Don's Seafood was recommended and we found it to be not fancy but good food and attentive service. Â I had the clam chowder (New England), flounder (blackened) and wife had crab cakes; both were fresh with good flavor. Â We did not do the salad bar and found a very limited draft beer selection. Â On my 120 point scale (30 points each for food, service, cleanliness, ambiance), I scored Don's at 96 (24-25-25-22). Â Definitely above average and recommendable.
Review Source:*Lunch only*
100% no frills, from the decor to the service to the menu. Nevertheless, a fine place to enjoy a lunch. Sitting downstairs you're treated to a view of Main St, while upstairs you can steal a view of the channel. Overall the food is quite reasonably priced and features the basic staples of Virginia and Eastern Shore dining.
The signature crab cake is served in a bowl--a bit odd--but it's basically 100% crab meat with minimum filler. Very satisfactory! We also had a pound of shrimp with Old Bay seasoning and they were what you'd expect for basic steamed shrimp.
I won't rave about Don's, nor will I be unnecessarily harsh. One thing about Chincoteague dining is that Yelp reviews seems to be in short supply. So, I'd judge this place as basic and reliable and very safe and dependable option, particularly for lunch.
Where should I start? Â Our baked potatoes were hard and cold. Â So cold that the whipped butter did not melt. Â The seafood was just okay. Â The seafood chowder was good, but the salad bar was nothing special. Â Actually, it was on the lame side. Â To top things off, our waitress forgot us. Â After 15 minutes after finishing our meal and not seeing our server, we went to the cashier to request our bill. Â Personally, I would recommend the local McDonalds for a better meal. Â It is where we went for dessert.
Review Source:They were out of all types of crabs for their seafood sampler baskets which were their specialty. Instead, we ordered fried scallops, soft shell crabs, crab balls and oysters.
The crab ball appetizers were pretty good. I would get them again.
The oysters were dirty. A few of them were not cleaned and shucked properly and had mud in them.
The scallops were overcooked slightly but pretty tasty. The fries were average.
The soft shell crabs were decent but nothing to write home about.
Sit upstairs if you want a view of the water.
This was just bad for me. Â Arrived there at 6:20 pm the hosted promised us a table in 35 minutes. Â I checked in with her every 10 minutes because they seems hectic. Â At 7:15 PM I complained and they told me they called me and seated my party. Â Another group of six jumped up and took our table. Â I talked to the owner and he had them set up a table in an unclean room that they were trying to clean from a wedding party. At 7:30 PM they took our order and did not get the entree to us until 8:35 PM. Â But, they served four other tables that came into the room after us before us. Â Could it be because was had three Asian wife's with us?
My grilled chicken was tasteless. Â Two of the orders were incorrect and they had to go back to the kitchen. My cooked apples tasted funny. Â The servers were rushed and not attentive. Â I had to ask for a fork. Â This place was so casual that it seemed the servers had no training and were running confused.
I will never go there again. Â Walt Okon, Springfield, Virginia
Sat upstairs at the Bar.  Service was prompt and friendly.  Drink prices were reasonable.  Good place to have a drink after work that's close to the hotel.  Food was mediocre to poor.  Had the $22+ Prime Rib.  It was definitely left over from the day before and came out about one degree above ice cold.  I asked if I could substitute a caesar salad instead of the two sides.  Was courteously told "sure no problem", however when I got my bill I was charged $5.99 for the salad in addition to my meal.  Salad was unimpressive.  Very small  and had more croutons than lettuce. Would go again for drinks but not for food.
Review Source:Service was friendly and prompt, but food was mediocre. (And I'm being nice.) I got a pasta primavera and the vegetables were kind of mushy, not crisp-tender like they should be. I'm pretty sure that they were frozen vegetables that had been sauteed. Also, the pasta was a little overdone for my taste.
