Cap’n Cat Clam Bar

Great place for sea food just don’t go in there looking for a meal, the smoke whiting is very good, my only issue is that there are no sides with the food, you have to try there cocktail sauce, It is the best I have had some day you can get live music.

Seafood is the reason to go here, service is adequate, but the drink prices are on the outrageous side. 4.50 for a single bottle just simply does not compute. The beer I selected was in the liquor store next door for 10 bucks a six pack, but was charged 28.90 for the server to bring it the 25 steps to our table! I asked to talk to the manager about the price gouging, but was told the owner wasn’t in thus no opportunity to appeal. Quite annoying. Buyer beware when ordering drinks without seeing or asking about the price prior.

We chose Cap’n Cats over Joes Crab Shack and we are sorry we did. The service tonight was horrible. Whoever the manager or owner is, wake up! Saturday nights you need to be properly staffed. Service 101 — bring apps out together, not one and the other 25 mins later. We will not be back. I am forced to give you 1 star but your restaurant deserves 0 stars.

The food is great and the price is good. I’ve eaten here at least 30 times. Some people complain about the service and sometimes it does suck but honestly its not a good reason to not go. Yummy!

Great as always. Super fresh. Definitely a local favorite. I’ve noticed they have awards for the best seafood which I would agree. Service for me has always been great. We ask for the skinny young girl as she is always involved in what we eat and drink and makes real recommendations. We have heard there is a new owner but we have yet to see or hear about them. They own the bar next door as well which is good when ordering food! I highly recommend stopping here. They offer non seafood for those who are allergic.

I have lived in the area most of my life and have tried cap ‘n cat on several occasions. However tonight my girlfriend insisted on trying it, since she never been. There’s a reason only locals visit this place.
First off if the staff doesn’t know you, you get horrible service. We looked over the menu twice, before even getting the drink order, another 10 minutes for the drinks to arrive at the table. Mine drink, a long island ice tea, had so much coke I asked if they forgot the liquor, my girlfriend got a whiskey sour, which was mainly sour mix. We got our cokes right before the check. Yet the people the staff knew where served quicker.
The «fresh» seafood was not fresh at all, I could smell the oysters were dead for a while, the fishy odor was why we didn’t eat them. What they pass off as clam chowder, had to be from a can. I was more surprised that the dinners didn’t come with sides, no adult can eat 5 snow crab legs and be full.
I wish I could give negative score, one star is too good. This area doesn’t have a lot of bars and must survive on the people who are lazy.

They have great steamed shrimp, and oysters on half shell, so we’ll as oyster stew. Always great, always fresh. They also have more dessert options since we were last hereabout 1 year ago. Ate here on March 27, great food asalways

I can’t believe this place ever gets less than 5 stars. I travel 30 mins to come here and it’s worth it every time. The portions for price are good and the piano player puts it over the top. I love that it’s casual dress and homey. Sometimes service is slow would be my only complaint, but doesn’t matter in comparison.

Cap’n Cats is has the best raw and steamed clams anywhere I have ever been. That is also true for their Clam Chowder and Bisque soups. Amazing. The bar is super friendly. The mixed crab leg special usually can’t be finished by two people. The new zealand mussels are awesome. And the smoked whiting is fantastic as well. Package good store attached. My favorite local place.

Service is slow but the food is good. You have to bring your own sides which is a tad weird.

My wife and I are regulars at Capn Cats for about 10 years now and have never had a bad experience. The food, drinks and staff have always been top notch. The new owner hasn’t changed a thing and everything is still great. We miss the old owner though, she was always great to us. One night we were having dinner there and during conversation told her we were going to the casinos for our anniversary the next week. Later when we asked for our check our server told us happy anniversary, dinner was on the house. I would recommend Capn Cats to anyone.

