Skippers Seafood & Chowder

There’s no website for the Skippers on Main st. Puyallup. We hadn’t been in years but had a surprisingly pleasant experience recently. Hubby had been wanting to go for the all you can eat night for quite a while, Tues. nights. We went and decided to get one all you can eat clamstrips/​fish and one all you can eat fish/​chips. Both come with coleslaw/​fries and clam chowder. On Tues. it’s 2 bucks off the fish deal, so 12.99 instead of 14.99. Clam/​fish was 14.99. We had to admit, everything was tasty, fish hot not greasy, clams tender which commonly are over fried and chowder was better than remembered. No complaints! We honestly were getting full on first round! We just wish the tarter sauce was more dill/​onion than sweet but the malt vinegar helped cut the sweetness. The place isn’t fancy and could use a major overhaul, just felt a bit grungy. But we will be back, it was fun having that good olé’ Skippers experience and food again after so any years! Was going to give 4 stars but gave 3 only because place needs a fresh clean update.

Terrible customer service ever!
Not only did they completely forgot an entire meal but they wanted to argue about it! then I was told you can get a refund or you can get your meal that you missed.
Umm how about getting my order right the first time. I was even nice about it in the restaurant, but for you to argue with me and tell me that it was my fault that YOU screwed up on.
This was my first and last time coming to this establishment and I advise everyone to do the same if this is how they treat their customers.

Food had been sitting around for who knows how long. We were the only people in the entire place and it just feels dirty in there. Sorry but I’ve been to skippers in other places but this was not nice.

I have always loved Skippers, the one on Pacific ave. was the best place to go. This was a little different, our table had a sticky surface, even though the restaurant looked clean. The fish seemed overcoated but good, clam chowder had a thick canned taste, & crackers were not fresh. Coleslaw, fries were good. Since I love Skippers so much I would I would find a different one to go to.

Skippers… The best fish and chips? Not even close.
But if you’ve grown up in the Pacific Northwest and have memories of going to Skippers as a kid, then once every year or two, you get a hankering for Skippers and nothing but the over-​breaded, over-​crispy fish, the overly thickened clam chowder, fries and coleslaw can satisfy.
Skippers is not a place I would want to go to on a regular basis. But, for those once every year or two hankering, there’s no place like it.
See you again in a couple of years!

We ordered chicken strips thru the drive thru and they were completely raw inside. When I brought it to managements attention they informed me that this was not the first time this had happened. They didn’t seem too apologetic either. It was horrible to see such poor quality control happening. I would never eat here again or ever recommend it to anyone. If management didn’t seem to care about RAW CHICKEN. Who knows what goes on behind the counter.

Love Skippers! Best clam chowder in the state. Be sure to check out their specials on Tuesday nights. This Puyallup location has an all-​you-​can-​eat special each week! Great seafood, great price!

I enjoy my trips to skippers. Though I have not been in a year. Service was excellent. The young staff was very polite and helpful. The fish is a little different then before .A thinner cut with a crunchier batter. It was hot and always freshly cooked, as the chowder and Fries. The hot sauce in the Tabasco bottles is not Tabasco which dampened my night. I absolutely must have it on my fried fish. I should of bought my own. You should never try to trick a «Tabasco man».This was a good experience. The youngsters service made this a 4 star. The sticky tables need to be addressed. Maybe re– coat them.

Skippers is like the boyfriend (or girlfriend) you break up with and then go back to because you forget all the reasons you broke up I the first place. But then you enjoy it for a moment, realize why you dumped them and view THIS time you won’t go back… But you always do.
Here’s the thing. I have to be in the mood for Skippers. To survive the oddly sticky tables, awkward smell, hit and miss fish quality, and seriously slacker service. While they are really nice there, it’s usually all orders messed up, slow fish, but again, they are friendly.
The chowder is great, and the fish when you get a good piece is decent. I usually feel like crap when I leave, but never sick, so it is ok. For some reason though it’s so good when you are eating it. The all you can eat is an awesome deal, but the tummy usually doesn’t appreciate it. I’ve had my fill while I am up here and won’t be back for at least 6 months. So I. had my greasy spoon fish and chips and I’m tapping out for 2015… But I’ll be back… I always am.

Best Skippers I’ve ever had. The staff & manager are awesome. The food was cooked so well we wanted to go a second night in one week. So happy to have a Skippers right down the road.
:) Ms. Darcy

The best! The manager is pretty awesome. The only complaint id have is the tables are sticky but they always wipe them down for us. Our whole family has come to slippers for 30+ years.

