Honestly, the restaurant has very good food and a large variety of seafood to choose from. Their decor is also very nice with a seafood theme. One thing I do not like about this place is their price for their buckets of seafood. To me, you are not getting your money's worth for the price. I have eaten here a couple of times and gotten the buckets both times and always left feeling not satisfied. Now looking at the menu, I believe their other items are reasonable and are probably good. The staff here are very friendly, atmosphere is nice with many families eating here.
(4)
Lejla V.
We first ordered great balls of fire seafood spicy cheese bits for our appetizer and cheese bits tasted delicious perfect level of spice to it, French fries that came with it were slightly cold and on a softer side. Jeremy was our server and he was very friendly and quick I would give his level of service 5/5. We got joes classic Cajun steam-pot for two with french fries, potato, hush puppies and corn. Sides tasted okay fries were fresh this time around. Seafood was under-seasoned which resulted in our steamed potato to be very plain. The amount of seafood was good and it was cooked to perfection. I am giving this place a 4 out of five because of under seasoned steam pot which made everything else under seasoned. I will come back again and ask for more seasoned hot pot.
(4)
Brad D.
Food was great....when it finally arrived. Drinks took 15 minutes from order, food took almost an hour. When I made it clear I was unhappy server started staring me down and swearing under his breath at me as he walked past. Manager claimed the server told him he was having problems with our table, not us but with the bar and kitchen. Ok, so where was the manager to tell us about that before I had to complain? Manager said he was trying to think of something he could do for us, but as I told him its not about the money. We got good food, eventually, but HORRIBLE service. He was as bad as the server with his crappy leadership. We will go back...been there a few times before with no issues, and we enjoyed the food. But do not want to see that server or manager again.
(2)
Craig Z.
Overall I had a good visit. Our waiter was awesome and the food came out hot. I'm not a fan of all the peel and eat shrimp though. Even the appetizers are peel and eat. I had the Cajun basket which had two different types of crab. Neither were overly great, but were decent. If I stop by again I will try the king or berdai.
(3)
K W.
A little pricey but I really loved the food it was to die for also their drinks Armando delicious! A little pricey but it's well worth the trip if you want to eat seafood! You should probably go early it tastes a little better the earlier you get there I think!
(5)
Terri M.
Ugh I've given this place a try several times. And I'm done now. Their food is super mediocre. You might as well go to Red Lobster, it's much better for this kind of thing. I just don't taste anything great in their food. All taste like defrosted food I can easily (and better) cook from my home. 2 stars for service. We always get nice people, but sorry, I can't even be bothered to give stars for the boring food. Come on guys! It's seafood! Put some passion behind it. Food tastes like you defrosted and stuck it in a grill and the finished it off in a microwave. Not impressed. Sorry.
(2)
Charlie B.
Don't order the king crab. The crab had all these long and sharp spines on it that I kept stabbing myself with as I worked to break apart the rubbery shell. Once you got to the meat, the meat with hot seasoning was good. The side of corn / potatoes looked old / starting to expire. Overall not a good value. Re restaurant as a whole, service was average, atmosphere was ok. And the outside really needs a new paint job.
(2)
Michael G.
The drinks are fantastic! The amount of food shown on the menu is not what you get! Buyer beware look at the pic cut the amount of crab legs in half and that's what you can expect! Been eating here for a few years but if they keep cutting back on the amount I'm calling Joes Appetizer Shack! But I will honestly stop coming! There is always room here because of the cost verses product I will bet! Too bad the taste is good!
(2)
Eddie G.
Poor service, over cooked food, and the place looked terrible and messy. I had to give it a star, wish I could have given it a half. Never coming to this location again!
(1)
Michael G.
