Open air dining with a view of the bay. Â Check. Â Cold beer and shrimp and oysters on the menu. Â Check. Â Dirty bras nailed to the ceiling. Check. Â What more do you need?
Yes, the prices are a little high, but not any higher than any other touristy joint on the gulf coast. Â They have a full bar and decent beet selection. Â The food is served fast and fresh, with a smile. Â The shrimp were great and I really enjoyed my wedge salad. Â The tuna dip was pretty darn good too.
Sit back and relax. Â Enjoy the food, the beer, and the view in this no-frills, laid-back, dockside restaurant. Â I love it.
TIP: The bathroom is next door.
After reading the YELP! reviews on this place, we decided to go. I was hoping for fresh, local seafood and some local flavor. This place is definitely a dive, but I must say I was unimpressed. After not finding any direction on "Seat yourself" or a hostess on duty, we flagged someone down and they said "Sit wherever you'd like" The ONLY places to sit were benches made of a 1x4 along the railing of the restaurant. The "table" is the railing of the deck.
Based on the reviews, I ordered the gumbo as a "starter" (I was hungry) and I was very disappointed to have a chunky tomato dish delivered. THAT IS NOT GUMBO. I am from South Louisiana and gumbo does not include tomatoes. Maybe a creole gumbo has tomatoes? But then there was no rice. Who's ever heard of gumbo with no rice? WTF? That's ridiculous.
When our food arrived and my husband's dozen oysters still had not arrived, we questioned our server. "Oh, they're backed up. They'll come out soon" When we were finishing up dinner, we flagged him down again to ask about the oysters. He returned with a tray, saying that our order was "lost", but he just snagged this dozen that was ready for another table. Nice, that's probably what happened to our order in the first place! What a disaster!
The service was also pretty dismal. We had to flag down our server anytime we needed something and our dishes were never bussed from our "table'/deck railing. Needless to say, we will NOT be back. Find some other place to go. In our experience, restaurant food & service in this area of FL leave a lot to be desired. This experience just confirms that. Next time, we'll head to a seafood market and cook at home.
I've experienced MUCH better.
I've had much better raw oysters (these were not ice cold, shucked sloppy with bits of shell).
I've had much better gumbo (this gumbo was more of a tomato stew with seafood - and it didn't have rice..)
I've had much better fried oysters and shrimp (these oysters were puny and not plump)
BUT, the fried Mahi was decent.
Also, we waited forever for our seafood platter, then the server checked on us and asked us if we got everything..we told her we were still waiting..
She then came back and said that our platter went to a different table by mistake and they are making ours right now..
What was nice was the harbor breeze coming through the open doors/windows and loud music (classic rock)
After 4 out of 5 restaurants that failed the Yelp (rating does not match my take) - I'm starting to think that there aren't many great restaurants in Destin.. boooo.. so sad. Â :(
Almost a year later, I'm back for more yummy seafood by the ocean water. This time, I didn't come back for their fried shrimp (average, in my opinion) or the uncommonly savory seafood gumbo. Â
My friends and I had a couple orders of raw oysters, and it was delicious! The white, fleshy oysters sat in a little bit of salt water in its shells, waiting for us to top them with lemon juice, cocktail sauce, and horseradish and slurp them up.
The words tasty, salty, and quite satisfying summed up my first time experience of gobbling up raw oysters.
Customer service is quite friendly, but it's not always consistent at every visit.
Food was good, service was poor. Raw oysters were nice and fresh, other food was good too. Crawfish in season, nicely spiced but a bit mushy (oversteamed). Piped-in music so loud conversations impossible. Â Asked to turn it down, sorry, said the owner likes it like that (perfect). Â Our waitress got our orders wrong, that added to the fair experience.
Review Source:We were looking for a lunch place near the water that served oysters, crab, etc.  Walked through several nearby places that were chain restaurants/tourist traps (or looked like it) - and they were not what we wanted. Then we found this place.  It truly is a seafood shack - on a dock in a harbor.  Exactly what we wanted.  Watched our oysters being shucked and they were very good.  Had  2 pounds of crawfish I really enjoyed.  Wife's mahi mahi sandwich was huge and tasty.  This place defines the term "dive" but is great if you are looking for a good seafood lunch on the water away from the chains.
