Joe's Crab Shack

Reviews

• ST

  Shawn Turner

  4 days ago
  1.0
  Arrived at about 7:15pm. It was busy, ish, but nothing too crazy. The hostess said it would be about 30 minutes wait. No big deal, she got my name and phone number and said they’d text when our table was ready. About 15 minutes later, phone buzzed and we (party of 2) were seated. Server came and got our drink order and was right back with our lemonades. (We were hot and a little dehydrated from a day of beach drinking) We needed a few minutes with the menu and finally ordered about 7:50. Server immediately came back with refills. So far so good. But then about 5 minutes later, she brings out the check and the crab tools. 30 minutes after that she finally brings our food out and apologizes for the wait saying “the kitchen is backed up”. She brought out a steak that was both burnt and ice cold, the sorriest excuse for a half crab I’ve ever seen (also cold), cold rice, cold mac and cheese, and 2 lobster tails that felt like they got put right into the fridge after they were cooked. I was so disappointed we spoke to the manager and left to try and find somewhere else to eat. Wound up going to The Back Porch, and I’ve never been so happy to have a bad experience. The steak was fantastic, the crab was cooked perfectly, and I mean perfectly! My wife had a slab of amberjack that was beautifully prepared and tasted even better. And the wait, even with a line out the door was about 5 minutes. tl;dr - skip joes, there is no shortage of better seafood in Destin!
• LL

  LittleEl

  6 days ago
  5.0
  was honestly skeptical at first—we only ended up here because it was one of the few places still open, but I'm SO glad we did! The line was a little long, but once we checked in, we were seated pretty quickly and got a nice spot on the balcony outside. The staff were friendly and more casual than formal, which gave the place a fun, laid-back vibe. The real star, though, was the food. We ordered a seafood boil with the Ragin' Cajun sauce, and OMG—it was the best seafood boil I've ever had! I literally went home thinking about it and wanted to come back before leaving Destin. It was packed with flavor, though definitely very spicy, so if you can't handle heat, I'd recommend going a spice level lower.
• JH

  John Howard

  Jul 3, 2026
  4.0
  All the food was really good. It’s just very expensive. They include an AUTOMATIC 18% tip. Personally I think tipping based on price is an outdated and ridiculous concept, but especially when they include it automatically. $34 for just a tip is wild. And before you even get your check you have to fight off the ladies taking your picture and trying to sell it to you for $50 while you eat. But, the chicken tenders are delicious, and so are the hush puppies. The crab boil was enjoyed by a few at the table. Next time we’ll find something more local instead of a chain.
• AK

  Ashlee Kimbrough

  Jun 30, 2026
  1.0
  We were really disappointed with our experience this visit. We were seated in a hot front room with benches instead of the main dining area. It felt like an overflow space, and with only one box fan running, it was uncomfortably warm. One of the reasons our kids enjoy coming to Joe’s Crab Shack is the fun atmosphere—the music, energy, and décor—but we completely missed out on that. The food was even more disappointing. I ordered the steak and crab cake surf and turf because we had it two years ago, loved it so much that we came back a second time during that trip just to order it again. This time it was nothing like we remembered. I ordered my steak medium, but it came out very well done. It was dry, had almost no flavor, and honestly tasted like cardboard. I sent it back, hoping it was just a mistake, but the replacement steak was somehow even worse—drier and cooked even more well done than the first. The crab cake was just okay. I do want to point out that our server was not the problem. She was kind, attentive, and did what she could to make things right. Unfortunately, the issues were clearly with the kitchen and the overall experience. We rarely leave negative reviews, but this visit was a huge disappointment. Two years ago this place was packed—we loved it so much we came back twice during the same vacation. This time, the nearly empty parking lot should have been our first clue that things had changed. It’s sad to see what was once one of our favorite restaurants in Destin decline so much. We truly hope management can turn things around.
• JD

  Jalyn Decausey

  Jun 27, 2026
  2.0
  Let me first start off by saying this is not a rating for the food as we have not yet received it! This is a rating for this specific restaurant location as well as the staff working it. We ordered through DoorDash for pickup. As we walked in, I received notification that our order was ready. We were told to go to the bar for pickup. Once we got to the park the bartender asked very hastily what we were there for and we said pickup. She pointed to a shelf and said it could be over there. We checked and confirmed with her that our order wasn’t there. We told her that we were interested in ordering drinks if the wait for our food was going to take longer than 10 minutes. She said she didn’t know - all she does is look to see if they have the ticket. When I asked if she was allowed to check she made it seem like it was an effort she was not willing to make. She came back 5 minutes later to tell us that it shouldn’t take longer than 10 minutes and walked away ( I could sense it was in fact going to take longer than 10 minutes ) so I was ready to order a drink and she walked away and did not come back. We have been waiting 20 minutes 😎 Would appreciate honest communication about orders - we were willing to spend more money while we waited but were told food was almost ready repeatedly so instead we just stood at the bar.

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