it worked out just fine.
Upon entry there is a very strong «seafood» smell. I was greeted by Ashley and seated promptly. Ashley was very attentive and polite. Here at J. King’s they have varying specials going on. On the Wednesday I visited it was $.50 wing night. I choose two of each flavor to get an idea of what I liked. They have old bay, garlic parmesan, bbq and buffalo. Of the flavors offered I enjoyed the garlic parmesan and old bay the most. They do have tea and coke products but the tea is unsweetened without the availability of simple syrup at the bar. The lemonade I had left something to be desired. I’ve made better lemonade by dissolving lemon heads in water. To use the voucher in one visit I decided to go with the classic corn-​beef rueben sandwich minus the thousand island dressing and some wings to go. The sandwich comes with fries and I asked for a little bbq sauce on the side since I’m not a fan of ketchup. The sandwich size was respectable but the only dislike is that the corned beef may have been cut against the grain which made it stringy and a challenge to chew.
Cell phone reception is poor in this location but they do have an outdoor seating area in the back. They offer military discounts with proof of ID.
The menu has variety but if I return it’ll be for the wings. There is a breakfast buffet on Sundays.

I use to frequent when it was Kaufmann’s. Since J. Kings it really hasn’t changed a great deal. Some upgrades here and there. Actually J. Kings made it look a tad better. That said, it’s a nice place to go for a local like me and my family. I’ve never had bad food. So all in all I gave it three stars. Yes I will go back and I would at least recommend to at least stop by for your own thoughts.

I’m just not impressed. I’m not gonna give less than 3 stars because it’s not horrible but it deserves no more than this. Their Tuesday $ 2 crab special is a great price! But other than that, their main entrees aren’t that great at all. I’ve tried the seafood scampi twice now and maybe I should just move on from it. The first time I had it, it was alright. I had it again and it was worse than last time. I’ve tried some of my friends dishes as well which were better than mine but they weren’t fond of it themselves.
I’ll definitely give this place a try again to try something new next time.
Btw, service is a little slow here. Waitress was very nice but she forgot things so many times.

Worst. Service. Ever. I wouldn’t have minded the automatic 18% gratuity added on for the crab feast if the server would have actually earned it. She got the drink order wrong FOUR times and forgot multiple items we asked for. She took so long bringing out our crabs that we stopped at the first round. The atmosphere was decent. Crabs were good. But service is key. F.

Was hoping for more. A self proclaimed foodie.
The service was very slow. Three hours for raw oysters and a few burgers. Nothing to make up for the slow service. Not really impressed.
Food marginal. There are better places nearby for sure.

Drove 40 mins for the all you can eat crabs only to find out that they were COMPLETELY OUT of crabs at 3:00 pm!!!

I used to be a huge fan of this place. However, the service for someone who was a «regular» needs adjusting. I purchased the Unilocal deal that’s listed and I will say I don’t understand why they have it if they are going to give a hard time to use it. It doesn’t list any stipulations, yet they wouldn’t let me use it on Sunday’s for the crab special. Ok… so I went today to try and use it on regular priced oysters and they were hassling me because it was on my Unilocal app rather than printed. I even overheard he manager talking about me to another customer across the room. This place has gone from one of my favorite seafood places to one I will not give my money to again. Sad because it had potential. However I’d rather spend my money somewhere it will be appreciated.

Quality does not match the price. Slow service in the outside seating on a Thursday night. Around the table we got the spicy pasta, seafood salad, fried chicken salad, chicken wrap, and kids chicken tenders. None of these dishes were good. Various elements were either over cooked and/​or under seasoned.
The outdoor seating area was very nice which earned them an extra star. Sit and relax sipping overpriced drinks and eating subpar food. That’s what you get here.

Opened Unilocal up on a Sunday looking for a good brunch place nearby and came across this restaurant a couple towns over from me. It took only 20 minutes to get there from Bowie. When I approached the restaurant the feeling changed from being in Maryland to a feeling similar to a Caribbean island. The outside patio with chairs a bar and pine trees added to the ambiance. I had there prime rib which was average could have used some seasoning. My partner had the all you can eat crabs which he said was a bit salty. My niece had a Ruben which she liked and my cousin had oysters which she liked. The highlight was probably how good the wings tasted. So i will be back on Wednesday for there .50 cent wings. We did have to change seats because upstairs near the bar I smelled a mildew odor that would not go away. I would go back.
Décor — 3 of 5
Service — 4 of 5
Food — 4 of 5

J. King’s is a bar/​grill/​tavern type of restaurant that is in the middle of nowhere. I initially thought it might in one of the shopping plazas in Gambrills but that definitely isn’t true. It’s actually on an isolated back road. There’s two parts of the restaurant– bar/​dining room area and the patio. The décor is basic cafeteria style.
I hate to say this because I’m not one to casually imply prejudice exists in any situation BUT… to say my dining group (party of 2) stood out would be an understatement. I think part of the issue was that many of the clientele were older folks who may believe that the Civil War is still going on. Matter of fact, some of them may have served in the Civil War.
On the other hand, our server, Jason, was AWESOME. He was really friendly, accommodating, engaging and funny. Definitely made us feel welcome.
The menu was not particularly exciting and the pricing seemed to be quite inflated. Case in point– Philly Rolls and Jumbo Wings. The rolls were said to be served two per dish and are cut in half for $ 12-​$ 13. What? Additionally, the wings cost $ 8 for 6 and $ 14 for 12. Wow…
I ordered 12 Jumbo Wings, which I customized to have half tossed in BBQ sauce and half tossed Garlic Parmesan. The wings were definitely jumbo, especially considering that most DC area wings look like endangered species. The sauces were decent and had some balance along with a little kick but I really couldn’t find much difference between the two. The wings were also a tad on the dry side. I guess I was looking for a «wow factor» that never came.
Knowing that the prices were high, I took advantage of the Unilocal deal, which allows you to get $ 20 worth of food for $ 10. Without that, I probably wouldn’t have came because I’m not sure the value is there.
All in all, I think I’d give this place 2 stars. I don’t think I’d return and I’m not sure that the food quality matches the prices BUT I think my perspective might be uniquely different than others. It’s hard to enjoy eating in an uncomfortable environment though. That said, our server worked his tail off and others may have a more favorable experience, especially if they take advantage of the Unilocal deal.