Review Source:The service at the boathouse is excellent and the staff really makes you feel like you're part of the local scene down here in Destin Florida. The oysters are out of this world and the music and atmosphere is something not to be missed. As a vacationer this is a spot I will always make sure to visit multiple times. Make sure you hit up the outside bar for the specials and say hi to Jenny.
Review Source:Ok 1 - they won't split checks. We came in on 2 boats of people had the big round table outside. Some of us knew one another some didnt. My buddy and I wanted ours split and they told us they don't do it. So we noted on the bill what we had and didn't it that way.
2 - it's busy we know that but service was slow and a friend of mine got her oysters after we all were finishing our food. Hers were baked but I was paying when she got hers. Not acceptable!
3- they add 18 percent gratitude to the checks. Our bill was $48.00 and we handed the server a $ 100 dollar bill and he had the nerve to ask us if we needed change.
Not impressed at all OH AND WOW HOW CAN I FORGET. THE CHICKEN WINGS .....ya don't get them. They are cooked in a pan and not fried. Fatty, soggy and gross. The best part was the celery. Kind of hard to mess up celery I suppose. Stay away from the wings!
We ended up here because I yelped the closet Oyster place while on vacation. The coolest little hole in the wall. Nothing fancy, in fact there are bras, money and hand written markings all over the walls. We took our children with us and felt very comfortable. The oysters were awesome,and the staff was very friendly. It is right on the water and was the best experience here so far. The only reason it will not get a 5 star is that it did feel a little pricy. We will encourage it to all our friends headed to Destin!
Review Source:Please note how many positive reviews came mostly from pre-2012
As a local I had for many years enjoyed coming here. No longer...surley wait staff and uncaring management has turned me away. I never expected 4 star service and always just rolled with the vibe of the place. Decent food at decent prices in a laid back atmosphere was the attraction. I made the mistake of persuading 12 friends to gather here only to be told they cant split checks. That's right...had to figure out everyone's separate tickets and pay up front for them. Kind of ruins the experience. Returned a month later and got crapped on again. Poor and arrogant service again. I just cant fathom how the wait staff doesn't understand how being attentive and friendly equates to better tips. Avoid this place.
Went one time and it will be the last time. Â Raw oysters were small, draft beer at $4.00 each was served in a friggin plastic cup and was Luke warm. Â We also ordered a couple fried seafood baskets, YULK! Â Worse seafood we had in a week while in Destin. Â The seafood tasted like it was fried in old used motor oil. Â Then to add insult to injury, we over heard the waitress tell another table " we'll give you the local price". Â Needless to say, we won't be going back. Â My suggestion, go to The Shrimp Basket, better food, better service, colder beer!
Review Source:My dad, me & my 2 brothers went to see the last space shuttle launch in Florida. On the way back we stopped in at Destin, Florida. Â
Yelped a solid seafood-pub grub place. Â
The Boathouse was on the water next to, definitely the most beautiful gulf coast beach I've ever seen.
Get the "Mahi Fingers."
Gulf coast Mahi fish, battered & deep fried. EXCELLENT.
We had them as app & sandwich.
Great solo acoustic guitar act.
We all had a great time.
I got no complaints. I only do five stars for table linens. This is a great dive that should b apart of your visit to Destin. Don't come here expecting full service dinner. This is gulf coast pub grub at it's finest.
Dear Boathouse
Over the years, you have supplied my belly with the best oysters in the South. As long as y'all are open, I will be back for more fresh seafood.
The best oysters in the world come straight out of the Gulf down near Apalachicola. Thank the Lord, Boathouse gets these suckers in fresh daily. And I like them prepared every way:
Raw - all y'all need is cocktail sauce, horseradish and a saltine
Baked "Action" - swimming in butter then topped with bacon bits, onion and mozzarella
S.O.B. - cheddar cheese, jalapenos and salsa (although, I always pick the nacho chips out)
This time around, the service was lackluster. Granted it was a Saturday afternoon and management probably wasn't anticipating such a large crowd; but the fact your team comped our super-late oysters and another pitcher of beer was redemption.
Congrats on being open for 26-years-and-running. See y'all next time
Love,
Lauren P.
