Joe’s Crab Shack

Having had great experiences at Joe’s Crab Shack next to San Diego Convention Center we kept meaning to try this particular one nearest to our home. We pretty much knew 5 minutes after entering the building that this Joe’s had a very different vibe indeed. Even though the restaurant was less than half full our party of three and the deuce in front of us were ignored for a good 5 mins by the six staff larking around with each other, shooting the breeze and generally not having two fecks to give to the paying customers patiently standing directly in front of them! Thankfully when we did get seated our waiter was not one of that crew, but Erika who appeared to be the only waiter running around and actually waiting tables. I’d imagine that her tips reflect this. The Sangria was really good. We shared a Classic Sampler for appetizer and had no complaints. One of us had Arctic Bay Steampot for main which was cooked just right, the other two had a shrimp po boy and a coconut shrimp entrée — all fine. Too full for dessert. I will likely return but would advise management to really look at the comments about staff, and hire and supervise a bit better. There didn’t seem to be any real service management going on that Saturday evening, and if our waiter had been one of those slacking off then I know my experience and review would have certainly been pretty crappy!

My girlfriend got the crabs and they were over steamed and I waited 20 mins for my waitress Genetha to come for my order

First time at this location and it did not disappoint. Had spent weeks reading reviews for this location of Joes Crab Shack, both good and bad, and I am happy to report that it did not disappoint. Went with a couple of friends for a genuine seafood experience. Our appetizers were crab dip and mussels. Both were delicious and easily shareable amongst the three of us. Myself and one of my friends went with the Arctic Bay Steampot which consisted of a whole lobster, snow crab legs, corn, shrimp and even a sausage (though I never got got to that). My other friend went with a sample platter which consisted of crab cakes and many other items. In total we paid about 120 if you included tip. Seafood tastes fresh and well seasoned. Nothing disappointed. Friendly wait staff and even some casual random dancing. Good background music and atmosphere. Will definitely be going back for more!

Was there for happy hour. It was fairly empty when I got there but service was soooo sloooowww. Also needed to the restroom when I arrived. Hands down this was the most disgusting bathroom I’ve EVER been in-​including portajohns. I won’t go into detail bc it was that bad but I did notify the hostess. The trash portion got better but the other issue somehow got worse. The food once we got it was good. Drinks not bad. But overall the cleanliness and service issues left a more lasting impression. Proceed with caution.

My friend and I went in the early afternoon on a random weekday. This was my first time trying out the place which is weird considering I love seafood.
Our waitress was very nice and accommodating throughout. (And I’m still continuing the trend of not remembering waiters/​waitresses names. SHAME!) We didn’t have to wait too long for our food, either.
My order: Cornita Rita, Shrimp Pasta Alfredo and a side of hushpuppies. She got one of the Steam Pots. We both shared a Bucket of Shrimp and Campfire S’mores. My friend loved the S’mores so much, she asked for another one… without the graham crackers. (She’s a marshmallow fanatic.)
I do plan to come back. The restaurant is pretty big so I can imagine how it looks on a busy weekend. Which is why I won’t go on a busy weekend. It’ll be on another afternoon on a random weekday.

We went as a family of 4 on a Sunday afternoon and were seated immediately. Our server was very courteous and patient with our two kids (which is rare). He also didn’t give me a hard way to go about ordering a kids portion after I showed my medical alert card. I really wish I got his name so I could shout him out! Our food was excellent, as it always is at JCC! The only negative was the women’s room. The paper towel dispenser was broke… And yet there were paper towels overflowing all over the floor. Had it not been for this I would have given 5 stars! Really sad the one closest to us has closed!

