4. Restaurants

Captain Mas Crab House

46303 McClellan Way, Sterling, VA, 20165
  • (703) 444-5400
  • Store is closed

Captain Mas Crab House Menu

Sorry, We are updating this restaurant menu details.

  • Skylar B.

    Friendly and kind helpful staff easily able to accommodate our party of 22 for a last minute reservation for a corporate dinner. The owner was so kind and caring. Our server was attentive and working as hard as he could to make sure we were all happy and comfortable. Gator tots, hush puppies and surprisingly fresh edamame all nice group appetizers. We didn't take to the fried oysters too much. The homemade chips they bring to each table were cooked and seasoned to perfection bringing nice balance between flavor a. Scallops, crab cakes, shrimp and grits were some of the favorite entrees. More crab then cake crab cakes that everyone agreed were worth any wait. Overall a nice experience, no wait, large group, everyone went home happy and fed. Don't judge this place by the parking lot.

    (5)

  • Megan C.

    Though the raggedy parking lot and obviously-a-former-Ruby-Tuesday don't give the best first impressions, Captain Mas is the epitome of a family dream of owning a restaurant and putting all you've got into it, and maybe needing some (gentle) help from a (kinder) Restaurant Impossible. What the restaurant lacks in soul, compelling menu options, and preparedness for large parties, it makes up for in genuine effort to please, fair prices, and a few standout items. Don't order the fried oysters, just don't. They were very "off" and tasted far too much of the watery depths from which they came to be worth eating. Do order the "gator tots" if not just for the kitsch value to say you ate you some gator, but also because they're tasty little fried bits. The hush puppies are a decent effort, but wouldn't pass muster with hush puppy aficionados (do those exist?). Creamy clam chowder was well-received. Entrees are plentiful in choice but generally lacking in execution in terms of flavor. The catfish/mahi tacos were not well-received, nor was the swordfish. The standouts to order are the shrimp and grits, diver scallops, steak (yes), and everyone's favorite - the crab cakes. This consisted of two (!) 5 oz all-crab cakes with NO filler and just a gentle baste of lemon from their pan seared goodness. Well worth it. Presentation, aesthetically, of all entrees, was well-executed. Sides - take em or leave em. Fries tasted like they went straight from the freezer into the fryer, and "chef's vegetables" consisted of Stouffer's-like frozen veggies dumped in butter. Folks seemed to enjoy the buttery mashed potatoes, though. So - accommodating to large groups, but sad to see such a large restaurant so empty at dinner time, and know the owner (Captain Mas himself?) is doing his best, onsite, to keep people happy. A crab house should have crab offerings - and the crab cakes were great. Avoid the oysters, tacos, and stick with crab, shrimp, and scallops. Hopeful the Captain can fill more seats and focus on the seafood he does best.

    (3)

  • The I.

    Service : 5 Food : 5 Visiting from Vancouver for a soccer tournament and found this place. Well worth it. We had the all u can eat King crab. Great customer service and great food. The staff are very genuine and friendly. Made us feel right at home. Well deserving of 5 stars.

    (5)

  • Shawn F.

    The seafood was quite good. I had the crabcakes and they were great. However, the fries and mixed vegatables were bland. In fact, they tasted like they came from the grocery store freezer section. For the prices they charge, that's ridiculous. Also, the service was slow on both my visits. The parking lot is always empty, and after coming here twice I'm pretty sure I know why. I don't expect them to be around much longer.

    (2)

  • Andrew S.

    Great food, service and prices!!! Got to try the crab cake burger, crab quesadilla and buffalo chicken wings. So good! Many big televisions for games too.

    (5)

  • Jeff P.

    We have been driving by this restaurant for a year and a half and not tried it. Not because we don't like crab, because the parking lot is not very crowded. The crab cake burger was huge and fresh. The crab legs were also fresh and delicious. The service was attentive however they said because the food is prepared fresh it takes longer, dont be in a hurry. We are definitely returning again.

    (5)

  • Mak ..

    Great food and excellent service!! I'm from Savannah, Georgia and this place reminds me of some of my favorite spots at home!

    (5)

  • Alys M.

    This is the fourth or fifth time we have been to Captain Mas and each time has been excellent. We usually order the all you can eat crab legs. They steam the crab legs fresh for every round you order, they don't just sit under lights. The owners are on site, which is rare these days. The employees appear happy, another good sign. Chris and Jason are great bartenders and will take good care of you. They are always willing to go the extra mile to make sure everything is great . And if it is not, tell them and they will fix it for sure. Great place, kind of hidden in cascades but it is totally worth seeking out.

    (5)

  • Katherine L.

    If I could give lower than one star, I would. No hello, no greeting from what I assume was the owner or manager. Some old guy greeted us. Anyway, only one server working with a HUGE and extremely loud party. Sat at the table for 15 minutes with no acknowledgement either. When we told the assumed owner that we still hadn't seen a server, he whips out some paper and says, 'Ok, what do you want?'. Rude, much? When we left, the manager got in my father's face, apparently trying to get even for us leaving. Keep in mind, we hadn't even had a chance to order a glass of water. My father is not a small man. The owner, or whatever, is not young. But apparently he is stupid. Excellent customer service and professionalism, sir. I only gave you one star because Yelp won't let me NOT rate you. And maybe I'll just let everyone know about how you treat your customers.

    (1)

  • Nic B.

    This was my first and last dining experience at this restaurant. We ordered the crab quesadillas which tasted more like tuna fish rather than crab and were overcooked. I ordered the fried shrimp platter that came out completely burnt and they had the audacity to serve it (wish I would have taken a pic!) Our server tried to explain that it was only the batter than was "slightly overcooked" but the shrimp would not be. Ahh you can take this back! The owner did come out w/ new shrimp but did not apologize for the food being burnt or did he introduce himself as the owner, we were informed by the server of who he was. Needless to say the shrimp is not fresh but frozen at a "seafood" restaurant for $21. Judging from some of the pics posted here at one time they did serve fresh fried shrimp but that probably has changed. We did not fuss or fight, we paid our bill and left a tip knowing two things; 1. we would not be returning and 2. knowing exactly why this restaurant is struggling. Shame on you Captain Mas Crab House!

    (1)

  • Allen B.

    We finally decided to give it a try, as the parking lot is usually almost empty. The restaurant was only 1/3 full or less. They had a confusing time setting up a table for six. There was a large party that took up every waiter even though the chef could only produce 2 plates at a time. I was ready to leave after sitting for an hour, but wife didn't support the move. It took so long to get food and a drink refil I decided to change my order of all you can eat to just a regular order. It took three requests to finally correct my daughters order. I talked to the manager about how they could possibly be any worse at service with the restaurant being 2/3 empty. He just tried to give an excuse that not all customers come in at once to fill the restaurant and the large party already there, took priority. Food was average, but way over-priced. Captain Mas, hurry up and finally go out of business, we need a new restaurant. My family will never go there again.. Even if it was the last seafood on earth!

    (1)

  • Heather C.

    We visited Captain Mas this eventing and had a great meal. Staff was friendly and the food was great. Price for all you can eat is a little high however it was hot and tasted great. That is the reason for 4 stars instead of 5.

    (4)

  • Stella H.

    Great place for Maryland blue crabs! Their seafood is great too, we ordered the blackened catfish, which was a generous and flavorful portion! Customer service is wonderful, the owner is frequently there and enjoys chatting with the guests. We will definitely be back!

    (5)

  • Kim M.

    Very tasty fish tacos and crab sandwich. Ok the crab and fish is frozen but the chips, slaw and other sides are fresh made here. Sunday night was fun an older crowd and karioke.

    (4)

  • Karen W.

    Terrible experience. First of all they got the reservation wrong. Then after waiting over an hour for our meal, when we inquired of the manager what the ETA of our food wad, he was snotty, rude, un professional. We paid for our drinks and left. Will not be returning.

    (1)

  • Hanada H.

    Bomb.com !! Great food, people and atmosphere. Visit Captain Mas every time I'm in town.

    (5)

  • Brian K.

    This place ruined Father's Day. We wanted to go to our normal crab spot-- Captain Pells, but they had a 2 hour wait so after looking online I saw that Mas had a fathers day special on snow crab legs and blue crabs. When we got there we were seated right away after placing a reservation on open table en route. That's where things went bad. They said they were out of snow crab legs and dinner time just started. So instead we got a dozen large blue crabs for $70. While we waited we had fried oysters and calamari which were great. But that was the only glimmer of hope. When the crabs arrived the entire dozen were hollow-- light, empty, no meat. Just by lifting them. They weren't worth it for free let alone $70. Thankfully the owner took it off the bill and we left for joes crab shak. Also while sitting next to the bar, noticed that coke was being poured from liter bottles that were kept out open and not refrigerated. In the words of Taylor swift, we are never ever ever getting back together with mas. A wasted and ruined Father's Day.

    (1)

  • Darice C.

    Great customer service but seafood wasn't worth the price. Very pricey and crab legs weren't fresh.

    (2)

  • Kevin S.

    My friends and went there last week to watch some preseason football. Food was amazing. The chef even came out to introduce himself. Drinks are very reasonably priced and a great value. We had such a great time that I am taking my wife there tonight for her birthday. Definitely recommend.

    (5)

  • Paul T.

    Great food and great service. The X-Large or Jumbo are the way to go! The owner and all the wait staff are awesome, and they have a great bar. After 9 on the weekends, they have live music. Always look forward to a great time at Captain Mas!

    (5)

  • Betty L.

    First time to Captain Mas and the last time I will go. Great hush puppies! We waited 1 hour for blue crabs that arrived in a small tin pan. I would hate to see how long it would take to get the next batch of crabs. After opening two crabs that had a horrible ammonia smell I had the waiter smell them and he agreed something was not right. Myself and my daughter have eaten crabs all our lives and know that odor means the crabs were dead when they were cooked. The manager argued they only cooked the living crabs. He offered to bring more but I know dead crabs can make you really sick so we decided to order snow crabs. They ran out of tea, ran out of glasses and resorted to plastic. We waited another half hour and gave up on dinner. The owner presented us with a check for the crabs we did not eat. My daughter argued that point and he revised the bill. Nice building, nice people, slow service and bad blue crabs. Never again.

    (1)

  • Stephanie C.

    I wouldn't recommend going on a holiday or weekend. My family went here for Father's Day and as much as I would have like to eat what I ordered we never got our food. We ordered a hamburger, Diver plate and the mixed seafood steam plate. After waiting for 40 minutes our waiter apologized but gave little explanation for the long wait. At that point we started to feel ignored. After waiting for an hour and still no food we decided to walk out on the restaurant. Only then did the manager I presume pay attention to our family. The situation could have been handled differently with better customer service especially for my dad. If we wanted to wait for an hour to eat we might as well have gone home and cooked a meal ourselves.

    (1)

  • Lisa K.

    Sunday evening dinner with hubby and the kids and everything was very good. Loved the homemade potato chips sprinkled with Old Bay! We also had calamari, hush puppies and crab mac and cheese. All very good and fresh. The crab mac had big lumps of crab in it! For the entrees we had salmon, Crab Cappellini (2 orders), Cajun Penne Pasta, and Diver Scallops. Everyone loved their meals and there was plenty to take home for lunch the next day. The seafood we had was definitely fresh, there was no crab from a can here. For those complaining about the price, well, good seafood is expensive. Not a place I'd go every week, but I will go back.

    (5)

  • Natasha P.

    First off we got there and it was empty and that's fine. So we order a dozen of crabs and get a drink while we are waiting. My mom gets a Bloody Mary that's super salty because it had Obey in it. I ask the bartender to remake the drink she says she can add tomato juice. I ask her can she remake it my mom has high blood pressure and she can't have obey can she remake it she remakes it with tomato juice and says it will be bland. Her attitude stinks basically. The manager Shawn walked around talking to people and never said hello to us, how rude. There were only three families there he could not talk to us, Overall I don't like this place the customer service sucks and big on customer service. When we were leaving the manager said oh you ladies got crabs enjoy. We asked him if they were good he said. We got one dozen male crabs 6 were delicious and meaty the other 6 were hollow and mushy it was disappointing. $70 for a dozen of crabs and two drinks. I will never spend another dime here if you live in sterling or Ashburn don't waste your money just drive to Captain Pell's in Fairfax VA.

