Nick’s Kitchen and Beach Bar

We were looking for a casual place for lunch with great food and a nice view — we certainly found it! Our server, Dain, was friendly, very knowledgeable about the menu, and gave delicious recommendations. We had calamari, best I’ve ever had, blackened fish tacos, to die for, and red fish ponchartrain, amazing! We highly recommend it!

Really had a ball here today. The seafood patter was perfection. The beers were cold and the service was good. The interior of the building needs some TLC but the outdoor lounge area is where it’s at. Sat for a couple of hours while it rained and drank beer and watched baseball on TV in our own little couch-​lounge area. It was a great way to spend a rainy afternoon at the beach!

I was not impressed with nicks at all. We got the shrimp and crawfish fondue. It was very watery and not very fresh. I got the crawfish tails. They were ok but not well seasoned. My husband got them at Black Pearl and they were much better. The most disappointing were the shrimp peques. They had NO flavor and were just breaded. We had them at Fish Tales and they were WONDERUL. They didn’t taste the same at all at Nicks. Wouldn’t waste my time going back.

Great little place for a STAYcation. We visit here during the week for happy hour and fun in the sun. During the summers they have live bands and DJs On weekends. Great place to visit for their pool.

Shrimp was okay but breading wasn’t browned enough. Waffle fries were cold… didn’t seem fresh. Waiter was clueless about the menu. The fried shrimp dinner for almost $ 12 consisted of 7 shrimp and a huge plate of fries. No hush puppies or bread, no salad or slaw. So disappointing don’t waste your money here.

We had called beforehand to see if pets were permitted on the patio and they said «yes». When we arrived they were unwelcoming and confused, as to why we had a pet with us. I asked if we could be seated on the furthest end of the patio, because I did not see any other pets and I did not want to disturb other guests. The host specified that the side of the restaurant I requested was sort of an «observatory» for guests and that he understood that most guest didn’t understand what a «big word» observatory meant, but that they only served a partial area of the restaurant. (Thank you captain obvious) We left after he seated us because there was confusion over whether or not pets were permitted. We waited unattended for over 15minutes without a response. I found their service unprofessional and flat out rude. I wouldn’t recommend this place to anyone.

love this place, good happy hour and a dope pool bar… service is a little slow but hey you can swim for free… but Mexican thugs do hang out there too… so bring you gun or water gun.

Average food. There were pigeons all over the outside dining area which was distracting and dirty.

Oops — shouldn’t have checked in here — tables open and a 30 min wait — guess they didn’t have enough staff — walked out ;-(

Good fresh food ! Even thier salad dressing was really good ! Everything I’ve had here was excellent !

Terrible service. Numerous errors in food. A group of friends and I recently ate at Casey’s. There were five of us. Service was slow to take out order. One of my friends ordered a chocolate milkshake and received a vanilla milkshake. A second friend ordered an Afternoon Delight. A third ordered a Wooden Shoe. Both the second and third friends received Afternoon Delights. The glasses had been overfilled so that there was liquid on the outside of the glasses that had not been cleaned before we were served. Additionally, our server lost two of our orders. The three of us guys waited politely for the two girls’ entrees to finally arrive. Most of the food was decent, but overpriced. There are better values nearby. The food is better at Landry’s.
The crab cakes were particularly bad. We cut into one to discover that there was very little crab. What crab was there had been shredded and mixed with a copious amount of breadcrumbs. The whole thing was tasteless. We asked to speak to a manager. We were greeted by a defensive man with an earpiece. The manager said that Casey’s is owned by Gaido’s and that Casey’s is designed as a second-​class restaurant with inferior food. That is why they use canned shredded crab claw meat rather than jumbo lump crab meat like they do at Gaido’s. After leaving Casey’s I walked by Gaido’s and looked at the menu to see how much they were charging for their crab cakes only to discover that Gaido’s does not even have crab cakes on its menu. The manager had been telling a convenient lie in order to defend selling bad food. I would discourage anyone reading this from trying this restaurant as there are so many better seafood restaurants on the island.

Booked our reservation at the other gaidos restaurant but since their is not clear definition between the two ended up at casey’s. Probably a better outcome since we had a 2 year old with us. The food was meh? if that is any help. Had the fish tacos while the wife had crab cakes. Only ate two of the four crab cakes as a family and downed the fish tacos. The wide selection of pitchers of beers helped but I have had many a better crab cake in San Francisco. If you are coming off the beach and need something decent to grab while a bit tipsy then this is a good choice. If you are looking for a decent sit down dinner perhaps try the other restaurant with the same name/​parking lot/​wall. Never been there but I read good things online. pfft.

We went down to the seawall not knowing it was Mardi gras parade time. We went into Casey’s and asked for a table on the patio and they said it was for reservations only and cost $ 50…seriously?! So we say inside while the patio stayed empty. My husband and friend ordered a beer I saw in the cooler and the manager said they didn’t carry it until we had to point it out. The food was good. I ordered the shrimp Robert and they were good but not hot at all. The cheesy potatoes were great! All together is was an ok trip but next time I will try some place new.