So as an update to my previous review with the old owner and hoping that the new owner/​management would change the food/​quality. FORGET IT!
There was a table of six of us tonight. We ordered the mussels, steamed clams, soup, Dungeness crabs, and snow crabs. Most of which were cr@p. Steamed clams were fine, but cold by the time they arrived at the table as well as the butter that went with it. The mussels should have been returned as some were closed, tough and not at all fresh, but others at the table were afraid there would be retribution for retuning them. The soups were fine, not a lot of seafood in them and mostly broth. Not worth $ 7 for a cup and $ 12 for a bowl. Shrimp have been down sized and not only previously frozen as most are, but were not the right texture for a good quality shrimp. The dungeness crab was ok, but not very fresh either. Didn’t have the snap and taste it should have.
At this point this establishment is still a clam bar. All seafood no sides. This would be fine if it was quality seafood and you left with some sense of satisfaction. The service was ok, nothing to brag about as it was a tad slow but still satisfactory. Cocktails are under poured and for $ 6.50, not worth the time.
Overall, save your time and money as the quality/​quantity/​price is not worth the visit. Atmosphere is fine and slightly updated, but again, for the price/​quality I will not return. Check the menu online for prices before you visit.
Piece of advice for the owner — Charge a few dollars more for quality food and you may have more patrons and a better business. I
Looking forward to your comments.

Do not be in a rush to get some great seafood. service tends to be very cheerful but rather slow… very unique atmosphere and menu. Shell seafood. raw oysters, crabs, clams, mussels. All deliciously prepared. and the smoked whiting is superb. Just have patience order a pitcher and enjoy :-) btw New Zealand mussels are the best buy!

I LOVE seafood… especially shrimp. But growing up landlocked in the Midwest I had never heard of OldBay before I moved to NJ.
So Old Bay is a spice that I really feel is ok IN MODERATION. Cap’n Cat does steam their shrimp in Old Bay, and I asked them to not drown the shrimp in it. Mission Accomplished. My Wife and I went there for lunch one day, and we ate shrimp until they came out our ears. I thought it strange that a bar/​restaurant didn’t serve any sides, but we each got a bowl of seafood bisque that was $ 10 a bowl at the time. We would’ve done better with one bowl and splitting it. The waitress was very nice and sweet and helpful, and I’m glad I asked for «moderation» on the old bay and garlic. It’s a good place to get shrimp-​I can’t speak for any other steamed seafood, but I’m not sure I could afford to go there routinely. It’s a little pricey once you get into eating shrimp. Overall an ok place-​just bring a good amount of money if you have more than 2 people eating.

I’ve been to better dive bars that had better food n service. Very dirty and dusty !! Rubber clams, crap stew, whiting wasn’t bad, king crabs way over seasoned by a can of old bay! And what other seafood restaurant don’t offer sides? Thank God for Joes Crab Shack! Never again at cap n cats! Maybe that’s what they served ??? Can’t do less than — a few stars

Just when I didn’t think it could get worse, well… they succeeded. We were in the mood for oysters and decided to give this place another shot JUST FOR APPETIZERS. We had plans to hit the Lake House just up the road (again) for DINNER. We met the old lady at the hostess stand. I’m not trying to be cruel, but she should retire or take on a lesser role at this place. She cannot keep up with the duties physically, seems confused and quite frankly isn’t very personable. Though I do give her props for trying, I really do.
At our last attempt at this place, we were stunned about bringing your own side dishes. Never heard of such a thing. This time we KINDA knew what we were getting into but we figured it’s just some oysters on a half shell and yes, one bowl of soup. One drink for each of us and we were out of there! Easy peasy, right? WRONG!
It seems that in the dead of winter, you need a reservation which is astonishing. They’re kinda out in the middle of nowhere but, our bad. When we walked in we were greeted with a screechy «Do yah have a ressavation?». I told her we didnt but would like to put our names in for 4ppl., how long was the wait? 45 minutes. Okay. We waited and bided our 45 minutes. I told her we were just there for oysters on the half shell and a beer. Then I asked her if they even HAD oysters (otherwise, see ya!) She didn’t know and she’d have to check. 15 minutes later., the verdict was in. They did have them! Score! there were several small tables along the walls that could have seated us to have our appetizers and go. Was it possible that we could have one of those tables? «No, I MIGHT be able to do 3, but that’s it.». There were 4 in our party so not knowing one of us wouldve been glad to stand off to the side, she gave the one table I spied to a big burly guy who was sitting alone. Well, there goes that idea.
So now I’ll cut to the chase… a total of close to an hour and a half later, we finally get seated. Just for our oysters, a bowl of soup and 4 bottled beers. It took another 30 minutes for the food to come out! once the oysters were placed in front of us. they were magnificent. Huge, tender, icy cold dozen for each of the three of us. But wait! They only provide ONE of us with a fork. REALLY??? The waitress told us they had «to go out to buy them just now because they didnt have any». WHAT? How does that even happen? Seriously? Youre a restaraunt. No sides. No forks. Ya gotta be kiddin’! Where’s the hidden camera. This is a Saturday night in Boonieville. Where does one go to make a purchase like this on a Saturday night?
Absolutely unbelievable.
One of us asked for a glass of ice water. The waitress said they didn’t have any ice, then proceeded to dip a glass into a playmate cooler that was sitting on a chair. The whole evening was quite ridiculous. The old lady with her attitude, the wait, the service, the whole thing. We weren’t the only ones to wait too. One couple seated next to us didn’t even get their menus until after we ate our oysters and they were sitting there before we sat! And don’t get me started on the prices. This is now a done deal. Under the category «NEVER AGAIN»