    (1)

  • Peyton J.

    Went again tonight and the service was so lousy I left and didn't finish my beverage. Inconsistent. Hope you get lucky is all I can say.

    (1)

  • CC M.

    Great experience, great staff, great food. All you can eat crab is perfect... hot from the kitchen and better than pretty much anywhere in the area. Great crab dip, excellent oysters. Definitely will return.

    (5)

  • Abeer H.

    Best seafood ever!! Great experience from the second I walked thru the door to the moment I left. Greeted by the owner with a warm welcome. The service was excellent and food was superior.

    (5)

  • Tiffany T.

    This place was decent. What made it better was the service. Our server/bartender was excellent. We cannot remember her name but she made our table great drinks, she had a wonderful personality, and kept everything running smooth at our table. We got the Jumbo shrimp and the gator tots as our appetizers. Both around $12 each. Everyone at the table liked both and they went pretty quickly. However the entrees were not as good. One member of my party ordered the New York strip. She thought the steak itself was dry and overcooked, and the her mashed potatoes were pretty lumpy. Another member of my party ordered the crab cakes...he felt that the crab meat almost tasted like the frozen precut ones you get at the grocery store. Another member of the party got the fish and chips which he thought was pretty decent. I didn't get an entree but tried the fried oysters instead which I thought were delicious. We also got the brownie dessert which we all enjoyed. My advice would be to go here for drinks, the raw bar, and appetizers. The entrees aren't worth the money.

    (3)

  • Mitch A.

    Excellent Valentine's Day experience!!! Great food, great ambience, and the live violin and guitarist really set the romantic mood! Packed house but well worth it! I'll definitely come again! M.

    (5)

  • Christina R.

    The only thing negative I can say is "Why didn't I come here earlier?!". This is my new favorite restaurant. The atmosphere is awesome, the pricing is perfect, the selection of drinks and food is great, the staff are awesome and the food was absolutely delicious! We got the snow crab legs and the fried oyster appetizer. I was very impressed with every detail of this place. I will be back!!

    (5)

  • Peter J.

    My wife and I wanted to go to some unique or different local restaurant and not a the typical franchise establishment . Looked up captains ma's on yelp. " food" reviews where great and they didn't disappoint. Great service, hospitality and they food was exceptional. Crab cakes we're great! Will be going back again soon. Try the captains. You won't be disappointed.

    (5)

  • Stephen H.

    Great seafood and good service. They also have some pretty decent drinks. I've been here a few times now and haven't had anything bad, but I haven't strayed outside the seafood. So if you like seafood, this is your place!

    (4)

  • Megan S.

    Sadly wish I never ever spent my $50. Seafood did not taste fresh, definite odor and odd consistency. Cost way too high for what we got. Glad we split what we ordered. Red Lobster is much much better. Drove all the way here, not worth the gas even.

    (2)

  • Michael M.

    The restaurant is in a previous Ruby Tuesdays and while not much has been done to change the layout or design it was immaculate. We went at a really slow time for any restaurant Sunday at 3:00 in the afternoon. Despite this there were about 3 tables and someone at the bar watching the Capitals ( lose). I say this with the utmost respect but our Bartender and server Jason worried me when I walked in. He was quiet and seemed like he could be quite indifferent. However this could not have been further from the truth. Jason was fantastic he was attentive and completely on the ball. They were out of Coors light bottles which bummed me out but I settled for Miller lite draft and my wife had unsweetened tea. We both ordered the All you can eat Alaskan Crab Legs. The crab legs came with hush puppies, french fries and Corn on the cob. None of that really matters as the star of the show and the only reason to do this was the crab legs. With that said the Hush Puppies were very good as was the FF. The most important thing was the oil they fried both in was new and clean and most if it was not a premium fry oil it was less than a day or two old. This led to really good hush puppies and french fries. The star of the SHOW was however the crab legs.. now I must let you know after 10 years + of selling seafood to Southern Maryland crab houses I thought for sure these would be #2 four ounce and up snow crab legs but no! They were serving #1 10 ounce and up Snow crab clusters and every round was steamed fresh. Jason actually apologized for the time between rounds due to the fresh steaming. These were some of the nicest snow crab legs I have ever eaten and they were cooked perfectly . There was a small wait in between rounds but that was not because Jason was not on top of things because he was diligent in keeping up with us but they needed to be cooked and they were cooked again and again perfectly. If I seem like I am raving I am.. this was all you can eat crab legs done very very well. I have to say it was also encouraging to see both owners in the business during a slow time. One owner managed to speak to every diner and spent about 5 minutes talking with us as well. He timed his conversation with us perfectly and cut it off perfectly as well so as not to be to "in our business" This is an inherent skill and cannot be trained and he pulled it off perfectly. So will I leave a yelp review... yes I think I will and it will be my first maybe of many maybe not but it is up here for all to see.. I am certain we will go back and frankly Pikes and Fords will never see my dollars again not because they are bad but because they are not what a good seafood joint should be. It is a good thing for them that Captain Mas is tucked away and not well known.

    (5)

  • Shelly C.

    Great, friendly staff! The owner, Shawn takes pride in his restaurant and aims to please! And you don't have to drive to DC for crabs!

    (5)

  • Veruska V.

    I have been here multiple times and it has been great every time! Friendly hosts and great food! My family and I will be back!

    (4)

  • Nadine F.

    Fried Oyster appetizer was really good. For Dinner we had Salmon and a crab cake sandwich that was delicious! There was no breading in the crab cake. Definitely want to go back and try all you can eat crab legs of blue crabs! Service was much better than las time.

    (4)

  • Deborah L.

    The food was excellent, imaginative, and plentiful. The ONLY negative is the restaurant was empty so the atmosphere was a bit too quiet, perhaps because the location is not visible from the road but well worth the hunt. Being the only customers, the staff could have been sullen and annoyed instead they were positive; they were attentive, friendly and engaging. We shared one appetizer and was satisfied with eating half as large portion and wanted to save our appetites for dinner. (looking forward to leftovers!). The crab quesadillas were very tasty -- highly recommend. Each and every element of the Diver Scallop entrée was excellent -- great combination of scallops, sautéed spinach, mashed potatoes topped off with crab. We both stopped mid-way so we will enjoy another meal from those entrees. Ended the meal with what seemed to be a unique dessert -- Caribbean Mousse. It proved to be another excellent choice. Light, flavorful and perfect ending to a perfect meal. Add a few more patrons to liven up the atmosphere and this would have rated 5 stars. Don't let this restaurant go out of business, it's a gem.

    (4)

  • Paul T.

    Great food and great service. This was so much better and cleaner than Captain Pells. I don't have anything bad to say about this place. Really good crab house for being land locked. Plus all you can eat crab legs or blue crab. That's solid!

    (5)

  • Kathy K.

    Totally delightful experience. Only place outside the MD shore, and in NoVa, where you can get a tray-full of crabs etc as though you were on the bay. Amazing. Almost mesmerizing. So where are the boats?? Well. They have tires, but they also have 'antique' license plates. Reminds me of Naples FL. SIGH. Ask for Kimmy. She'll set you up.

    (5)

  • Matthew S.

    The restaurant was not very busy for a mothers day with only half of the tables filled. We were seated after a 5 minute wait. The waiter took our order then was busy with several other tables. About 20 minutes later he came back to confirm our order where we then waited another 10-15 minutes for our appetizer. A good half hour or so later we finally received our main course. During the long wait it became evident that there was only 2 waiters and 1 cook. The seafood was cooked very well, but the sides were fair. We were not offered desert menu however there likely was not enough time to prepare it before closing time.

    (2)

  • Ying H.

    We should have turned around when we saw an empty restaurant, on a Saturday night. Lived in DC area for nearly 20 years and I've not had worse crabs. Clams from the raw bar was full of shell pieces. Waiter walks like day dreamers. Had to ask twice for a Sprite refill. Asked four times from three persons to get picks and gloves while we stare at the super salty over-cooked crabs. Totally ruined our night.

    (1)

  • Brian M.

    First visit: Good food. Comfortable environment. Friendly staff. We had the fish and chips (made with Cod, yum!) and snow crab legs (looked very fresh and well prepared). Sterling needs more unique restaurants like this. For those looking for good seafood and don't want to slog down to Ford's and wait two hours for a table, Captain Mas provides a really comparable alternative. Plenty of seating and good seafood in a relaxed environment. I'll update my review after the second visit.

    (4)

  • Susan H.

    I had bookmarked this place but wanted to give them time to work out the kinks. Then we kept putting off going until we got a coupon booklet in the mail this past week. In the booklet was a coupon for $10 off an appetizer here. That was the incentive we needed to go there for dinner! We were here shortly after 5 p.m. on a Saturday, minutes after they opened. Upon entering, we were greeted by a friendly man who welcomed us and then seated us in a booth. As other reviewers pointed out, this was once a Ruby Tuesday. Few changes were made to the interior, most noticeably some nautical decorations plus a seaside mural. The booths are the same ones that were there when it was Ruby Tuesday. My seat even had green tape on it to repair a rip. To give you some idea as to how long the furnishings have been around---at the entrance to our dining area, there was a "non-smoking section" sign attached to the back of a booth. Well...I suppose I don't blame them for only making minimal changes. After all, considering the start up costs for a new restaurant, it is cheaper to leave as many things as possible in place. Our server was friendly and prompt plus he didn't make us feel rushed. We started up with our drink orders. My husband had a glass of Chardonnay while I had a "seasonal mojito". At this time of year, it is a blood orange mojito. The drink was tasty, if a weak pour plus there was no muddled mint in it. So, to me, it didn't really taste like a mojito. My husband said that his Chardonnay was good quality. When the server arrived, he brought some housemade potato chips that were seasoned with Old Bay. These chips are a step up from Utz chips and right up there with Route 11 ones. We really enjoyed them. Our server said that they are popular and other customers suggested that the restaurant should bag them up and sell them. After showing the server our coupon, we told him that we would get the mac and cheese appetizer. The mac and cheese consists of "house mac and cheese tossed with blue crab, tomatoes, shallots, garlic and seasoned with Old Bay". The pasta used is small shells. Upon seeing the pasta, we both said, almost simultaneously, that it certainly fits the motif. The cheese used is mild cheddar which we liked as it didn't overpower the other ingredients. The crab meat is finely shredded. The tomatoes used were cherry tomatoes that were fresh. As for the Old Bay seasoning, while it was noticeable, it gave just enough spice. For my main course, I got the "1 lb. Alaskan snow crab legs". This dish comes with fries. On the side is a cup of drawn butter plus ketchup for the fries. In addition, you get your choice of either "cilantro jalapeno tartar, Captain's tartar or citrus aioli". I chose the citrus aioli which tasted mostly of citrus. In the end, I used the drawn butter as I felt it went better with the crab legs. The crab legs were properly prepared and quite meaty. I made sure that none went to waste. Along with the meal, I was given a small bucket that contained a large paper napkin, a plastic bib, nutcrackers and some hand wipes. My husband had the shrimp and grits. This dish consists of "jumbo shrimp skewered and marinated, grilled and served over cheddar hominy grits and topped with seared andouille sausage and drizzled with Carolina BBQ sauce". He really enjoyed his dish. The shrimp portion was generous and they truly were jumbo shrimp. I tasted the grits and found them to be properly prepared with the cheese being in good proportion. My husband said that the BBQ sauce and the sausage gave the dish some nice spiciness. We both agree that we will return. In fact, we discussed bringing our daughter and family here on their next visit. We know she will love those crab chips! I asked the waiter if they had a kids menu and he said that they did. After the coupon and before the tip, the meal cost $67 + change.

    (4)

  • Sean P.

