Captain Tom Seafood & Oyster Bar

This place is so good! The renovation looks great! It’s pretty clean and a little more spacious than it use to be. Their oysters are great!!! They’re fresher than most other places that serve oysters. Gumbo is pretty good as well! Oysters here are the bomb dot com!!!

Everything on the menu is good the beer is cold. The only problem I have is the long wait time to be seated and people who like to cut in line. I feel that the restaurant staff or someone should be in charge of seating or at least watching. Other then that its worth the wait.

The gumbo is tasty and the oysters are tasty for a low price. Be prepared to wait in line during rush hour.

Second time at Captain Tom’s ever.
I love that the building looks like a boat! Its so cute.
And always super packed, busy, quick, and loud in here.
Have only gotten (and will continue to get) the raw oysters and micheladas here! it is absolutely amazing ! Dozen of fresh delicious raw oysters for around 8 – 9 $? yes please. they also give you more if the oysters are on the smaller side!
I DO want to try to stuffed jalapenos because they sound really good. But next time: p

Great peel & eat shrimp, stuffed crab is awesome, place was packed on a Wednesday night and everybody as having a great time. If you’re coming for the seafood you won’t be disappointed. We will definitely be back!
UPDATE: try the frog legs! They are excellent!!!

This place had good reviews (and I noticed they keep pretty busy), so hubby and I tried it out last night. We went about 10pm on a Friday and waited outside in a line for about 45min. I wasn’t too bothered, because anything good is worth waiting for.
When you get inside. You must seat yourself either along the Windows or at the bar (the restaurant is shaped like a giant horseshoe). There was no directions or anyone helping us, so we waited a bit and eventually just yelled over the people in front of us to place an order with one of the guys working behind the counter. We ordered hush puppies (over-​cooked), boiled shrimp (room temperature and a bit rubbery), fries (tasteless) and stuffed crab (best thing we ordered). I’m not typically picky, but the combo of a wait, poor service and lackluster food means I probably won’t be returning.
I can imagine it would be fun to take out-​of-​town friends to. Now that I understand the ordering process, but the food isn’t worth the wait.

Nice place. Like their fried oysters. Tasty. But the oysters are small comparing to other places. Served fast. Overall, good impression!

This boat has been around for as long as I can remember and they finally got the new one up and running so I decided to give it a try! I went on a Thursday around 3 when it wasn’t too packed because I hate having to wait outside.
When we got in there lucky was 3 seats for us. We decided what to order, but it is really hard to place an order when you’re siting on the outside of the boat. I was not sure how to place the order or how the worker even remembered it. It worked though and our food came out.
I ordered six fried shrimp and when it came out it was smoking from how fresh and steamy it was! When I bite into it it felt like I had just taken a bite of sand! I do not like the texture of the breading at all! But the SHRIMO was good so I pushed through it. If you are deciding on Going For the first time good luck! It is a little challenging because they do not tell you how to place your order or anything, so I will help you! When you walk in sit at the first available seats you see. Once you look at the menu and have decided what you want, go up to one of the men who are at the center of the boat. Tell them when you want to drink and to eat. Once your food comes out they’ll scream HEEEY SEÑORA! and that is your cue to get the food! Then just eat and when you’re done walk on down to the cashier and tell them everything you ate and you’re done!
One thing I was disappointed about was the look of the new boat! It’s only been open about 2 – 3 months and the «table» is already all scratched up and looks old… I guess they used the same one from the old boat. The exterior is much nicer but I was hoping they’d make it bigger so more people can at least sit inside and wait and not have to wait outside.

I was in town last week and my cousin raved about this place, so we went and checked it out. I can definitely see why my cousin liked this place.
The way you sit your self and order is very different. lol. but you get your food and drinks fast.
The food was OK and the beers are cold and good. The micheladas were a good mix.
Overall good place for a quick drink and bite but def not a place I would come too often. Very entertaining place to take out of town guests. lol.

I have been coming here for awhile and have always gotten the fried seafood but decided today to try the raw oysters. I had recently came back from a visit in Louisiana, where the oysters were big, juicy and COLD. Since they were an oyster house, why not?
After ordering the oysters, it came out in less than 5 mins. I was disappointed, it was at room temp. I didn’t enjoy it as much as I could and after seeing how they handled the oysters, I see why. They would shuck a bunch of oysters, put them on a plate to stack the plates on top of each other. When someone orders them, they will take them off the stack, rinse them with water twice and then serve. No wonder they are tasteless and room temp! Never again.
The gumbo is ok and the fried seafood is average.

My hubby and I hit this new location up finally. I will admit the Huge boat captivated me. HUGE parking lot. but Im not impresses with dinning area. Place was packed during wk day and lunch and fills up fast. They should have added a 2^nd floor! They food was nothing specially. and the guys behind bar taking orders forgetful and not very attentive. We orderd a shrimp and catfish plate. It didnt taste fresh nor did it look that great. Mediocre. What I did see was alot of people go there to drink Micheladas. Beer drinkers place it seems. I wont pick this place for good seafood thats fer sure. I didnt like having to sit to close to people either.

Went on a Friday at around noon and the place was packed. It’s kind of strange for the building to be so big but there’s a not a lot of seating. Seating would be my only issue with this restaurant. This was my first time there so I was a little confused of how to order, you kind of just tell the guys behind the counter what you want and then when it’s time to leave you go and tell him what you had and you pay for it. I ate two dozen raw oysters their size was awesome they tasted fresh no complaints at all also had fried shrimp and they were delicious. I like my french fries crispy and they were crispy here I love them. I can’t wait to go back and try something else.