Third time will not be a charm. Me and my wife decided to try Joe's Crab Shack for the first time and left believing it was the last. It was a busy night and we waited an hour an a half. We were super stoked as we had been wanting to try Joe's Crab Shack for a long time. The decor was decent and fun. The play area for kids was a bit odd but not to over the top. The server was nice. We decided to get steampots. I ordered the classic and my wife ordered the snow crab. We also ordered the apetizer sampler. The apetizer came and was pretty good. The crab dip was tasty. Our steam pots came out and we got really excited. I took the lid off and peered in. There were two clusters of the tiniest crab legs I had ever seen on top of a little green plastic net at the very bottom of the pot. I pulled them out and recognized my snow and queen crab. As I began cracking I noticed the outside of the legs were caked with salt. After a few bites my lips and fingers were burning. I moved onto the pound of boiled shrimp. After peeling I noticed the vein had not been removed. Since the shrimp were cooked with the vein inside it had broke making it impossible to remove the excrement which had seeped into the meat giving a fowl and bitter flavor...damn. The piece of corn was dry and covered with the same seasoning as the crab...all salt. The potatos were drenched with butter but tasted fine. The sausage was decent. Wife had a lot of the same issue. I have never been to a restraunt where I was served shrimp with the mud vein intact and steamed crab covered with salt. I had to stop drinking beer less I dehydrate myself and feel sick. Very disappointing. We tried again when family had decided to go. We ordered all breaded fried food to be safe. Very mediocre like a low class Red Lobster. Pity a place with crab in its name didn't have good crab.
(1)
Teresa ..
My S/O each ordered a fried platter (mine: fish and fried clams, and his: fried shrimp and fried calamari). Both come with fries. The food is honestly okay, and the service was alright as well. For two fried platters, we got one cup of marinara sauce, one cup of tartar sauce, and one cole slaw. They're stingy and don't give enough of anything. The menu said that each fried platter came with cole slaw and fries (yet they manage to package the fries separately, but the cole slaw is all in one container). What if I wasn't sharing? (And same goes with the sauce). Also the lemon wedges they provide with these huge platters are super tiny, so even after squeezing the miniscule lemon over my seafood, I still didn't taste it. It's nice that they give big portions of seafood, but at least give big portions for sauce and lemons to make it equivalent to the large portions of seafood you do give for the fried platters.
(3)
Joanna B.
It is a good place to eat. It is ok but not that excellent. Not bad place to have a good meal. Serving size is a lot for $13.75 meal. An average place to spend time with family and/or friends! Servers are very friendly. Spoiled with soda refills! Lol!
It was a disappointing experience. The crab was bland.the shrimp was tasteless. They were somehow able to even mess up the hush puppies.they were like rubber. Overall I would never go to this location again. I have been to 5 other locations and this is the only one that was I found to be awful.
(1)
Jennifer J.
My food looked absolutely nothing like the picture. Was very disappointed . Shrimp boil was what I had ordered. If I wanted cheap shrimp I would have just gone to walmart and paid half the price.
(2)
Marvic R.
If you're looking for a good seafood fix, this is not the place to go. Service is horrible as well. If you want that authentic flavorful seafood you will just be disappointed. You'll be better off off with buying a frozen tilapia, frozen shrimp and cook it yourself coz the odds of you screwing it is 10%, really. I'm lucky to have relatives in SF that we can go to indulge ourselves with real seafood. They know when you take us and they also have a branch there as well but my cousin said that they've never tried it there since they've been to the best in town. After telling them our experience with this place, they knew that they're not missing anything. We only have 2 place that we always go to in SF and we will never change our mind on that. We had their clam chowder and it was a joke. It was the first thing that was served but it was cold and too salty. The husband was so upset that if he just bought some clam chowder from a can, he wouldn't have much expectation, COZ IT FROM A CAN. But when you advertise it as it was actually cook then make an effort to heat it in a microwave. The seasoning for the seafood that I got was disgusting. I lived in a tropical island that knowing this kind of seasoning existed in this part of the country is beyond me. The only thing that was good on our plate was the corn. Iowa are known for having a good sweet corn and even this place can't take a credit for it. When we went to this place it was not even busy but for some reason the lady that's assign to our table never did refill our water and it took them a long time to cook our food. We will never come back to this place. It's funny how this place is always crowded every time we pass by. Maybe some of them don't know what they'll be getting or some don't have the sense of taste at all.
