Sea Island Shrimp House

You cant go wrong eating here. The catfish, crab legs and shrimp is amazing. I wish that they gave more portions with the crab legs and peel yourself shrimp. I hate having to order double to get extra crab legs and shrimp. But it is worth it…

Ok so I will admit that I did not do my research before coming here and didn’t realize it was a self serve type of place — not at all what I was expecting. So it works like this, you walk in and you get handed a laminated, one sheet menu from which to choose your meal. You then walk up to the counter and order what you want. While you’re waiting for your food you can choose a table and sit down as they give you a buzzer to let you know when to pick up. Once the food is ready, you pick it up and bring it back to your table. I ordered some crab stuffed shrimp which was very greasy and stuffed with artificial crabmeat, the pink stuff that they normally use in sushi restaurants for California rolls. I also ordered a salad but it didn’t come with my food so I had to go up separately to ask for it. Once they went in the back the salad was produced immediately. That seemed odd, they prepared the food but did not put it on my tray. At the end of the day it was pretty mediocre food, the quality of which I would say is a notch above fast food. This isn’t what I’m really looking for in a seafood place so I don’t think I will be returning. Again, this was my fault and I should have dug a little deeper before going.

What can I say, I have always liked this place and its friendly service as well as the family feel atmosphere. My favorite meal is 50 anniversary plate that always hits the spot! This plate comes with a small bowl of gumbo, two or three hush puppies, three fried shrimps, charbroiled shrimp skewer, cole slaw, french fries and two fried white fish fillet. I have yet to experience a bad time here even when it has been very busy (lunch hour). My better half had the Mariner Deluxe Fish Sandwish plate and the fish sandwich is a pretty good size. They are not greedy with the tartar sauce just tell him or her how many you want. Enjoy it with a ice cold Corona!

Well… something happened this time that usually doesn’t. I suffered a fate that seems to happen to a lot of Unilocalers as of late.
Wife had a hankering for Sea Island’s legendary shrimp salad. I wanted something seafood, but not sure. So we went to San Antonio’s local favorite. Went in, ordered. Wife wanted a shrimp cocktail, and I wanted (yep, Daryll!), my beloved oysters (just one dozen this time). We also ordered our mains: wife, her shrimp salad and I wanted the shrimp platter. We received our apps very quickly, then waited. And waited. And waited. And waited. The girl who took our order said about 15 minutes from the time we ordered, with apps a lot sooner. True, we did receive our apps quickly, but 20 minutes on, no mains. So wife takes ticket up to counter, asks, and within seconds, we got our food. What makes this better is that it was hot and freshly prepared, so I’ll let SI slide on this count this time. And wife had a free slice of Key Lime pie for her birthday.
Not a normal occurrence for Sea Island to make this kind of slip up. Except I’m not flying off the handle like some here on Unilocal do when they don’t receive their order in a timely
, given that, we’ll return.

Food took 35 minutes to get to us, and not only was it cold, but Blunch was missing fish, had to send it back, cook was upset and looked like a teenage thug, the movie «waiting» came to mind. Sure as hell wasn’t Going to eat that helpless piece of filet that probably fell on the floor once it finally came to our table. After that experience probably would not come back to this sea Island ever again. Not one manager came to ask if we where ok, oh but there was about 6 employees in the corner table by the mirrors chopping it up eating and laughing. Worst Seaisland experience and oh how we loved Seaisland.

In my opinion, there are a few times that the Unilocal review is just plain wrong. Usually with the law of averages, it hits pretty close. Not here. The service was sub par at best and the food slightly on par with any fast food seafood joint, not a four star seafood dynasty as sold in the reviews. To get to the point, besides the fried shrimp, everything (and I mean everything) was forgettable. To specifics, the gumbo tasted as bland as soup from a can with some shrimp thrown in. The fried fish way overcooked. Not sure WTH was going on with the breaded shrimp skewer, but it said grilled on the menu. Every condiment is compartmentalized and asking for more was a pain. If this is San Antonio seafood, you had best stick to tex mex and BBQ.

