The Boat House

Some of the best fish and chips we’ve had and clam chowder to rival anything we’ve had back in New England. And the calamari was great too.

Skip this place if there is a line. The line moves very slow; after ordering you be ready to wait 40 mins for some of the food to arrive, the rest will arrive much later. Fish and chips were overcooked (really dark and hard on the outside and greasy on inside), BBQ oysters were OK.
The food here is very basic, so maybe the can cook it well and serve at reasonable time when place isn’t crowded. But on a busy day servers seem flustered and it showed on the food preparation.

My first visit to Bodega Bay yesterday and it was such a beautiful day also, so of course grabbing some food just added to the buzz. Decided to try this place, started to line up and waited for about 15 mins to order, which was okay considering it was a holiday weekend and great weather. Ordered food and told about 20 mins to wait, you had to order food then find an available table which there was not many off to start with, but waited anyhow. 20 mins passed and still no food, almost one hour later and only one of the food items arrives out half cold, it tasted just okay and could have been better and little warmer. Almost 15 mins later, the rest for he food came out and tasted fine, but such a long wait so ruined the experience for us. The staff were all over the place and had no system in place at all for customer service at all. If you can, avoid this place at all cost and try elsewhere, we wished we had!

Line took forever and then we order and everything is fried and very expensive. We have to clear a table ourselves because they are understaffed and we were lucky to get a table at all because it was so small and packed. Took forever to get our food and it was not flavorful at all. Just a bunch Of fried garbage. I was really looking forward to coming here. Will never come back.

Ok, so my apologies ahead of time for being a Norman-​Naysayer because everyone seems to love this place. I thought it was OK. If I could I’d give it 3.5*- but not quite 4*.
FOOD:
— The «fish and chips» were a little too greasy for my taste, but perhaps you might not notice if you haven’t already had really good fish and chips. The fries were a little soft and bland. Slightly disappointed.
— The «crab cake sandwich» was on a DELICIOUS roll. It had a good sauce and the veggies were pretty fresh too. The downside was that the crab cake was dwarfed by the roll (think fast food meat/​bread ratios). As an ensemble it was pretty good but a little lacking in the meat department.
— The «salmon burger» was a little hard (was it fried too?) and dry. Again, the roll and veggies were great, but I was again disappointed with the meat. I guess a regular burger would have been a better choice.
Overall the food was OK. If you aren’t familiar with this type of food, you might really love it! But if you’re even just a little familiar, I’d say try to measure your expectations based on the previous ratings.
In short, the food is overrated, though I didn’t have the clam chowder which seems to get a lot of Unilocal love.
SERVICE:
The service was fine. You order at the counter and they bring it to you. Not much more than that, but the cashier was professional and very nice. This is why they’d get a 3.5 over 3, but can’t do a 4.
AMBIANCE:
Ok, this place is kind of hole-​in-​the-​wallish, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing. It also doesn’t have a view. Good for friends and families w/​older kids.
PARKING:
Be forewarned that parking is not great should you stop here. We are in mid-​February (not the busy season) and had to park off the main highway. Be warned come summer time!
SEATING:
The seating area is small & features small round tables that don’t accommodate more than 3 comfortably & isn’t great for groups. There is outdoor seating (cool!), w/​a view of the parking lot (ugh!).
Overall this place is OK. I think that everyone has given it too much credit, but maybe they’re loving the vibes of being on the coast and aren’t really thinking about the food.
I don’t know, I’d give it a 3.5 if that were an option. I don’t mean to hate on this place, but the rating was misleading and the food didn’t justify a $$ over a $.
I hope you like it better than I did!

Love this little boat house off the coast. A friend of mine suggested this place as a stop if we were hungry while in Bodega Bay. The fish and chips were delish! Breading was not overbearing and add a little malt vinegar— it was heaven. The food came out nice and piping hot. Gave it a few minutes to cool down and it was perfect. My son is a picky eater and had the cheeseburger (plain). It was served on sandwich buns… but he still ate it.
Limited seating area and parking is kind of tight. Location is next to a kite and salt water taffy place.

finally i found what I was looking for after three seafood places on our road trip. East Coast style Fried Clams. kind of reminded me of of johnny reef in city island, ny.

Bodega is one of my favorite places to get away and the The Boat House is always on my list of places to eat. I would recommend it to anyone. The Fish & Chips and are FANTASTIC!

