The Chatterbox Restaurant

This was my first time to Chatterbox, but my boyfriend has been a handful of times over the years and had guessed/​mentioned to me in passing (before we even went to dinner) that he felt like ownership had recently changed. Based on what I’ve now read on recent reviews on Unilocal it does seem this is true!
I love the pink building Chatterbox is in — you definitely can’t miss it!
Our server was friendly and I could tell he was kinda trying, but our waters/​drinks weren’t ever refilled and there were just a bunch of mixups in our order. For example, two people ordered the crab cake sampler (which was one crab cake sandwich and a side of fries), but instead they were brought out the other special which was 2 crab cakes without a side… I asked to sub my chips for waffles fries when I ordered, but I got fries with my meal and the server seemed confused/didn’t remember. Someone was also missing a soup entrée. I think eventually by the end of the meal everything was remediated and brought out, but it was just a handful of little mistakes that made the meal service awkward! As a disclaimer, we did have a decent sized group (there was 8 of us).
Anyway, I really loved the clam chowder a lot — that was the best part of my meal! The french onion soup was very popular with everyone too. The lobster mac was also tasty — the pasta was a bit too soft for me, but it was really good due to the cheesiness and there was a decent amount of lobster meat. I had the three cheese grilled cheese and it was nothing special — basically something I could’ve made at home. The waffle fries that I tried so hard to get was a tiny portion straight from the freezer and not worth the $.
Chatterbox to me was an ok place to grab a casual meal with both some hits and misses.

I’ve been here twice now. The first time I ordered the chicken Parmesan with spaghetti and it was delicious. Second time I ordered the box club sandwich and got the turkey. It was loaded with turkey and it was good to the last bite! Also tried their loaded fries which were very tasty too. Prices were decent. Neat atmosphere! Friendly staff.

We were here in ocean city for a week and thrice we had breakfast here. The food is excellent and we would love to come back. Keep up the good work guys :)

One star because I can’t give zero stars.
My son didn’t even eat his chicken tenders, fries, or mashed potatoes. As he said, «everything here tastes bad.» When we got back to the hotel, even the woman at the desk said she wouldn’t have recommended.

Last time I was at the «Chatterbox“was last year for my honeymoon, it was under new management. I am a BIG FAN of this restaurant. I’ve been coming since I was a little girl and they are still very nice. Great times, good food, and a happy place.

Friendly service and very helpful! The wait is a little long but well with the wait. The 3 cheese grilled cheese with bacon and tomato is to die for. It’s right off the boardwalk and really easy to divert from the chaos of the boardwalk for a nice quiet lunch. Breakfast is served until 2pm as well.

Tried this rest. for the first time; ordered the grilled shrimp & spinach salad. Terrible, doesn’t begin to describe how terrible the meal was.
The spinach was wilted and the shrimp wasn’t grilled, it was cold. The avocado was pickled and mushy.(Who has heard of pickled avocado anyway?). Top this off w/​mushy, jarred peppers and a couple rotten tomatoes and you have a terrible salad. When I pay 13.99 for a salad, I expect fresh ingredients not picked and half spoiled.
On a positive note, my husband said his burger and milkshake were very good.

Absolutely wonderful breakfast. Ordered the Double Plate, two pancakes, two eggs, hash browns, and bacon or sausage. We loved it, and will continue to come back. Price was reasonable and the staff was very friendly.

My son & I waited several minutes to be seated. The crab cakes were okay, and they weren’t very hot & the waitstaff looked over worked!

Can’t miss it, huge pink stucco building on the corner. Looked like a good family friendly place. It’s cute with an old diner feel and oldies music playing. It’s clean. Menu somewhat limited mostly sandwiches, burgers and apps… but good kids menu. (Keep kids happy, everyone can be happy). Service was very slow. Had to ask for menus, took a while for waitress to take our order, and food took unusually long time for a diner and uncomplicated dinner choices: burgers and chicken fingers. Maybe its because im from NY. but diners usually turn everything around fast. this took too long. But once the food arrived it was all good. Burger was very good as were the loaded fries appetizer. Milkshakes to go were awesome. Overall if we are ever in area again, will come back.

What a great family restaurant! The space is adorable, the staff is super friendly and the food is delicious! The milkshake is a must. If you find yourself in Ocean City… go to the Chatterbox you will not be disappointed.

My family of six were happy with the meal. We got seated right away. The service was fine. The crab cakes were delicious. My cheese burger was also very tasty. Good overall experience.

We ate here last night for dinner and it was okay. Both of us had something that was served with avocado slices and you could taste they used lemon juice or something so that it kept it’s green color. Honestly it would be better without the avocado than with the sour taste it had. The food was otherwise fine. Took a bit to get seated even though there were open tables (though I get it they may have been short staffed or something). We’d go back for another meal probably.