P.S. the new patio is a great addition
Still delicious raw oysters and reasonably priced. Â Awesome pier location and beatnik ambiance. Â The cheesy baked oysters are overpriced, too much cheese, too little oyster. Â The bacon cheese fries are awesome washed down with the suds listening to live music. Â Live music most nights including weekdays. Â Always a pilgrimage when in Destin.
Review Source:You know how everyone wants to go to the "Hole-In-The-Wall" to eat and drink? Â Well, here it is. Â Yes, it's kind of a dive, but don't let that deter you. Â This is a cool little spot, and little means just that. Â This is the kind of place where you go for your lunch break on Monday then call work and tell them you aren't coming back. Â If you don't want crowds, don't go for lunch on the weekend. Â But during the week and atypical hours, you'll have a good time. Â The location is right on the harbor, the beer is cold and the oysters are fresh. Â I wish they would simplify their menu a little; it's getting a little out of control. Â But give this place a try when you want to go somewhere that's laid-back, you'll be glad you did.
Review Source:I was on vacation in Destin with the BF's family and the BF tasked me with finding a good seafood place. PRESSURE! Â I went to Yelp and found Boathouse. There is a large sign along the road, but the actual restaurant is tucked in the very back, right on the water. This means there are nice views of the Gulf(?) It also means that any boats pulling into the dock will saturate the air with the smell of gasoline, yuck.
We decided to sit at one of the large tables on the patio, where there was a live band playing. Thankfully, they weren't TOO loud considering we had a two-month old baby with us. We ordered three dozen raw oysters to start. I was surprised at the pricing -- about $8 for each dozen? That's pretty good for Destin, I am certain of it. However, all the other items on the menu were pretty overpriced. Â There are no prices on the menu online, but they are similar to other seafood restaurants in the vicinity.
The oysters were OK. They had a different taste to them than I am used to, but I expected that, being in Destin. They were more salty and briny and not as "clean" tasting as the ones I have had, at say, Steamhouse Lounge in Midtown. Also, we had to wait a LONG-ASS time for the oysters! And the food in general.
In addition to the oysters, I got a cup of their "award-winning" gumbo ($4-5?) and the Boathouse Wedge salad ($7-8?). The gumbo was the first item to come out and it was actually pretty good, though I wish there was a little more seafood in it. It also came in the tiniest, most shallow bowl ever. Sigh. As for the wedge, they actually forgot it but brought it out quickly after we asked about it. I was entirely underwhelmed. It was literally a slice of iceberg lettuce with diced tomatoes and onions and some shredded cheese. This was probably 50 cents worth of food, for nearly $8? Are you effing kidding me? Not only that, they served it in one of those old school red plastic baskets that your school cafeteria hotdog came in. I was also given a plastic fork and knife. Very hard to eat. Biggest ripoff EVER.
Our bill came out to $187-something because they automatically added 18% gratuity. Nearly $200 for seven of us? Ridic.
Boo-hiss for using plastic utensils, what a waste of plastic! Do they not have a dishwasher?
Boo-hiss for serving their poor excuse of a salad in a plastic basket with HOLES. Does not matter that they put a wax paper liner. Use a damn plate next time.
Boo-hiss for the small portions and overpriced food.
Boo-hiss for the long wait times. There was a warning that we patrons needed to be patient because they have to shuck oysters, but... I have been to many an oyster place that has got them beat on shucking times. And their oysters taste better too.
They get one star because they actually priced the oysters decently. For a tourist beach town, that is.
Now, this is my kind of place. Â A true hole in the wall, right on the water, fresh fish, dollar bills stapled and rock solid food. Â The Apalachicola Oysters were amazing and huge, the Gator bites were delicious and the gumbo was simply scrumptious. Â It doesn't matter how full you are - you have to try the gumbo. Â You can spend your entire night looking up at the crazy signs, variuos articles of clothing hanging from the ceiling (I kept wondering who went home with one stilleto...) or just listening to the great entertainment they offer. Â We loved this place so much we went back again. I would have eaten here every night if it were up to me. Â This is on the must list for me when I get to Destin again.
Review Source:Do not come to this place of you are expecting a hostess and a quick dinner. This is a 4 pitcher of beer, relaxing for a couple hours experience-right up my alley.