    Tonight was an expensive experience I wish I could undo, but as there is no undo on bad decisions... the best I can do is this review. I made reservations for Valentine's Day for my wife and I. Captain Mas was offering a $98 Valentine's Day dinner-for-two special. It came with an appetizer, choice of soup or salad, main course and dessert. Awesome! Most of the reviews I had read were positive, and some co-workers had even suggested the place, so I was more than excited to give the place a chance. We arrived early, and didn't mind waiting. However, after arriving Captain Mas' reservation system went down (OpenTable). Technical glitches happen, and I'm more than understanding. I'm a patient person. But apparently, without OpenTable, they are completely unable to seat people. Customers were coming in, waiting... and being turned away. However, communication broke down and they did not properly relay the issues to those waiting. One person waited roughly 20 minutes before being told that without a reservation he could not be seated (after which he angrily walked out). When we were finally seated it took about 10 minutes to order our drinks... and another 5 minutes to get them (despite the fact I was seated about 10ft from the beverage dispensers). Service was incredibly slow, and the servers seemed to have a hard time prioritizing tables. They seemed understaffed, though were trying to do the best they could for the most part (so I give them some props for that). Our crab bisque was inedible. It was over-salted to the point it burned trying to eat. Our waitress didn't seem to care that we barely touched the soups, and took them away without question. The appetizer (4 cold shrimp) were pre-made, pre-cooked (and could even be seen in the lobby when you walked in). Despite that, it took roughly 15 minutes for it to arrive. While the main courses (crab cakes and stuffed shrimp) were acceptable, they weren't impressive. Not bad, just... average. Slightly overcooked and lacking flavor. For $98 I expect the food to be memorable, not just average. No, it wasn't terrible, but for the price it just left us going "That's it?". The food arrived cold (yet served on incredibly hot plates). The value proposition for what you get is severely skewed. For $98, the "dinner for two" didn't even include the price of drinks. The final bill came out to $103. What did we get for that? A grand total of eight medium-sized shrimp, 10 asparagus stalks, one potato (each plate had half a potato), two small crab cakes and two pre-made, tiny puck-sized desserts. A whole potato to share for two people? There was so little food overall that it felt like an expensive joke. For $98, I expected more -- a LOT more. It's not always about quantity, but nor did we get quality. We ultimately both left disappointed and still rather hungry. It was a terrible experience, and really dragged down our Valentine's. It's not what I expected, ESPECIALLY for the cost. I have no problems paying for quality, but quality is not what we received tonight. If the final bill were half the cost, I'd shrug it off and be less critical. But it's hard to overlook the costs for what we received.

    (1)

  • Christina C.

    Let me start off by saying that I DID come here and read the reviews before I decided to visit Captain Mas Crabhouse. Despite the poor reviews, many said that that once you got over certain aspects of the service or greasiness, you found the food enjoyable. I however, never made it to the food.... So I bought a double take deal ($20 for $40) to try the place out, and to support a local struggling business. I called in a TO GO order that totaled about 52 dollars; which was 2 entrees and a kids meal. (I let them know I was using a doubletake offer on the phone, and asked if that was okay. "no problem," was the answer I received from a pleasant young waitress.) With the deal I should have only needed 12 bucks plus tip. ( I had planned to just leave a 20.) So I arrive. The parking lot is totally empty, there are 2 cars parked...(I didn't care.) I walk in, and the entire restaurant is dead besides a table of two, and a lady at the bar---who is tearing up some king crab legs that looked delicious. (still didn't care) I head towards the bar. A very tall older gentleman in street clothes blocks my path with a gruff and loud "hello" and a strange stare that lasted far longer than necessary. I felt like he was asking me "whaddya want??!" with his eyes... I assumed he was a local vagabond, and tried to keep it moving with a reply of "hello Sir" and a smile, as I continued towards the bar. He gruffly stops me again with a not-so-nice "Can I help you with something???" I answer "mmmm, I don't think so...... Do you work here?" He says "Yes, I'm the owner." I tell him that I have called in a phone order, and am here to pick it up.His demeanor miraculously changes. (Now, I care... I am miffed... is this how they greet every customer?) He then lets me pass by him and directs me to the young lady who to took my order over the phone. I get the food, and get through checking most of it for accuracy while she is getting my check together. Everything was fine until I reminded her about the double take deal. She exhales deeply and begrudgingly calls her manager to put in a code. He arrives with code. The code takes off 20 bucks off the total. I say " oh I'm sorry, but I bought the deal that was $20 for $40 off? She rolls her eyes at me and says " No, its if you spend 40, you get 20 bucks off." This is where I start sighing. We dance this dance for 5 minutes. I pull up the website, she reads, it says I'm wrong. I ask her if she can grab her manager to confirm. He's pissed that he has to make another debut out to the sales floor/dining room. I explain the situation to him, and that I have only brought 20 dollars with me, anticipating the deal I just bought. He says 'look, you cant use this here, and if you do, you can only use 20 dollars at a time. That means you need to spend 40 dollars now, and then come back another day to get the full benefit." ( Its now been 20 mins...) I start to read the fine print on the doubletake deal ( and they suck... don't use them) and realize that they have been rather slippery with their marketing of the deal, and a bit sneaky and ambiguous with their wording. Both of us are right. Double take split the deal into two coupons of $20 dollars of instead of one $40 coupon, but its still a $20 for $40 deal. As I am about to respond and tell him this, he rudely lets me know " Hey... Hey! You know we don't even get any money off this right? He goes on a small rant, about how doubletake gets all the profit.... It is at this point that I look around and realize there is a simple reason no one comes here. Its not because the food is bad. Its because they lack a basic understanding of how to interact with customers.At this point I'm over it, and just want to take the food back to the hungry family. I say let me go home and get more money, since you wont accept the offer. I'll be back in 15 min. The manager says okay, and he quickly disappears again to the kitchen. Half way home, as I am calculating... I am realizing that I have spent 20 bucks for at doubletake... then 32 dollars at captain mas.... that's STILL 52 bucks... plus I need to go into the same RUDE place on another occasion, and spend 40 more bucks, to get the full value of my double take deal? Absolute Craziness. I called the owner and let him know that I truly apologized for wasting his time and food....but I will not be picking up that order. He says "awww dammiitttt,... wait! wait, maybe we can work something out. I say "absolutely not." and explain how I didn't gain anything but headache by dealing with both Captain Mas crabhouse and double take. For a company that is STRUGGGGLING to make ends meet, they sure do treat people like crap. I work in customer service myself, and when you are faced with a Customer Service Issue,you make it work for the customer no matter what, so that you can earn their trust, and gain a repeat customer.... Someone should tell that to The Captain Mas staff in Sterling, VA. What a disappointment.

    (1)

  • Syafrin S.

    Been meaning to dine in here and today is D day!! And the taste is beyond expectation. Super good food.. Five all day!!

    (5)

  • John R.

    In my search to find a good crab house/restaurant, I felt compelled to write a review for Captain Mas Crab House ... especially following a not so pleasurable experience at a recent visit to a local Crab House in Fairfax Va. Captain Mas location is off the beaten path but I found it well worth the visit. Thus, don't be put off by the small number of customers. This is not your "let's pretend we're at the beach" Crab Shack decorated with fake driftwood and plastic cutlery. It is a seafood restaurant .... with a sports bar feel. As the owner explained to us, given the price of seafood he wanted to make the dining experience at Captain Mas a comfortable/pleasant one in a clean, friendly establishment that is a step up from the usual crab shack (but not upscale and pretentious). First the hospitality and service were excellent. We went for the All You Can Eat Crab Legs. The crab legs were steamed to order each time we asked for more and were fabulous ... hot and succulent. Our glasses of ice tea were kept filled and new orders of crab legs brought without having to continually hunt down the waiter. He was very attentive and polite. The owner also stopped by to get our feedback and took the time to chat with us. I noticed that the restaurant had a lot of specials and entertainment throughout the week. Can't speak to them since the Sunday all you can eat crab legs is the attraction for me. I noticed a lot of complaints about price. Seafood is pricey! Captain Mas price for all you can eat Crab or Crab Legs is comparable to any other seafood restaurant in this area. And I think that the quality is superior! I definitely recommend Captain Mas based on my dining experience. I hope more people find this hidden gem and support this restaurant so that they stay in business.

    (5)

  • Martha G.

    Went in last night with a group of about 18. They were expecting us (of course), and had our tables ready early. None of the people at my table had been there before, but we were all pleased with the food and the service. I had the crab cake sandwich, but didn't eat the bun. The crab cake was thick, full of crab meat and tasted wonderful. The server was terrific, bringing more chips, and filling requests for more wine, etc. very quickly. We are definitely adding Captain Mas into our group's restaurant rotation.

    (4)

  • Erica M.

    If you're willing to wait a few days for $55 worth of all you can eat crab legs then please go here. But really don't go here. I gave it a second try but they're understaffed (the only bartender is also the only waiter) and slow. If you are willing to pay $55 for all you can eat crab legs then you expect the legs to be on your plate the moment you're finished... Not 10 minutes later. I could go on but there's just too much wrong with this place. The host/busboy was very nice.

    (1)

  • Howard B.

    Really 2 1/2 stars. Food was good but shrimp could have been better cleaned. Complimentary home-made potato chips seemed like stale leftovers. Oysters were fresh and delicious. Blue crab were on the small side ( though they called them medium) and not really worth the effort. Ambiance non- existent, but service was attentive. Not a really bad choice if you are hungry for fresh shellfish, but I have to believe you can do better...I continue my search for a go to shellfish spot!

    (3)

  • Joshua D.

    Finally gave this place a try after having it bookmarked pretty much since it opened. There's some good and bad, and overall this wasn't a horrible experience but it's definitely not the kind of place that makes you really want to come back, especially considering the prices. (Even for seafood, things are way overpriced. Even the non-seafood items aren't a good value -- $12 for 8 wings? Are you serious?!) Honestly, if you're hankering for seafood and you don't feel like going out of Cascades, then this is a fine stop. But I wouldn't go out of your way to try Captain Mas; there's nothing you really necessarily need to try about it. While the service was pretty good and the restaurant is clean with a nice vibe (though it's super apparent still that it used to be a Ruby Tuesday's), the menu is very short and limited, as is the drink selection. You get started off with what are supposedly the chef's special recipe chips. They're kettle chips. I couldn't tell you for certain they didn't come out of a bag. Good, but nothing mind-blowing. I started off with some hushpuppies. The honey butter they come with, as well as a less-creamy version of tartar sauce with jalapenos in it, is a good twist even though the pups themselves aren't so robust. Of the two dishes we ordered, both were missing items that they were supposed to come with according to the menu. What we did get (swordfish and scallops) was pretty good, but strangely prepared and plated. It seems like the chef at Mas masks his or her inability to actually season and properly prepare seafood by just melting massive amounts of butter over everything. All of the seafood just tasted like butter. The scallops were seared much more than any I've ever seen before, and so they came out pretty brown. Plating needs a lot of work. The focal point of my dish should've been the scallops, but instead the four medium-sized scallops (yep, just four) were dwarfed by the enormous spread of mashed potatoes through the entire midsection of the plate. There was an appropriately sized amount of garlic spinach as well. But yeah, no one needs THAT much starch in a meal. Had to be two large potatoes' worth at least. And it looked like they just sort of slopped it on. So, of my meal, the plate was 80% mashed potatoes and 10% spinach and 10% scallops. I tried the swordfish as well, and it was a little overdone in my opinion, buttery, but again, not disgusting. Everything was good, but nothing had a unique flavor or was prepared entirely properly for seafood. Butter really is the name of the game at Mas. I won't be going back most likely, not because I didn't have a pretty good meal but because there are too many other places that have a better range of flavorings they can do that offer more bang for the buck. Mas just isn't worth the price of admission or the buttery clogged arteries.

    (3)

  • Kirsten B.

    Went in on a Friday night for my birthday and the place was empty. The gator tots were tasty but waaaay over breaded. I ordered a pound of large crab for $40 or $50. I was surprised with the size when they came out. They were the smallest legal crabs I had ever seen. I asked the waiter -when he could be found- and he confirmed they were the large. The other people in my party were not happy with their food or the price. Probably won't be back!!

    (2)

  • Basima M.

    A friend recently recommended this place so I looked it up on Yelp and was debating whether or not I should take a chance on this restaurant. I'm glad I did! I had all you can eat crab legs - absolutely delicious! 3 of my children are not seafood fans so they ordered burgers and steak which they loved, my fourth child ordered fried shrimp and made sure not a crumb was left in her plate. My friend ordered a spicy shrimp and pasta dish which was beautifully creamy and full of flavor. You will have to wait a bit for your food since everything is made to order from scratch - the food is definitely worth the wait. The staff was very friendly, they talk to you like you've been buddies for years. Looking forward to going there again soon!