I rarely give bad reviews but this place def earned it!
I had a horrible first time experience here. Before I start stating all the bad let me just say that one star is due to how awesome their drinks are. If I had to just rate the drinks I’d give it a 4. They have a grea variety of drink choices and a lot of them are pretty cool. The shark drink was good, the drink that comes in a pineapple was cool too but besides those two drinks, I hated my time there.
Why:
So we sat at the bar because we thought we’d get quicker service, wrong.
It took the bartender like 10 mintues to get us our water. WATER! Like come on. Then we ordered our calamari app. I HAVE NEVER HAD SUCH HORRIBLE CALAMARI IN MY LIFE. Calamari is always my go-​to app. and I always love trying different restuarant’s calamari, this plate should have been free because of how displeasing it was. It had the texture of over-​fried chicken and the actual taste was bland. If you would have blindfolded me I would have never guessed it was calamari. I gave up on eating it and needed another glass of water to wash it down, NEVER GOT MY WATER. I ended up sharing with my boyfriend since they had either forgotten most of what we asked or took forever to give it to us. My boyfriend and I got a plate to share and though I cant remember the name I know it consisted of french fries: good (I mean it takes a lot to mess up french fries), coconut shrimp: ew, hushpuppies: ew (also we had to ask for it because they forgot to give it to us), coleslaw: double ew (they forgot to give us this too), sometype of battered chicken: ewwww. I cant remember what else was on the plate but all I know is that the the only thing I was able to eat on the entire plate were the french fries.
I just did not like this spot and would probably only go back during a happy hour special JUST for the drinks.

Great customer service and great food! I give it four stars because the table was very sticky and had the waitress wipe it down.

I love this place! The first time I went was on a Wednesday, where they do all you can eat crab legs. First off let me say this the service was great ! I mean all around wonderful our server Bianca Was Great! The only thing that I was unaware of was that after the first bucket they came back it was such a disappointment. They give you way less than what you order!!! All in all they keep coming but that should’ve been explain atleast online or something. But The Crabs were Sooooooooooooooooooo meaty!!! Oh And Happy hour A W E S O M E !!!

Management at this location should take note of all the bad reviews and use them to improve their unsatisfactory service.
Visited this location with my husband and two kids. Waited 10 mins just to get a server to come to the table…10 minutes! When we sat down the table was dirty and someone had to come by to clean it.
Finally, Ree came to our table. She was clearly overwhelmed and was working tables at opposite ends of the restaurant. Our oysters came out with nothing but horse radish… not even lemon. I had to stand by the kitchen door and wait for the first person to come out so I could ask them for some cocktail sauce. My margarita tasted like margarita mix with no alcohol.
We asked for silverware and were given 3 wet forks. (There were 4 of us at the table) when our food finally came out there were only 3 entrees… again 4 of us ordered food. So my daughter sat there waiting for her mahi tacos while we all ate so our food didn’t get cold.
Never coming back to this location again if I could give them a ZERO I would’ve. TERRIBLE!

Great place to get your bearings. Chris, the manager, opens his Shack to large groups of 15 or more without calling ahead. They have a sound system for singing and an outdoor seating area overlooking the ‘warf’.

The food was good and the drinks were strong but the service is horrendous. We were at the restaurant for 2+ hours — unacceptable!

Customer service wasn’t that great… I feel like I had to hunt down my waitress. She didn’t give me the option of choosing my sides and just chose for me. When I wanted cocktail sauce, she was no where to be found. I went to the restroom, came back, and just saw my check on the table. No book or anything. And again I had to hunt down someone to see about paying for my check.
Added to all of this, the food was bland. I got the Ragin Cajun so you would expect my food to be spicy or flavorful. But the crab tasted like nothing! It was so weird smh
Overall 2 stars… on a regular day I would give this place one but it’s valentines’s day

Not only is the food and drinks overpriced but you would still be starving after you leave. I paid less going to a crab house or wharf and got more for my dollars than I did at this place. You’re better off going to giant for those baby crab legs…

I love Joe’s Crab Shack! I come here for one thing, Crab legs! Their steam pots are awesome. I always order the Snow Crab legs that come with an ear of corn and potatoes (all in a garlic herb sauce!). So delish!
This particular location was ok. Some of the other ones I’ve been to (mostly on the west coast) seem to always be more busy than these in VA. However, our server was fantastic and super attentive!
I typically get a beer with my meal, but a couple times I’ve had their mixed drinks, which I loved! They have a good variety of all sort of concoctions!
I did notice they have an «all you can eat Crab leg» night now, so I will definitely have to make a trip back soon to check that out! It’d be great if they put a location in Richmond… :)

Decent crab dip and drinks. They get 1 star for the crab dip and 1 for the drinks. Service is beyond terrible. Just awful. Slow service, rude wait staff. I have been multiple times bc their crab dip really is that good but the service gets worse every time.

