Rustic House Oyster Bar and Grill

Took a friend for a birthday lunch since fish and chips are one of his favorite dishes and I love trying new places. BIG MISTAKE. Anticipated a great meal, but even though the restaurant was empty, our waiter took a long time to come back to take our order. Food came out in a reasonable time, but the batter on the fish was so salty it was practically inedible, and we like salty food. I’m sure it was a mistake and too much salt added accidentally, but we were unable to flag our waiter down. The restaurant was filling up with patrons, and we tried to make eye contact with our waiter (we did and he just looked at us) so we gave a little wave to come over (in which he waved back but didn’t come over) — just stood near the sidelines. We ended up peeling the batter off and eating plain fish while dying of thirst (our waiter NEVER came back to refill our water or drinks). We watched the other wait staff and they were all great — all except our waiter who looked lost —
We were so happy to get our check (which we had to get from someone else since our guy was standing near the front staring into the distance even though by that time I was waving my arms). I might be willing to try again eating in a different section in the future, but my friend said never again. This restaurant was the main topic at his birthday dinner!

We stopped in at the Rustic House for the first time last Sunday. It was early, so there were only a few people eating at the time. We were promptly greeted and show to our seats. At first I was worried that the seats would not be comfortable, but they were! I liked the décor, it did feel rustic, and very, very clean. I LIKE!
We order the appetizer of the Scallops with Pancetta and an order of Cheesy Garlic Bread, and we shared an entrée of Pawns with Bourbon Sauce. The Scallops and bread were completely out of this world. We both agreed this was one of the best things we had had in a very long time. The Entrée of Pawns was very good too! Nice fresh prawns with asparagus and broccolini and delish Jasmine Rice. The prices were very fair for the fresh seafood and the whole experience was great.
Definitely we will be going back many, many times! Keep up the good work guys… I hope to be eating here for a very long time to come.

Came with some friends for dinner before rock climbing on a Friday evening, 7:30pm, and to my friends’ disappointment, they were out of oysters. Didn’t much bother me, being a vegetarian (with an egg allergy, to boot), but it did seem a little comical that an oyster bar was without oysters so early in the day!
I had the grilled portobello mushroom with quinoa, which comes on a bed of mashed potatoes with some grilled vegetables. It was fine, but felt very much like something I could get at a friend’s summer barbeque party, and I guess it didn’t feel like it was entirely worth the price for what it was. The quinoa was nice and buttery (not suitable for vegans, sorry), and the mushroom itself well grilled, but the vegetables were limp and dull (perhaps my fault for expecting decent vegetables at an oyster bar/​grill?) and the mashed potatoes were pretty run-​of-​the-​mill. I’d hoped they’d be able to give me a glass of ginger beer, as it is a component of some of their mixed drinks, but apparently they were out of that, too! Maybe there was a big party of oyster and ginger-​beer-​laden-​drink-​loving folks?
Anyhow, the place is a-​okay, if a little on the loud side. If my friends want to try for oysters again, I’ll probably come along, but this place isn’t my first pick, for both the quality of what I had here and the extreme dearth of options I can eat.

Amazing! First time there, sat at the bar because there was no table seating on a Friday night. (they do take reservations) place was full! Very fun vibe, great bartender helped us. Food came quick and was great! Great unique beer selections and kid friendly. Owner was walking around greeting people which I love. Just an overall fun place and vibe on a Friday night. Parking is a bit challenging but it’s worth the stroll!

Food is decent for west coast seafood, but way over priced. Couldn’t find a piece of crab in the crab poppers. Basically $ 11 for 4 jalapeños stuffed with cheese and deep fried. Seemed like bar food to me. Good atmosphere, but need to balance prices with the portions/​product. Good thing the servers were nice.