(1)
Sean W.
Usually swing by Joes for a seafood fix when near the Mall. Nice to sit outside on the tables near the water (watch out for windy days and the fountains). Lil outdoor playground for kids too to keep them occupied before/after eating (can be a distraction, or a 'barter tool' to eat though). Can be pricey for a family or large group. Sometimes I just get a entree and get extra side of crab legs and share. Or share on of the big 'bake buckets'. The seasoning on the shrimp is awesome too.
(3)
Donald Y.
Decent food but not worth the money, especially the boil pots. $20 plus for a pot of potatoes, a few crab legs, a stub of corn, and three or four peel and eat shrimp is pretty ridiculous. The service here is pretty iffy too. The last time we were there it took the waiter over 10 minutes to realize we were in his section. Another 10 minutes we finally got our beers we ordered. Put an order of crab nachos in (which were delicious) and I told the server we wanted to wait to place the dinner order because way too many times the dinner comes out when you are still eating the app. He insisted on taking the order and promised he would hold on putting the dinner order in. Fine. We ordered dinner. A few minutes later we got our crab nachos with no silverware and of course the waiter is nowhere to be found. But what was to be found was our dinner, which was brought out around three minutes after we got the app. That waiter pretty much dropped it off and took off before letting us even request silverware. Our waiter was still MIA until after we were covered elbow deep in mess because we never got silverware. At which time he dropped the bill off and said "oops, I forgot your silverware didn't I" A little too late now isn't it? He did recognize that the dinner came out too quickly and he tried to make it up to us with free dessert but after the hassle I wasn't in the mood much for it. There is some decent food on the menu, but when you factor in the prices and the lack of good service and it's really not worth it.
(2)
Adam M.
Terrible service here on two separate visits. Once they skipped a couple ahead of us in line because they didn't hear the pager go off in Barnes and Nobles. The second time our food took so long to cook and came out wrong. Avoid this place.
(1)
April C.
We stumbled on this using yelp, lol. I thought it was a nice atmospere. There was a play area for little kids. That was nice for my 7yr old. We set outside, It was a beautiful view. We ordered the food, came relatively quickly and they were pretty busy at the time. Very friendly waitress, they even sung a girl H/B. The food was delish, I can't think of a complaint besides there could have been more for the price. Was a bit pricey, but most sea food is. Very family friendly, Will def go back.
(4)
David W.
Just difficult to get good seafood in Iowa. They tried.
(3)
Tara W.
Excellent for kids. Not bad. REALLY loud.
(3)
Ashlee L.
It is Friday night and this place is dead. Service is slow and every time someone else comes to our table. Food took 40 minutes, it was warm but fish was mushy.
(3)
Erica H.
I think the food is on par with Red Lobster, maybe even a little more casual. It's just missing the amazing, cardiac inducing Cheddar Bay Biscuits. In other words, it's just ok. I guess you can't expect too much from a chain seafood place thousands of miles from any ocean. My problem with Joe's Crab Shack is that it seems to be in the middle of an identity crisis. I'm sorry, but you can't sell t-shirts with the none-too-subtle "I got crabs at Joe's" catchphrase, and then have a kiddie playland a la McDonalds in the back. It just doesn't work. They have some good drinks/beers on tap, but no happy hour specials, and when a friend ordered a pitcher (we were going to be there for a couple of hours), he was told you had to split it between two people. Are they a fun, quirky adult destination, or a family-friendly one? Make up your mind, Joe's. And seriously, no restaurant should force their underpaid waitstaff to perform "choreographed" line dances every 45 minutes. It was just sad.
(2)
Kit W.
This is located in the middle of the US, so I can't be too harsh in terms of quality. This place had amazing flavor, the food was fantastic, but it is definately very very pricey.
(4)
Kayla H.
I've been to numerous Joe's but this one was very disappointing for starters we hardly saw are server and the place wasn't even packed and she had a major attitude. I ordered a steam pot and hardly got any crab I was pissed next time I'm in the area I will not return
(2)
Dorothy H.