my boyfriend and i are on a road trip and spent last night in MD. we wanted crabs, but had already been to and fro baltimore, and weren’t going to make the 1 ½ round trip again. so, while i’m not a huge lover of chains, my boyfriend had a hankering for joe’s, and we made the 15 minute drive to crab happiness.
we sat at the bar and ordered drinks: honey peach smash for him, shark bite for me. our drinks were sweet and friendly, but fairly potent. i thought the little shark-​shooter of grenadine was a nice touch for my drink. in an attempt to save calories, i only added half at first, but after a sip, realized the drink actually needed the full dose.
we got an appetizer of fried calamari to start. my boyfriend ordered the crab daddy crab bucket with garlic and herb seasoning. this included snow, queen, and king crab along with an ear of corn and new potatoes. i got the sunset fire grilled steampot of queen and snow crab, shrimp, and smoked sausage, also served with an ear of corn and new potatoes. i also ordered a side of cole slaw.
the calamari were large, bigger pieces than i’ve seen most other places. but, they were expertly fried and served with a sweet and tangy dipping sauce. i was happy to see not just rings of the body, but full baby squid as well. i liked the dipping sauce, but my boyfriend didn’t, and our request for a side of cocktail sauce was delivered quickly.
we made quick work of our app, and our entrees were delivered shortly thereafter. my boyfriend’s crab bucket was overflowing with crab. he offered me a few bites which were all sweet and delicious. you definitely can tell the difference between each variety of crab, and they were all good.
my own crab was equally sweet and yummy. i think i may prefer queen crab to snow or king. my shrimp were cooked well, as was the smoked sausage. it was juicy, and the casing had a nice snap. what i’ll say i liked about my steampot the most (besides that the seafood was cooked well) was the seasoning. the sunsent fire grilled steampot isn’t what i would describe as spicy, but it is incredibly well seasoned with pepper, garlic, and salt. i mean, honestly– even with all the seafood, i still ate the entire ear of corn, because it was so. well. seasoned.
beyond the food, service was friendly and attentive. my side of cole slaw was forgotten in the mix, but we weren’t charged for it, and i didn’t miss it, we had so much food, anyway. mid-​meal, we realized that we were running a little behind schedule, and requested our bill. our bartender made sure that everything was okay, and that we just wanted the check because we needed to leave. i appreciated that extra touch.
is this a chain? yes. would i eat here if i had a proven, local joint available? probably not. but, for what we wanted last night, joe’s fit the bill, and executed our whole experience very well. we were happy customers.

Oh dear Joe’s Crab Shack oh how I love thee!
Ok so this location is close to home so I tend to venture to this one quicker. The customer service can be a little hit or miss but the food has yet to fail me. I’ve had everything from the classic steam pot to the steam pot that includes Lobster. Tried there mussels recently and kicking myself asking «WHAT TOOK YOU SO LONG TO ORDER THIS YUMMY GOODNESS!»
Food is always clean. Never gritty. Seasoned well.
Tends to get crowded on Friday and Saturday evenings. Sometimes mid day Sundays.
Definitely worth checking out.

So the reason why I go to Joe’s is because it’s a great way of getting seafood with out spending a TON of money on fancy seafood places downtown DC. And Joe’s is better than Red Lobster, for many reasons, but you can get a ton of crab legs that have been mildly dusted with a seasoning. I associate all seafood from Red Lobsters to be fried, tiny and covered in a buttery sauce. Granted their biscuits area AMAZING! Anyway, we opted to go to the closer to DC Joe’s in greenbelt instead of driving all the way to the one in Gaithersburg.
They had some large birthday party that was blocking all of the entrances/​exits to the patio. so on a gorgeous day, the patio was closed.
We ordered a rum coke, what arrived were 2 rocks glasses that were only ¾ full with mostly rum and 2 ice cubes???
Walking through the restaurant, there were at least several tables that hadn’t been cleared, and were piled up with seafood remains.
The table behind us had food on it when we sat down and when we left.
Joe’s isn’t cheap either, so you’d think there’d be a little better service.
If you’re torn on which Joe’s to go to, go to Gaithersburg. It’s gorgeous, new and has great service,

Love coming here on Tuesday when the Hurricanes and select appetizers are $ 2.
Only been to this location once. Right off Greenbelt TD located in Beltway Plaza.
Clean. Our server was awesome. She closed out our tab. I wanted to make sure she got her tip. The next server did not notice us but noticed everyone around us so we just left. Great customer service and food until Mr. I Don’t See You came on board.