I have been wanting to try this joint out for about a year now. I finally tried it and at the newly built boat/​location. I wanna say it was nothing like I expected. I am going to make this short and sweet, to be honest, it is not the type of place I like to eat at. I loved the staff, the fried oysters were very good. I just did not like the seat yourself in a small space and then holler over folks to place my order and to get refills on drinks. Pricing was decent. Would I return, not to eat there, but to place orders to-​go, Yes!!!

The new Captain Tom is right next to the old location. The parking lot is definitely a lot bigger than the old. Inside is a little cleaner of course since it’s new but as far as space, it looks bigger on the outside but the inside feels the same size to me. Still a crowded little boat. Service seems quicker and food is same. Still amazes me how it can be so crowded, they never write down any orders yet remember everything you order. Either that or it runs on the honor system. When you check out, you go to the front to pay and tell them everything you ordered. Cashier will then turn to the waiter, say something in Spanish and the waiter will give him an ok.
One complaint, I had to hold my purse on my lap the entire time. Captain Tom you forgot to add the purse hooks under the table at the new location.

Be prepared to wait if you go on a Friday night.
The line went out the door. We waited for at least 30 – 45 min. My friend said it was worth it. It’s great if you are down for fried seafood and BEER (michelados).
First time in and I was hoping they had some grilled options but NO. Fried, fried, fried. I ordered the 6 piece fried shrimp w/​fries and a cup of gumbo. The gumbo was pretty good. The shrimp was ok. I’m not that much into fried foods.
It’s basically a bar type seating with additional seats. You want to sit at the bar. That is where all the staff are and you will get more attention. Everyone that works there seems to be Hispanic so if you speak Spanish, even better.
The pricing is reasonable. Our order was cup of gumbo, a 6 piece and a 9 piece order of fried shrimp, a Coke, and 4 beers (with lime juice) and our total was $ 49.
I’m not sure that I would go back just bc I don’t really like fried foods. The atmosphere was fun and if you like to people watch, this is a fun spot.

Probably the coolest thing about Captain Tom’s is what makes it both cool and a bit uncomfortable. The restaurant is shaped like a ship which makes it look very cool inside. You feel like you’re eating aboard a ship when you’re dining in which adds to the experience. There are no tables or booths. There’s bar seating around a central bar and seating at counters circling the restaurant with views of outside. The problem is there isn’t much room between the bar and the window seating so it gets pretty congested and you’re sitting at bar stools without back support.
The menu is small but seafood-​focused as you would expect. I went with the stuffed crab with fries and hushpuppies. The stuffed crab was something I had never had before. The best way to describe it would be to say it’s basically an empanada in a crab shell. You take a crab shell, fill it with crab and shrimp, and bread it in a pastry similar to an empanada. Good stuff! The hushpuppies were also great, the fries not so much. Pretty bland and a little undercooked.
It gets pretty busy at lunch time since there aren’t a lot of seats. Since this isn’t a real ship, you won’t need to swim to get on board! There’s a large parking lot.

Oh Captain Tom’s… I have a change of heart towards seafood when it comes to you. In a good way! I’m not a big seafood person. However, Captain Tom’s seafood is super fresh! No bottom of the water taste!
The gumbo is also VERY VERY worth getting! It’s different from most heavy gumbo with dark roux. It’s a lighter color and tastes delicious!!!
The only pain is that the seating is first come first serve. NOT GOOD FOR GROUPS. Unless you are OK with separating up. We separated but it was no big deal. But we were also eating at 3pm and the line was STILL super long and packed. Waited for a good 45 min.
Was good but not sure if it was worth waiting that long.
But definitely try it out on off hours with smaller groups. Not sure when that is. But GL.

New location is much cleaner! Love it.
Summary– Fast and a little dirty, but wonderful.
Food– 5 Stars
Oysters– maybe the only gulf oysters I have ever enjoyed in raw form. Maybe it’s because the sheer volume of the oysters they are shucking.
Fried seafood and fries were fantastic. The gumbo was also very good.
Drinks– 5 Stars
Michelada’s with seafood in them, I am set.

Captain Tom’s is definitely not for everyone, at least not to dine in their über busy dining room shaped like a boat. (Many people choose to get to-​go orders). It stays crowded all day, you will probably be sitting close to your neighbors and if you have a child or more than 2 people in your party, this place is not ideal. If you are okay with all that, then you have come to the right place for reasonably priced seafood in Houston. For me, this is their 2^nd best, if not the best location. This location is also now housed in a new building (boat) with much more parking and a larger seating area inside. How much larger? Probably only 1.5 times, so they didn’t increase it all that much.
The best place to sit is at the U-​shaped bar area in the center. There are seats along the windows but the service isn’t as good when sitting there.
My go-​to favorites are the gumbo (cup or bowl), dozen raw oysters, dozen boiled shrimp and a 2 catfish filet plate. Also, don’t forget the michelada, they make a pretty good one here as well. I order this nearly everytime I go.

Came to check out the new Boat, while the parking lot is landscaped nicely, they sure did waste a lot of valuable parking space, LOL. I decided to get my order to go, because as usual this place was super crowded & always seems to be super chaotic inside and very noisy. It still doesn’t seem to seat that many more people inside than the old boat, but I always got my order to go, so I am not positive of this. The food was reasonable for the quantity. I have never had the Oysters or the Gumbo, but the fried combos are a good value.