Love the fish and shrimp. The garlic muscles are a must try.
(4)
Mike O.
We eat here just about every time we are in West Des Moines. The food is priced comparatively to their competition Red Lobster. Unlike RL, this place is made to be fun with a more relaxed family atmosphere. It delivers. We have only ever had one issue with this place just this last Monday when the cook got my order wrong. Unlike most restaurants, the Manager actually approached me to make sure everything was ok and took care of the mistake. So for that, this place is still at the top of my dining list. I have eaten at a lot of different Joes Crab Shacks, and this one is by far the best in terms of cleanliness and service. Keep up the good work!
(4)
Tom C.
AWEFUL service but the food was OK, but not great. EXPENSIVE drinks but they were good. When we commented about how long it took to get the food and that our salad had just been delivered about a minute before our meals, the server just asked if she could get us anything else. Many servers, but nobody seemed interested in serving. This quick, simple meal took almost 2 HOURS! When the waitress brought the bill and asked if everything was OK and no one said anything (since our comments earlier had gone ignored) she said "good, that's what I like to hear"??? We had a good laugh. Cool atmosphere, but not worth the money and lousy service.
(1)
Kat H.
Ate outside- great patio and view. Waitresses were friendly and cool (thanks maria!). Got crawfish and some pomberry sangrias. The crawfish was spicy boiled- was a bit dry but still good for its price 5.40/lb. Sangria was really good and came in take home mason jars.
(4)
Robert M.
Tuna fish used in crab dip, that's what it tasted like! Had the crab cakes and couldn't eat them they were so bad - how do you screw up crab cakes? Rest of party had fried shrimp meal, they use the same frozen breaded shrimp Denny's uses - and it was expensive too! My meal, in which I could only eat the salad and french fries cost $18. I was entertaining business people so I didn't make a big deal out of it, but they never checked back to ask how the meal was. I guess the rule is don't eat seafood in Iowa, somehow I knew this but was hungry for crab. Even canned crab tastes better than what was served - Crap Shack is a better name for this horrible eatery.
(1)
Brandi M.
I happened to be in Des Moines on business. I had a taste for crab legs. I had eaten all the steak I could take that week! I pulled in my parking space and got out -- Tornado Sirens commenced. WTH?!?! LOL I ordered my steampot - It was good and hot like it should be. Lisa my server kept me calm with constant weather updates. Yes its a chain, but the service I had was great! I'll be back at this Joe's if I'm ever called to West Des Moines again!
(4)
L A.
We miss the catfish that some Joe's have. Food was good and people friendly and quick.
(3)
Tyler R.
This was the most overpriced bad food i have ever eaten. The whole place was filthy, even the walls. The waitress was annoying and nothing we ate would even qualify as average and I am not even close to picky
(1)
Lim K.
It has been awhile since we dined at Joe's Crab Shack. Honestly I have never been a fan of this restaurant. Only reason we wanted to eat there was to sit outside for the view. After a movie we decided to go to Joe's and ordered one of their steamed buckets; two lobsters, clams, shrimp, sausage, red potatoes and a corn on the cob. To my surprise, the lobsters were very good. The corn on the cob was sweet and fresh, not one of those old overcooked served in other restaurants. However, they gave us only one to share. The shrimp was over cooked and had no taste. The rest of the food was good. The service was excellent. I might have to go back for more lobster sometime.
(4)
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Address :130 S Jordan Creek Pkwy
West Des Moines, IA, 50266
Sorry, Store hours have not been updated. If you are the owner of this restaurants. Please update the store hours.
Specialities
Takes Reservations : Yes Delivery : No Take-out : Yes Accepts Credit Cards : Yes Good For : Lunch, Dinner Parking : Private Lot Bike Parking : No Wheelchair Accessible : Yes Good for Kids : Yes Good for Groups : Yes Attire : Casual Ambience : Casual Noise Level : Average Alcohol : Full Bar Outdoor Seating : Yes Wi-Fi : No Has TV : Yes Waiter Service : Yes Caters : No
Bill L.