I’ve been a Sea Island customer since they only had the one location behind North Star Mall. I moved away from SA about 16 years ago, so this is a treat for me whenever I visit. As much as I love Sea Island, I have to say that this location, over the last two years or so, seems to have changed a few things. The main one is the cocktail sauce — it has been tasting more and more like straight ketchup in the past year (I’ve visited home five times in the past year). Not sure if they changed the recipe or if they’re buying a new brand (don’t know how that sauce is made). I put cocktail sauce on everything, so this is a biggie for me.
Next, I had the catfish on my last visit, and just like in the summer, the fish was not as meaty as they have served in the past, and the size was smaller. Even the quantity of fries on the plate was less (not that I mind, since I never finish the fries). And I agree with a previous poster that the spices on the breading is minimal — but it wasn’t always that way, so not sure what’s going on in the kitchen these days!
Tonight I decided to go with the Colossal Shrimp as I didn’t want to be disappointed with the catfish again. It was delicious! It’s always delicious. The shrimp were huge and not greasy at all. The fries were hot. But the corn cob was overcooked (same thing has happened the last few times). Not sure if the corn is cooked fresh, or if they cook it ahead of time and store them in a warmer. But I couldn’t eat it.
Lastly, the tea tonight was a bit bland this go around. Maybe I just got the bottom batch. I don’t usually get tea, but decided to try it tonight.
I will come back and try the catfish again on the next visit. It is my favorite after all! I just hope they have a good catch that week! I love Sea Island — the folks are great, they always check on you, and do replace food if you ask. So I will continue to give it second chances. Plus, they always give me a small serving of the cajun spices on the side when I ask. They used to place the spice out front, but stopped doing so several years ago. I always ask for it because it is great on the catfish, shrimp and fries!

My husband had a craving for good southern fried seafood so off to Unilocal we went.
Sea Island Shrimp House was one of the few that seemed to serve the fried, southern style variety so we decided to head out and give it a try.
We did not have high expectations.
Service: Very basic at best, but still friendly. I actually like to serve myself, as I can suck down beverages faster than most can keep up. The employees, while not directly serving customers, were quite friendly, abundant, and seemed to enjoy their job.
Food: So, it’s not what we were looking for. The ingredients were VERY fresh. But to us, the seasoning was too sparse. We both ordered the Fried Whitefish and the Fried shrimp, with fried okra and fries. I felt the need to smother my meal in hot sauce and salt and pepper. The breading on everything was very tasty and I appreciate the freshness of the okra. The fish pieces were quite large and shrimp was plentiful. I could not finish the food on my plate. The hush puppies were beautiful, but a bit dry and again, needing seasoning.
The price: Our meal, including drinks came to right at $ 30. Not bad considering the quality of the meal, but we still left with something to be desired. A little salt and pepper in your breading goes along way, and its almost impossible to season after the fact when it comes to fried goodies.
All in all, I do believe that we will return. We felt the meal was a good value and enjoyed the enviroment.

Though I only have one-​official-​Yelp check in, I have been eating at this restaurant for many years now. This is my favorite seafood place to dine in for lunch. My favorite lunch dish is the broiled lemon pepper fish with hot green beans and a baked potato; I could say this order in my sleep! Portion sizes are generous for the price and the food always comes out hot. If there is ever an error with the meal, they give you no grief to correct the order. Seating is spacious and staff are very friendly here.
Sea Island Shrimp House is never a let down for me, seeing I have been coming here for several years. I always recommend this place for someone looking to eat seafood at a reasonable price!

If you love seafood like I do. Then this is the spot for you. I got the fried oysters with a loaded bake potato and green beans. Everything was a. The fried oysters was fried perfectly, crispy but not chewy. The green beans was on a different level, the. If I ever come back to San Antonio I will hit this spot as soon as my plane lands.

Food was really good and great seasoning on the fry batter. Wish they could offer more grill options not just all fried. I had the seafood platter and it was really good. Would definitely go back and try something else.