You grab your own table or seat wherever you can and order at the counter but this place is the <a href="/redir?url=http%3A%2F%2Fbomb.com&s=bb4f996415a9c2f21137e27cfb68f439a48cec2652b53e9b50dd7e766dbe177e" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">http://bomb.com</a>.
You have to have some "bang me" shrimp and a bowl of gumbo (tomato based with blue crab claws throughout). And of course oysters. Â We loved this place on an overcast beach vacation day!!
Thanks Yelpers for pointing us in the direction of the Boathouse. We had a great time here the other night. Food was great, local color proved to be very entertaining, and the price was very reasonable.
My husband loved the bangin shrimp, and I had the SOB Oysters, which were basically like nachos. If I go back, I'll get half SOB and half regular baked oysters, I think. I shared some of my mom's crab cake sandwich, which was very good. The hush puppies were (so far) the best we've had on our trip.
After dinner, we wandered around the pier and walked off our meal. It was a great night!
BEST GUMBO IN DESTIN
Great staff.
Very small place with a lot of character, plastered in dollar bills, with a local dive feeling.
Great staff, Kayla was awesome. Â May have to warm up to you, but once they do you will have a great time. Â The gumbo may be the best I have ever had and we have tried a lot. Hands down best in the Destin area. Â Don't miss out on some strong jello shots for $1 and rolling rock special. Took some locals advice and started a great night here, highly recommend.
Holy crap, these are the best raw oysters I have ever had in my life. They don't even taste like seafood, just deliciousness. Sit outside, order a dozen to share with friends, get your lemon, horseradish, and cocktail sauce on, and just relax. Great location on the harbor to just hang out. $21 pitchers of strong Bloody Mary too.... the combination of it all makes the perfect afternoon.
I know this is a vacation town, but service was pretty horrible. They completely forgot anything else we ordered, and then charged everything to my card instead of splitting it up like we'd asked. I still wanted to go back though, those damn oysters were worth it.
The view is the only thing I can say I actually enjoyed at this Place. From the moment we walked in we felt like we didn't belong there and were treated like that.
When we first walked in we were intrigued by the dollar bills everywhere and hole in the wall  feel, but after waiting 45 minutes to be served we had time to really look around and see how disgusting the place really was from the dirty tables to the disgusting looking condiments on our table to the guy wearing gloves and touching everything in site including food.
Now to the food...the grilled sandwich that I got but didn't order wasn't bad, and everyone else at my table seemed to agree that the food is decent and I would say about $10 a person so not overpriced, but none of us ordered anything to seafood like(yes at a seafood restaurant). I definitely will not be going back or recommending it to anyone.
It's a dive by Destin standards, but to me, it's just homey. We hit this up the first night we got here for vacation because we wanted oysters. Oysters we craved, and oysters we received. This place is located in the back of a plaza, on the dock, with a downwards sloping dirt parking lot. Not good for a dropped 350Z, but I managed without scraping.
The interior is covered in dollar bills. Like, there are dollar bills stapled to every visible interior. Roof beams, walls, everything floors, but now I'm not so sure.
On to the oysters. In a word, GREAT. In more words, Awesome baked oysters, delicious steamed oysters, great fresh oysters. All washed down with Yeungling's beer (a regional beer that they have that we sadly do not have in Texas).
Service was a tad slow, but that did nothing to sour the overall experience!
First time in Destin & this seem to be the place to go for oysters. Â The Boathouse Oyster Bar is shaped like a rectangular shack that sits on the water edge with bras & dollar bills covering the wall & ceiling.
<a href="http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/2guKJ0QQJQubK0cO8tITCA?select=CypV4C2a9iymOA1YCNRDQw">http://www.yelp.com/biz_…</a>
Apalachicola Oysters (4*) - $7.95 a doz...Cheap, Â fresh, clean tasting, & not gritty at all
Alaskan Snow Crab Legs w/ hush puppies & corn (3*)
Gumbo (3*)
Boiled peanuts (1*) - soggy & salty (maybe that's the way Deep South peanuts are ?)
Service (3.5*)
Ambiance (4*) very laid back & you can feel the ocean breeze anywhere you sit
Best No-Frill seafood in the Fort Walton/Destin area. The oysters are wicked fresh and cheap! $8.00 for a dozen on the half shell. The gumbo was delicious, yet not as thick as what you would find in N'awlins. I had the oyster and shrimp platter and it was delicious. The hushpuppies were well above average and the coleslaw was a hit as well. The restaurant is hovering over the water and the casual feel was a hit. This place has an alomst "locals only" feel to it, but we fit right in. Bring a good attitude don't expect tablecloths but put down a few beers and get down n dirty with the freshest most unmolested seafood around.