    (5)

  • Amanda L.

    Friendly staff, Clean. But as far as the food goes, it's okay. A bit pricey for what you get. The scallops were big and good, but the peel and eat shrimp had good flavor, but were a little tough. For the money we spent, and what we got- We could've gotten more food at higher quality at Blue Ridge seafood in Gainesville, VA. Maybe you pay more for a close location.

    (2)

  • Arthur G.

    Arrived at 650 had reservations for 7 didn't get seated till after 715. Not a big deal except a couple with reservations for 645 who arrived at 705 was seated before us.... Minus 1 star.... That is not the way queuing and reservations work. After we were seated it took 20 minutes to get an order taken including drinks. We both ordered surf and turf and I orders Maryland crab soup. I thought the soup would be creamy it was more a minestrone crab soup. Not my style but that was my fault for not asking. Steaks were good. No refills on drinks. The crab was cold, dry and they didn't serve any butter with it and skimpy my legs consisted of a claw and two extensions. Not coming back. Even though we got free shrimp and a rose. Btw the shrimp was HUGE and tasty.

    (2)

  • Buddy V.

    Very standard seafood menu with mostly fried staples like calimari/po boys. Crab dip wasnt to bad but calimari was soggy. Oysters on po boy had a slight sour taste.

    (3)

  • Shay G.

    PLEASE AVOID! I ordered steamed blue crab from here. All of the blue crab smelled like ammonia. I looked it up and crab only smells like that when either it has been decomposing, kept in unclean conditions, or someone put ammonia on it to mask the smell of it rotting. I was absolutely disgusted. I would never order anything from here again. I wish I could leave NO stars. PLEASE AVOID!!

    (1)

  • Angela L.

    Came here for a birthday dinner and the all you can eat blue crabs and snow crab legs were great. I hate places that old bay the crap out of your crabs and Captain Mas was not one of those places. Seasoning was minimal but they give you an extra thing of old bay in case you need more. IMO, the crab legs were probably better than the blue crabs only because its less work for more meat. The gator tots were yummy! Will definitely return.

    (4)

  • Vaughn S.

    I love trying out new places and this is a great new place to eat. My daughter and I dropped in for dinner. We both got the fish and chips with the crab cake quesadilla appitizer. Both where amazing good. Service was fast and the staff was great.

    (4)

  • Juicy G.

    Our meal at Captain Mas Crab House was summed up just perfectly by the goose that took a dump on my windshield as we were driving away. The irony of it all was enough to make the misses and I burst out laughing. I made a reservation for 7:00 PM, and quickly found out upon entering the restaurant that this was certainly not necessary. Only three other tables were seated. We started with a calamari appetizer that ranks up there with one of the worst examples of said dish we've ever had. The food was oil logged to the point that it was soaking the plate in grease, and none of it was crispy. This of course was because the breading was all soggy and falling off the calamari itself. In addition to this, Captain Mas boasts that it makes two kinds of tarter sauce in the restaurant. One is a creamy jalapeno, and the other is their regular type. The problem - Both of them are disgusting. The jalapeno one is a runny mess, and the regular version is nothing short of mayonnaise with pickle relish - and a lot of pickle relish at that. I went with the steak, and the misses had the crab cakes. What we liked about ordering the entrees was that while each one comes with two sides, Captain Mas has a list of sides at the bottom of the menu, and is happy to sub any of them out at no additional charge. As a result, I switched my potatoes and spinach out for cole slaw and rice. I'm happy to say that both side dishes were exceptional. The steak however came out medium well when I had ordered it medium, and once again the captain showed us just how inept he was at making sauces with the house made steak sauce that tasted like a potent Korean BBQ. It was really gross. The misses enjoyed her crab cake. She said there was no fillers in it, just crab meat. At this point I started looking around the table for the hidden camera. I was really hoping that someone would jump out and say, "Surprise, the jokes on you. Here's the real food." Sadly, this never happened. We tried to salvage the meal by ordering a slice of cheesecake to share. This was messed up by the kitchen, and we ended up getting two slices for the price of one. The sad part was that the cheesecake was just as bad as everything else. It was so dry that we actually choked on it trying to swallow our bites. In addition, the chocolate decorations on top tasted like that nasty bagged chocolate you would get from a craft store. All of this culminated in the hefty price tag of $102.00. To say we have no desire to return to Captain Mas is definitely an understatement. On a positive note, the service was exceptional. But, then again, the restaurant was all but empty too.

    (1)

  • Rebecca K.

    My boyfriend and I decided to venture out to sterling and give this place a try. We made a reservation, but it was unnecessary. One of the owners (I presume) seated us at a booth in the bar. The place was empty with only a couple other tables seated. I started with a corona and the oyster shooters and they were good. We had a pound of king crab legs to start, and they were very disappointing. They had obviously been previously frozen, as the shells were faded in color and extremely soft. The meat was withered and pretty dry. I had the scallop entree, and it was bland and the portion of mashed potatoes was way too much. The crab meat on the potatoes was practically grey. Overall not really palatable, I ate a couple bites and declined a box. My date had the shrimp and grits which were extremely bland and again way over portioned. We had such high hopes, and we left after paying $140 with tip. It was a waste of money, and I really hope the owners evaluate their food and understand that this is not quality seafood. On a side note, our server, who was also bar tending, was very nice and took great care of us.

    (1)

  • Susan P.

    So last night my husband took me here for Valentines. He said the place had wonderful reviews so we should try it out. He got reservations a few days before. We get there about 25 minutes before our reservation and the front of the restaurant is crowded with people. They say their system is down so they can't seat anybody. Plenty of open tables but can't seat people... They ask everyone standing if they have a reservation and my husband says yes. One guy said no and the manger/owner told him he could not seat him so the man left. We wait patiently and more people keep showing up and crowding the area. The man starts seating them before us even though their reservations were at the same time. He looks to us and says "You don't have a reservation, right?", and I spoke up saying we DID have a reservation and he immediately got flustered with me and took us to a table. He told me I had to be patient with him which rubbed me wrong. I was already VERY patient and very hungry, and this was the third time he told us to "be patient". We had been the entire time. 7:15 we finally get our drink orders, the drink fountain was right behind me. It would have been faster for me to stand up and get my own drink rather than wait for our server. We ordered off their Valentine's menu which was a 3 course meal. Appetizer was shrimp cocktail and we each ordered crab bisque. It was close to 7:30 by the time we got the shrimp cocktail appetizer which was ONLY 4 shrimp (2 each). It took almost 15 minutes to get 4 COLD SHRIMP. The soup came out at the same time. I was extremely frustrated and hungry by this point. I tried to eat the soup and it tasted like salt and dirt. I only had two spoons of it and had to push it away. The waitress came and took our bowls and didn't even bother to ask how it was or WHY we barely touched them. Our entrees arrive and they are very small looking...I got 2 crab cakes, half a potato, and 5 asparagus. My husband got 4 small shrimp stuffed with the same thing that was in the crab cakes, half potato, and 5 asparagus as well. We were disappointed. Once we finished those we ordered our desserts which was the best darn part of the entire menu that we are lead to assume they did not make haha. I ordered a coffee with mine but did not get it until after I finished which kind of defeated the purpose... Then we got the bill. 103 bucks. Drinks were NOT included with the meal I guess. Ya know, maybe if the meal cost $50 I wouldn't be this upset but for $103 I expect to have an orgasm in my mouth and instead we were left still hungry. It left a bad taste in our mouth. When we went to leave we noticed that the cocktail shrimp we had was on ice in front of the bar...if its RIGHT there why did it take so long to bring it to us?? On our way out the manager/owner gave me a rose and I felt kind of insulted by it. Bad service, bad food, oh and here's a rose for your trouble? I will not be going back there ever.

    (1)

  • Meghan C.

    Don't come here unless you enjoy overcooked seafood, a long wait, and the elderly doing karaoke...

    (2)

  • Joyceann G.

    Showed up at 9:45pm with family and friends after just getting back in town and we got excellent service and friendly treatment from the waiter. The food was hot, delicious and plentiful. I know this restaurant has struggled in the past...hence the scathing reviews. But they are really trying to offer our community a pleasant alternative to Red Lobster. My family will support them as long as the quality of the food remains the same.

    (5)

  • Jermoil A.

    Happy Hour here is Awesome!!

    (4)

  • Tim C.

    I went to Captain Ma's tonight for their Sunday night All-You-Can-Eat Blue Crabs. As opposed to all the negative reviews, I thought the food was good, service exemplary, and they went out their way to ensure we enjoyed our meal. The Crab special was $45 AYCE from 5 to 9. We spent the entire time there. The crabs were good. As always when you eat about 3 dozen crabs...there will be some bad ones. But for the most part, they were Medium-Large and cooked well. As a side surreal note...they had karaoke tonight. And it was all Senior Citizens singing all the songs they love. It made for a very entertaining night to hear them all singing. Some of them must have been close to 90 years old!! I would highly recommend the AYCE crab feast to anyone. If you get the Specialicious coupon ($20 for $40), you're only paying $25 for a feast! The only thing I'd change is that the tables are a little small for AYCE crabs. If we had 4 people eating crabs, it would have been a little tight. Added bonus...only $8 for a pitcher of beer!!

    (4)

  • Monica L.

    Went for all you can eat snow crab legs and everything exceeded my expectations. Best crab legs I've had in years, great sides, and great service. Never had to wait too long for more crab legs, and the server was always there anticipating our needs. Dining room was very nice, much nicer than you would think for a crab house. Can't wait to go back again!

    (5)

  • Jason O.

    Went there for the Gator Tots, Crab Cake sandwhich and Oyster Po' Boy. None were amazing by any stretch, flavor was of "cheap" seafood and very fried and mostly greasy. Service was slow and extremely unenthusiastic. The bar had ~7 people and there were three families in there on at Saturday at 7pm. Expensive. The decor was (literally) the former Ruby Tuesdays with a few metal crabs bolted onto the wall (can't make this up). Thankfully this was provided by Living Social, but we will not be going back.

    (2)

  • Cat W.

    Had my girlfriend's birthday here. Had all you can eat blue crabs and crablegs, everything was really good! $29 for all you can eat crabs and $49 for all you can eat crablegs. Will definitely come back. The owner was super kind and welcoming, the waiter was on point!!

    (4)

  • Jason F.

    Scallops are my favorite. They also have half priced raw bar on thursday. Will definitely keep coming. Happy hour looks to be great. Nice find!

    (5)

  • Jane R.

    Utter disappointment. This place is way overpriced and the food portions are ridiculously SMALL!! I now understand why there weren't a lot of customers. I don't mind spending money on good food but this was just not worth it. I'm an easy person to please and I am not a picky eater but damn this place disappointed me so much I had to write a review. The worst feeling is when you leave a restaurant still hungry. Yeah, that's right. Even after spending over $100, I left HUNGRY...and I'm a small person and only weigh 110lbs!! I will never return again.

    (1)

  • James V.

    Went to Captain Mas last night with very mixed results leaning to the negative. First off the service was awful. Our waiter had no clue. He hovered for a full 2 minutes while we were getting seated and would not leave after we gave our drink order. He seemed to be waiting for us to complete our total order, but had not even looked at the menu. We ordered a dozen oysters and added soup & salad to start. The oysters were very good and the three garnishes were perfect combo. The soup arrived without a spoon (how does that happen) and the salad dressing tasted only of sardines. The Caesar dressing should be more subtle with the sardine taste. While finishing the starters, we also finished our drinks and our waiter was nowhere to be found to get refills. The plate were not cleared and our water glasses were empty. Our tabled was filled with a tray of ice from the oysters, a bowl from the soup and a large salad dish, when the entrees arrived. Still no refills on the drinks. My daughter ordered fish and chips and my mother ordered fish tacos. Both were over-battered and the fish was not very fresh. Neither of them could eat more than a couple of bites. The fish and chips has at least a quarter of an inch of fried batter around each fillet. The fish in the tacos were tasteless and over seasoned with old bay. The menu description said the tacos would come with sour cream. There was no sour cream. Both dishes came with fries and the taste of old bay was present in a big way again. I like old bay, but it was too much. Even the ketchup was not good. I ordered King Crab. It was good, but again the waiter did not provide any tools to break open the crab shell. He was actually stunned by my request for a nutcracker and mallet. By the way, the refills, sodas and water, finally arrived after about 5 minutes into the entrée. I really needed a drink after the bit of crab and fries. The atmosphere in the restaurant is a little off putting too. It is trying to be a seafood restaurant and a sports bar at the same time. Music is playing loudly and is not in tune with décor of the place. All those TVs don't help either. If you want to be a sports bar, then be a sports bar. Finally when I got the check, he runs my card and returns with the slips, but no pen in the folder. I hope the waiter was on his first day and will get better quickly.

