Harrison’s Chesapeake House

Four of us stopped in while visiting a couple small towns along the Chesapeake bay. We went to the Crab Deck outside for lunch and had great friendly service and perfect atmosphere (if you are looking for bay side seafood with a view)
Between the 4 of us we ordered all appetizers. The pound of shrimp came out extra extra large and had a good portion of Old Bay on it for a nice seasoning (it’s Maryland!)
The cream of crab soup had huge chunks of crab meat and was obviously made fresh.
The seafood nachos sounded a tad sketchy when we ordered them but had great flavor as a fun add on.
Then the crab dip came out in a bread bowl… Wow… If you are eating here… Do yourself a favor and order the crab dip… It was excellent.
Overall this restaurant was exactly what we hoped for… Bayside seafood with a view and friendly local service.

I don’t understand all the negative reviews, the food atmosphere and service here were excellent! I had one of the specials which was-​Rockfish and Oysters and it was very tasty and fresh. It came family style with Cole slaw, stewed tomatoes, Lima beans and mashed potatoes. I also had cream of crab soup, and that was very tasty as well. Atmosphere is relaxing with nice water views and waitress I had was friendly and gave great service. I look forward to returning again. Keep up the great work.

My husband and I have been here several times having lunch outside and enjoying the great view and watching boats coming in and out. This is a great spot for outdoor dining. We ordered «lunch type» foods– burgers and salads and were pleased. Our service and server were fine.

Never thought a place on the shore would have good fried chicken, but it said house special and I will say it was darn good.
That was about the only positive thing I can say about this place. Granted it was busy, but it’s a holiday weekend and management should know to staff up. Most people were outside and we ended up seated at an inside table. I’m willing to look past a few things, but there were about a dozen black flies buzzing against the window next to our table, which should have been a sign even the flies were trying to get out of this place.
After the waitress showed up and got us drinks in a reasonable amount of time, it took about 15 minutes from that to actually place an order. After that, at least 50+ minutes to get our food.
Again, I will say the House Special (Fried Chicken & 2 Crab Cakes) were above average, but our waitress, who mentioned she was supposed to be off but got called in, was totally overwhelmed with to many tables and made an effort to check back in, but kept forgetting water and just mentioned one time that everyone was ordering fried food and it would be out soon. She had too much going on in separate sections and no management support.
Food was above average, our server tried but just no support from her kitchen in terms of time and I guess a visit from a manager or some sort of discount on the check for food that felt like it took, and almost did, an hour was a little to much to expect. As we walked out of this place, most of the wait staff was going through the buffet line with to go boxes and just wanted to go home. It just shows this place has no control of its staff and no management that takes pride in the experience of their guests and the appearance of their staff.

The telltale sign was when we walked in and one of the kitchen staff was playing on his phone at a table and was surprised that actual customers were going there to pay for food. I think he called the host/​waiter on his cell phone to seat us. We were literally the only people in the very large space.
I ordered the Rockfish bites which were burnt and fried in old oil. The sauces it came with were out of a jar. My entrée was fried softshell crabs. They were also burnt in the same old ass oil. The waiter made a big deal of pushing the potato salad and coleslaw on us, and it also must have come out of a factory processed giant tub of old mayonnaise.
Our waiter was good and came back to the table often. It is on the water but it was views of a marina and boats. Not much nature or scenic views. This place reminded me of a seaside version of the hotel from The Shining, but you don’t need telepathic powers to tell that this place has seen better days.

Terribly disappointed in my visit yesterday, 6÷20÷2015. My boyfriend and I were super excited to go, because we came for the cruise-​in, and the hosts of the event said nothing but good things about this restaurant. To start, it was not busy. Waiter was inattentive and slow, not interested in his job at all, and obviously not paying attention because my order came to me incorrect. I can’t eat crab, so I ordered shrimp and fish, and got fish and a crab cake instead. My boyfriend’s steamed shrimp took over half an hour to get to us. Never have we waited for steamed shrimp for that long, not even at Joe’s. They came out overcooked and almost inedibly salty. My fish was edible after some salt and pepper, but the rest of the platter was not. Lima beans just looked nasty, french fries were barely cooked through, and my shrimp were so covered in butter and lobster seasoning that I couldn’t even taste the shrimp flavor. I’m giving two stars because I love the location, right on the water. The best part of my meal was the water, sadly. We won’t be returning.

What can I say! We showed up, were greeted very nice. Checked into the rooms that were fine (This is a fishing place you know, not vegas) Nothing fancy but amenities were all good. For a fishing spot to base out of I think the rooms were just fine. We caught fish, limited out, and had fresh Rockfish for dinner at the restaurant. All cooked perfectly, sides were delicious, no complaints at all. If you’re looking for a good place to go fishing and base out of that also has a restaurant (which really does come in handy especially for early morning departure) then this is a great place to go. I have not been there during summer, but it looks like it would be a fun place to hang out. If you’re looking for something fancy, you may be disappointed, but that is not what this place is trying to be. We enjoyed our visit, comfortable rooms, great food, and caught fish. A great time had by all!

Have to concur with Dirt B.‘s review on ¹⁄₆ – Harrison’s is a sinkhole. There’s garbage strewn on the property, the rooms are in bad disrepair (our tub had a piece of duct tape covering a hole, and the handle to the shower door simply fell off when it was pulled to). I didn’t have high expectations going there – I’d read that they offered guide services for hunting and fishing, and thought I’d check it out – but it’s pretty much a boundless disaster. Won’t be going back.