One of our favorite spots for fast casual fried fish. My wife prefers the lemon pepper fish even though it takes 10 to 15 to cook fresh. If you avoid peak hours the experience is perfect. You place your orider at a counter then pick it up yourself. This means you don’t have to gamble on whether your wait staff is going to be a problem. Pricing is spot on with similar models. My only suggestion is a better selection for dessert.

One of my favorite places for seafood. Lemon pepper fish and charbroiled shrimp are delicious! Good veggies too.

Grilled Shrimp Kabobs!!! Oysters on the shell… cold Beer!!! Always a treat to eat here great lunch specials have yet to try the steak!!!

If you love seafood try this place! Lunch specials are a great deal. $ 6.99 for most lunch options. Hush puppies are really good.
Basically you order at the front find a table, they will call your # and then you go up to that front counter and pick up your food. Self service quick, but doesn’t lack on quality. Leave your tray they will come around and pick it up.

Five stars for a place that lets you take care of yourself, mostly. Yeah, you get your own tea or soft drink. Yes, you stand in line to order then go find a place to sit. Not 5 star stuff, right? Then they call your order and you have to go fetch it. Okay, now we’re talking 3 star at best… right??? Now you get to chow down on that tasty fried heavenliness. Oh wow… abso-​freakin-​lutely worth a couple of extra stars. I can’t wait for my next trip to San Antonio. I always go to Mi Tiera’s out of respect and now I shall visit Sea Island Shrimp House on each voyage.

Now in its 50^th year of celebrating quality seafood, Sea Island continues to meet the city’s need for simple and fresh bites of the ocean. Although this location is not the original, it’s been around long enough to garner many a faithful local, not to mention a full-​scale restaurant renovation and multiple extensions to its dining hall. All the while the building’s changed, employees’ amiability, efficiency, and overall reliability has not. Every staff member, especially the manager (s), — adamant about their customers’ positive dining experiences — goes out of their way to ensure a visit that’s nothing short of excellent.
Rating specifics (i.e. 1 – 5, low-​high)… Overall recommendation = 4; Food taste and quality = 4; Portion size = 4; Price = 4; Restaurant atmosphere = 4; General service = 3; Waitstaff amiability = 3; Location and/​or first impression = 4.

You’ll rarely see me turn down an opportunity for some succulent shrimp, so when we passed by this place I raised an eyebrow. The eyebrow raised for two reasons, the first was curiosity and the second was because it seemed strange to find a seafood restaurant in the heart of San Antonio Texas (so I knew that there’s no way the food could be fresh). I pressed on and embarked on the adventure and met the challenge after reading a few reviews from fellow Unilocalers.
I’ve never quite been to any place like this, but I imagine that restaurants like this are plentiful along the Gulf of Mexico and other coastal states. How does one describe Sea Island Shrimp house? Well its a mix between Joe’s Crab Shack and Boston Market. I made the mistake of entering and asking for a table for two. The hostess responded by offering me to look over a menu. I was puzzled and repeated my request for a table for two. After a few awkward seconds, she explained that you have to order your food from a cashier and when it is prepared, you can pick it up from the counter. So we scoured their menu. The food listings are short, but they manage to cover a wide variety of bases. Prices here are also very reasonable. We ordered shrimp and also fried oysters. Drinks are self-​serve fountain drinks. Guests seat themselves. Our food was good and my mom was excited for the fried oysters (since they are hard to come by in Upstate New York).
All in all, it wasn’t bad for a quick lunch on the go. It suited our needs perfectly. It is very informal and would be really good for kids also.

This is another place that’s just a sentimental fave. My dad always took us to sea island. If you like fried seafood, this is your place. That’s not to say they don’t grill/​broil as well. I do like their side selection… I’m a black beans and spinach chick, but they have a wide variety. Love the fish tacos and grilled shrimp diablo. It’s not the best seafood joint, but it is by far the most consistent and there’s something to be said for dependability. Always worth the go!

Can’t go wrong for fried seafood, the breading is crunchy and crispy. If your looking for seafood quick and good, Sea Island Shrimp House is worth stopping in for. This is not a restaurant with a wait staff waiting on you, it’s counter ordering.
Food ⁷⁄₁₀. Food Presentation ⁹⁄₁₀.