I have known about this little restaurant since I was a young teenager. I have fond memories at this little place, eating the most delicious calamari I have ever tasted in my life (and it’s still the best!). I love the fish and chips there too! There is not a lot of seating, and the inside is very small, so it can get very crowded quickly! It is very casual, as most people are in jeans and a t-​shirt. The chairs are plastic, so they aren’t the most comfy things to sit on. I went there yesterday night, and it looks like they added an outside section… or maybe I never noticed before? Anyhow, if you like delicious calamari and fish and chips along with a day at the beach, this is definitely a spot you must get some food!

My husband and I stopped here while we were coming back from our trip driving up the coast. I have to give it 5 stars, not only because the food was fresh and delicious, but also because the staff were extremely accommodating.
My husband loves fish n’ chips, but he can never have them because there is usually onion and garlic in the batter. Even though there was garlic in the batter in the fish n’chips that they serve here, the cook was extremely kind and made my husband a special batch with a batter containing no onions or garlic. They weren’t very busy, so he said that that’s why they were able to do that. I was so impressed with his willingness to do that, especially since their batter was already made for the day. No restaurant has ever offered to do something like that and we were really happy. The food didn’t take long. Both of us ordered fish n’ chips and they were outstanding. The fish was super fresh and the perfect level of crispiness and flavor. We ate our meal quickly and were on our way.
Overall, I’m very impressed and I would definitely recommend The Boat House!

If you looking for genuine fish and chips, look no further! The Boat House is a diamond in the rough… literally! In order to get here, you need to drive out of your way. But the drive out here is well worth it. Plus you get to enjoy a scenic view.
Once your turn off the main road into the parking lot, march your hungry butt inside and order up a basket of food! Once inside the establishment, it gives you a homely feeling. A eatery that does it right is the vibe you get here. The staff is friendly and quick to take your order.
The wife and I order a basket of fish and chips and a side of zucchini sticks w/​ranch. I am one to enjoy a basket of fish and chips, and I can say 100 percent that I love these guys. You can tell you are not getting the usual b/​c each strip of fish is its own size and length, nothing the same w/​these guys! Each basket comes with a cup of ketchup and a cup of in-​house cole slaw! Btw, it is pretty good for being homemade.
In the end, I came out a full and happy man with what I received! I can say the same for my wife. I even helped her finish off some her fish b/​c her tummy was full!
fin.

Well… you could almost miss this place if you weren’t a seasoned traveler to Bodega Bay! Probably would be stopping at the big name places (Lucas Warf, Tides, Spud Point) but not Moi! On one of our first trips to BB we stopped and asked a local where we might find the best fish and chips. When this long time business owner told us where he went when he wanted fish and chips… The Boat House. We were kinda of… «where???». So that was our introduction to the Boat House. And we continue to frequent this wonderful establishment every time we are in the neighborhood! Which we are today. And, yes, another tasty meal. While the menu is extensive, we do gravitate towards the same items every time: Fish and Chips, Clam Chowder and BBQ Oysters! That is it. So I cannot comment on anything else. We bring our own wine/​champagne and sit in the covered patio (rain or shine) and just indulge! The clam chowder is filled with clams! The fish and chips (cod) are not greasy but hot and delicious. Served with lemon, tarter sauce, ketchup, malt vinegar and Tabasco… take your choice! The Oysters are BBQ’d to perfection. The Owners are long time Sebastopol locals we understand. And along with this restaurant business, you can sign on for a chartered fishing day trip with them should you have the time as they have a licensed boat for that purpose too. We know friends who have done this and had a great time and caught a variety of fish. Best of all, the customer service at the Boat House is numero UNO as far as I am concerned. The nicest, nicest people anywhere!!! It will continue to be our favorite place to nosh in Bodega Bay.

Really delicious meal. They have really good fries and clam chowder. Sandwich was huge. Waitress was very sweet. The only reason I’m not giving it 5 stars is they could use some décor updates. Maybe a fresh coat of paint. And for the out door dining maybe a screen door in the entry would help keep they flies out. Other than that, perfect. We will be returning.

Best place for fish & chips! The batter on the fish is perfect! Some places over batter their fish to the point where you only taste batter, but not here! Their BBQ oysters are pretty good too!

Ordered the fish and chips based off faith alone. Couldn’t have been happier. Wanted more. This place is owned by Rick the same guy who organizes fishing trips on his boat. That’s where I was coming from when we stopped off here on the way out. Prices weren’t too friendly but this was quality fresh seafood done right. Great choice!

If you want outstanding fish and chips in Bodega Bay, this is your place! They also have amazing clam chowder and fish tacos! They have an excellent variety of local micro brewed beers too! You will not be disappointed!