No one here seems to like where they work. Perhaps it’s because its in the middle of no where, or they all believe to be on the same sinking ship.
I’ve been on and off the island for 30 years now — Harrison’s was the place to be in the late 80s — such a cool destination. Now its run down, with a private investor trying to bail out the biz before it sinks to the bottom.
Buddy and his son should spend more time picking up refuse in and around the property rather than their beers on the bar. Cleanliness is easily achieved if anyone had the motivation — it seems like these days — no one does.
The place was «remodeled» in 2012, but it looks more like a bad hair transplant.
I see people complaining about the crabs, but this part of the Chesapeake hasn’t seen many crabs for the past 3 years, so lets be lenient.
You will get slow service — food is not consistent — staff might be a bit brash, but I’m sure most of that comes from snooty tourists who come in and complain about everything. I happen to enjoy going here to watch the train wreck, or watch the other patrons complain non-​stop about how its taking too long to get their drinks or food — WWAAHHH! Shut up and enjoy the view.

This place is a great place to get your friends and go fishing. Nothing fancy about the place but it takes you back in time. If you are looking for a romantic place, this is not it. They party, they fish, they eat, and they have a good time. Stuffy people need not apply! I have been going there for 50 years and will continue to get away to this place as often as possible.

My mom invited us down to the shore for end of the summer all you can eat crabs. The outside of the place looks pretty cool and it’s right on the water. We sat on the deck, which was very nice. My mom and I ordered the crabs and my daughter and bf ordered the all you can eat chicken and ribs (which at first the waitress claimed they didn’t offer, until my mom showed her an advertisement in the paper). The ribs were supposedly delicious, but the fried chicken was super dry and cold on the inside (although the outside was crispy and tasty). Each batch was the same. The crabs were pretty good… not huge, but still pretty meaty. And $ 35 for all you can eat males, definitely worth it. The service however, deserves 1 star. Our waitress was a hot mess. She was so rude and whenever we asked for anything, it seems like she rolled her eyes. Half the time she wouldn’t even answer, but just show up with what we requested. I would think she’d be a little friendlier knowing this was going to be a $ 200+ bill. When we first placed our order, my 9 yr old daughter said to my mom, «Can I have a piece of crab meat?» The waitress snapped and said, «you can’t share.» Geez. Oh and the whole time we were eating she was sitting by the bar enjoying a beer — you’d think she would’ve been a little more relaxed, too!

Not like it used to be. Much better food in St Michaels for the same price. Actually down right awful

Wow
What a waste
Seafood buffet
Coldslaw, corn pudding soft-​shell crabs cut in half. Fried chicken shrimp creol and bread pudding for dinner $ 30
Really seafood Buffett?? j
Service was excellent but food was junk
Don’t go here for food. No salad or soup
Garbage

For starters, ignore the reviews that complain about run down hotel rooms. The rooms had a full remodel in 2012.
Second, don’t come here expecting haute cuisine. This is good ol’ Eastern Shore family homestyle cooking. For what it is, it is very good.
I recommend the cream of crab soup. It is the best item on the menu. Also, go for the rock fish/​striped bass. It is caught right out in the bay, and really fresh. Finally, be sure to sample the cole slaw. They make it in-​house, and it is one of my favorites.
I’ve eaten here many times. I would never visit just for dinner. I come here for the sport fishing, and the restaurant is more than satisfying after a day out on the water.

I love Crab Cake! I will definitely have that again!

Mediocre service despite a nearly empty restaurant off-​season for lunch.
My order was completely wrong — they brought me some creation that wasn’t on the menu.
My companions whose food was correct said the crab was good, for what that’s worth.
Skip it.

Pretty good. We would have gone back if we were staying another night.
I had the duo with a broiled crab cake and broiled flounder. I did not love the flounder but the crab cake was yummy. Well seasoned and lots of crab. My entrée came with coleslaw, veggie of the day and either mashed potatoes with gravy or a baked potato. I would go back and decline all 3 of these sides, not worth it. I would order 2 crab cakes with fries and a side salad. I would ask for an extra basket of the fresh delicious rolls and make myself 2 crab cake sandwiches.
Friend had the tuna medallions appetizer and wasn’t happy. The tuna was cooked through instead of seared and the accompanying seaweed salad was too sweet. My gf had the half house special — 2 pieces of fried chicken and a crab cake. She cleaned her plate, loved it. They both had the cream of crab soup — it’s super thick and really tasty, one of the best flavored soups I’ve tried in awhile.
They had a special drink with different flavors of absolut and fresh fruit crushed up. All of us had the ruby red grapefruit after we tried my friend’s. It was delicious! The waitress warned us that it would sneak up on us :) I am a super lightweight and was lightheaded halfway through mine.
Friendly service, right on the water. A fun, cute place :)

The hotel is a fun dive. The overall experience with the restaurant, sports fishing and party atmosphere gets 4 stars.
Do not come here expecting great accomodations, they are not by any strech of the imagination.
Restaurant has good food, location is very cool. The charter fishing is amazing.

We flew in to MD for a wedding on the island and we stayed here for two nights. The place is old and a little run down, but it added to it’s initial charm. Kinda of that nautical old tavern and inn by the harbor.
The people and staff are friendly, but the rooms were in sad shape. The rooms probably hasn’t been in about a decade. Rooms were not thoroughly cleaned as I found dead insects in on corner of the room. There were stains on the walls of the bathroom and the water had a slight sulfur smell. Bed was a little lumpy, No cable, no wireless, no phone. They was a wedding the first night we stayed. The guest got loud and rowdy around ¾am and I couldn’t call to complain to the front desk, since there was no phone in the room.
Cheapest option on the island, but I wished I had known about the conditions earlier and I would splurge a little more to stay at better place.

Damned good fried chicken,
Just don’t ask waitress for beer.
This makes her angry.