Sam’s Chowder House

Go here for the drinks and the outdoor space. Cadillac Margaritas were excellent and daytime wine selection was great. We each ordered the Lobster Rolls, and while they had tons of meat in them, they were horrible. I wanted to figure out why they were so bad and went and watched how the chef cook them and he just had a ton of lobster meat simmering in a big pan full of butter for over 10 minutes… can you say WAY over cooked and no love here on the food, why would they have to? There is always a line around the corner. I was pleasantly surprised that our server KJ, was very attentive and excellent. If it wasn’t for her, the sun and drinks, I would probably never come back.

We arrived here about 12 pm. It was crowded but we got a table after 15 min waiting. I got lobster roll. That tasted amazing. Super big and a lot of lobster meat! I haven’t seen that a lot lobster. The place is facing beach and pretty chilling. I love this place so much! Good for family and couple!

Came here on Valentine’s Day. The waiter never came to check on us at all. It took us 4 different waiter for them just to bring water to my table. I use to love this place but I will never come back again. Every waiter is too busy counting tip.

This restaurant has an amazing view to the Half Moon Bay. We came in early at 11:10, right after it opens, and there was still a 30 minute wait. We just strolled around the beach side, the weather was beautiful! They have an outside patio where you can enjoy the bay, but that is another 45 minute wait so we decided to go for the tables indoor (maybe next time!). The waiters are super friendly, and the restaurant has a great relaxing atmosphere. Their Lobster roll was rated as the Top 5 sandwiches in America, but I don’t think it’s worth the hype! Each table had a free starter sourdough bread, which tasted delicious with our seafood ceviche. We waited for a total of 80 minutes from the time we came to the time our food was served, so be expecting a wait when you visit!
We ordered:
Sam’s Lobster Roll ($ 25.95) — Maine Lobster lightly tossed with butter on a toasted specialty bun, served with potato chips and coleslaw– big lobster chunks, but there was no seasoning or anything else in the sandwich, flavor was plain. The chips were just like Lays…
Seafood Ceviche appetizer ($ 13.50) — Bay scallop, sweet shrimp, mango and fresh lime juice — small portion. The mango gave the seafood a flavorful boost, but the tortilla chips were over fried and dry
Overall, I think this place is overhyped and overpriced for their food. The wait was long too. I am a little disappointed for this experience

Came here on Saturday evening with my girlfriend without reservations. The parking lot was packed and Highway 1 was a mess, but to our surprise we only had to wait half an hour for a table. We got seated at a window and had an awesome sunset to start off our meal.
Clam Chowder: delicious!
Seafood Spaghetti: it was good — there was more than a generous amount of seafood and the pasta was flavorful.
Seafood Risotto: it was tasty and had more flavor than the spaghetti, but it tasted like the kitchen may have rushed cooking it.
No complaints about the service and the staff all around was friendly. Overall, the food was pretty good but nothing mind blowing. Considering the nice views, good service, and tasty food, I’d come back here again.

Place is delicious all the prices are fair and you definitely get what you pay for! The staff is so friendly and they really know the menu like the back of her hand so I definitely recommend coming here if you are ever in half-​moon bay!

I got a mixed feeling about this place.
It was my first time visiting HMB, and my friend made a reservation here for a group of 15 people.
The table was not ready by the reservation time, but the manager offered something else so it was alright. But we got two tables at the terrace area, it’s a semi– enclosed area with two fans or so. It was just so hot! The shade on the windows were just not helpful, and I wonder how hot it will get. It was only Feb!
We ordered clam chowder for the appetizer, it was alright but nothing special. The server wouldn’t take our order until we were done with the appetizer, which was weird and the food ended up coming out so late.
Most of us got a cioppino and lobster roll, and I added linguini to my cioppino. It was not linguini, rather spaghetti, and over all the broth was quite bland. (Cioppino was $ 28.95 and charged $ 6 for spaghetti)
The lobster roll was not up to the hype either. And for $ 25.95, not sure it if was so worth it.
Overall, this place is just too touristy. Although the view is great since it’s located right at the beach, not sure if I’d be coming back.

The absolute best meal and experience we’ve ever had in a restaurant. The atmosphere is sleek and elegant. The outside patio is beautiful and you can stay warm with the fire pits in the evening. The calamari was perfectly cooked and seasoned. I recommend the crab stuffed prawns. Perfect place for a nice date night!

Drove out of town to try this place out. The chowder and lobster roll was amazing!!! A bit on the pricier side but I don’t mind paying more for good seafood!!! Buying a bottle of white wine to share is also helpful! Make sure to make reservations, otherwise you will be waiting for a long time! Take some to to absorb the wonderful view if you get a window seat.

Eating here with the gloomy weather outside made me feel like I was in Boston. We even ordered a New England Clam Chowder, Lobster Roll, and some Oysters. Pretty New England if you ask me…
The Chowder was good, it was not as thick as some of the others I’ve had but the flavors were good. The Oysters, again, were pretty good. I was extremely disappointed in the Lobster Roll, particularly the bread. There was this weird texture/​taste to the bread. The texture was kind of like when you eat stale bread and the bits get caught in your throat because of how dry and crumbly it is. Now add on a layer of butter and that’s how the bread tasted. We ended up just eating the lobster inside the bread, which was nothing spectacular.