First time here and I was ok with the meal. The food was ok. The service made the trip worth it. I ordered the wings and I have had better. But the loaded fries were good and my friend enjoyed his burger. My meal and two of my friends would have preferred something else though.

I go to the Chatterbox every time I’m in ocean city. The food is good, the prices are very reasonable, there’s a charming ambiance, and the service is fantastic!

The menu is big! The more are a lot of flavors and options for ice cream. More of a place for breakfast or lunch rather than dinner. Nothing impressive but nothing was that bad either. It’s a decent choice if you’re looking for classic American cuisine

Great customer service! And delicious food! Crab cakes and the seafood chowder were exceptional. Awesome atmosphere.

Breakfast here is a mess. Omelets are just tasteless, watery filling that has been carelessly wrapped in tasteless eggs. Even the toast had no flavor. The homefries and coffee were quite good, but these omelets were almost ten dollars each. Ten bucks! I couldnt believe it.

Sadly, my review is along the same lines as Laurie J’s from last year.
Like so many others I’ve been coming to the Chatterbox for many years which in my case goes back to the mid-​late 80’s. Last year was the first year that I hadn’t been in probably thirty years and I was scared to come back after seeing that the place changed hands last year.
Now I should preface this by saying that the Chatterbox was never exactly a stellar restaurant to begin with but it’s been there forever, it has a great location and the menu was very large with something for everyone.
Fast forward to a late lunch on Mothers Day to see that while the pink is still there, a lot has changed and not for the best especially in the service department.
Let me start with the positives by saying that the food was decent. The crab cake sandwich had a lot of crab in it versus filler and it wasn’t overcooked. The chicken parm sandwich was a bit messy with too much sauce but the roll was solid and held it’s own.
But let’s get into the less than desirable:
1. No straws. Normally at most places you get straws whether you ask for them or not. We never got them when out drinks arrived and even after asking once for them they still never came.
2. The aforementioned chicken parm sandwich per the menu is supposed to come with chips except of course when it comes out there are no chips to be found.
3. I very clearly when ordering the kids menu items mentioned that I wanted applesauce to be subbed for the fries which again per the menu can be done. When our server brought the food naturally he brings out two plates of fries with the kids meals. The lovely wife right away reminds the server that this is not what was ordered and the hostess?/owner? who happened to be at the next table over (we’ll get to that in a minute) jumped in by reminding us that «we can sub that for you, all you had to do was ask» to which my answer was almost «duh jackass, we already did– twice».
4. We were the only table sitting outside with the exception of the owners? and two of their friends. Not a problem although it was kind of bizarre to see the Mrs. sitting on the Misters lap every time she was outside to chat. I mean hey, they own the place but I can’t imagine going to a locally owned diner-​family restaurant in my area and seeing the owners doing that.
5. The menu is missing several former favorites and the idea of only serving breakfast until 2pm while not being able to get easy things like pasta until after 4pm is quite honestly silly.
6. The cole slaw is a disgusting unless you like to eat mayo straight from the container (which I know people that do but personally I’m anti-​mayo as much as possible).
I mean I get that it was still pre-​season which is maybe why everything took a long time even though the restaurant was deserted but even still the service was apathetic at best and the new menu is quite honestly boring-​dull-​a dud. There’s a good chance that we’ll be back in town next month for a few days and I think for me it’s time to move on because like Laurie J said, the Chatterbox that I grew up with is gone.

I spent every summer in Ocean City growing up and the Chatterbox was one of my favorites. I loved to go for breakfast or a late dinner.
Sadly, after going this week, I’ve found that the Chatterbox I used to know and love is gone. It’s under new ownership and while the pink exterior is still there — that’s where the resemblance ends.
The inside décor has changed — though understandable due to damage from Hurricane Sandy. The menu has dwindled down from a large variety to a handful of choices. My go to meal — breakfast — is now only available until 2pm.
I started by ordering tea, which arrived with no cream. Not usually a big deal, but it took 10 minutes to find someone to bring the cream (the place wasn’t busy at all). The actual meal I got — eggs and pancakes with a side of pork roll was meh. The eggs were okay, but the pancakes were hard to cut and tasteless. It was like eating flour patties. The pork roll was so overcooked, it was burned and hardening. And one of my favorite items — the home fries — which I used to joke looked like they went across the street to McDonald’s or Wawa to get — are now more potato-​like and over-​seasoned.
Overall, it’s no longer the Chatterbox I grew up with — and perhaps it’s time to move on.

No, no, no.