It's always cool when you can make a night out of a restaurant outing, and that's exactly how it was when I went to the Executive Surf Club.
It's a cool place, tucked in a neat center of restaurants, bars, and attractions near the beach on Shoreline. Â I ordered the bacon cheeseburger and onion rings (see pic), and even though I was there over two months ago, I'm kind of getting hungry just thinking about it.
The only problem? Â Not enough tables to fit the crowd! Â I was there on a Wednesday night and saw this problem. Â You'll see large groups of people squeezing into tight spaces, and others just standing around looking for a table to open up. Â Really inconvenient.
However, the redeeming characteristic was the live entertainment. Â After dinner, we headed outside to find a battle of the bands competition going on. Â We stuck around for hours, and greatly enjoyed it. :)
Food is amazing. It is also one of those spots in Corpus Christi that you just have to go to.
BUT ....
Like EVERY SINGLE restaurant in Corpus Christi, the service sucks. There is some major chip on the shoulders of the people that work in this town. They seem to have a grudge against you for going out to eat and the fact that they work there to begin with. It's almost like you have to suck up to the servers in order to get treated how you SHOULD be treated, professionally and with respect.
I'm sorry, I work hard for my money and I'm not going to tip arrogant punks good just because they chose the field they work in. You get tipped by my experience, not because I have to.
It got 4 stars because you just can't beat the food, atmosphere, drink, and Corpus Christi tradition that Surf Club has to offer, just don't expect to get any kind of good service unless your a local and hang out after hours with the bartenders.
I always love the inexpensive little dives on mu travels that offer great value and this is oneof them. Â Skip the Whataburger across the street and have an awesome dripping juicy burger here! Â I had the mushroom Swiss, fries and drink combo, but instead of a pop I had a Vinifera Stout beer for an added $2, it was the bomb! Â The bartender gentry was very friendly, even offering a smal taste of beer to help me decide. Â Fun atmosphere!
Review Source:This is by far my favorite beer/burger spot -- downtown or anywhere else. The atmosphere is friendly and informal. The food is great. They have delicious options for a snack and socializing, dinner or just a drink. They even allow take out, which is great if you're in a hurry. Outdoor seating when the weather is nice is perfect, and they have a great indoor seating experience too.
Review Source:I love this place. Â It is a guaranteed stop for me when in Corpus. Â They have great food, the shrimp wrap is my favorite. Â Tuesday is $2 Pint night! Â And as far as I can tell it is for any pint because I had several "high end" beers for just $2 each. Â The place gets packed with people from all walks of life. Â Great time, you won't be disappointed!!
Review Source:After driving around Corpus trying to decide what to eat for lunch I pulled in here. When I lived in Corpus I would come at night and drink with friends as one of our stops so it was at least familiar.
After looking over the menu I selected the Fish and Chips and to go with it, of course a frosty Shiner!
Sat down in a booth with my buddy. Our number was called in a short amount of time. The food was pretty good. Not super greasy. Fish fillets were on the small side, but the were tasty lil guys.
While I was waiting for my friend to finish their food i decided to hop onto my Yelp APP and type up a nice little tip for the Executive Surf Club.
YELPERS! DO NOT DO THIS UNTIL YOU HAVE LEFT THE PLACE OF BUSINESS! I mean writing that positive tip on YELP must have been the YELP Gods way of telling me I spoke too soon and for that, my somewhat pleasant experience was going to go awry.
Shortly after my meal we noticed a spot on the table. "What's THAT?" I was asked. "OH! That's a silverfish! Well, I'm glad I didn't eat you little dude" Yes, i spoke to the Silverfish. I thought it was polite of him to wait until after I had eaten to come chill at our table. So I had to thank him and then my friend swatted him away.
I wasn't going to make a big deal out of it. I walked over to the bartender and told him very discreetly about the little buggie that made his appearance, told him that he might want to let the manager know so that they could have the place sprayed. He apologized and told me that he would take my beer off to compensate me for the incident. "Wait right here while I make the adjustment and get your tab for you."
While waiting for the bartender, a waiter shoved his way past me only to throw beer bottles in hard enough for them to break and cause little glass shards to come and hit my arm. WTF!? Did he seriously just do that and NOT apologize? "EXCUSE YOU." i said. Â He ignored me until he cam back form the end of the bar and then he had the nerve to tell me that I shouldn't be "standing in his fucking way" that "that is not a place to fucking stand." Plus as he says this he shoves his way past me so hard that he's elbowing my boob. Not cool Le Douchebag, Not cool at all.
I tell the bartender to get the manager. Explain to him what happened. I also made sure to add that I am a Yelper and had just written him a nice little tip.