Honestly, the restaurant has very good food and a large variety of seafood to choose from. Their decor is also very nice with a seafood theme. One thing I do not like about this place is their price for their buckets of seafood. To me, you are not getting your money's worth for the price. I have eaten here a couple of times and gotten the buckets both times and always left feeling not satisfied. Now looking at the menu, I believe their other items are reasonable and are probably good. The staff here are very friendly, atmosphere is nice with many families eating here.
(4)Lejla V.
We first ordered great balls of fire seafood spicy cheese bits for our appetizer and cheese bits tasted delicious perfect level of spice to it, French fries that came with it were slightly cold and on a softer side. Jeremy was our server and he was very friendly and quick I would give his level of service 5/5. We got joes classic Cajun steam-pot for two with french fries, potato, hush puppies and corn. Sides tasted okay fries were fresh this time around. Seafood was under-seasoned which resulted in our steamed potato to be very plain. The amount of seafood was good and it was cooked to perfection. I am giving this place a 4 out of five because of under seasoned steam pot which made everything else under seasoned. I will come back again and ask for more seasoned hot pot.
(4)Brad D.
Food was great....when it finally arrived. Drinks took 15 minutes from order, food took almost an hour. When I made it clear I was unhappy server started staring me down and swearing under his breath at me as he walked past. Manager claimed the server told him he was having problems with our table, not us but with the bar and kitchen. Ok, so where was the manager to tell us about that before I had to complain? Manager said he was trying to think of something he could do for us, but as I told him its not about the money. We got good food, eventually, but HORRIBLE service. He was as bad as the server with his crappy leadership. We will go back...been there a few times before with no issues, and we enjoyed the food. But do not want to see that server or manager again.
(2)Craig Z.
Overall I had a good visit. Our waiter was awesome and the food came out hot. I'm not a fan of all the peel and eat shrimp though. Even the appetizers are peel and eat. I had the Cajun basket which had two different types of crab. Neither were overly great, but were decent. If I stop by again I will try the king or berdai.
(3)K W.
A little pricey but I really loved the food it was to die for also their drinks Armando delicious! A little pricey but it's well worth the trip if you want to eat seafood! You should probably go early it tastes a little better the earlier you get there I think!
(5)Terri M.
Ugh I've given this place a try several times. And I'm done now. Their food is super mediocre. You might as well go to Red Lobster, it's much better for this kind of thing. I just don't taste anything great in their food. All taste like defrosted food I can easily (and better) cook from my home. 2 stars for service. We always get nice people, but sorry, I can't even be bothered to give stars for the boring food. Come on guys! It's seafood! Put some passion behind it. Food tastes like you defrosted and stuck it in a grill and the finished it off in a microwave. Not impressed. Sorry.
(2)Charlie B.
Don't order the king crab. The crab had all these long and sharp spines on it that I kept stabbing myself with as I worked to break apart the rubbery shell. Once you got to the meat, the meat with hot seasoning was good. The side of corn / potatoes looked old / starting to expire. Overall not a good value. Re restaurant as a whole, service was average, atmosphere was ok. And the outside really needs a new paint job.
(2)Michael G.
The drinks are fantastic! The amount of food shown on the menu is not what you get! Buyer beware look at the pic cut the amount of crab legs in half and that's what you can expect! Been eating here for a few years but if they keep cutting back on the amount I'm calling Joes Appetizer Shack! But I will honestly stop coming! There is always room here because of the cost verses product I will bet! Too bad the taste is good!
(2)Eddie G.
Poor service, over cooked food, and the place looked terrible and messy. I had to give it a star, wish I could have given it a half. Never coming to this location again!
(1)Michael G.