Glenn.
Addendum -- This place is only open Thurs-Sun. We went back last night for more and the place was closed. Don't go to AJ's even though the proximity is tempting.
I'm not sure what everyone else is thinking but the oysters here are not very fresh, had a lot of grit in them and were not tasty AT ALL.
This was our first food spot when we came to Destin and the wait for the food is awful. Don't get me wrong I love hole in the wall restaurants because they usually have more unique and tasty food but I would have to disagree when it came to the Boathouse.
Please don't come here based on the 4-5 stars, I made that mistake! Go to AJ's down the street their oysters are good.
Went for Sunday lunch. Nice ocean breeze. Friendly staff. Good view of boats coming in and out.
FOOD: Raw oysters were very wet, almost too much water still in it but good. Add a little cocktail sauce and it only gets better - yes, cocktail sauce made the raw oysters better.
I had the Grilled Tuna Sandwich (cooked medium). That was pretty good. You could tell that the tuna wasn't fresh but possibly from the day before. It was still good. I enjoyed it - cooked just right, still moist inside and very tender.
Sister had the Crabcake sandwich. That is another good choice. There was not much bread on it. It was soft and chewy.
Negative: $2 for a bottle of water - the ones you normally pay $1 on the Vegas strip at the street merchants' coolers. Total ripoff.
If I could legally marry this place and change my name to Leigh Boathouse......you better believe your sun-baked booty I'd do it!
On our annual Destin family vacation, you'll find my entire family here....at 6 out of the 7 days we're in town. We LOVE this place...and if you search the walls, you'll see plenty of our dollars stapled all over! Where do I start with this place?
We found it as a happy accident one day while it was raining, took a wrong turn and ended up here. It's been Destin Dive bliss ever since. By far my favorite thing on the menu is the Crab Cake sammich. The crab cake is the real deal, with lump crab meat cooked on a flat top grill....TO PERFECTION....I eat at least 5 of these every year. Their oysters are shucked to order and are always SO fresh and tasty...their gumbo is the best in town that we have found yet, and their hushpuppy's (new since last year...guess they finally got a fryer) were slap 'yo mamma good. If you're sick of seafood...you'll be fine with their huge juicy burger.....seriously, I have yet to eat anything here that wasn't amazing.
The staff is beyond friendly and local favorite....the entertainment ALWAYS has the place singing along together and making new friends (Rusty, you rock man). Got a game you need to watch..pull up a boat chair bar stool and order a beer....you'll thank me. You might even want to watch it on the new addition of the redneck patio.....this place gets better every year!
Oh, and don't forget to go out back and feed the fish...they wait for you. And grab me a red koozy please, I'm trying to collect all 5....
Nestled behind other bars is the Boathouse Oyster Bar - local favorite on the water. Â First meal while in Destin, oysters is where it's at! A dozen oysters you say for $7 - um yes!! Â Can't find this type of price in Orlando, but we are also not right on the water either :)
Very small setting, but the oysters were my favorite out of all oysters in Destin and any I have had before. Apalachicola oysters that were fresh and delicious. Â They serve only beer and wine, no liquor. Â Nice people, a little slow service, but servers are extremely nice, and showcase that Southern Hospitality spirit.
Can't be the view either of Harbor boats, care to go parasailing? Check out the place next door! Â Nice to have this place be a local restaurant and not a tourist trap.
off the beaten bath and definitely catering to the beer-drinking, boiled-peanut eating, super casual crowd. I wouldn't rec'd bringing the entire fam in tow- especially picky kids, grandmas or folks allergic to live music.
My crew and I took part in 18 raw oysters (gave us too many, oh well), a basket of cajun boiled peanuts (too much seasoning), fried crab claws and an assortment of domestic beers at reasonable prices.
Overall, the food was better than expected and the fish tasted fresh - they have enough of a regular crowd to keep things moving along.
Service was a little spotty, but in our girl's defense, she did go on stage and sing a song or two.
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