He wasn't too thrilled. He handled it very professionally, apologized, ensure me that he would have a talk  with the idiot that is apparently in the wrong line of work and adjusted my bill for my horrible experience.
I did tell him that I enjoyed the food here. Which I did. The experience was horrid so that is why it has been given 2 stars.
Executive Surf Club was exactly as advertised.
The place is fun. The employees were all extremely polite and eager to make our visit a good one. And the food -- fine and dandy.
I had a chicken fried steak. Wife had a burger. We ordered a basket of mushrooms for the wait (which wasn't long.)
Everything came out hot and fresh. My wife said it was one of the better (juicier) burgers she'd had in a while. My chicken fried steak was served crisp and perfectly seasoned.
Neither of us cared for the (regular) fries. Not that there was anything wrong with them. They just had the skin on and seemed a little limp. Hot and fresh. But limp. (Fries are served that way at several joints, and this is definitely not a deal-breaker.) Shortly after we checked in (on FB and Yelp) a friend texted me and insisted that I order the battered fries. She says they are fantastic. -- Maybe it's good that I didn't. ;-)
Next time we are in Corpus Christi, Executive Surf Club will be on our list of restaurants to patronize. Good food and fun!
This is best place to start your evening since they close at 11 pm weekdays and 12 pm on weekends. They have a great back patio, live music, a great beer selection and the bartenders are FAST! If you are looking to grab some dinner, they also have a pretty good little menu (I suggest the burgers and fries)!
Review Source:Delicious food and very reasonable prices. It would be so much better if they had sweet potato fries added to the menu though. Tuesday nights are great for the $2 pints of beer too!
Downfall: slow service and its hard to hear them over the intercom when they call your number, they need to figure out a different method to serve meals I think.
We were there on the same day they showed the move Endless Summer and had a raffle for a surf board signed by Robert August, who was there in person to narrate the movie! Although we got there a little early for the movie we still saw Robert and got to see the ramping up to the event before leaving.
In retrospect we should have stayed and watched the movie. My girlfriend and I both had never seen it before. But we had other plans and we left early.
We were looking for a place to eat where we could get a drink and relax after a long long day being tourists. Unfortunately they don't have wait staff. You get your food by number after ordering at the bar and while the system worked well we really didn't want to stand up. So we sat at the bar and got our drinks that way. But still had to fetch our own food.
My chicken wrap was really good and the nachos were tasty despite being fairly standard. I'd elaborate on the food, but it is all exactly as it sounds. Nothing special just standard American food the way you'd expect it.
We didn't notice anything special about the "beer batter fries" maybe they just gave us normal frys? Idk.
The drinks were good and overall I was happy having spent time there.
This place is an institution. Â South TX at its finest. Â The menu is kooky and surfer chique. Â Be adventourus and grab a surf burger w/ beer batter fries, and some walnut dressing to dip your fries in. Â Always look at the schedule and see when the next live band will be there. Â It's a great hang out!
Review Source:Executive Surf Club is a local institution in Corpus Christi. Â It's a safe place to take a client to lunch and if you want something more formal, Water Street is right next door and is under the same ownership.
Surf Club is a safe place to go for a standard meal like you'd have at Chili's, nothing gourmet. Â The food is decent. Â The seared tuna salad is excellent but the real fare are the nachos, the burgers, fries, onion rings, etc. Â Don't stray too far into the edges of the menu and keep it simple and you'll do great. Â DO NOT get their battered fries...they are just awful. The regular fries are very good and go great with ranch. Â I don't know of anyone who has eaten them who liked them. Â It's almost an inside joke amongst regulars how bad the battered fries are! Â Don't worry, that's as bad as anything gets, and the food is nearly all great.
It is a restaurant before it's a bar (it closes at 11 pm) but it has an immense beer selection on draft, one of the best in town. Â The staff are all professional and courteous. Â You don't get a lot of the "bar" issues here because it closes so early.
Overall, it's a nice place to visit, very safe,and very fun. Â Tuesday night is their $2 pint night (any beer pint) and I'd say that night would be their busiest.
Great little spot! Â My husband and I decided to head to Corpus for the day, and Yelp lead us to Surf Club. Â I loved the atmosphere, very laid back. Â THe fries were great, crispy and not greasy. Â I loved the beer selection, although I didn't stray too far away from something safe (landshark).
I would for sure check it out!
The burgers of my childhood have held their own in my now-adult palate.
Thank you, Executive Surf Club, for what you do. Real burgers and real onion rings--real quick and real good. (Excuse the poor grammar for the effect!)
