Shoutout to Amy! Thank you so much for a great evening! Great experience all around and we “blame” Hello Kitty! 😂 Gave us the FULL rundown on ALL the seafood options when we arrived, especially for our daughter who wanted to try some new foods (which she rarely does, so when the opportunity strikes, we seize it lol)
Amy offered great suggestions, we tried a variety of things, and our daughter learned she likes oysters. Amy even went so far as to run back to wash her hands, come out with a clean plate, pulled up a chair next to our daughter and showed her MANY different ways to get that tender awesomeness out of the crab legs. We just…hands down, one of our best experiences at a restaurant. It was our first time here. Definitely wont be the last! Hoping the catch the sunset our next time. Barely caught the bit of pink on the horizon of a cloudy cold day, but could tell it’s an amazing view across the James River from this place.
We’d give more than five stars if it was an option on google. Love it!!!
Si Li
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February 22, 2026
My crab legs had leaches on them. First, I was compensated for my meal, but it took a bit to get there.
Long story short- my crab legs had leaches on them, with a worm friend. When I told this to the waitress, she was first dismissive, and said just break it off… (a dismissive kind of polite). Then when I pressed more, she said she can bring me another leg. When the one leg (literally), not a cluster came back, needless to say it was pretty insulting. Meanwhile, I looked it up and told her they were leaches, and not barnacles, and had lost my appetite completely. Waitress said she’ll dock half price, because I ate some of the crab already. I wouldn’t have eaten any if I had seen the leaches and worm first. I requested to see the manager. Manager never came, however the waitress said she “spoke to the manager on my behalf to dock it all.”
Appetite and mood was lost. We didn’t eat the broiled seafood platter- wasted money. It was an unpleasant experience. Though we did pay and tip our “polite” waitress, we will not return.
Kimberly Thayer
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September 21, 2025
We sat outside on the porch and had a great view. Food was good and the drinks were perfect. I forgot to take pictures of our main meal but was good. We got oyster Rockefeller, crab dip, hush puppies, stuff fish, burger with crab cake
ann-marie brigil
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November 08, 2025
We went there after Harpoon Larry's unexpectedly closed for the night because the water went out. Having eaten at Crab Shack on the James before, we were looking forward to a good meal. Uhm, not exactly what happened. First, our server, Erica, was lovely and she was gracious and kind. Now, the next events you're about to hear are based on a true story.
So, I'll start with the appetizer-fried calamari with marinara sauce. Calamari breaded generously, although very salty. However, the marinara was frozen. How did we know? My husband stabbed a chunk of it with his fork and picked up a "piece." I tried it and it was ice cold. When we asked about it, they said they serve [hot fried crispy] calamari with cold marinara, and that our serving was probably on the bottom of the fridge closer to the freezer. Uhm, seriously? Why would they think we want hot fried food with a cold tomato-based dipping sauce? (Rhetorical question) Now people, hold on to your hats.
Hubby ordered the "fried" shrimp. We've had it before during the summer, and it was great. But the cook who cooked it in the summer must have found another job because they weren't cooking tonight. Shrimp had NO breading but was "fried"? They said it was lightly breaded but folks, there was no breading-just rubbery shrimp with a crispy tail. But worst of all, the cook left the poop vein (intestinal tract) in them. We asked for the manager who explained that they don't devein their shrimp. What restaurateur, owner, chef/cook, or manager would have staff take time to butterfly shrimp and not remove the poop trail, and then think it's okay to serve it to a customer for their viewing displeasure, and not even disclose it in advance? Totally unacceptable and disgusting. I told the manager that we don't pay to eat poop. It wasn't even like they tried to camouflage it and as my husband said, he shouldn't have to remove the poo vein from his meal before he eats it. Manager did what she should have and removed the cost of the shrimp platter from our bill, which in turn we gave to our server for her tip. But, shame on you Crab Shack on the James for a terrible experience and shame on you for the shrimp that died in (with the poo) vein. The cost of food is too high and customers shouldn't settle for less. If that's your standard of service and you're good with that, okay. But we won't go back to Crab Shack on the James! Harpoon Larry's, we'll see you soon.
Meli Rosi
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November 09, 2025
Beautifully decorated a beautiful view. Food menu is very limited in my opinion. It's was very slow when we went for lunch on a Saturday afternoon in November 2015.