Third time will not be a charm. Me and my wife decided to try Joe's Crab Shack for the first time and left believing it was the last. It was a busy night and we waited an hour an a half. We were super stoked as we had been wanting to try Joe's Crab Shack for a long time. The decor was decent and fun. The play area for kids was a bit odd but not to over the top. The server was nice. We decided to get steampots. I ordered the classic and my wife ordered the snow crab. We also ordered the apetizer sampler. The apetizer came and was pretty good. The crab dip was tasty. Our steam pots came out and we got really excited. I took the lid off and peered in. There were two clusters of the tiniest crab legs I had ever seen on top of a little green plastic net at the very bottom of the pot. I pulled them out and recognized my snow and queen crab. As I began cracking I noticed the outside of the legs were caked with salt. After a few bites my lips and fingers were burning. I moved onto the pound of boiled shrimp. After peeling I noticed the vein had not been removed. Since the shrimp were cooked with the vein inside it had broke making it impossible to remove the excrement which had seeped into the meat giving a fowl and bitter flavor...damn. The piece of corn was dry and covered with the same seasoning as the crab...all salt. The potatos were drenched with butter but tasted fine. The sausage was decent. Wife had a lot of the same issue. I have never been to a restraunt where I was served shrimp with the mud vein intact and steamed crab covered with salt. I had to stop drinking beer less I dehydrate myself and feel sick. Very disappointing. We tried again when family had decided to go. We ordered all breaded fried food to be safe. Very mediocre like a low class Red Lobster. Pity a place with crab in its name didn't have good crab.
(1)Teresa ..
My S/O each ordered a fried platter (mine: fish and fried clams, and his: fried shrimp and fried calamari). Both come with fries. The food is honestly okay, and the service was alright as well. For two fried platters, we got one cup of marinara sauce, one cup of tartar sauce, and one cole slaw. They're stingy and don't give enough of anything. The menu said that each fried platter came with cole slaw and fries (yet they manage to package the fries separately, but the cole slaw is all in one container). What if I wasn't sharing? (And same goes with the sauce). Also the lemon wedges they provide with these huge platters are super tiny, so even after squeezing the miniscule lemon over my seafood, I still didn't taste it. It's nice that they give big portions of seafood, but at least give big portions for sauce and lemons to make it equivalent to the large portions of seafood you do give for the fried platters.
(3)Joanna B.
It is a good place to eat. It is ok but not that excellent. Not bad place to have a good meal. Serving size is a lot for $13.75 meal. An average place to spend time with family and/or friends! Servers are very friendly. Spoiled with soda refills! Lol!
(3)Patrick C.
My fiancé and I went on a Friday night. It only took about 20 minutes to get a table. Our waitress was very nice and helpful since it was our first time. The food was decent for deep fried shrimp. Everything was going well until my fiancé had a large hair deep fried right into her shrimp. At that point we both stopped eating. I know things happen but it just really ruins your appetite. The waitress took her plate immediately and asked if she wanted anything else. The waitress/manager was very disappointed and felt terrible. She then brought key lime pie which was very good. She also did not charge us for the dinner. The hair was disappointing but the service was good. I'm sure we will give it another try but probably not for a while.
(2)Rog H.
It was a disappointing experience. The crab was bland.the shrimp was tasteless. They were somehow able to even mess up the hush puppies.they were like rubber. Overall I would never go to this location again. I have been to 5 other locations and this is the only one that was I found to be awful.
(1)Jennifer J.
My food looked absolutely nothing like the picture. Was very disappointed . Shrimp boil was what I had ordered. If I wanted cheap shrimp I would have just gone to walmart and paid half the price.
(2)Marvic R.