Not only the food is really good, but the service is also excellent. It’s a very cozy place and if you like the family style, but also modern, this is a great one. We tried the scallops, oysters (I don’t remember which ones… the ones from Washington, I think) and the shrimp tacos and ceviche and everything was really good. Maybe an extra touch of spiciness to the ceviche would be awesome!(but that’s a personal thing). The scallops we’re excellent. Really yummy sauce and the potato with grilled cheese… yum!the owner of the restaurant is super attentive and he came to say hi and explain the dishes, the story of the restaurant, etc. I appreciate when owners care about their customers and not just about their money. Definitely a place to come back :)

A last minute decision on a Sunday afternoon didn’t disappoint. How have we missed the opening of this place? It is right on El Camino in San Carlos and the building itself is very original. It really does live up to the name «Rustic». In fact, all the décor is designed to look like a seafood place near the beach. intentionally slightly dilapidated, while still being clean and new.
The staff was very, very friendly. They must have been gearing up for a Sunday night crowd because there were an awful lot of people on staff for the amount of people there. I am not a big fan of communal seating, but since were were only 2 of like 6 people there at the moment, we had our choice of seats. The menu had a lot of great selections but we came specifically to try the oysters. We selected a sampling of a dozen-​3 of each of the four kinds on the menu (Kumamoto, Fanny Bay, Kusshi & Royal Miyagi).
They were brought out on one giant platter with three sauces. We are not oyster experts, by any means, but we do know a thing or two about them. We kept the menu with us with the descriptions and tasting notes on each oyster. Just to be sure, we asked the server which was which. Sadly, he wasn’t sure and I think he guessed… and he guessed wrong. I know this because the notes on the Kusshi talk about the purple and black shell… and he mistook the Royal Miyagi for Kusshi. We even asked him a 2^nd time and he was still mixed up on which is which. And when we asked him which of the sauces compliment the oysters (Rustic Wash Chipotle Mignonette, or Cocktail Sauce), he simply pointed to the cocktail sauce with no reasoning why he picked that one. I don’t know if he was new or not, but for a $ 40+ plate of oysters, I would hope that the server would know which was which and be able to recommend which sauces compliment which oysters best. (At least everywhere else we had oysters we received this service from a knowledgeable server).
Now, other than that, the oysters were fantastic and fresh. And the service otherwise was attentive. But, with the lack of knowledge from the server about the food, I had to deduct what would have otherwise been a 5 star rating.
Hopefully management reads this and does some employee training and education on the dishes they are serving. But A+ on the oysters! We didn’t try anything else (not even drinks) to be able to rate anything else on this visit.

The oysters are AMAZING!!! Not another place in the area like it. I had the Bourbon and Rustic House oysters and they were absolutely delicious. The manager Fidel greeted us and Anahi was great and friendly.

Great find! We were looking for a place to have some seafood that was low key but still delish and this was a good find. If you’re looking for a fancy seafood restaurant this is not your place but if you looking for great local feel restaurant with great seafood and oysters and great service with a fun atmosphere then this is your place.
We had the clam chowder, scallops, house salad with their house dressing, and cod taco’s for our meal and it was all great. The clam chowder was delish and I was a big fan of the scallops. For dessert we had their berries and cream and it was perfect finisher :). They also have smores which we were really tempted to get, will have to try next time! Also looking forward to trying their Cioppino and Scallop Pasta. We would definitely recommend RHOB&G.

My husband and I wanted to step out on a Friday to grab a good bite. We headed into downtown San Carlos and pretty much every spot was too crowded. So we made a u-​turn heading south on El Camino and we remembered about this place that was to open soon. To our surprise the place was open and it looked lively inside.
My husband went in to get a table while I circled around to find parking. Heads up there is only 7 parking spots to this restaurant, but I found one along the El Camino.
The wait to be seated was about 20 mins (we obviously didn’t have reservations) and people kept coming in who didn’t have reservations either. As we waited we saw their cooks shuck oysters so quickly and efficiently. Impressive! However, by the time we were seated they had run out of fresh oysters for the night. Bummer, but I guess that’s what happens when you don’t order enough fresh product.
We were seated in a bar/​counter seating. I really didn’t like this, but in a full restaurant on a busy Friday night you take what you can get. We had a seat directly in front of the kitchen and we kept seeing this awesome, colorful plates. The menu looked amazing, good options and tasty descriptions on their signature cocktails.
We ordered apps and drinks to start. I highly recommend the yummy stuffed jalapeños (not spicy at all) and the garlic batter green beans. The jalapeños were so much more tastier than the green beans. The green beans had way too much batter and not enough garlic flavor to them.
Our server came back to take our order and I order the caprese salad and the salmon plate. My husband proceeds to order the flat iron steak and the server proceeds to tell us that they are all out of steak. We were shocked, that’s the only red meat option and they are out of it? He then opts to order the grilled prawns plate.
Well, both options were awesome and tasted amazing. You have the option to choose what flavor of mash potatoes you want and the garlic option is yummy as well as the bacon cheddar option too!
We were so stuffed that we couldn’t eat another bite, so we didn’t try the desserts. The dessert options were limited but we saw a few come out the kitchen window and they looked yummy.
We did enjoy the evening and we will be back to enjoy the other selections on the menu.
Heads up:
This is a communal table setting, so this is not a good place for a quiet, intimate dinner.
Make a reservation during high peak hours. Friday and Saturday nights.
Make sure you have a backup meal selection in case yours isn’t available (oysters run out)
Wish for:
A more vibrant bar scene with less cocktails and more straight liquors.
Full disclosure upon seating on what isn’t available off the menu. Makes your choices easier and less disappointing.