Before reading anything else, know this: As an eatery, they do not make side dishes. So whatever you want to eat besides seafood, bring with you. We brought a salad, and two types of cole slaw.
The seafood bisque was big enough to be a meal on it’s own (and $ 12) it was hot, thick, and while the seafood was shredded, there was a bunch in each bite.
We asked for everything to use a light hand on the old bay, and it came out great. The shrimp (with shells and legs), dungeness crab clusters, and snow crab clusters were seasoned nicely.
The mussels were delicious, and had their own seasoning that was very tasty. I thinking the mussels were a bit over cooked, but did not taste bad that way, just a bit more tough than I’ve had before.
I tried a bite of the red velvet cake and was not impressed. It was a bit bland.
Our server was supper friendly and food was brought out quick enough.
I would definitely be back. While I thought it was a bit odd that you need to bring your own sides, what they do make, they do pretty well for the most part.

Order seafood by the pound. Seafood bisque was excellent with lots of bits of seafood. Soup comes in huge bowl. We figure about a pint plus of soup. No sides so bring salads and other extras with you. Snow, king, dungeoness, mussels and shrimp by the pound.

This is the only local place where you can get the basics– snow crabs, shrimp, clams… Nothing fancy, just seafood at a reasonable price in a ordinary local-​roll up your sleeves seafood dive.

Took my sweetheart to Cap’n Cat’s the other night to get his seafood fix. I have to say, our experience was really awesome. Remember, I’m not much of a seafood fan, but Cap’n Cat’s just about converted me. I got the soup of the day– Corn Crab Chowder which was ABSOLUTELY amazing. We got clams, shrimp and a HUMONGOUS tray of crabs.
The clams were, well, clammy and my honey loved them. The shrimp were really, really good. I normally don’t like shrimp, but these were so fresh and cooked perfectly, they didn’t have that rubbery texture that shrimp usually have. I have to say though, although the trays of clams and shrimp were good, they were waaaaay overpriced. But the freaking crabs, OMG, AWESOME– for 45 bucks there’s a mix of Dungeness, King and Snow crab that will make your inner crab lover weep. There was so much crab my boyfriend and I couldn’t eat it all. We brought the leftovers home and still couldn’t eat it all the next day. If we had known how much crab we were getting, we wouldn’t have ordered the shrimp or clams. Overall, the food was really good, although a little pricey.
I had forgotten how cool the restaurant was inside. It’s done up to look like a log cabin lodge kinda deal– very unique for this area. It was also cool because they had a dude doing live piano music right in the dining room. The awesomest thing about Cap’n Cat’s is the ladies’ bathroom. It’s one of those one person deals, except it’s not. It’s the funniest thing I’ve ever seen– there’s two toilets, side by side. Just WEIRD. The restaurant also gets points for being really clean and having great service. Our waitress was really cool. Very attentive without hovering. We were there for a couple hours trying to put a dent in our crabs and toward the end of the meal we got to talking with her. She was very interested to hear our story about how my boyfriend and I met online and he came down from Alaska to be with me. Very cool chick.
Thumbs up for Cap’n Cats.