Love love this place. I highly recommend it.
It may looks like a tourist trap in the middle of nowhere but it’s not. It’s a nice family own place with delicious food and great price.
Went with friends on our road trip. I saw the sign fish and chips and jumped on it and didn’t regret it!
We ordered.
Fish and chips — delicious. I had a few fish and chips on this trip btwn Seattle to LA and this one is the best one. Definitely great for the price.
Calamari and chips — to died for! I would get many orders of this if I can. haha. Just look at the portion too!
Salmon burger — didn’t eat it but it looks good! and my friend said it’s delicious.
Definitely coming back if I get the chance. All the way from New York! ;)

One day, just one day, maybe you’ll see me on one of their boats on a some deep sea fishing excursion. Picture me in my hat with all the lures pinned on it while I hold the eight-​foot swordfish I caught and tell tall tales about the bigger one that got away. Can you imagine? Yeah, me neither. I don’t catch fish, I eat ‘em, sometimes raw with a little wasabi and other times deep-​fried like they do here. Actually you can fulfill your deep sea fishing fantasy here as well, but we just fulfilled our gut-​busting fish fry fantasy. Jamie W. and I were up near the Russian River for the weekend and tooled around until we found ourselves in Bodega Bay. I had heard about the Boat House, so when I saw it out of the corner of my eye on the sharp curve of Hwy One, I went right into the crowded parking lot and grabbed the one remaining space.
Nothing fancy here but a pretty robust menu of choices. Prices were not modest, probably more in line with what a San Franciscan would find in the Marina (photo:
). We had skipped breakfast, so we were starving by the time we got there and ordered like truck drivers. We first decided to share the small $ 4.75 cup of Clam Chowder which we immediately filled up with the familiar Westminster oyster crackers (photo:
). Piping hot. Paprika was sprinkled on top to give it a bit of a kick, and the consistency was nice, not too creamy, not too watery. Then came the $ 7.25 basket of Zucchini Stix. deep-​fried in case you were worried and with a big helping of ranch, of course (photo:
). Honestly, it was the tastiest item we had since the freshness of the zucchini came through with every bite.
The main event was next. The $ 11.95 basket of Fish & Chips came with three, good-​size fillets of tender, flaky cod encased in a crunchy crust (photo:
). Again piping hot but cooled by the ranch dipping sauce. There was a bed of fries underneath that we managed to avoid since we were already munching on our zucchini stix. We also had the $ 13.95 Prawns & Chips, and I thought the two-​dollar premium was worth is since the prawns were plump and succulent inside their crust (photo:
). I think you get six with an order, but we were devouring them so fast we lost count. Although there’s patio seating, we stayed in the shack when we secured a table for two next to the ocean side window. It’s constantly packed, but the staff remains sunny throughout.
FOOD — 4 stars… a bit pricey but the food is pretty darn satisfying on a carefree weekend by the sea
AMBIANCE — 3.5 stars… it’s a fishing shack so don’t expect much
SERVICE — 4 stars… service was stellar… just wondering how they all stay so skinny with all that fried food around
TOTAL — 4 stars… worth risking that treacherous curve to get some might fine seaworthy fare

The best fish and chips you will ever have. No, seriously. This place appears to be a dive but the tartar sauce, delicate fried fish, and crunchy fries make up for the crowded atmosphere and lack of seating. I have been coming to this restaurant for ten plus years and it is always the same, perfect.
This is the place to stop on the way to or from the beach for a delightful lunch or early dinner. Yum.

A quaint spot on the Highway 1 when driving up and down the coast. When walking in you order from a menu on the wall that is reminiscent of the lettered menus as a sports arena. Things are mostly are from a fryer which is what we were looking for on a cloudy day on the last day of our mini-​vacay.
Wanting to try something in the seafood family, I ordered the crab cake sandwich. Highlights were the bread of the sandwich, so fluffy and lightly grilled! Great flavor! But it dwarfed what could have been the star of the dish. The crab cake was mostly bread crumbs, with little crab and very, very, thin. Not anything to write about at all which is a bummer. Honestly, there were so many other yummy looking things coming out of the kitchen, they should just take this off the menu. French fries were crunchy and soft and with a dose of salt, pretty tasty. Next time I go, I would definitely get the fried shrimp as it looked a lot more substantial and tasty!
Place is clean and employees very sweet. Décor is sparse and there are plastic chairs, but you can tell it’s kept up well.