    (2)

  • Sandra K.

    This place is a slightly redone Ruby Tuesday and it has that feel to it. They are known as a "crab house" but it's actually quite a bit more "upscale" in the sense that menu items are pricey, narry a papertowel holder to be seen. Our first waiter did not know too much but then Allen, our second waiter took over. Allen, is a great waiter and knew the menu inside and out. He helped us navigate so we ordered the Wednesday special:crawfish boil, two kids meals---fish and chips, and a burger. We order 6 large crabs as well. The burger was ho-hum at best. It's served with a two onion rings and a hush puppie. The fries are fine but over-doused in old bay. The crawfish boil was done pretty well---inside you get three small nubs of corn, potatoes and a lb of crawfish. It's well-seasoned in that it's basically a boil of old bay. It was pretty tasty. I think it could use fresh red potatoes and tastier corn. I imagine the corn will improve with the season progressing. The kids meals are $7 a piece and basically it' a piece of fried fish with tons of fries. It's okay at best. I think it needs a vegetable or a fruit or both. Maybe a scoop of ice cream at the end? Finally, the crab. The crab is good! Well, this is a relief. The prices are about the same $35 a half dozen for large. They are large and heavy and served on a white plater. All in all, I would come again. I think because the place is new, they are still working out the kinks. The coleslaw is homemade and very tasty!

    (3)

  • Bird D.

    Great find! My wife loves seafood, and it did not disappoint! I'm partial to turf type cuisine ... And the rib-eye was great too. Nicely appointed... Dark wood and beautiful bar area. Great place to get a fine meal and lots of screens to catch the game! Friendly staff... Try it. Way better than all those cookie cutter chain restaurants.

    (5)

  • Amy O.

    Bottom line - food was mediocre at best, and the service was bad. He was polite but clearly never trained on the restaurant or how to be a server at all. Just bad. Personal pet peeve - dirty glasses/silverware. Ordered the scallops which were under-seared and overcooked. Four scallops and a mountain of potatoes. Note to the chef - you're not fooling anyone. Paying $26 for a dish is reasonable, but you're setting people's expectations, and you're not meeting them. Our food came out quickly, but it came before our appetizer, so we just told him not to bring it. I was so excited about gator tail in Virginia, but I'm just not willing to give this place another shot. Just bad.

    (2)

  • James G.

    This place is awesome! Tucked away in Sterling, this is a diamond in the rough! Cannot go wrong with anything they have on the menu.. I know, Bc i go often. Been looking for a legitimate sea food place in the sterling va area, and now have one. The service is fast and polite and the owner is always on site, which makes it feel more at home as he greets u as you enter. If u have not tried it yet, u need to, otherwise you are doing a disservice to yourelf.. even the steak is great! See ya soon captain mas!

    (5)

  • Lauren S.

    I just had a fantastic dinner date at Captain Mas with my boyfriend. Tonight was one of many occasions we have gone and have yet to be disappointed. The service is great and the owner is always friendly and welcoming. I highly recommend the raw bar and the diver scallops.

    (5)

  • Amanda J.

    Give it a try! When we pulled into the parking lot we were a little put off by how empty it looked -- I'd called ahead to see if I needed a reservation for a Saturday night and was told I should be ok, but since there were only 3 other couples dining in the entire place it wasn't an issue. Pros: Food is good -- I've been here twice now and enjoyed everything I ordered. I tried the fish n' chips and the fish tacos, and the other people in my party tried the Po Boy sandwich and the fried shrimp and also enjoyed it. I wasn't brave enough for the gator tots, but my boyfriend informed me they were just as tasty as any served in Florida where it's a regular menu item. The portions are very good -- reading other reviews complaining about this makes me think either they changed/upped their portions or people are just wanting to super-size everything. Definitely had enough leftover for take home and lunch the next day. The wait staff was very attentive and brought lots of drink refills and made sure everything was good with our order. Cons: The price :( The cost is restrictive for this being a regular dining out option and the restaurant seems to be having a bit of a personality disorder as it's difficult for it to be an upscale dining establishment and a sort of sports bar atmosphere in the middle. I'd say it would be better if they could lower their prices and give slightly smaller portions -- maybe $11 for fish tacos and a side? I know it's only shaving off a couple bucks here and there, but it adds up, especially if someone is considering splurging on the crab cakes or all you can eat crab. My only other complaint was the bathroom -- the TP felt like it was on lock-down, the roll in the dispenser was so tight that it was only coming out a square at a time. Same thing with the paper towels, after washing my hands I waved my hands in front of the dispenser and it issued me about 3 inches of paper towels to dry. I realize that they don't want people to waste these products, but give customers the benefit of the doubt. Verdict: I think the biggest problem that this restaurant faces is poor location, after all, if a chain like Ruby Tuesday's can't make it there I can only imagine how difficult it will be for a new, independent restaurant. The food and service is good and we will definitely come back, but the prices will probably prohibit it from being part of our regular rotation and the casual sports bar atmosphere removes it from being a fancy, upscale date-night type of place.

    (3)

  • Aaron C.

    Came here with family and ordered jumbo blue crab. Great real jumbo crab not small impostors. Crab looked great and tasted great. They even make real homemade clam chowder with bacon. Great service and food.

    (5)

  • Anthony S.

    Service was great. Restaurant looks modern and clean. Plenty of TV's. Food is.......... Awesome!

    (5)

  • Emily N.

    Relaxed atmosphere, good service, and great food! We visited for the first time tonight and will absolutely be coming back again! The all you can eat crab legs is a GREAT deal at about 50 bucks a person. I was impressed that the shells were still a great bright red color and none of the shells came out over boiled and soft. The crab legs come with a side of corn, french fries, and OH SO AMAZING hush puppies. We also ordered the crawfish boil special. You get about 25 crawfish, potatoes, corn, and andouille...all set in a tomato based broth. I almost forgot to mention our appetizer! We ordered the gator tots. They are tasty bites of gator that are breaded and fried. The sauce reminded me of a spicy hoisin sauce. Our server was great and was quick on refilling drinks and more importantly, my crab legs. :) Last but not least, we were impressed that the owner was walking around and talking to every patron there. This place is definitely a one that we will recommend to our friends and one that we'll be re-visiting again soon!

    (4)

  • Rob m.

    1st and last visit on October 6th 2013. I think the bartender did a pretty good job and was very attentive. My wife and I are big seafood eaters and especially love blue crabs. I ordered the crab cakes ($29) and my wife had the all you can eat blue crabs ($40). The crab cakes were just ok, not bad but not good either. They were hyped up by our server as being made in house, not frozen which I can appreciate but they had quite a bit of filler and were not seasoned properly and for $29 I expected more. But I think they could be very good with a few changes to preparation and seasoning. We are frequent diners at Captain Pells and its laughable how they talked up their blue crabs while trying to put down the crabs from Pells. The crabs were tiny and filled with water. They were so bad I almost interrupted the server describing them to a table behind us (sitting in the bar) to say dont listen to him they are tiny and you will be pissed when they come out. They have to get better crabs if they want to be called a crab house.

    (1)

  • Angie G.

    I went tonight w/a coupon and It was great! the previous reviews were right on about the crab cakes. Frankly, much, much better than the one's at Fords. I'm a huge crab cake fan, and I was not disappointed, these were really, really good. I have to say that the complementary fresh made potato chips were very good and that the veggies served w/my meal were excellent. This may seem somewhat trite I know, but they were fresh, and cooked perfectly, not pre-shaped carrots, but real one's that someone peeled, few restaurants get that part right, it seems like an afterthought, but these were sooo good! The service was exceptional. The server's were appropriately attentive, and very accommodating. The General manager (Chris) and the owner (Shawn) were both there, and both came to introduce themselves, and ask how everything was. The environment was very friendly. I could not be happier to have such a good place so close to my home! I was there (tonight) on a Thursday, and the live music was great! I'll be back.

    (4)

  • Nadia C.

    We went there for dinner tonight & were nervous because of all the negative reviews. They said they just changed the menu to make it more affordable. We got the crab dip, gator tots, oyster po'boy sandwich, crab cake burger and buffalo shrimp. Everything was delicious. The portion sizes were plenty! The service was fine. The manager & owner stopped by our table and they were both very friendly and accommodating. It is not a 5 star restaurant, but I don't think they are trying to be one. I would definitely recommend this place.

    (4)

  • H R.

    Last night was the second time we've been to CMCH. If you're expecting Long John Silvers pricing..look elsewhere. It's pricey..yeah. We went in with my significant others parents the first time. We were looking for a Ruby Tuesdays and ended up finding this place instead. We decided to go ahead and go in anyway, regardless of the parking lot being pretty empty. The staff was very friendly and the owner came out to check on us. He was very attentive with making sure we had everything we needed and putting a second set of eyes on our orders. He explained it was a pretty new place and that they were experimenting with different marketing choices. When our food came out, it looked fantastic. We ordered salad with shrimp, salad with scallops (there were 5 scallops but they were large), the Mas burger and I ordered the crab cake burger. Bland, this was not. The color of the meals were bright and extremely visually appealing. It gave you the warm fuzzies just seeing the food because it was almost 'pretty'. The burger was very flavorful and was pretty decent sized and my crab cake was big, juicy and tasted great. For the crab cake fans out there (those of us who actually lived around/grew up around the oceans, you KNOW how important good crab cake is - this didn't have fillers and was ALL crab), you'll love this here and I highly recommend it. The second time we went was last night and it was just as great as the first time. Consistent service and food quality is enough to keep the patrons coming back for more. After working in this type of business for one of THE most anal retentive person I've ever met, I'm REALLY picky about service and presentation. It was just as before...great. They were a lot busier last night, which was good to see and everyone appeared as if they were enjoying their meals. No screaming children made it awesome (admit it..NO ONE likes that or wants to pay good money they worked hard to earn to listen to your friggin brat scream). I had the calamari and the crab burger..amazing. The calamari was moist but crisp, bursting with flavor. I was afraid it would be too spicy with the few jalapeno slices on top but it just added to it. The owner recognized us and came over, talked for a couple minutes and then made the normal rounds checking on patrons. I had ordered a Lemonade but the waiter said they were out. The owner heard this and went and had them find/ make more, immediately. All in all...I love this place and we'll be going back. The building WAS a Ruby Tuesdays and yes...they redid the painting and some of the interior. But it's not obnoxious colors or decorations..with the intimate lighting, it's pleasant and appealing. And, thankfully...the lights aren't right at forehead level or in your eyes. They're up high enough where you can have a conversation and NOT look around them. If you're looking for a good seafood place with fresh food and great flavor...give this place a try.

    (5)

  • Theresa C.

    Came here when I was visiting family. Ordered steamed blue crab and it was very fresh and tasty with old bay seasoning. Manager came out to greet us and was very friendly. Could tell he's a good manager. Only drawback is we were the only ones in the restaurant and the restaurant is fairly hidden in the back corner of a plaza. Didn't think the location was that great and is maybe expensive for the area. Had big screen TVs at the bar to watch football. Would recommend it but hope it gets more business to make dining more festive and less awkward.

    (4)

  • Ayisha M.

    Let me just say Im glad others are giving a low review. I was wondering if it was just me.... I saw some guy holding a sign on Rt 7 saying a new seafood/crab place was open and I got super excited. Unfortunately I had to drive in circles for 30 min to find it. I will say that the staff is very friendly and the place is very clean/welcoming. I looked at the menu and my first reaction was that this place is expensive... but then I figured that if they are serving "fresh" seafood, then it is probably appropriately priced. I ordered a fish sandwich and was not very impressed by it. It wasn't nasty, it just wasn't delicious. It was mediocre. I only ate about half of it and the rest is sitting in the fridge. I hope they can get it together. An awesome seafood restaurant/crab house on this side of NOVA would be great! They're just not quite there yet. Im not sure I would re-visit unless they update the menu or the chef.