If you're looking for a good seafood fix, this is not the place to go. Service is horrible as well. If you want that authentic flavorful seafood you will just be disappointed. You'll be better off off with buying a frozen tilapia, frozen shrimp and cook it yourself coz the odds of you screwing it is 10%, really. I'm lucky to have relatives in SF that we can go to indulge ourselves with real seafood. They know when you take us and they also have a branch there as well but my cousin said that they've never tried it there since they've been to the best in town. After telling them our experience with this place, they knew that they're not missing anything. We only have 2 place that we always go to in SF and we will never change our mind on that. We had their clam chowder and it was a joke. It was the first thing that was served but it was cold and too salty. The husband was so upset that if he just bought some clam chowder from a can, he wouldn't have much expectation, COZ IT FROM A CAN. But when you advertise it as it was actually cook then make an effort to heat it in a microwave. The seasoning for the seafood that I got was disgusting. I lived in a tropical island that knowing this kind of seasoning existed in this part of the country is beyond me. The only thing that was good on our plate was the corn. Iowa are known for having a good sweet corn and even this place can't take a credit for it. When we went to this place it was not even busy but for some reason the lady that's assign to our table never did refill our water and it took them a long time to cook our food. We will never come back to this place. It's funny how this place is always crowded every time we pass by. Maybe some of them don't know what they'll be getting or some don't have the sense of taste at all.
(1)Sean W.
Usually swing by Joes for a seafood fix when near the Mall. Nice to sit outside on the tables near the water (watch out for windy days and the fountains). Lil outdoor playground for kids too to keep them occupied before/after eating (can be a distraction, or a 'barter tool' to eat though). Can be pricey for a family or large group. Sometimes I just get a entree and get extra side of crab legs and share. Or share on of the big 'bake buckets'. The seasoning on the shrimp is awesome too.
(3)Donald Y.
Decent food but not worth the money, especially the boil pots. $20 plus for a pot of potatoes, a few crab legs, a stub of corn, and three or four peel and eat shrimp is pretty ridiculous. The service here is pretty iffy too. The last time we were there it took the waiter over 10 minutes to realize we were in his section. Another 10 minutes we finally got our beers we ordered. Put an order of crab nachos in (which were delicious) and I told the server we wanted to wait to place the dinner order because way too many times the dinner comes out when you are still eating the app. He insisted on taking the order and promised he would hold on putting the dinner order in. Fine. We ordered dinner. A few minutes later we got our crab nachos with no silverware and of course the waiter is nowhere to be found. But what was to be found was our dinner, which was brought out around three minutes after we got the app. That waiter pretty much dropped it off and took off before letting us even request silverware. Our waiter was still MIA until after we were covered elbow deep in mess because we never got silverware. At which time he dropped the bill off and said "oops, I forgot your silverware didn't I" A little too late now isn't it? He did recognize that the dinner came out too quickly and he tried to make it up to us with free dessert but after the hassle I wasn't in the mood much for it. There is some decent food on the menu, but when you factor in the prices and the lack of good service and it's really not worth it.
(2)Adam M.
Terrible service here on two separate visits. Once they skipped a couple ahead of us in line because they didn't hear the pager go off in Barnes and Nobles. The second time our food took so long to cook and came out wrong. Avoid this place.
(1)April C.
We stumbled on this using yelp, lol. I thought it was a nice atmospere. There was a play area for little kids. That was nice for my 7yr old. We set outside, It was a beautiful view. We ordered the food, came relatively quickly and they were pretty busy at the time. Very friendly waitress, they even sung a girl H/B. The food was delish, I can't think of a complaint besides there could have been more for the price. Was a bit pricey, but most sea food is. Very family friendly, Will def go back.
(4)David W.
Just difficult to get good seafood in Iowa. They tried.
(3)Tara W.
Excellent for kids. Not bad. REALLY loud.
(3)Ashlee L.
It is Friday night and this place is dead. Service is slow and every time someone else comes to our table. Food took 40 minutes, it was warm but fish was mushy.
(3)Erica H.
I think the food is on par with Red Lobster, maybe even a little more casual. It's just missing the amazing, cardiac inducing Cheddar Bay Biscuits. In other words, it's just ok. I guess you can't expect too much from a chain seafood place thousands of miles from any ocean. My problem with Joe's Crab Shack is that it seems to be in the middle of an identity crisis. I'm sorry, but you can't sell t-shirts with the none-too-subtle "I got crabs at Joe's" catchphrase, and then have a kiddie playland a la McDonalds in the back. It just doesn't work. They have some good drinks/beers on tap, but no happy hour specials, and when a friend ordered a pitcher (we were going to be there for a couple of hours), he was told you had to split it between two people. Are they a fun, quirky adult destination, or a family-friendly one? Make up your mind, Joe's. And seriously, no restaurant should force their underpaid waitstaff to perform "choreographed" line dances every 45 minutes. It was just sad.