There were several vegetarian options, which I appreciated, I just wish the food had been a little better. There is a small and pretty limited salad bar that seems to be offered with most meals. Though I wasn't particularly impressed, most of the patrons I observed seemed to appreciate it. I can also say that between the salad bar, the portion sizes, and the free bread, the pricing is more than fair.
Overall, the food was a little disappointing, but on a small island your choices are limited, so this would do in a pinch. Especially since they have such a convenient location and I understand that the upstairs is supposed to have great views.
Probably the only fun place on a week end night during summer season. The upstairs lounge gets packed and you can enjoy some drinks or try yourself on the dancefloor. Nothing fancy but this is as animated as it gets i think. So this place deserves at least 3 stars to try to bring fun for the 21-35 crowd of chicoteague.
Review Source:We ate here a couple of times, very conveniently located to our hotel (Hampton). Â The food was not bad at all, and the service was quick and helpful. Â I thought the prices were fair, the fish special was same both nights (flounder). Â Salad bar a little small and has a limited selection. Â The upstairs seating was nice, that room overlooked the water, even though we got seated the last time under a TV monitor which was playing contemporary country music that was a little bit too loud, but it really didn't bother us. Â We'll be back.
Review Source:How much you like this place will depend on if you are here for food or atmosphere. The decor, silverware, and plates are outdated and cheap. Salad bar is lame. Sweet tea is a bitter joke. New England clam chowder was delicious. Creamy and satisfying. The prices are great. Wait staff consisted of teenagers working for the summer chatting away and texting. Unable to answer questions about menu items. Main dish was served before soup course was complete. Dressing for crab Caesar salad came in plastic containers. Fresh crab meat on salad was yummy but full of shells which made it difficult to eat confidently.
Review Source:Service was slow and our waiter didn't come to our table till 15 minutes after we were seated. Â The smell was moldy and fishy (not in the good way). Â Grilled chicken sandwich was very dry and had no flavor. Â The salad bar was nothing special, but it is the only salad bar on the island. Would not go back or recommend this restaurant to anyone.
Review Source:Cheap, tons of decent food, nice service, and a good view sum up Don's.
For a nicer (meaning with actual servers) dinner on the last night in Chincoteague we chose Don's. Â For starters, the beer is dirt cheap, especially so for those coming in from the DC area. Â
We ordered the Seafood platter boiled (see picture). Â Lots of food, all very good, and so refreshing to see a restaurant offer a platter where everything wasn't fried (and in fact none of it was for this item). Also got the Eggplant parmesan, which was fine. They even have a Salad bar with soups, which is well worth it. Â As others have noted, not sure what it is, but they have some delicious tomatoes.
Sit upstairs to watch the sunset over the water.
I was in chincoteague just for the night- during the off season, so dinner choices are limited especially after 8pm. Dons was open!
I had the daily special: flounder with 2 sides. I chose the salad bar and a baked potato, and added a bottle of wine. The soup on the salad bar was vegetable beef and I thought it was delicious. I also enjoyed my very yeasty white roll, and a spinach/sunflower seed salad with vinegar and oil.
When my entree came I realized I didn't have a chance. It looked like I got the whole fish, tail and all! It was at least 10in long and 6in wide. Taste was a little overcooked, but it was pretty good with tartar sauce. Overall, I wouldn't avoid this place, it's pretty good eats.
I was in chincoteague just for the night- during the off season, so dinner choices are limited especially after 8pm. Dons was open!
I had the daily special: flounder with 2 sides. I chose the salad bar and a baked potato, and added a bottle of wine. The soup on the salad bar was vegetable beef and I thought it was delicious. I also enjoyed my very yeasty white roll, and a spinach/sunflower seed salad with vinegar and oil.
When my entree came I realized I didn't have a chance. It looked like I got the whole fish, tail and all! It was at least 10in long and 6in wide. Taste was a little overcooked, but it was pretty good with tartar sauce. Overall, I wouldn't avoid this place, it's pretty good eats.