I recently brough a carful of friends to join me in re-living my 10th birthday party, eating on surfboards and having a great experience - and Executive Surf Club delivered. I was a little bummed to see that you can no longer write on ALL surfaces, but I have learned that moderation is (sometimes) for the better.
Even if you don't have to go, be sure to take a swing past the bathrooms - nothing like a trip down memory lane with their killer early-90s bathing suits. If you have the time, stop in to the loo, as well - and enjoy some poetry and prose while you pee!
Surf Club has been about as good as it gets in Corpus, through a struggling downtown, and not an iota of change for years. No reason to change it, but I wish there were more entrepreneur's in Corpus who could follow their model. I was rolling in and out of there as a teenager, perfectly welcome till it was party time at night. Now I roll in there with my own children, perfectly welcome at all times, parental discretion advised. Great live music all the time, as well.
Review Source:An excellent spot for a great evening in Corpus Christie. Every night I was in CC there was music coming from the Surf Club which always attracted quite the crowd and more importantly no cover charge.
Plenty of tasty beers on tap and a great outdoor patio with long wooden tables that give that whole community feel.
Even for the afternoon/post work drink, the Surf Club is great. The area surrounding the water fountain is surrounded by many comfy multi colored lounge chairs that are perfect for relaxing and enjoying whatever beer you end up with.
Love coming here for its fun atmosphere always packed  and has drinks specials and live bands on most nights except maybe one or two.
The food is great and they yell out your food number for you to pick it up.
I never seem to hear my number but I swear its cause I am going def at such an early age. Most of the items on the menu are good to eat. I would say better than your typical bar food.
The staff is busy and friendly and seem to really love their job. The bartenders work quick and you arent standing at the bar too long for a drink even during the peek times. I recommend this for meetups with your friend. Great outdoor space where they do the live music. The place is just overall nice.
Being a Corpus Christi local for the last three years, I have always enjoyed this place. Â Tuesday night is pint night, where you can always count on $2 drafts from a pretty good draft selection and The Scarecrow People playing a live show. Â
The food is also pretty good and at a reasonable price. Â I have tried just about everything on the menu, and the only negative I can think of is that I don't like the new battered fries. Â
If you are in town and in need of a laid back establishment with a solid selection of draft beer, then head to the Surf Club.
Thank you, Yelpers!
My bf and I sat at the bar and ate dinner atop large surfboard tables. There was plenty of regular seating in the bar. I ordered the shrimp wrap, filled with lots of shrimp, though I wish that it was spread out uniformly in the wrap and the sauce and lettuce in side tasted fresh and delicious. I also had regular french fries (they also had beer-battered french fries or onion rings, which I had a bite of. yum!)
Definitely a surf bar atmosphere (it was humid, as is usual in this part of Texas, and balmy that night). The second we walked in, we were warming greeted by a hostess ready to answer questions and take our order. Throughout the entire meal the entire staff from the kitchen to the servers were funny and attentive as well. I was really surprised at the large patio they had out back with plenty of seating and a small stage for bands to play, which one did play that night. Definitely a cool vibe going on. I sat out here after dinner and had a couple of beers, which by the way they had a good number on tap along with a full bar.
Great first meal of my weekend in Corpus Christi.
This is a solid spot in Corpus Christi with great food, a cool atmosphere, and a pretty good on tap beer selection.
When we got into Corpus on the first night, we had no clue where to go eat and I found this place on Yelp (horray Yelp!!) And I must say that yelp reviewers do know what the hell they are talking about because this place did not disappoint. When you walk in you are greeted by a hostess who promptly directs you to the menu and takes your order. I ordered the Southwestern Burger (as suggested by a previous yelper) and my gf had the shrimp wrap. My burger was definately one of the better Southwestern Burgers that I have ever tasted. The burger was well seasoned, they did not scimp on the quac and the hand batter fries were great. The food was not at all over priced and they give large portion sizes.
The atmosphere was also pretty cool. The tables were surf boards and the decorim reflected a surf bar. The bar/resturant has  large outside seating area and stage for live music. So if you wanted you could take your food and your drinks outside and listen to the band play. There was a healthy selection of beers of tap and they were very moderately priced. Overall this is definately a place that I would try out again and would recommend it to anyone visiting Corpus Christi in the future.
True surf bar feel. All the food is delicious, and the beer selection was decently large. Service isn't always the fastest, but the quality of everything there, including the staff, easily makes up for it.
I had their southwest burger, that has guacamole and salsa on it, and it was delicious. One of the best Mexican inspired burgers I've had.
