Breakfast Menu "Joe's Crab Shack" Oceanside

Informal seafood chain serving crab buckets & stuffed shrimp, plus American comfort dishes.

Joe's Crab Shack, 314 Harbor Dr, Oceanside, CA 92054

(760) 722-1345

Opening Hours

Wednesday: 11 AM–9 PM

Thursday: 11 AM–9 PM

Friday: 11 AM–10 PM

Saturday: 11 AM–10 PM

Sunday: 11 AM–9 PM

Monday: 11 AM–9 PM

Tuesday: 11 AM–9 PM

Photos

Services

Service options

Outdoor seating, Curbside pickup, Delivery, Takeout, Dine-in

Highlights

Fast service, Great cocktails

Popular for

Lunch, Dinner, Solo dining

Accessibility

Wheelchair accessible entrance, Wheelchair accessible parking lot, Wheelchair accessible restroom, Wheelchair accessible seating

Offerings

Alcohol, Beer, Cocktails, Comfort food, Happy hour drinks, Happy hour food, Hard liquor, Healthy options, Vegetarian options, Wine

Dining options

Lunch, Dinner, Catering, Dessert, Seating

Amenities

Bar onsite, Restroom, Wi-Fi, Wi-Fi

Atmosphere

Casual, Cozy, Trendy

Crowd

College students, Family-friendly, Groups, LGBTQ+ friendly, Tourists, Transgender safespace

Planning

Accepts reservations

Payments

Credit cards, Debit cards, Credit cards

Children

Good for kids, High chairs, Kids' menu

User Reviews

Really cool atmosphere. Fun lights and decorations everywhere. The view of the water and sunset are amazing too! The employees sing to you on your birthday, also. My family loved the shrimp. I didn't really like the "stay on the land" nuggets, sadly. I would still recommend this place for seafood lovers. There IS an elevator for wheelchair access, yay!

We have been coming to Oceanside for the last 9 years. We make it a must to stop by to eat at my families favorite spot Joe's Crab Shack. We love the awesome crab pots so good. The best part is the service of the staff especially one of the employees there makes us feel right at home every time. Cheryl is so good at making you feel welcomed and always helps to make it fun. She always gets us to participate in the dancing the have a custom to do there . We love going to this place . My family and I have such a great time and are always looking forward to going back again soon. We always recommend everyone we know to go there . By the way the drinks are awesome category 5 hurricane is one of my favorites . As for the kids they always ask for the shark sighting kids drink. They love the experience . Thanks again to all the staff there. You are all doing a great job. Thanks to our favorite girl Cheryl for making it special for us every time. She's Shrimply the Best..lol..

First time and a wonderful time! Celebrating birthdays and what a great place to go too. My server was fantastic! Promote, courteous, explained menu items. The waitress asked first if we were okay with celebrating a birthday, much appreciated. The food was delicious!

First off, I'd like to say how much we appreciate the attentiveness and congeniality of our server, Cheryl. We went in 2022 for my birthday and came back this year, 2023, for my birthday again. We had Cheryl both times, and she REMEMBERED US! I was shocked! I have lost 100lbs since the last time we were there, so I was very surprised indeed. She was so sweet and kind. She gave us great suggestions and our dinner was delicious! The manager came by a few times and at one point Cheryl was there and told her how excited she was for my weightloss. I was so flattered. By the end of our time there, we were encouraged to come back again for my next birthday. With how much wonderful service we have had, this is a definite 👍🏼. We will be back, for sure! Even if the food was subpar (which it wasn't at all), Cheryl made our whole experience memorable and special.

I will preface this review with the understanding that in my line of work I am afforded very little time to travel so when my partner took a job in Vista CA every moment, every experience counts when I visit. Seafood was my craving and Joe's Crab Shack was his answer. We made reservations for the latest they had: 830pm. Im not sure if this contributed to what followed but after waiting longer then expected we met our server and placed drink orders and asked for water...Eventually the water came and later the drinks...We both ordered the awesome sounding triple Crab Leg buckets. We added on Mussels and Shrimp.. Waited paitently and admired the view..The 1/2 of my reason for rating a 3 and not lower..we were by a window and as we talked we looked over at the captains cleaning their boats or the gathering of a group having drinks on another. Laughed at the Sea Lion warning signs and just enjoyed the backdrop. The food eventually arrived and the 3rd time we saw our server. I immediately started with the Alaskan Crab legs...The shells were a little flimsy but the surprise would be inside...Nothing...Every leg was void of any meat..Or so little meet clinging to that long piece that runs through the centers...The claw had just a little more then that..I'm not sure how this was possible...I still have no clue. The other crablegs didn't have much flavor..Btw we had the "Old Bay" seasoning...Luckily the mussels were there and filled the void to some degree. My partner enjoyed the peel and eat shrimp addition to his meal The drinks were ok. Side note: He ordered the Shark Bite and it was enjoyable watching the kids at the table next to us patiently waiting to see what the shark on his drink was for..Although when they saw the red hit his drink they were less enthused..I think they really wanted to snatch our shark...Anyways server never came by for the entire meal..not sure I would of complained about the Crab anyways...I'm more the silent type that doesn't return..Besides we were finished with dinner by the time she came back..She grabbed 2 plates and asked about dessert but scuttled off before we decided...At some point a bus person came by and my partner asked for 2 desserts "to go" and the check...I mentioned that it wasn't our server and because there was so little and spaced out interaction with our actual server I couldn't convince him it wasn't. Reason 2/2 why i rated the service a 3 and not lower..that Bus Person didn't reply back with "ill get your server". He said no problem took more dishes and relayed the information accurately to our server..Wherever she was... We received our check and desserts to go. They did add ice cream in a separate container for my dessert and it was appreciated. Either way the Bill was $220. It may not seem like a lot for some people but the value of the food just didn't justify that price and you walk away feeling robbed in some way....And of course we left a $40 cash tip because I'm just not that kind of person. I don't know if the server was busy or just not into people that day or what..But we walked away pretty disappointed...Although we walked around the outside of the Marina and admired all the different types of boats before heading home. If you made it this far congrats..As you can see by my profile I've rated many places..I always try to be fair and weigh the good with the bad and I hope this helps as you decide where to eat when in the area!

Got the fish and chips. Nothing too fancy. The view of the harbor was great. The restaurant had 4 other tables occupied.

We went there for lunch today and it was incredibly slow. It was at lunch and not very crowded at 12:40. We were seated within 10 minutes, but then it took almost 20 minutes for our server to take our order. And then took another 30 minutes for our food to arrive at the table. The food was ok but definitely not worth the money or the wait.

Great food, the service was great. It's a little pricy, but that's what quality seafood will do for you. It's worth a stop in and walk around the area.