Sam’s Chowder House offers a great view of the Half Moon Bay. Wish we came on a clearer day, but it was still a nice view.
The New England Clam Chowder has nice deep flavors and seasoned perfectly, it was just a little too watery for me. I like my soups with a little thickness to them. Although it is on the watery side, still worth a try and I still enjoyed it.
Fried calamari were crispy on the outside and tender on the inside. Same with the fish and chips.
Huge portions on the lobster rolls. I think I would have enjoyed it more with a little more seasoning.

This review is for 3.5 stars
This was my first time coming to Sam’s Chowder House.
We were seated very quickly and our waiter was very attentive. Since this was our first time here, we all ordered the lobster rolls, with two appetizers: the seafood bruschetta and the fried oysters.
The fried oysters were delicious — breaded nicely and came with a nice marinara dipping sauce and another aioli-​like sauce. We got a good amount of oysters to split amongst four people — probably 8 – 10 total.
The seafood bruschetta was good — I’m not sure I would describe it as bruschetta as it is mostly two small pieces of bread with a mound of seafood around it. It was still good, just not exactly what we had envisioned.
As for the lobster rolls, all had a very good amount of lobster. The order itself comes with A LOT of chips (Lays? or similar?), which is usually not a common problem for me, but after my meal was done, 80% of the chips were left over. Given that there is already the full lobster roll bun and the cole slaw, not sure all of those chips were necessary. I also found that the lobster could have used a touch more butter and lemon as it was a little bit drier than I am used to (typically used to more mayo-​based lobster rolls), but again, for the amount of lobster we got, I can’t really complain.

I don’t have the chance to get lobster rolls often, so I jumped at the chance to try the one here. I have had two lobster rolls at well-​known joints in Boston recently, and I’d say the one at Sam’s was definitely superior. The bread was toasty and just the right about of buttery without being soggy or overwhelming. Was filled with a generous heaping of lobster and came with two sides, potato chips and coleslaw (though I substituted the coleslaw for garlic sautéed spinach for $ 2). For $ 25.99, it’s not a bad price for a seriously tasty lobster roll. Free sourdough for the table.
I had a 4 star experience. But with that said, I can see how the overall rating here is a tad lower at 3.5 stars. The chips I believe were not homemade (Lay’s?), the spinach was a bit over salted, the wine selection was subpar and overpriced, our server was not attentive, and it can be really crowded. My friends had the seafood dumplings and seafood spaghetti and they both said it was 4 out 5 stars as well. I would come back.

HUGE place with an immense parking lot. The dining area inside is pretty and the patio area is simply beautiful. It has a great view of the beach and ocean. Sitting in the patio, you can easily imagine that you’re vacationing somewhere in New England.
Free bread and butter!
Seafood Ceviche ($ 12.95) — Shrimp and scallops with squeezed lime juice in a small cocktail cup. Tortilla chips crisply made. My husband and I didn’t think the ceviche was good at first because we believed that it needed more lime juice that it was served with. However, we realized that the bulk of the lime juice was in the bottom of the cup. Ceviche should have been served in a better container that would have spread the lime juice all around rather than only sit in the bottom.
Decadent «Black and White» Cheesecake ($ 8) — Cheesecake with Oreo cookie crust and blackberry, balsamic sauce. We relished this dessert!

3.5 stars. I really liked the New England chowder but the lobster roll was disappointing — a bit bland. The lobster tastes pretty fresh and the view outside on the patio is pretty stunning.

The portions here are HUGE! Not realizing this… my boyfriend and I ordered way more food than we could possibly eat. We had enough for 2 lunches. We got here around 5:30pm and waited 30minutes for a table on the patio. While we waited, we were given an electronic coaster and we decided to kill some time by walking on the beach. When our table was finally ready, we luckily got to see the sun setting over the ocean. Here’s what we ordered/​I got to try:
Peach Bellini: (²⁄₅) Nothing too special about this peach purée mixed with sparkling wine. I would do without this next time.
Lobster Roll: (³⁄₅) The roll was huge with large chunks of lobster and buttery bread. I wasn’t a big fan of it because it lacked a lot of flavor for me, but my boyfriend really enjoyed it.
Calm Chowder: (⁵⁄₅) We got the bowl size to share not realizing that it’s actually larger than most «bowl sizes.» I would just get the «cup» next time. The chowder was one of the best I every had with actual clams and bite-​sized potatoes & celery.
Fanny Bay Oysters: (⁴⁄₅) Even the oysters were huge! Some of them were as big as 2 typical oysters.
Seafood Paella: (⁴⁄₅) I know they have a Seafood Paella for two, but the regular sized paella we ordered was enough for 3 people to share without ordering anything else. They were very accommodating when we mentioned that one of us was allergic to prawns.
This restaurant has a gorgeous view overlooking the ocean and has some pretty delicious food. For the price you pay, you definitely will get your money’s worth in portion size.