A last minute decision on a rainy Sunday night turned into a great experience, the place was hopping but we found a spot at the bar that was remarkably comfortable. Not a big fan of sitting at the bar but lots of room with views of the televisions.
The second we walked in the staff could not have been more gracious and accommodating. The menu had a lot of great selections but we settled on the crab poppers and then went onto the Mahi Mahi tacos and fish & chips. Not sure what I will try next time but the chicken looked really good.
The service was fantastic as was the food, everyone goes out of their way to make sure your experience is a good one, refreshing to have this level of customer service. I highly recommend the place and we will be back soon.

Food was great at lunch. The dining room was only 25% full and we were able to pick our own place to sit. There are only communal tables with wooden stools which is a bit uncomfortable. The server came over immediately to offer beverages and hand us the menus. In general, the service was top notch. One drawback was the acoustics. With the low ceiling, the noise level was loud. I could only imagine if the restaurant was filled with people what the noise level would be.
We ordered the Kumamoto oysters which were awesome as well as the Popcorn shrimp which were good, too. Although they do not have any fresh fish like fillet of sole, the rest of the menu satisfies. We had the lobster roll with the best french fries possible. They were wedges coated with crispy batter and fried. Simply wonderful. The seafood pasta tasted great as well as the Louis salad. All in all, a nice seafood meal.

I tried this new place last night.
I had a great experience with the food. We ordered the oysters… yum! And there is a dish that I have to come back for… The Pan seared scallops is amazing! I accidentally dropped on the floor ¼ of my delicious plate :-(… I was so sad, a few minutes later the manager came with a plate of scallops in that delicious sauce!!! I wasn’t expecting that! They made my day… My husband mentioned that is was my birthday and they even top it off with a free dessert!
The service is excellent and the food delicious … I have to go back to try other dishes. Thumbs up!