While doing an internship at a national seashore nearby (won't name it) this was pretty much the only place to go, besides the Pelican. It was a very relaxing place to go. They have an amazing selection of draught beer, and $2 pints on Tuesday, plus the live music was always pretty good. The staff was friendly, and helpful in suggesting a new beer to try. The only bad thing I can think of was that it closed at 10, or something like that, but I'm fairly certain that's something to do with CC's laws, and not the Executive. Recommend going there if you're looking for a relaxing place to grab a beer and listen to live music.
Review Source:Fun place, great beer selection on draft, DH had the New Castle, I had the chicken quesadillas...they were alright...kinda like what you'd get at Taco Cabana. The food is actually more like American Pub Grub. Go for the beer or entertainment. Oh, by the way, if you're a minor, don't even try to get away with sneaking drinks. They ID'd my DH, and he's 39. Patrick, who works at the food ordering bar, was very nice and personable.
Review Source:HOLY SHIT okay people if your comming to CC and wanna place to drink , esspecially on monday this is your place. 2 dollar pint you call it , i was drinkin the dos and newcastle all night. me and some buddies ran up a good tab but its well worth it . Good crowd , and they usually have a good local band playin so live music so its great.. try it
Review Source:Since I didn't stay here too long, this review will be brief. Sadly, I can't speak to the food, but I had a blast here on a random weekday evening. Â The bartenders were friendly & fast and the drinks were strong & free flowing. Â I liked the outdoor area (even though it was sprinkling a bit) and the bar to the side of the outdoor deck was fun to hang around. Â I'll definitely visit this place again when my travels bring me back to town.
Review Source:I can only give this place 3 stars because I only went for drinks and live music so I can't comment on the food.
The service at the bar for drinks was decent, they had a good selection on taps (including a special of the week).
The outside portion had a lot of seating, and the band playing was great.
All in all, I had a great time and would recommend this place to others.
I went here because it got pretty good reviews, but was pretty disappointed. Â I got the shrimp burger which probably would have tasted good if the shrimp didn't have this super strong chlorine taste. Â It just ruined the whole thing.
They had good prices and you could get a beer combo for $2 extra, but limited beer selection for the combo, and way better beers at the bar.
The guy at the counter asked if I wanted salt and lime for my beer and he must have spaced when I said no because he gave it to me anyways.
The atmosphere was cute though.
I understand CC has changed dramatically since I was last there, but it appears the ESC has not.
This is a good thing! Particularly memorable was the salsa (mmm garlic!) and the xochil.
Beer selection was always great and uncommon with a wide range of bigger beers - plus the bartenders made mean margaritas.
Even more memorable was the music/venue ...
Thanks ESC for the likes of Hank III, Steve Earle and good ol' Don Walser (RIP).
I popped into the Executive Surf Club for a quick after dinner drink while in Corpus Christi for work.
Great location, great staff. The bartender made me his "special" which was delicious!
It was a Monday night so it wasn't too crowded but it looked like they have a great outdoor area for bands. When in Corpus again, I will definitely return!
Yep yep, this place deserves my sacred five star rating. Â Imagine me, living in NYC and giving a CCTX place 5 Stars...
Reasoning...I have never had one bad thing to eat here and service is well...yourself and how could I rate me as sucky?
Burgers are excellent, Grilled Chicken Salad is great, nachos are perfect. Â Now I am not saying any of this is blow me away, wow I have NEVER tasted anything like this before, phenomenal grub. Â It is consistent and always enjoyable, which is rare!
I love the ambience as well. Â Outdoors, my little brother and sister can run amuck, playing on stage and climbing the bleachers and everyone seems to be laid back and enjoying the moment. Â And we cannot forget the live bands that play here at night.
Cool cool place...makes me so proud of my hometown!
I haven't eaten here since I was 16 and that was about 10 years ago so I don't feel like I can appropriately review the place... however, when I did eat there, i remember the food being quite delicious and the memories I do have are nostalgia filled and make you feel all warm and fuzzy. Â I remember it being loud and great for families with kids.
Review Source:This place has been around since I was a tyke...and much longer than that. My parents used to be part of Corpus' Columbus Fleet, a group of volunteers that maintained and sailed the city's three caravan ship replicas, commissioned by the Spaniard government with the purpose of sailing them in the Gulf. We'd be in Corpus every weekend for a good few months, so Executive was the place to hang (literally) after a day of back-breaking sailing.
More recently my brother and I towed a boat down to the ramp and sailed/avoided-the-boom for a day. Nothing hit the spot better than Surf Club; amazing burgers and an impressive bar! Surfboards act as tables in the back room, and of course act as art on almost every wall. A bit of nostalgia for me, but a true gem for Corpus.
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