What a busy restaurant! Even at 3:30pm, there was a little wait.
It was difficult to find parking. We were lucky and found spots in the parking lot. If you find street parking close by, you should park there to avoid waiting for a spot :)
We ordered calamari, New England clam chowder, and fish and chips. My favorite was the clam chowder! It warm and tasty! However, I didn’t really find any seafood in it. There were lot of veggies in it, though. The calamari was crispy! But not a whole lot of flavor.
I was the most disappointed in the fish and chips. It was not hot or fresh at all. It was around room temperature and seemed like it was made a while ago. And to my surprise, in the middle of my fried fish, I found a whole piece of shrimp! My friends also ordered the fish and chips and they didn’t have any shrimp in theirs, so it was probably a mistake.
The customer service was great! Our wait for a table was a lot shorter than the expected time. Our server was friendly and attentive, checking up on us multiple times and refilling our waters when they ran low.
Definitely not a place I would drive to this area for (terrible traffic) but if I’m around the area, it’s a nice restaurant to stop by for a quick meal!

They still got the best ocean front sitting in that area, but the service in our last few visits wasn’t the same especially last time it was neglecting and almost rude. They made a few changes to their menu unfortunately to the exact items we like to order… and we do not like the new items, or the changes at all.
On our last two visits we felt sand in our New England Chowder. Both times, the sand was in all the chowder bowls of the people around the table, so although at the first time we said ok it happen, at the second time we had a mouthful of sand it was disgusting!
I will not order any of their expensive menu items any longer because of the small portion and the fact that since they changed them the taste doesn’t worth their price.
Maybe its time to find a new place… maybe it’s time for somebody to open a new place on the beach that is not so full of it self.

I had high hopes for this place because my boyfriend said he had been here before and it was amazing. Let’s just say this visit was less than stellar, I wasn’t exactly blown away by the food. We came on a Saturday around 130 and we waited maybe 10 mins and got seated.
Clam chowder: ⁴⁄₅: extremely tasty and good. It had a good flavor and there was a good amount of clams, potatoes and carrots. I liked it but not the best clam chowder I’ve ever had. I liked that it wasn’t too thick or too thin.
Seafood bruschetta: ²⁄₅: the seafood and avocado was great. But I thought that there was something more to this like a spread on the bread then the seafood on top. But it tasted really plain and nothing too amazing.
Lobster roll: ²⁄₅: wow, the driest lobster ever. Lobster was plentiful in the roll, but the meat tastes so dry like it was overcooked. The butter didn’t do much and The bread fell apart too easily as well. I really wanted to be wow-​Ed by this lobster roll but woodhouse, New England lobster and old port lobster shack were definitely better lobster rolls.
Overall, a decent place to try. I’m not sure if I’ll be back anytime soon for lobster rolls but the clam chowder was definitely the highlight for me.
Total for 2 w/​tax and tip: $ 96

My boyfriend and I ordered the clam chowder and OmiGosh… they’re so good! I love how they don’t add extra ton of flours to get that thick taste. The lobster roll was very good too, it came with potato chips and cole slaw. The bread that was used for the lobster roll was very light, but not that great. The restaurant has its own parking lot, but we couldn’t find parking, so we had to find street parking. The restaurant also has ample of seatings.
After a long/​romantic day at that beach, this is a great place to get lunch/​dinner.

Clam Chowder was great! Loved The Cippiolo and lobster Roll. This place has a great view and excellent Food

Vue magnifique, service bon mais sans plus notre serveur était sympa sans plus. Service lent.
La nourriture était bonne mais sans plus. Nous avons pris les huîtres panées, la soupe de crabe puis des sandwichs un au crabe et l’autre au homard.
Bref un bon resto de plage ou on va plus pour la vue que pour la nourriture.

Les locaux disent que c’est le meilleur resto de fruits de mer du secteur: je n’ai pas pu tous les faire pour comparer mais il faut bien dire que la bouffe est excellente !
Le parking bondé (les voitures garées débordent le long de la route) et l’attente aux heures de pointe confirment cette bonne impression.
Service à l’américaine, très sympa et très causant (on a beau savoir que c’est motivé par l’appât du tip à la fin, quand même, c’est plaisant), raisonnablement rapide.
Dans l’assiette, je recommande le sandwich au homard (on né se refuse rien :-) mais le prix n’est pas excessif, dans les 22 $) qui a semble-​t-​il été élu parmi les meilleurs sandwiches aux USA par NBC. Le homard en lui-​même est délicieux, ça c’est normal, mais le plus étonnant est le pain à la fois moelleux et toasté qui l’accompagne.
Si on ajoute à çà la possibilité de manger en terrasse avec vue sur la mer quand le temps le permet, le compte est bon, 5 étoiles…
Visite virtuelle avec Google Street View:

Guter seafood. Fairer preis. Amerikanische Beilagen (Würstchen zu Lobster…). Chatch of the day war eine gute Wahl. Sicher aber einen Halt wert! Jedoch ein grosses Restaurant mit vielen Plätzen, etwas laut, dafür Meerblick und Sonnenterasse.