The food is 3 – 3.5 stars as of now, but rounding down since it wasn’t quite 4 stars. It seems like after all the horrible reviews regarding their service, they’re going out of the way to try and improve that since we had at least five visits during our meal to check on how the food was, etc. That was a bit TOO much, so hopefully they find a good balance for customer service. My coworkers and I came in for lunch a couple days before the new year, and although I made reservations, they weren’t super packed when we came around 11:45am. We tried:
–Raw Oysters (6 Kumamoto/​$ 22.95, 6 Flapjack/​$ 12.95,
): I usually love kumamotos, and they were still very fresh, but I actually enjoyed the flapjacks more since they were nice and buttery tasting. Price wise, they were also much cheaper, so highly recommended if they are on the menu. The oysters came with three sauces:
–Rustic Wash (Rice Vinegar, Shallots, Jalapeños): This was a mignonette style sauce, and it was a great version. This was definitely our favorite by far.
–Chipotle Mignonette (Chipotle Peppers, Red Wine Vinegar, Peppercorns, Shallots, Cilantro, Honey, Black Pepper): This was our least favorite since it overpowered the taste of the oysters.
–Cocktail Sauce (w/​Horseradish) — Solid cocktail sauce, but overpowered the taste of the oysters.
–Crab Poppers (Fresh Jalapeños Stuffed w/​Crab Meat, Cheese Fried, Served w/​Chipotle Mayo, $ 10.95,
): Good, and I liked that some pieces actually had a bit of spice to it. This is a rich appetizer for sure, but good for sharing. The chipotle mayo was also really good.
–Grilled Oysters Rustic House Style (Garlic, Chives, Butter, Cayenne Pepper, Parmigiano Romano, 6/​$ 17,
): Pretty good, but the oysters shriveled up so much there was barely any meat to it. I wouldn’t get this again.
–Garlic Bread ($ 4.95): Solid– the bread had a good amount of cheese and garlic taste.
–Sautéed Prawn & Avocado Salad (Avocado Halves on a Bed of Slaw w/​Ginger Glaze Sautéed Prawns, Vinaigrette, $ 15.95): I tried a bite of my coworkers, and the shrimp was good, but needed more of a sear on it. They give you an entire avocado, which is really generous, but the slaw needed to be more vinegary to cut the buttery avocado more instead of super loaded with mayo.
–Fried Shrimp Po Boy Sandwich (Iceberg Lettuce, Tomato, Topped w/​Grainy Mustard Remoulade, Fresh Baked Baguette, $ 14.95,
): Pretty good, although I’m used to po boys being so full they almost overflow, so this version seemed a bit skimpy to me, especially for the price.
–Fish & Chips (Alaskan Cod Beer Battered & Fried, Served w/​Rustic Style Fried Potatoes, House Made Slaw, $ 15.95,
): They give you a huge portion of food (three gigantic fish sticks), and they were good and seasoned well. However, they were pretty oily, which probably means that the oil wasn’t hot enough when they were fried. I took one piece to go, and a huge puddle of oil came out after I reheated it. Their tartar sauce was pretty good, as were the fried potatoes, but some of the potato pieces could have been cooked longer. I didn’t like the slaw much since it had way too much mayo, and I’m the type of person who normally loves mayo.
Currently, they only offer two desserts: Homemade S’mores and Cheesecake, which aren’t the most inspiring options. Hopefully they decide to add on to the dessert menu at a a later point.
Our server was friendly, but he wasn’t the most efficient. We had to repeat certain things a couple of times, but they were still new at the time so hopefully this has improved since then. I would probably return since they had a good variety of dishes on their menu. Parking was easy when we came since there were spots in their lot, and there are some street parking spots available.

The friendly staff and nice ambience made me want to rate this place higher… but in the end, the average food and uncomfortable seating left me leaning toward a 3-.
The menu is somewhat limited, so we opted for a couple different seafood salads (seafood cobb and crab louie). Both were ok (not great or bad), but the crab just didn’t taste fresh.
Though we didn’t order anything fried, people around us did and everything was heavily battered and looked super greasy.
The seating arrangement was the biggest disappointment. We shared a long table with other people on each side of us and we had no intimacy. On top of that our stools had hard flat seats with no back support which made the entire experience uncomfortable. A little extra padding in the trunk would have helped!

I’m really hoping I’m not the 1^st to leave a 1 star.
We were … NOT greeted. Instead, one of the line cooks pointed at a table [which we headed towards], then the server stopped us midway to point us at the same set of tables, then took our order. Though our server was somewhat helpful in reminding us that there are other options on the menu.
Being a new restaurant and all, I was excited to try out Rustic House… Except I left to the restroom for a minute to wash my hands and came out to find that we had to leave. Never, I repeat, NEVER have we been treated this way in any establishment.
Despite all my ice cream and dessert reviews, my boyfriend and I can’t have dairy. SO, we explained that we couldn’t have cheese and were extremely patient with the server having to ask back and forth what could be altered and couldn’t. Perfectly reasonable and acceptable. What wasn’t reasonable or acceptable was the pointing back and forth at our table, saying this & that, being rude IN PLAIN SIGHT! We picked up our stuff to leave, my boyfriend thanked them for their services [no matter how unhappy he was with the service] and we walked out. A man comes out and says that he’s not the manager, but has to manage that day because the chose not to show, he doesn’t know how to work the system, he’s unsure of the situation but is willing to waive the meals, give us gift cards, etc.
FIRST OF ALL, we’re not asking for free meals or waived entrees. We neither need nor want the discount. We just wanted to try out some oysters [as close to dairy free as possible]. It’s a new place, we wanted to try. SIMPLE.
SECOND OF ALL, if you’re not the manager [or owner] why is it your job to come out and approach us with bribes and such? It was already too late after there was a bunch of finger waving at us. To wait for us to grab our stuff and go? Way too late.
LAST, I’m really hoping the service quality here gets better. As for the taste quality of the food, it’s probably never to be determined. I’m not entirely sure I’d ever want to look at the restaurant again let alone set foot inside after this fiasco a couple days ago.
In case you were curious as to what we ordered & were going to add on :
— 2−3x each of the grilled oysters.
— 3x each raw oysters
— cioppino to share
— garlic bread if without cheese
— fisherman’s sangria
— bf was considering beer

