Joe’s Crab Shack offers a variety of favorites from all parts of the sea and shore. From its extensive menu, guests can choose from buckets of seasonal seafood, fried shrimp platters and fish dishes, as well as options from the “mainland” that include steak, sandwiches, and chicken. Guests can indulge in over-sized and creative cocktails, such as the Shark Bite which is playfully garnished with a shark toy.
Since its inception, Joe’s popularity has stemmed not only from its menu, but also its retail store. With various pieces of merchandise for purchase, including the ever-popular tie-dye T-shirt with the phrase “Peace, Love and Crabs,” Joe’s has become synonymous with the word “fun.” Unforgettable moments await at our Destin location and across the nation!
Many customers praised the friendly and attentive service from various staff members, particularly highlighting waitresses like Sarah, Bailey, and Raven.
Food Quality
The food received mixed reviews; while many enjoyed the seafood and specific dishes, some found the food to be subpar or lacking in flavor.
Atmosphere
The restaurant's atmosphere was generally described as pleasant and welcoming, although some noted issues with seating and cleanliness.
Inconsistency
Several reviews pointed out inconsistencies in service and food quality, with some customers experiencing long wait times and incorrect orders.
Value for Money
While some customers felt the prices were reasonable for the area, others expressed dissatisfaction with portion sizes and overall value.
BW
Bill Wampler
3 days ago
5.0
The service was absolutely amazing. Our waitress Michelle and the manager Autumn working was on top of things! Super friendly and great service. We will for sure be back on our next vacation!!
SS
S S
3 days ago
5.0
BIANKA! Hands down the BEST SERVER EVER! She was on it from the get go. Great personality, exceptional recommendations. Food was delish. The atmosphere was good, but basic. Which was fine with us. We were there for the legs!
MO
Matt Onofrio
Nov 15, 2025
5.0
Raven was such a wonderful waitress and made our first time here such a memorable experience! She helped with food recommendations which were spot on- excellent customer service all around.
DG
Dani Girl
Oct 24, 2025
5.0
This was my first time at Joe's Crab Shack AND I will say it did not disappoint me & my family. Me, my daughter, my 3 granddaughters & grandson in law were very pleased with everything . I have been told prior by a few people not to waste my money here. Well, they couldn't be more wrong.
We were pleasantly greeted by the hostess & seated immediately in large cozy corner round booth.
Everyone ordered something different & EVERY meal was SPOT ON with flavor and serving size. The kids REALLY liked the mozzarella bricks for an appetizer. Theyvwere HUGE & fulled with a delicious mozz. I had the "Not Joe Mama’s Chicken " Grilled chicken breasts, spinach cream, sun-dried tomatoes, artichokes, topped with sautéed mushrooms, with mashed potatoes & seasonal vegetable (sauteed green beens). IT WAS AMAZING. The spinach in a light cream sauce was so flavorful. Two very generous pieces of boneless chicken. My daughter had the the lobster tails with asparagus. She really enjoyed it. Two of my granddaughters had the "captains platter", that came with 1 fried filet, half a snow crab, 5 shrimp tails with a generous amount of fries. She LOVED the snow crab & 5 shrimp tails. She said the filet batter could use a bit more seasoning for flavor. But all in all she loved it. My youngest granddaughter decided to have the " Joes Starter" appetize for her dinner which included; crab & shrimp dip, great balls of fire, and crispy calamari, with tortilla chips She said the dip was creamy & cheesy, but could have had a little more flavor. She really loved the fireballs. She ate all of it. My son in law had the crab with linguine in a light sauce. He also was pleased.
I want to add, that our waitress, Sarah was one of the best waitresses we have ever had. She got all the orders correct. She was VERY attentive & always made sure our drinks were filled. It is so nice to have a waitress make everyone happy tbe whole time we were there.
Due to the large order they automatically added 18% gratuity. She deserved that plus more. I gave her a additional 7% more. She also gave my Grandson In Law ( Marine) & my granddaughter * Airman) a military discount of 10%. So nice to see they support our Servicemen. There was a gentleman that may have been the manager ?, that came to our table twice to make sure that everyone was happy, (forgive me, but I forgot his name). We all had a great conversation with him about where we were all from.
So there you have it. Don't always listen to friends negative reviews. I HIGHLY recommend this Joe's Crab Shack. Stop in and enjoy a great dinner with top notch service. We will definitely be back. Thank you !
AA
Ash
Oct 13, 2025
1.0
I wish I could give this place 0 stars!
My family and I dinned here while on vacation and had an absolutely horrible experience.
There were red flags from the beginning, and we choose to ignore them!
After being seated it took about 20 minutes for us to get a server. Once Stephanie arrived to the table she didn’t apologize instead she says “She didn’t know she had a table and its not her fault so oh well.”
Fast forward to much much later roughly an hour for a table of 8 to get their food. In between that time we noticed the entire staff dancing and parting in the restaurant (we were seated outside) while we sat with NO FOOD!
Once our food actually arrived it GOT WORSE. We had about 4 appetizer samplers, salmon, pasta and 2 steak dinners. All four of the samplers were cold ( I assume they sat while the staff enjoyed themselves dancing and partying) the pasta arrived in a bowl of water. The steak dinners had to be sent back TWICE! We had a manager visit the table to discuss the food issue and that didn’t make anything better. She actually forgot she was supposed to be remaking one steak dinner and we sat for roughly 45 minutes until the server came back to ask how was everything. The manager “apologized” for the “miscommunication” didn’t offer to make a steak or provide a refund. The second steak dinner came out fully pink and was requested WELL DONE, TWICE!
I will say after we complained about the food we COULD NOT EAT it was taken off the bill HOWEVER, I still ended up paying $20 for a $13 drink thanks to “added gratuity”
To top if all off, As we were walking back to the hotel Stephanie come running outside as if we didn’t pay our bill, to tell us even though we didn’t like the service or food we still needed to sign the receipts. THAT SHE MISPLACED. Of course didn’t confess to misplacing our signed receipts instead, she blamed us for leaving without signing them and HARRASSAED us in the parking lot as if we walked away without paying.
Overall we had a HORRIBLE experience 0/10 would NEVER recommend.
The 4-5 star reviews have to be fake and should be investigated.
My family and I have been coming here for years and gradually the experience has gotten worse.
WE WILL NEVER RETURN AND WILL ADVISE EVERYONE TO AVOID IT LIKE THE PLAQUE!