(2)Kit W.
This is located in the middle of the US, so I can't be too harsh in terms of quality. This place had amazing flavor, the food was fantastic, but it is definately very very pricey.
(4)Kayla H.
I've been to numerous Joe's but this one was very disappointing for starters we hardly saw are server and the place wasn't even packed and she had a major attitude. I ordered a steam pot and hardly got any crab I was pissed next time I'm in the area I will not return
(2)Dorothy H.
Love the fish and shrimp. The garlic muscles are a must try.
(4)Mike O.
We eat here just about every time we are in West Des Moines. The food is priced comparatively to their competition Red Lobster. Unlike RL, this place is made to be fun with a more relaxed family atmosphere. It delivers. We have only ever had one issue with this place just this last Monday when the cook got my order wrong. Unlike most restaurants, the Manager actually approached me to make sure everything was ok and took care of the mistake. So for that, this place is still at the top of my dining list. I have eaten at a lot of different Joes Crab Shacks, and this one is by far the best in terms of cleanliness and service. Keep up the good work!
(4)Tom C.
AWEFUL service but the food was OK, but not great. EXPENSIVE drinks but they were good. When we commented about how long it took to get the food and that our salad had just been delivered about a minute before our meals, the server just asked if she could get us anything else. Many servers, but nobody seemed interested in serving. This quick, simple meal took almost 2 HOURS! When the waitress brought the bill and asked if everything was OK and no one said anything (since our comments earlier had gone ignored) she said "good, that's what I like to hear"??? We had a good laugh. Cool atmosphere, but not worth the money and lousy service.
(1)Kat H.
Ate outside- great patio and view. Waitresses were friendly and cool (thanks maria!). Got crawfish and some pomberry sangrias. The crawfish was spicy boiled- was a bit dry but still good for its price 5.40/lb. Sangria was really good and came in take home mason jars.
(4)Robert M.
Tuna fish used in crab dip, that's what it tasted like! Had the crab cakes and couldn't eat them they were so bad - how do you screw up crab cakes? Rest of party had fried shrimp meal, they use the same frozen breaded shrimp Denny's uses - and it was expensive too! My meal, in which I could only eat the salad and french fries cost $18. I was entertaining business people so I didn't make a big deal out of it, but they never checked back to ask how the meal was. I guess the rule is don't eat seafood in Iowa, somehow I knew this but was hungry for crab. Even canned crab tastes better than what was served - Crap Shack is a better name for this horrible eatery.
(1)Brandi M.
I happened to be in Des Moines on business. I had a taste for crab legs. I had eaten all the steak I could take that week! I pulled in my parking space and got out -- Tornado Sirens commenced. WTH?!?! LOL I ordered my steampot - It was good and hot like it should be. Lisa my server kept me calm with constant weather updates. Yes its a chain, but the service I had was great! I'll be back at this Joe's if I'm ever called to West Des Moines again!
(4)L A.
We miss the catfish that some Joe's have. Food was good and people friendly and quick.
(3)Tyler R.
This was the most overpriced bad food i have ever eaten. The whole place was filthy, even the walls. The waitress was annoying and nothing we ate would even qualify as average and I am not even close to picky
(1)Lim K.
It has been awhile since we dined at Joe's Crab Shack. Honestly I have never been a fan of this restaurant. Only reason we wanted to eat there was to sit outside for the view. After a movie we decided to go to Joe's and ordered one of their steamed buckets; two lobsters, clams, shrimp, sausage, red potatoes and a corn on the cob. To my surprise, the lobsters were very good. The corn on the cob was sweet and fresh, not one of those old overcooked served in other restaurants. However, they gave us only one to share. The shrimp was over cooked and had no taste. The rest of the food was good. The service was excellent. I might have to go back for more lobster sometime.
(4)