Exec Summary: Service is slow, staff is nice, food is sub-​par, patio ocean view is great.
Went for dinner w friend on a Tuesday.
We had the fondue appetizer which was hearty but didn’t have any seasoning. The toasted bread it came with was crumbly. Bad mix. Our table neighbors had some crab appetizer which they returned saying it was a «big horrible fried thing». Bad omen #2
I questioned the waitress to ensure I picked the best thing and went with the Shrimp Moqueet/​Poqueet (Bacon wrapped shrimp /​dirty rice). My main criteria was that there wasn’t a sweet sauce on it. It arrived with the equivalent of a honey molasses sauce. It was the worst flavor combination I’ve ever had. You can’t season it up or tone it down. I hold no grudge with the cook, but the chef who suggested it and the owner who allowed it on his menu.
My friend ordered the salmon. Came out dry.
After that the drinks we ordered at appetizer time arrived from the bar. Being the final straw we closed out and went to eat in the Strand

Went here once for dinner and drinks and th other night just for drinks and live music.
Drinks — good but a little pricey. To us it was worth the price just to have the two decks with fresh open air and great location for a Gulf view.
Stuffed Shrimp — EXCELLENT! ROumeladde (sp?) sauce was superb. Great taste. Fries were good but, nothing special
Iced Shrimp– wonderful and fresh. A little pricey but, avg cost on the island.
Service was slow but, the atmosphere and deck was worth the wait to us. They have a big party type pool but, we didnt get a chance to use it. Watched live music and LOVED that. Band played from 6 – 11. It was fun to see all of the o

This establishment is now called «Nick’s» although when you walk in you aren’t sure if you are at Casey’s or the Red Snapper Lounge.
The food is about the same as Gaidos, so its excellent.

Fresh seafood, great view, reasonable prices. It’s the café of Gaido’s so you know it’s legit. What I like about their restaurants– they only serve seafood they can get from the gulf or Galveston Bay and what is in season. For example; you can only find crab on the menu during the summer time and you can only find oysters on the menu during the winter (or months that have the letter R in them). They just finished this awesome outdoor patio and and pool which is welcome to be used by any restaurant guest. 100 beers on tap. Fresh seafood. Atmosphere you can get drunk in. Love it here. Tell them the Duke sent you!

So, hello again Unilocalers… still on my Galveston trip… now that I’ve highlighted two of the champs, I suppose it’s time to expose the chumps.
The nice guy checking us in at our condo was nice enough to share both Shrimp n Stuff as well as Nate’s West End (review coming) and Casey’s. «It’s connected to Gaido’s, same kitchen, different menu that is more affordable…» «Gaido’s is pricey and not really worth it, IMO…» So, not that I’m cheap but if I can have access to same same kitchen with what I would believe to be more local favorites — I’m in (read Topolobampo /​Frontera Grill — Chicago; both are frikkin awesome one just less fancy).
This is not either of the aforementioned restaurants. Not even in the same vicinity. Décor is late model pontoon boat, service is «meh», friendly but unengaged. In fact I think the staff were in the back of the restaurant eating and yucking it up with friends. Our waiter almost seemed «put out» to deal with us. Not in a rude way, but a «uh oh yeah sure dude» way.
Food… ordered the «large» boiled shrimp… we got around 10 – 12 U-​24ish shrimps for $ 15 bucks… (1lb 30ish shrimp at The Black Pearl 12 bucks… just sayin, and they were better, review to come). I order the blackened snapper (after asking what came out of the water today — I should know better when they look at me funny… like, «you think we have fresh fish here, it’s not like you’re on the beac… ummm») with au gratin potatoes (there was nothing gratin about these potatoes, they were chopped rough with some cheese on top and not tasty at all) the «dirty rice» was ok and the snapper was passable, not very blackened IMO, don’t bother if you refuse to get the pan hot enough… slapping some Chef Paul’s blackened magic on this fish doesn’t qualify it as blackened… mmmkay?
Wife got the mixed seafood platter, her tilapia (WTF do they serve a fish from Chile here???) was ok, her shrimps were ok, her scallops were under, not blue but under as were my daughters scallops. Not so much that they were unhealthy, but so much that they were ucky…
Check was pretty staggering considering this is supposed to be the «discount Gaido’s».
Not a fan, I’m positive Joe’s crab shack and red lobster will repeatedly kick its ass.

Most people don’t realize that Casey’s Seafood Restaurant is basically the casual dining version of Gaido’s. I mean obviously you won’t get your butt kissed as well, the arrangement of your food might not be as pretty or the names of the menu items may seem a little less posh but they share the same kitchen!
I am a fan of :
–the Crab Cakes and Seafood Stuffed Jalapenos (I mean shrimp, cream cheese and monterrey jack stuffed wonderfulness).
— Seawall BLT… Gulf Shrimp, Avocado and Bacon goodness with Chipotle Mayo!!!
–Shrimp Robert… bacon wrapped anything is awesome, well almost anything.
–Any of the Platters…
I like how the menu opens up with a great beer and cocktail selection. They even have room to make light of hurricanes…
On most days I enjoy grabbing a spot on the patio overlooking Seawall Blvd., the beach and the awesome people waching up and down the boardwalk. What I like most… dont take yourself too seriously and the enjoyment factor will multiply here. The crowd is generally family oriented. Everyone has a good time here. Be prepared to wait on the weekends.

The more casual of the Gaidos seafood empire, this is a great post beaching-​fishing-​seaside wayfaring feast regardless of success or failure of your early morning plans.
They feature mostly shrimp in the menu, but it is delicious! Prices can range down from ⁷⁄₈ up to 20+ so it really depends on how hungry you are.
Anecdote: Ordered a fried combo grilled, but the waiter was new and did not know grilled was not an option, in the end got a fried and grilled platter for the price of one. (see pictures — to be posted later: P)
yea 100^th post!