We have been going to this Skippers for a number of years as it’s one of the few left in our area, and have always had good food and service. The fish was so poor yesterday that I felt obliged to point it out. While I can’t say what was the exact problem, the results were clear. The breading was falling off the fish and the fish itself was falling apart completely as you tried to eat it. The fish seemed very mushy and overall lacked flavor, and there appeared to be a layer of water (or oil?) between the fish and the breading making the breading crispy on the outside and super soggy on the inside. I can’t say if this was overdone, underdone, cooked in wrong temperature oil, or what. This issue affected both batches of fish as I had ordered the all-​you-​can eat, so I got three pieces, then a couple more pieces about 20 minutes later. The fries were ok, though not very crisp. The chowder was delicious as always. My wife had the coconut shrimp basket and said it was really good.
On a non-​food related note, the interior of this restaurant is in desperate need of updating. It’s basically the same décor and furniture/​paint/​ceilings as it had back in the 80’s and 90’s, only thing new being a giant flat screen TV on one wall and an iPad looking device for their cash register/​POS system. While I have seen many fast food establishments in worse shape, the interior of this restaurant could help explain why it never seems to be busy. Honestly, I don’t know how they are even open, with the lack of business we see every single time we visit. Who cares about a TV on the wall or fancy money taker when your furniture and walls are 30 years old? Grungy ceiling tiles and tables that never really seem to be clean (they look clean but feel sticky) don’t help.
The one thing that kept us coming back here were the reasonable prices for good seafood. Their chowder and tartar sauce are my favorite. Granted, the fact that it’s never crowded is kind of a nice bonus — but only as long as it’s still in business. If the food will again be like what I had last night, it’s not going to be worthwhile coming back. We’ll probably give it one more try to see if the bad fish was just a fluke or a genuine change in their quality. But if there’s no improvement next time, we will probably have to go elsewhere for fish and chips. I’d miss the chowder and tartar sauce, but even most burger joints (Herfy’s, Red Robin, etc) have better fish than what I just ate.

No wonder Skippers is going out of business.
First key to any customer related business is CUSTOMER SERVICE. My boyfriend (who is allergic to seafood) was nice enough to let my pregnant friend and I choose Skippers for dinner. He thought it would be okay to just order a hamburger, and see 2 happy, seafood eating girls. When I arrived, I asked if the fries were cooked in the same oil. I was cut off short, no smile, and no care. He said it was cooked in the same oil. I asked for just the cheeseburger, and we ordered our food.
*I get it. If he’s allergic, why is he here? Maybe some people in this world like to see people smile. Can’t avoid seafood forever in the Seattle area.
When we got our food from a different gentleman, my boyfriend received his burger on a heap of fries. After explaining that he didn’t want the fries, he explained it’s in different oil than the fish. Is it or isn’t it? Not gonna trust it regardless. Get your story right.
My friend had asked for her bread bowl with the soup in a separate container, but she didn’t get it that way. She explained that to him, but he cut her off and said he’ll make it again but it’ll take awhile.
After the rude attempts, we asked for a comment card for management. They don’t have one. They wanted us to write and note to give to them, but what good is that? We took down the phone number and the name of the rude associate (who by the way, chose to wear a purple Jimi Hendrix t-​shirt to work, with un-​tied long hair).
When my friend eventually got her soup, we were all done eating. The rude employee shouted from 10 feet away his managers name and walked off.
We will not be coming back; which is sad, there aren’t many Skippers left.

What can I say, it’s a skippers. Not bad, not great, someplace inbetween. Unfortunately the drive up speaker has been broken for a couple of years and the owner is too cheap to fix it. If you’re looking for fast just go inside to order.

I must say, Skippers has the best Fish in Chips around! Im not much into Chowder, but from what I’ve heard, it’s pretty good– just not my cup of tea so to speak lol.
This skippers does have a drive through, which I thought was interesting as I dont think I have seen that before in a skippers, might have to try it out sometime lol, the rest of their food is pretty good, including the Grilled Salmon,

The Best chowder in town! Older restaurant, never busy get right in and order fresh hot food every time. I will be back.

I love Skippers, and I’m so afraid that this place is going to close because it is clearly not making a ton of money. The interior looks about 20 years old. That said, the food is always delicious and the staff are unfailingly friendly. Best chowder in town.

Really good food. My husband and I were searching for a place to grab some fried fish. This place came through! Service was great and the food was made to order.
We ordered the family pack andvit was more than enough food for 4 people. Good for when you are in a hurry and do not want to fry fish in the house!

The service was really slow to be considered fast food and while waiting for our food the kitchen was literally falling apart. They messed up my order and didn’t even know what was on their menu. But they’re hush puppies are really good.

Food: I’ve found that locally I am not pleased with the clam chowder that most places serve. This is the only place I can find clam chowder that I actually love. So if Skippers goes away, I have to go back to Alaska for a decent chowder. Other things they serve that I’m very fond of is their fish wraps. Very tasty, very fresh, not oversized to the point where its a challenge to finish. Just perfect for a good snack/​part of a small meal. If you get anything that comes in a basket, make sure to show up very hungry. They do not skimp in any way in their servings. Which is fine because it’s delicious, but it can be overwhelming.
Décor: It has a very novelty look to the inside. Stereotypical decorations like anchors and what not. I actually find it kind of funny. But it suits the feel of the place, and the attitude of the staff…
Staff: I’ve seen some very odd, negative comments about certain staff members. Neither my girlfriend, or myself have ever been in any way displeased by the employees at this location. We’ve always been treated very well, they are always very professional but fun, and they’ve always ensured a positive experience. If they hadn’t, we wouldn’t go back as frequently as we do.
Moral of the story is if you want great local seafood at very competitive prices served by a great staff, then this is really the only place you need to go.