I'm in Chincoteague usually during the off season. Â Coincidentally, Â that is prime season for local clams and oysters. Â You wanna know something cool? Â The owner of Don's (Don?) grows his own oysters and clams for the restaurant. Â Then the guy steaming them waaay over cooks them. Â Don't be shy, let the waitress know and the cook will change the cooking time, or just say you want a "light" steam.
We stayed a week this time and I'm sure we ate at Don's 5 nights.
My family has dined at Don's for many years while on vacation, and although not a favorite spot of mine, it has always been pretty good. In our most recent visit, we had a pretty good experience. My wife and I ordered a pound of steamed shrimp to share with the soup and salad bar as a side. My parents both also got the soup and salad. The salad bar left quite a bit to be desired. Toppings were sparse and there weren't many options beyond the typical lettuce, cheese and few veggies. The soups offered at the salad bar were run-of-the-mill varieties. On the other hand, our shrimp were steamed perfectly. They arrived with heads off (I expected heads-on shrimp as a way of adding weight to the pound order while minimizing the number of shrimp) and were perfectly seasoned with Old Bay. All-in-all we had a good experience and will return again next visit.
Review Source:Not too bad as far as seafood places go. Â Service was quick and friendly and the menu offered enough variety for everyone - even vegetarians. Â Everything seafood-related was quite tasty.
Unfortunately, the vegetable selection was very minimal at best and undercooked at worst. Â There's probably a better place on the island for crabs or clams. Â Save Don's for when you're tired of those places.
Our usual go-to place for seafood in Chincoteague apparently closed in the few years since we'd visited, so we decided to give Don's a try this time around. Â
The crab ball appetizer was very good, with little, if any filler. Â I had the fish and chips, which was decent. Not the best I've ever had - but good food, none the less. My husband had a flounder sandwich, which he liked very much. The kids had chicken tenders and a hot dog, which seemed passable.
Overall, good prices and good service. Â Our waiter was very friendly and attentive - (he spelled out D-E-S-S-E-R-T when asking if we wanted any so the kids wouldn't know what we were talkng about so I don't have to listen to them whine when I say no - nice touch, waiter.)
Don's Seafood is very much what you would expect from a seaside restaurant. It's not overly fancy, just a decent place to grab a bite to eat. We had the Surf and Turf which was a decent New York strip that was cooked the way we requested. There were a few pieces of fried shrimp but they were pretty small. We also had the Seafood Alfredo which was a huge portion and had a decent amount of scallops and shrimp. The Alfredo sauce had bits of red pepper in it, but it wasn't mixed together. After a few bites, I found the pile of peppers under some pasta. Once mixed together, it improved the taste. Both entrées included a trip to the salad bar which was pretty basic. All in all, the meal was ok. We had great service from our waitress, Anna, and the price was decent. We would probably go back, though there are some other places on the island that are better.
Review Source:Pleasantly surprised!
Dinner: Â 8PM, Sunday 7/18.
Decor: Â nothing fancy. Â See Quick Tips re: booth.
Service was quick and friendly. Â Menu had several options of soups, fewer salads. Â Sandwiches ranged from crab cake to BLT. Â Entree list was extensive. Â Served Coke products.
We had:
Salad Bar - Â Reminded me very much of Pizza Hut salad bar. Â Everything on it was very fresh! Â I echo another reviewer's comment about the tomatoes - tasty! Â It even had beets which I love! Â
Apps-
1 dozen oysters (see pic). Husband said they were REALLY cold which he likes. Â Husband saw movement in one, picked at it with his fork, and found a little crab!!! Â (took another pic!) Server was excited when we showed it to her and she showed all the other servers and guests at one of her other tables. Â She also said some people eat the tiny crab! Â
Cream of crab soup was thick but didn't have too much crab in it. Would have appreciated a little more. Â Soup was served with oyster crackers!