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7601 River Rd, Newport News, VA 23607, USA
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Shoutout to Amy! Thank you so much for a great evening! Great experience all around and we “blame” Hello Kitty! 😂 Gave us the FULL rundown on ALL the seafood options when we arrived, especially for our daughter who wanted to try some new foods (which she rarely does, so when the opportunity strikes, we seize it lol) Amy offered great suggestions, we tried a variety of things, and our daughter learned she likes oysters. Amy even went so far as to run back to wash her hands, come out with a clean plate, pulled up a chair next to our daughter and showed her MANY different ways to get that tender awesomeness out of the crab legs. We just…hands down, one of our best experiences at a restaurant. It was our first time here. Definitely wont be the last! Hoping the catch the sunset our next time. Barely caught the bit of pink on the horizon of a cloudy cold day, but could tell it’s an amazing view across the James River from this place. We’d give more than five stars if it was an option on google. Love it!!!
My crab legs had leaches on them. First, I was compensated for my meal, but it took a bit to get there. Long story short- my crab legs had leaches on them, with a worm friend. When I told this to the waitress, she was first dismissive, and said just break it off… (a dismissive kind of polite). Then when I pressed more, she said she can bring me another leg. When the one leg (literally), not a cluster came back, needless to say it was pretty insulting. Meanwhile, I looked it up and told her they were leaches, and not barnacles, and had lost my appetite completely. Waitress said she’ll dock half price, because I ate some of the crab already. I wouldn’t have eaten any if I had seen the leaches and worm first. I requested to see the manager. Manager never came, however the waitress said she “spoke to the manager on my behalf to dock it all.” Appetite and mood was lost. We didn’t eat the broiled seafood platter- wasted money. It was an unpleasant experience. Though we did pay and tip our “polite” waitress, we will not return.
We sat outside on the porch and had a great view. Food was good and the drinks were perfect. I forgot to take pictures of our main meal but was good. We got oyster Rockefeller, crab dip, hush puppies, stuff fish, burger with crab cake
We went there after Harpoon Larry's unexpectedly closed for the night because the water went out. Having eaten at Crab Shack on the James before, we were looking forward to a good meal. Uhm, not exactly what happened. First, our server, Erica, was lovely and she was gracious and kind. Now, the next events you're about to hear are based on a true story. So, I'll start with the appetizer-fried calamari with marinara sauce. Calamari breaded generously, although very salty. However, the marinara was frozen. How did we know? My husband stabbed a chunk of it with his fork and picked up a "piece." I tried it and it was ice cold. When we asked about it, they said they serve [hot fried crispy] calamari with cold marinara, and that our serving was probably on the bottom of the fridge closer to the freezer. Uhm, seriously? Why would they think we want hot fried food with a cold tomato-based dipping sauce? (Rhetorical question) Now people, hold on to your hats. Hubby ordered the "fried" shrimp. We've had it before during the summer, and it was great. But the cook who cooked it in the summer must have found another job because they weren't cooking tonight. Shrimp had NO breading but was "fried"? They said it was lightly breaded but folks, there was no breading-just rubbery shrimp with a crispy tail. But worst of all, the cook left the poop vein (intestinal tract) in them. We asked for the manager who explained that they don't devein their shrimp. What restaurateur, owner, chef/cook, or manager would have staff take time to butterfly shrimp and not remove the poop trail, and then think it's okay to serve it to a customer for their viewing displeasure, and not even disclose it in advance? Totally unacceptable and disgusting. I told the manager that we don't pay to eat poop. It wasn't even like they tried to camouflage it and as my husband said, he shouldn't have to remove the poo vein from his meal before he eats it. Manager did what she should have and removed the cost of the shrimp platter from our bill, which in turn we gave to our server for her tip. But, shame on you Crab Shack on the James for a terrible experience and shame on you for the shrimp that died in (with the poo) vein. The cost of food is too high and customers shouldn't settle for less. If that's your standard of service and you're good with that, okay. But we won't go back to Crab Shack on the James! Harpoon Larry's, we'll see you soon.
Beautifully decorated a beautiful view. Food menu is very limited in my opinion. It's was very slow when we went for lunch on a Saturday afternoon in November 2015.