    (2)

  • J M.

    I agree with Sean P about last nights Valentines Day dinner. VERY expensive for what we received. As we walked out, I was wishing I had walked out when I seen the menu was limited for the night. Like Sean said, we can't undo. But wishing I could have a Valentines Day dinner do-over. And it would NOT be at Captain Ma's.

    (1)

  • Sean L.

    Went there Sat...the place was filling up. Seafood is the name of their game, and I ordered a Frutti Di Mare....I thought it might be more like Ceviche but instead, it was mixed seafood with herbs in a slightly sweet sauce....it was good but the shrimps were a little chewy. My friends ordered the crab cake sandwich and they were HUGE! I ordered the oysters Po Boy, and it was delicious! They make their own Seafood seasoned chips! The owners were there to greet everyone and make sure things were right...this place is doing the right things!

    (4)

  • Mary B.

    We live nearby so have been meaning to go, finally got to Captain Mas this evening for dinner, and we will be back. We were warmly welcomed and served very quickly. The wines on the list was chosen to pair with the food and worked very well. Hubby had raw oysters and said they were outstanding. Entrees were good and came quickly. Service (our server was Chris) was very friendly and attentive. We try to avoid the chains and are very happy to have found another independent gem.

    (4)

  • Barbara L.

    A bit of a sticker shock as jumbo crabs were 6 for $50. But the food was actually quite delicious. We had the crab soup which made us feel like we were back in Baltimore! The crab cake burgers were very good too! The staff were appropriately attentive.

    (4)

  • Tina B.

    Pretty good, but as another reviewer said, definitely not a crab house. However, the food was good. As an appetizer we got the mussels & fries which was very good. The mussels were small, but the sauce was very tasty! The crab cake sandwich was good, not spectacular, but not bad at all. The food is on the higher price range, which is to be expected with seafood. If you want to save money I would just order several appetizers and also order from the raw bar. My mom got the oysters and she enjoyed them. Our server seemed inexperienced and unfamiliar with the menu, but he was attentive and nice. The owner?/manager? came over to ask if everything was ok which I thought was nice.

    (3)

  • Marie N.

    I went to Captain Mas on Monday 15 April. We had a wonderful evening of food and conversation. We each tried something different. The server was excellent as he explained the menu and what was not available that evening. I found it refreshing that the server actually said the chef did not put certain items on the menu because they did not look good when they came in. We started with warm rolls with a small tray that contained: butter, crawfish spread and pickled relish. I thought it was funny that the pickled relish is on the menu because the owner wants it. (It was all good.) I had the mahi tacos and Maryland crab soup. The orange mojo was light and a perfect topping on the tacos. Both were plentiful and delicious. My friend had the mahi salad. The mahi was a beautiful filet with nice seasoning and the dressing was delicious. My other friend had the shrimp and vegetables. Cooked to excellence. The atmosphere was pleasant and we were able to hold a normal conversation - meaning not competing with loud music. I thought it was a bit overpriced, but not as much as some other restaurants. I did feel bad that there were hardly any other diners. I'm not sure they have advertised or announced any type of grand opening. I will try again. My one friend was excited about letting her family that there was another good restaurant in town.

    (4)

  • John T.

    What a Joke, Captain Mas will be out of business by Christmas. The food was not good at all, VERY OVER Priced. Not a crab house, not even a decent seafood joint. They seem to want to be a fancy joint, but with a cartoon name and sign, and draft beer served in a mason jar. Food was served on huge plates with a display that makes the food portions look small. Fish and chips were soggy, burger was over cooked, crab legs came out cool to cold, and cost $27 for eight legs, gator app should be called shoe leather. Everyone in my family had food left on plates and we left hungry. We should have noticed that on a sat night at 6pm the parking lot was empty, should have turned around and went to hooked! Save your time and $$$$

    (1)

  • David D.

    We go back time and time again for the friendly atmosphere, good service and food.

    (4)

  • Carole S.

    Husband and I were pleased to be invited as guests to a "shake down" dinner at Captain Mas Crab House. The experience was delightful. If you've never been to a shake down, it is when the restaurant invites people to a private event to test out the menu, the wait staff, the flow -- pretty much everything -- before real people come in. I've been to shake downs where you expected someone to come running out of the kitchen shouting "SHUT. IT. DOWN." Not this one. These guys were efficient and professional and did not appear to be in the middle of their shake down. This restaurant is in the old Ruby Tuesdays behind Home Depot in Cascades. It was improved where it needed and left the same where it worked. It ended up with a pretty restaurant. The service was outstanding. Our waiter knew the menu and was able to guide us through some ideas and choices. He explained and described the sauces and the sides expertly. The restaurant has obviously found the best of the best in their staff. We started with crab cakes and lobster rolls. The crab cakes were not the typical MD crab cake. The presentation was unique and they were good. I honestly don't care for lobster rolls. I know. I know. But I just don't care for the texture. I'm probably 'complaining' because there was too much lobster in the roll. If you like lobster rolls, you might want to give these a try. I had the diver scallops. They were perfectly prepared. They were served with redskin potatoes and a wilted spinach. Husband had the lobster mac and cheese. He really enjoyed it. For dessert I had a hazelnut/chocolate mousse and Husband had the key lime "pie". The waiter told him in advance that the key lime didn't look like any pie he had had before. He was correct. It was more like a mousse but Husband thought it was some of the best key lime ever. The wine list is very, very good and the full bar seemed to be well appointed. I honestly don't remember what beers are on tap. You'll need to check them out yourself. Given the prices on the menu, this is a more expensive restaurant than I can typically afford. The seafood was fresh and that usually means a higher price. But I can see celebrating an occasion here with the excellent food and the outstanding service it would be very special! Overall an excellent meal and a great experience. From the moment we walked in door until we made our way to go home, it was a wonderful meal and delightful experience.

    (5)

  • Chris N.

    We live right around the corner and have been wanting to try this place. We finally did and weren't impressed. Small portions, food was so so, and over-priced. Best part were the complimentary chips. The half dozen oysters were small and not that good for $13. Crab quesadilla was small and awful. For 2 people, $70+, we left unsatisfied and still hungry.

    (1)

  • V W.

    We were skeptical about getting seafood and crabs in Sterling. While not as good as places on Chesapeake Bay, this location was very convenient and luckily our dozen crabs were delicious for November. Service was friendly and the owner checked on us. We also tried the gator tots (a bit chewy but sauce was great), fish taco, crab burger and house salads. All were good though not inexpensive. We lucked out that this Sunday evening was open mic night for singers who had a wide variety of talent. In addition to enjoying the nice seafood dinner we got live entertainment as well. Seafood quality and price do vary seasonally so I hope our next visit will be as good as this one.

    (4)

  • Anne J.

    First visit to a place we'd wanted to experience for quite some time. It's Valentine's Day, we've been house-bound for two days because of the snow, and we're looking forward to the experience. When we arrived - with reservations - we encountered a "down system." We were seated fairly promptly, however, so everything looked good...until the "maitre'd" asked for our patience, as the waitstaff was having a hard time covering their tables. We waited 30 minutes for water, another 15 or so to place our order, but the food arrived pretty promptly after that. We had to order off the limited "Valentine's Day" menu - didn't know that ahead of time - whichever was fairly pricey for what we received. Our food - crab bisque, crab cakes and crab-stuffed shrimp (and the stuffing was exactly like the crab cakes), asparagus, and twice-baked potatoes- was mostly tasty with the exception of the horrid potatoes: over cooked, over salted. Why so low a rating? The restaurant was not packed; in fact, there were many empty tables. Our waiter explained that he was manager/bar tender/waiter, which is why he was exceptionally late in getting to us. However, two gentlemen in suits - maître d's? owners? -spent way too much time chatting with an attractive blonde woman at the bar and checking on a few tables - but not all - when their time would have been better used by donning aprons and assisting the staff. Also of interest is that there were cards for the tables of some who'd made reservations, but not all, and one of the gents in suits delivered single red roses to various female diners....but not all. What gives, guys? Their money is better than mine?

    (2)

  • C R.

    My husband and I visit Captain Mas at least once a week. The food and service is exceptional. We are big crab fans and they are top notch, fresh, juicy and sweet. The two sauces they serve with them, even make them better.. We used to drive to Hamilton for crabs, but haven't gone back since we discovered Captain Mas. The owners are friendly and are always happy to see us.

    (5)

  • Kelly G.

    Found Captain Ma's when doing a google search for seafood in the Ashburn/Sterling area. I had NO idea this place was even here! Since it was a Friday night, I went online and made a reservation. My husband and I got there about 20 mins earlier than expected and got a seat right away...there was no one there. I knew from looking at the menu online before going that it was going to be more pricey than say, Joe's Crab Shack, so no surprises there. The complimentary starter chips were DElicious. We had the gator tots for an appetizer. Never had gator before! The tots were really good and came with a mildly spicy dipping sauce. YUM! For our main meals, I had the scallops and my husband had the fried shrimp. Both were delicious. The waiter and bus-girl were extremely attentive - made sure our waters were always full, asking if we wanted more chips, etc and the Manager came by to make sure everything was ok. As other reviewers have said, it's not a crab house in the traditional sense - it's definitely more upscale. Still, I'd go back again so I can try some other items!

    (3)

  • Leslie L.

    First visit tonight (we'll definitely be back.) I read mixed reviews here and was very skeptical, but now I am surprised at the poor reviews. We ordered hushpuppies and they were delicious, as was the jalepeno/celantro aioli sauce. One of us ordered the shrimp and grits and the other ordered the crabcakes. Both expensive items on the menu, but some of the best we have had - and we go out often to a lot of upscale restaurants. This is not a white table cloth romantic type of 4-star place, but I can tell you that the shrimp and grits you get in Tyson's at a famous white cloth place is nothing compared to these. The crab cakes were worth the high menu price and had almost zero filling. Compared to other local restaurants crab cakes, you get what you pay for and these are by far better than those a local magazine calls "the best" at other places. The wait staff was very attentive, but I admit the place was not that busy for a Friday night at dinner time. There was a large party in one side of the restaurant taking advantage of the Happy Hour. We were so full from the amount of food, that we didn't have room for desserts, but they all looked and sounded good too. The only thing I can find to remotely say is a downfall for this place is the leftover décor from the previous establishment doesn't go with the new theme - but who cares. We eat at a lot of upscale places in DC, Virginia and Maryland and I have to say I haven't ever felt so compelled to write a review about such exceptional food. On the way out I asked the owner for his name and assured him we will be back. He wants to get the word out and I will do my best to help him. Hopefully my next visit will be as good as the first. This is high quality food and I already cant wait to go back to see if they are consistent. They have been there seven months now and I really hope they stick around! I would highly recommend this place - and don't walk if you think the prices are too high, the meal was worth every penny.

    (5)

  • brooke b.

    We are big crab people...and were very excited that a new crab house was opening close to us. I just have to say..this is NOT a crab house. They did a beautiful job of transforming the old Ruby Tuesday's building, the staff was very friendly, the steamed clams were delicious, the raw bar looked nice, the have a good beer selection, but this is NOT a crab house. It's way to fancy to be a crab house, I have never been given a linen napkin to eat crabs or served crabs on china...the crab prices were resonable..if the sizes were accurate, but they were selling small crabs as xtra-large They have a nice menu and maybe the other food is good, but if you are looking for a crab house, this is not it, as the name Captain Mas Crab house implies. I think they have their business plan all wrong. Too bad.

    (1)

  • Susan P.

    We were so excited to see a crab house close to sterling but let down by the price and product. Crabs were over cooked, other offerings like calamari and shrimp were mediocre and they charge way more than any other crab house with better and fresher food.

    (1)

  • Lisa J.

    I have never received such bad customer service in my life. After waiting 2 hours and still not having our food delivered we walked out. We would have left earlier but the reviews were so good we were anxious to try it. The manager on duty was a joke and the server couldn't even be bothered to refill our drinks. What a colossal waste of time.