I’m really excited to see a new style of restaurant and food in San Carlos! The décor is nice and the seating style was unexpected, definitely a nice change. The seats are long tables/​benches that are communal, almost cafeteria like. The shared seating wasn’t too much of an issue since we went to the restaurant early, no crowd and we got a quiet spot to ourselves.
We tried the following:
— clam chowder — the chowder wasn’t very creamy and it must have been sitting out because when I was served the soup there was already a dried film on top of it
— ceviche — this basically was nachos and salsa, taste was okay but seemed like the plate was pre-​prepped and sitting in the fridge because the chips were cold
— fish and chips — my friend had this and it was okay
— lobster roll — nothing to complain or boast about
Everything was decent, but didn’t quite hit the spot for me or my friend. I think we’ll stick to our favorites in Redwood City and Half Moon Bay, especially since the prices are comparable. This place was worth a try though! Maybe we’ll come back to the oysters next time.

Rustic House has an olde time ambience but it’s offset by the cramped seating arrangements: a bar, and a few long communal tables.
didn’t have time to peruse menu. caught ceviche (10) as an appetitzer. passed on it. had only one item in mind.
eats: fish & chip (15.95)
–don’t remember description, menu currently unaccessible online
–3 large pieces of fish, bland, resembles swai/​basa (vietnamese catfish)
good portions but not flaky nor solid fillet. fwiw, basa is a cheap fish
OTOH, owner claims fresh alaskan cod used. familiar with frozen. comes packed 3×15#
*if fresh is delivered weekly on mondays, fish quality would have been degraded by thursday.
that’s why my fish wasn’t flaky fresh. just guessing.
–steak fries soggy, not crispy, about 10 pieces
–4oz of cole slaw. best part of eats
–food average, listed under «specialities»
don’t want to find out how the average dish will turn out.
–tartar sauce bland.
crumbs:
–no napkins/​no malt vinegar /​ketchup/​forks given on take out
had to ask for or self service as much as possible.
–portions small, thus pricey
–cordial service, average food.
–12 drafts on tap, the usual name micros.

Our first time at Rustic House. Cool interior and décor. The clam chowder was Devine as was the crab sandwich. My Mahi Mahi fish tacos were good but tasted a bit charred from the grill. You gotta try the homemade coleslaw it’s awesome and the fries that came with the crab sandwich were fresh non-​greasy more like potato wedges, great stuff.
With the two large screen TVs we’ll definitely be back to watch the Dubs and it looks like they may be building a patio in the back which would make this place pretty perfect. Maybe they’ll even put in a fire pit
As Arnold would say. . I’ll be baack, and I’ll bring my brood.
BTW, I don’t mind the communal seating, adds a little social to scene.
Cheers. J.

I was lucky enough to check out this place the other day for the first time.
I like the remodel they did inside… I had been in there before when it was a café… Lots of people commented here on the communal seating… For us it wasn’t a big deal, but they weren’t that full, so nobody sat next to us.
The menu was well put together… I immediately knew I would be coming back as there was lots of stuff I wanted to try! I particularly liked the baked oysters… Next time I’m going to ask them to make them traditional New Orleans style with just garlic butter and Parmesan cheese which would be a nice addition to the menu.
My only problem with this place was their beer selection. This place SCREAMS awesome craft beer… Looks like a 12 tap system and several bottles too. Unfortunately, most were big names like Blue Moon, Modelo etc… Nothing really local, nothing unique… Anchor and Drakes were the highlights… YAWN… Would have like to see some Devil’s Canyon, Alpha Acid (both made about a mile away)… Even a South City Cider… Support your local businesses! Anyhow, if you read these reviews Mr. Owner, get something new and different!
I will definitely be going back… and ordering Ice Tea until they upgrade their beer menu… and once that happens, they most likely will get that 5^th star from me!