Husband had Seafood Alfredo. Â He liked it, but I thought it was very bland. Â
I had stuffed shrimp and it was so good! Â We both chose asparagus as one of our side items and it was perfectly prepared. Â No seasoning, just steamed.
We really liked Don's and we will return this week for sure!
This place is definitely A-OK. Don's is just a nice, quiet little resturaunt to get a quick, simple lunch that will be good. Especially if it is fried, Jim B is right - all their fried food came out pretty darn tasty. It was my first time trying soft shell crabs and thought they were good. The fries anf fried flounder came out well, too. The fresh crab soup was great, the salad bar is simple, but with enough fixings to make a nice salad. The service was quick and friendly and I have no complaints.
Review Source:One of these days Don's will be bulldozed to make room for more condos. Â It will be a shame. Â Decor is nothing much. Â Service is semi-pro. Â Prices are cheap. Salad bar is blah. But the beer is cold. Â The fried stuffed flounder is to die for. Â Worth a journey. Â My wife's favorite meal in the USA. Â Fried crab cakes are very good. Onion rings can be just good or excellent. Â They know how to use a fryolator here. Portions are very generous. Â If I get take-out we split one order and have plenty.
Review Source:Don's is a typical shore town seafood restaurant. There are better and there are worse ...
The service was very nice. Everyone was friendly and helpful.
We had the broiled scallops and fried crab cakes with mashed potatoes and salad. The salad bar is nothing fancy ... just what you would expect from a traditional salad bar. I will say that the tomatoes were very fresh and tasty.
The crab cakes looked a little different than expected, but I said "what the heck" and began eating them. I got about half way through one when the waitress informed me that she brought broiled crab cakes instead of fried. (They really looked and tasted fried to me) These crab cakes are not the best I've had; I prefer when they have other tidbits in them: celery, onion, what have you. But they were good and not too fishy. Everything came with tartar sauce and lemon. The mashed potatoes were great as were the rolls.
It's a little pricey for the amount and quality of food, but it's about the same at other seafood spots in the area. They have a wide selection and lots of seating, so I would definitely recommend giving Don's a try.
I have not been to Don's in about6-7 years. Â I remember when I went in the past, it was pretty bad. Â We talked to some locals and they told us this place has changed owners a few times and things are different. Well we were shopping near here so this is where we went.
When we arrived, we were greeted right away and was taken to a table. Â There were not to many people there. Â Our waitress came by took our drink orders and told us about today's specials. Â I ordered the fried seafood sampler, which included, a big piece of flounder, a crab cake, shrimp, clams, scallops, and oysters. Â Have loaded a picture for you to see. Â My wife ordered the broiled fish of the day which was flounder. Â Both meals came with a trip to the salad bar. Â The salad bar is pretty basic, nothing too fancy. Â Just some lettuce, veggies, some fruit, soups. Â Our food came out in a reasonable time. Â I thought my dish was good. Â Then again, how can you mess up fried foods =) Â They were not over cooked, I thought it was fried just right. Â I was surprised to see that the crab cake was almost all meat. Â It was pretty darn tasty. Â My wife said the flounder was o.k., nothing too fancy. Â I guess my complaint would be, they could have put some more shrimp on the plate. Â There was only 1 piece. Â Maybe they could cut the huge fish down and add some more shrimp. Â Like I said, I tasted fine, nothing to brag about, but good. Â There was a lot of food on my plate, I was pretty stuffed by the time I was done, well for 22 bucks I better be =)
The service was great.  Our waitress was always checking up on us.  The décor is nothing fancy, it looks pretty out dated.  No complaints about that.  Hey, it works, what more can you ask for?
This place sucks. The chef, who we did not see but whose rebukes were referred to us via the waitress, would allow no substitutions or slight modifications of our orders at all, even when the restaurant was nearly empty. I ordered a rare steak. When it came out it was ridiculously thin, was way overcooked to medium-well, and tasted like it had been sauteed in crappy movie theater popcorn butter.
Review Source:
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