    (1)

  • HT H.

    Didn't start off on the right foot! Atmosphere is nice. Service is friendly. Presentation is ok. Preparation for food on day isn't well plan out.

    (1)

  • Brandon M.

    My Girlfriend and I are managers at a local chickfila restaurant so we understand the restaurant business and this way by far one of the worst dinner experience on Valentine's Day. We talked to the owner and come to find they we understaffed but this was no excuse. We were sat for 45 min before getting our appetizer. The bar tender walked up to our table, no eye contact, no smile and greeted us with "do you know what you want?" We ordered, waited another 30 min for our food but before hand same bar tender approached us and asked "uh, you wanted your steak rare, right?" Food finally came out, our potatoes weren't cut and had a hard inside. Steak was full of fat and over cooked. Fish wasn't seasoned at all and cold. Our complaint isn't about the food as much as the horrid service. We saw THREE employees drinking alcohol between helping guest. Two servers were coming out of the kitchen with two plates of crab legs, apparently one plate had too much and the waitress grab the crab legs with her BARE HANDS and switch plates. By the time dessert came out we were ready more then ready to leave. And as we were walking away the power went out in the restaurant! We could tell people were stressed and we did appreciate the owner and his son working very hard to controls what little they could but we will NOT be returning. If there was a way to give a half a star rating. We would.

    (1)

  • Josh R.

    I travel to the DC area quite a bit for work and was staying near Dulles. Found Captain Mas Crab House on Yelp and decided to try it out. Wow, what a pleasant surprise! I had the Alaskan King Crab and a salad. They bring Old Bay potato chips out to everybody and those were really good. They were a lot like the bleu cheese covered chips I have had had elsewhere, minus the bleu cheese. The house salad was GREAT and the house vinaigrette was right up there with some of the best I've had. I would almost come back for the fresh salad and house vinaigrette. The crab was actually the meatiest crab I have ever had, not kidding. It came with butter and old bay fries (which I don't think were made fresh). Either way, the crab was awesome. The atmosphere was interesting, lots of dark wood and a dark ceiling and probably 15 TVs all around. There was a full bar, so plenty of drinks to choose from. The waiter was great, super friendly and accommodating. One of the two owners, Shawn, was there and spoke to every customer in the restaurant. Very nice guy and great food. They used to drive to pick up fresh seafood every day, but now purveyors bring it to them. Everything is fresh, never frozen (whenever possible. I was told that there is no way to get crab from Alaska that hasn't been frozen). All in all, probably the best crab restaurant I have been to. Definitely go if your in the area. I'm always a little suspicious of 5 star reviews, but I was thinking about it and since I am rating this as the best crab house I have been to, I'm ok with giving it 5 stars :)

    (5)

  • Rex M.

    Stayed nearby and walked down. Grabbed a beer and Crab Mac. It was happy hour and beer was a great Lagunitas IPA. Crab Mac N Cheese was amazing! Most places w a Mac N Cheese w crab/lobster skimp on the meat. This had tons of crab! I will def be back!

    (5)

  • Jared R.

    Mediocrity at its pinnacle. We visited at 8 o'clock on a Monday night and were the only people in the place so the service was quite respectable. My friend got the fish and chips and said they were decent but nothing special. I ordered the crab cakes which were modest in size but had a high proportion of filler. The flavor of the crab cakes was alright. But nothing special. They required a liberal amounts of lemon juice. The tartar sauce could have been confused for Miracle Whip with some pickles and lemon mixed in for good luck. At $29 the crab cakes were extremely overpriced. I am confident that I will not come here again.

    (2)

  • Joshua J.

    Finally went to this place, I knew right off that it would be expensive $45 for all you can eat snow crabs with no sides. We got lucky some one threw in some sides for us. We also tried the gator tots which were ok just greasy. The service was pretty slow when you order the all you can eat, they bring them out in pairs of two or 6-8 legs but they are fresh and hot so I must say order your next batch half way through so you won't be sitting there waiting. To the owners: you guys may want to lower the prices and have better specials and advertise your place it was pretty empty in there(Thursday 8/28 night). Also your live entertainment was not that great, he was a good crowd pleaser but the singing was a little off.

    (3)

  • A K.

    Not sure what the bad reviews are about, I personally really liked this spot. I've been there at least 3 times and actually enjoyed everything from the hospitality of the owner/staff, the cleanliness of the interior to the well cooked/seasoned food . The owner took the time to talk to us, and discuss his level of quality for the food. If you have not tried their buffalo shrimp - you are missing out! These are massive shrimp that are battered and fried, then drenched in buffalo sauce..they are awesome! Also tried their crab cakes, which was more crab than filler, so I was happy. They have crab mashed potatoes, which my wife really enjoyed! The oysters are fresh and well shucked. Overall the restaurant is still fairly new, I am sure they will update the interior to be more of that 'Crab house' feel; however it is well kept, and very clean. I have not been on the outdoor patio yet, but looking to go there soon. They have 1/2 off apps during happy hour! Visit them and say hi to the owner, you will quickly realize that this place is a nice new addition to Loudoun County. PS - it is behind the Home Depot; I had issues finding it when I first looked. It is in the building Ruby Tuesday's used to be in.

    (5)

  • Krisse J.

    Seems pretty good. The crab cakes are loaded with crab meat. No filler. Veggie of the day is cooked just right. Not too crispy, not too soggy. Swordfish was a huge piece. Great portion sizes all around.

    (4)

  • Trent B.

    Imagine Ruby Tuesday applied too much self tanner and turned orange. Bright - almost day glow orange. That is about the extent of the remodel of this place, but that's cool. Whatevs. I was so excited to have a "crab house" in my neighborhood, but they were out... of crab. Out. Of. Crab. It happens. The food we did get was average to good, but way over priced. Delusions of grandeur. The name is awful, the logo is silly, and the website is sloppy with bad grammar, and old content. Who cares what was going on last month? The owners were in the restaurant and the wait staff and bartender seemed pre occupied with them. Dear owners, time to take a break, then go for a re-launch. Fix everything, get the community involved with the name, the decor, and the menu, we know what we want and this isn't it.

    (1)

  • John Y.

    Good food, nice atmosphere. Plenty of parking.

    (4)

  • Kathleen J.

    This restaurant has the worst service. They are extremely slow and it takes forever to get food. My husband and I have been to this establishment before about a year ago and the service was bad then too. We thought that we would check out this restaurant again because surely their service must have improved since they were still in business. Well, their only saving grace is that the food is good. Again, the service was slow and would ruin any date night. We went this past memorial day. Upon entering the restaurant, it seems quiet and unmanaged. There is no visible hostess or bartender. An older gentleman, dressed in an outfit totally unaffiliated with the restaurant approached us. He seemed very kind but rushed. After being seated we noticed there was only one server wearing a "Captain Mas" orange t-shirt. He was definately busy filling all the roles that maintains a functioning restaurant. He had no time to give any table the proper attention that a well run restaurant would to provide the patron a great experience. The general attitude of the customers was annoyed and fustrated. The food took so long I finished my drink and was on to the second (lucky to get after flaging down the waiter) well before the food came out. Our children (1yr & 5yr) were really fussing and no longer controllable. Once we got our food it was wonderful, great crab legs! I would never bother ordering the "All You Can Eat" unless you have hours to kill on slow service. Sadly, this experience was as bad as the first. The staff seemed nice (once we figured out who they were) but we will not return. Their sea food is not good enough to experience lousy service for a third time. We will not be surprised when we see a "Closed for Business" sign hanging on their doors.

    (2)

  • Sandy S.

    Excellent food and service. I've driven by this place many times and thought we'd give it a try tonight. The crab/artichoke dip was the perfect serving size and had REAL crabmeat and artichokes in it. I had the crab cakes and my date had the salmon. We both enjoyed our meals and look forward to our next visit!

    (5)

  • A. S.

    Meant to write this two weeks ago to help others avoid Captain Mas AYCE Crabs. After my favorite place to get crabs closed (Fresh Catch in Great Falls), I was thrilled to learn about Captain Mas. That lasted until I went in and ordered them. Absolutely terrible. Small, light and ugly, yes ugly. I like bright orange crabs, these were dark and well..ugly. I ordered a few rounds to make sure I was getting a good sample and unfortunately they were all the same... terrible. I am amazed that whoever cooked them sent them out. I would have been embarrassed to have someone eat these in my restaurant if I had one. Others have noted here that there were not a lot of patrons in the restaurant. Same when I was there. The place next door was "rocking" however. I am rating this 2 stars instead of one because the service was good, the beer was cold and my husband liked the craw fish. Not sure how much longer the owners can keep this place going.

    (2)

  • Jennifer W.

    Service was slow considering there was only one other table occupied. The server seemed nervous and unsure of himself. The food was over priced. I walked away feeling a lump in my stomach. Nothing spectacular. I won't be returning.

    (2)

  • Rick B.

    Food is 5 stars, but decor just didn't seem to connect with the great meal. We had hush puppies ...so perfect. They come with two sauces and I liked the citrus one, while my mate liked the butter one better. Oh and they bring you these homemade chips with old bay. Really tasty and I like the cone shaped presentation of both the chips and hush puppies. My meal was the crab cake sandwich with vegetable of the day. Tons of fresh crab in the cake and cooked to perfection. Veggies were grilled wonderfully and lightly seasoned...just the way I like. Mate had steamed shrimp with old bay. Again served in the fun cone and no complaints. Back to decor...old Ruby Tuesday location and they are using the same furniture and layout....dark wood. Seemed heavy feeling, but the food is light. They had a mural painted up so high...just way to casual a look for what i beleive could be much nicer place. I really believe they must have worked on a tight budget for the re-do but hope the can lighten the place up. Oh...the old RT salad bar is now their raw bar...very good idea and it works. Entrees seem high priced, but we will for sure be back to try more dishes. Food really is top notch!

    (4)

  • Prashanth N.

    This is probably the better seafood place in Sterling/Ashburn area. Ford Fish shack gets all the hype. This place is not that fancy, it has a Sport Bar/Seafood theme going on. I loved their gator tots and Fried Oysters.

    (4)

  • Rich P.

    Fresh as it gets. Tuna tartar was better than any Japanese steakhouse. Plus the two guys playing acoustic (on a Thursday) were great.

    (5)

  • Lorenzo D.

    When I heard of this restaurant, I expected it to be a middle class seafood restaurant. Meaning much higher quality than red lobster and below the price of hook which is a seafood restaurant in the same area. I was hoping for a price bellow 25. The menu is riddled with entrees around 30 and up. I was surprised to say the least, but I figured the food would be worth the price. The group that I went with got the swordfish, grilled shrimp, shrimp with grits, and fried oysters. We all tasted each others food. Everyone was like this is nothing special and said we should have just went to hook. The food is over priced for what you get and the portions are small. Avoid this restaurant and just go to Hook if your looking for a seafood place in Sterling Va.

    (1)

  • Angela M.

    This restaurant is newly opened and still trying to find its footing. Agree with the other reviewers - it is not a crab house, it's an upscale seafood restaurant. When you walk in you still get the Ruby Tuesday vibe. They've freshened things up a bit, but it's hard not to remember it used to be Ruby Tuesday. And I think that's partly where the disconnect comes in with the pricing on the menu. It's like, "here I am in Ruby Tuesday ordering $30 crab cakes." The food was good, the service was attentive and the GM, Eduardo, spent about 10 minutes with us talking about the aspirations for Captain Mas. They're still trying a few things out. It's the rare restaurant that opens and has immediately worked everything out to perfection. The food was good. They gave us a complimentary starter of homemade potato chips with an Old Bay-like seasoning. Delicious. I had moules and frites as my dinner and my husband had the crab cakes. Both very good, although a little too heavy on the frites in both dishes. Crab cakes were very large, perfectly seasoned and had very little filler. I had a signature cocktail - their mojito. Pretty tasty. You can't really compare this restaurant to either Hooked (across Route 7) or Ford's Fish Shack in Ashburn, but it's good and worth a try. Give them a few months to iron out their menu and figure out what they want to ultimately be. I'll go back to try a few other things on the menu but based on what we had, I think they have the makings of a winner.

    (3)

  • Raymond M.

    I love seafood, but the truth is this food really isn't very good. I had seafood fettuccini and my wife had catfish and a macaroni and crab side. The service was fine. I would not give it another try.

    (1)

  • Vicki P.

    First time visit with my teenage daughter was a great experience. The restaurant and bathrooms were very clean, the service was fast and friendly, and the food was great. We ordered crab cakes and the scallops entree. The crab cakes were a nice size and FULL of large chunks of crab meat, not full of breading and fillers. The scallops weren't huge but they were cooked perfectly. The scallops were nice and tender not rubbery. The scallops entree was served with a good amount of crab meat with mashed potatoes and spinach. We also ordered a brownie sundae which was just okay but the crab cakes alone were totally worth a return visit!

    (4)

  • Tina C.

    I live in Sterling and was looking forward to trying the restaurant in town. I went to Captain Mas Crab House early on a Friday evening, around 6. I was dining alone so sat at the bar. I was surprised by the menu prices but probably appropriate for the cuisine. There were only a handful of people sitting at the bar, the bartender was very inattentive. He was standing virtually right in front of me cutting up "drink fruit" and it was as if I was invisible. When it was obvious to any good waiter that I was ready to order, I had to call out to him to get his attention. I ordered the bar-b-que shrimp and grits. The food was fabulous! Very tasty. My complaint was really around the lack of attentive service. Not once did the bartender/waiter ask me how the wine or food was. He never checked in on me even though he was right there. Half way through my meal a buddy of his came in and sat at the bar and he went over to chat it up with his friend. On the way out, I saw the owner and told him that the food was great but the service sucked. He apologized but didn't offer to comp me the wine or offer me a gift card to come back or anything - missed opportunity there for him. I will go back because the food was very good, but hope the service improves. Also, I know it's also a sports bar, and I don't like sports, but is it too much to ask to turn 1 or 2 of the 15 or so TV's to CNN or something?

    (3)

  • Candace E.

    I was very excited to try this place, because it literally is in walking distance from where I live and we do not have a lot of seafood restaurants in the area. I was sadly disappointed. I went with a friend and he got there before me and called me and told me the place was extremely empty except for a few people at the bar, none of which were eating. I told him I have been dying to try the place so wanted to still try it anyways, even though that should have been my sign. So after looking at the menu I decided on the grilled shrimp and my friend ordered the crab cakes. The food didn't take long and the appearance looked really good. I reached over and tried my friends crab cake and it tasted like fish it tasted nothing remotely close to a crab cake which I am still confused about. My shrimp was just ok, they were a good size but a little on the tough side. I have had way better shrimp else where. I love Fords which is not far from this place at all and there is no comparison, you can get much better food seafood at Fords for the same price. I would say you can get much better food at Red Lobster. I will not be returning, I think this place should scratch the seafood theme and maybe try being a sports bar, since the only other people that were in there just came to drink and watch all the games that were on. I only gave them a 2 star rating, because the server was pretty good, he was very attentive and fast, if it was based on the food alone it definitely would have only been a 1 star rating.

    (2)

  • Dora G.

    Great crab cakes and Shrimp & Grits! The service was great and big portions! Also try the hush puppies with honey butter - super delicious!!

    (5)

  • Nya A.

    Snow crab lobster was delicious and kids ordered a fish 'n' chips & enjoyed it. Brought family from out of town and enjoyed the food & service.

    (4)

  • Kathy S.

    I am being generous and rounding my 2.5 to a 3. There is nothing here to make me come back but the food was okay and the staff clearly tried. The crab legs were not quite done and very difficult to remove. No full pieces here. The fries were good but no different than any other good fries. My fiancée did like his fish and I agree it was probably the best thing we had. I can't blame the restaurant for the parents who could not control their children yelling at the top of their lungs to each song that played. Don't get me wrong there are restaurants where you expect to find boisterous children and it's okay, and there are parents who have taught their children to behave in any situation, neither was this. Overall, they are trying hard, I don't care that the décor has not changed much but bottom line if Joe's Crab Shack could not survive in this neighborhood, I think this will be a hard sell with even higher prices.

    (3)

  • Angel P.

    Lets start by the first initial phone call, a woman answered the phone and we asked how much for all you can eat, after the woman said $35per person me along with 5 others were on our way. We got there and was greeted by every member of the wait staff available (because there were only about 5 customers in the whole place). Me and my boyfriend were on one bill. We got 2 mixed drinks, two shots and two all you can eat snow crab legs. Expensive Expensive Expensive. That's the only word I can think of when it comes to this place. The bill totaled $145 for what we ordered. When we told the manager that the woman who answered the phone told us $35 per person not $50, he said No woman has answered the phone, only one man answers, like we made up the whole conversation. My parents bill which was 1 all you can eat snow crabs, the lobster Mac and Cheese (which looked like canned spaghetti sauce with shells and apparently crab) 2 shots and maybe 4 mixed drinks totaled a $150. I will never again be a customer here. Not only for the price for the legs but the fact they tried to make us out to be liars. But on a positive note, our waiter was amazing.

    (1)

  • Keri M.

    My boyfriend and I were so excited about a new seafood restaurant being opened. It is our favorite type of cuisine. We decided to check the place out last night - to find out it was their first night open! Kind of exciting, and of course we then had high expectations. Service was good - the waiter was friendly. The rolls were not good that were brought out - they were tough. We reviewed the menu and found that the prices were fairly high - which is okay if the food is really good. Especially seafood! I ordered scallops for $29. The scallops were cooked well and seasoned nicely but the spinach was not edible (WAY too salty - and I LOVE spinach) and the potatoes were about as basic as roasted rosemary potatoes can get. My meal was okay - but I couldn't understand the price tag. The fried shrimp looked greasy and you get 4 pieces and horrible french fries. However the vegetables with this were fairly good - a nice mixture of squash, carrots, etc. They were good vegetables but the rest left much to be desired. My main complaint is the cost of this place for what you get. I just wasn't expecting the high cost for the basic food. I hope they pull it together and make some changes - maybe we will try it again in the future. However, first impressions are really lasting - especially on opening night. I didn't even see a manager to ask how our experience was which I was surprised about. Good luck Captain Mas

    (2)

  • Valeria G.

    ***4.5 stars***I would have given them 5, but don't want my review pulled!!! I had an amazing experience at Captain Mas! The food was fantastic and the service was excellent, not to mention the beautiful, yet casual environment. Our water glasses were constantly filled. I really liked how the wait staff worked as a team to serve the customers. They make you feel like you're their number one priority regardless of how busy the restaurant is. If you're with a group, the Captain Mas Chilled Seafood Tower is a must! It's a combination of oysters, clams, shrimp cocktail, crawfish, and rock crab (shucked to order and served with a delicious cucumber mignonete). I also enjoyed the shrimp and grits followed by the "Dark Decadence" which is made up of three amazing layers of chocolate cake and chocolate mousse and covered in dark chocolate ganache. I'm planning on coming back for their Valentine's Day special which is a great deal...3 course meal for $95 per couple. (They also have an all you can eat special on Sundays and Mondays which I haven't been to yet but have heard good things). Overall it's a great restaurant if you want quality food at reasonable prices with excellent customer service. I have referred many friends and they all agree this is a gem in Sterling!

    (4)

  • Kirk K.

    OK...saw this place before it opened...read the Yelp reviews and decided we'd give it a little time...really sorry we waited until Friday nite...comfortable surroundings, we don't care what the building used to be...the food is the motivator...the wife, being a crab cake freak, had the crab cake burger and I had a bowl of Maryland Crab Soup and Shrimp, grits, and sausage...the chips they bring out are great...my S&G were incredible...cheesy grits and flame grilled shrimp with sausage were perfect...the wife regretted not getting the grilled shrimp but her crab burger got a "would do again" vote...Soup was tomatoe based and really tasty with enough Old Bay to speed it up...prices are spot on...we will make this a twice a month dinner spot...

    (5)

  • Anna C.

    This place is wonderful! Who gives a Crap about decor? Chef Geoffs has nice decor and their food sucks... And I have to say I'm picky. This place has the best crab cakes! It is full of crab meat, no fillers. My husband had the salmon and he loved it. The servers are great and they have a decent wine list. They're new and growing, it'll take some time but the most important thing is the quality of the food and the service. Give this place a try -- you won't be disappointed.

    (5)

  • VA E.

    Food was excellent, service even better. They really care about what comes out of the kitchen. The inside is very clean and relaxing.

    (5)

  • B A.

    Wow, that was pretty horrible. As we were being seated at prime dinner time on a Wednesday night, we wondered why there was only one other table seated, plus a handful of people at the bar. We looked at each other and guessed that there must be something wrong. How could a big seafood place in the middle of Cascades--the closest restaurant to the nearby Marriott--be practically empty? Well we didn't get our answer right away. Although the booth seat was patched (thanks Ruby Tuesday) and the decor not even up to those Ruby Tuesday standards, the host was entirely pleasant and the waitress was completely attentive. So far so good. Open the menu--wow the prices say "high end seafood restaurant." Still I'm good with that if the food measures up. No problem. They bring you the house made Old Bay chips and I found 'em pretty addictive. Again ... so far so good. We ordered the Alaskan King Crab legs--best in the house--and the Diver Scallops. The waitress made a big deal about 'em--told us they're those really HUGE scallops, and SO tasty. OK ... sold! ... And then the food arrived. One look and we knew why this place is empty. A pound of Alaskan King Crab legs is exactly three. And those "HUGE" scallops (six of 'em, all lined up in a row) (maybe seven) had to be all of 3/4 inch across. Each scallop did have a HUGE dollop of mayonnaise on the top. (OK, I'm sure it was aioli of some kind but ... wow.) The crab mashed potatoes had barely a hint of crab in them. And everything on both dishes was just kind of warm--so it was a race to see what would get cold the fastest. (The fries and the mashed potatoes won that contest, hands down.) The scallops were especially bland and tasteless. Well except for the big gob of aioli on top (not a good thing). The crab legs were soft, wobbly and overcooked. One of the legs had quite a bit of meat in it. The other two, not so much. $35. Three legs. After the fuss that the waitress had made about the scallops, we're wondering whether the kitchen just sent out a couple of bad plates. I mean, she has to see that these things are not what she promised. Then we looked around the restaurant. One more table had been seated ... for a total of three. Nope, this is why the place is empty. I'd love to see Restaurant Impossible come in and find out what's wrong here. Chef Robert Irvine would discover that the owners are paying top dollar for the wrong food ... or something. The opening was about six months ago. The six months has not served them well. High prices, tiny portions, food not good, food not hot. At least the servers are attentive and thoroughly pleasant. Here's the summary. We should have gone to Red Lobster. Annnd ... we won't be back. Definitely.

    (1)

  • Rami R.

    Second time here. Walked in with no one to greet you and waited 5 mins before we were seated. 10 mins before our server came. we ordered drinks and food at the same time. 2 all you can eat crablegs. First plate good , second plate good, next plate 1 cluster (20 mins to come out and they give me one) , ordered more and asked to double the order. 10 min, 20 mins asked the server what's going on and he tells me he will send the manager, 35 mins still no crablegs and no manager. 10 mins later the owner comes and has the worst most evil aura about him. He tells me it take 25 mins to Steam crablegs when they were coming out at 15 min intervals. $47 for all you can eat crablegs but it's not all you can eat unless you sit there all day waiting for crablegs to come out at extended times. 45 mins in between crablegs at 1 cluster at a time. No wonder at 7 pm on a Saturday night they only had 4 tables. If you want all you can eat ,which at $47 is up there, STAY AWAY STAY AWAY

    (1)

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Map

Opening Hours

  • Mon :4:00 pm - 10:00pm

Specialities

  • Takes Reservations : Yes
    Delivery : No
    Take-out : Yes
    Accepts Credit Cards : Yes
    Accepts Bitcoin : No
    Good For : Dinner
    Parking : Private Lot
    Bike Parking : Yes
    Good for Kids : Yes
    Good for Groups : Yes
    Attire : Casual
    Ambience : Casual
    Noise Level : Average
    Alcohol : Full Bar
    Outdoor Seating : Yes
    Wi-Fi : Free
    Has TV : Yes
    Waiter Service : Yes
    Caters : Yes

Captain Mas Crab House

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