Joe's Crab Shack image

Joe's Crab Shack

Restaurant Family restaurant Seafood restaurant

One of the Most Reviewed Seafood restaurants in Louisville


Address

131 W River Rd, Louisville, KY 40202

Website

www.joescrabshack.com

Contact

(502) 568-1171

Price rating

$$ $$

Rating on Google Maps

4.10 (3.9K reviews)

Open on Google Maps

Working Hours

  • Friday: (Good Friday), 11 AM to 11 PM, Hours might differ
  • Saturday: 11 AM to 11 PM
  • Sunday: (Easter), 11 AM to 10 PM, Hours might differ
  • Monday: 11 AM to 10 PM
  • Tuesday: 11 AM to 10 PM
  • Wednesday: 11 AM to 10 PM
  • Thursday: 11 AM to 10 PM

Featured Reviews


Frequently mentioned in reviews: crab (14) good (14) seafood (14) time (9) shrimp (9) restaurant (7) great (7) service (6) nice (6) amazing (6)
Reviews are sorted by relevance, prioritizing the most helpful and insightful feedback at the top for easier reference.
  • 5/5 Jean M. 2 years ago on Google
    First time going here....and was very pleased. From attentive waiter, ice cold cocktails, and the crab dip which blew my mind! The snow crab bucket was phenomenal! Husband had shrimp and fish, and was pleased with how much food was there. Order a cocktail (even a alcohol free ) and take the cute cups home!
    8 people found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 Chris L. 2 years ago on Google
    We have visited this location numerous times and found the service and the food to be of consistent high quality. The restaurant is located beautifully right on the banks of the Ohio River with great views of local bridges and the river itself. The place is always clean including the restrooms.
    4 people found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 Chris M. 9 months ago on Google
    Everyone always enjoys eating at destination Joe's Crab Shacks. This one happens to be located right on the river with panoramic views. The kids had fun getting the crab pots on the kids menu and we had a larger crab pot and peel um and eat um shrimp. Everything was tasty. I would like to give a shout out to the GM on duty today. My 11 year old daughter had a crab leg that was empty and so she politely asked to see the Chef. She explained that to eat crab was a special treat and how sad she was when a whole leg was empty. He said no worries and came back out a little while later with another small cluster. Totally the way to create a lifelong customer. She will never forget that and the chain will make that up in spades. So many other chains are going out of business because they just don't understand that they are there because of the customer! Well done!
    3 people found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 russell d. 2 years ago on Google
    Food was so good!! First time to a Joe's Crab Shack and we will be back. The waitress we had was awesome she was very friendly and on top of taking care of her. Vanessa was her name and she needs to know that she made our experience wonderful you should be happy to have her working for your restaurant.
    3 people found this review helpful 👍

  • 4/5 GOOGLE TEAM INDIANA J. 2 years ago on Google
    Jalen was nice and a friendly server. Food was good. Wish they served something vegitarian besides salad, potatoes and corn. Overall I like the atmosphere on the water. I ate a salad and hush puppies.
    3 people found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 Francisco C. 2 years ago on Google
    Great seafood restaurant with an amazing view of the Ohio River and the four bridges that cross it. The seafood platters are delicious! Try whatever crab they offer, you are going to enjoy the flavor, freshness, and the smell of their plates. The decoration inside is really nice, but eating at the deck with the view of the river has no price.
    3 people found this review helpful 👍

  • 3/5 The K Green S. 2 years ago on Google
    I give it 3.5 stars and I originally had 4 stars shown but then backed down to 3. The restaurant itself is clean, large, great view of the river, and has cool paraphernalia all around. Staff was polite and helpful even if seemingly understaffed at the time of my visit. The rating comes from my perception of what I thought I was going to have for choices of meals. Lots of fried food choices, few fresh fish grilled choices, a few market rate items like lobster and some crab legs. I think the steam pot would probably have been good but expensive. Overall, I was not impressed with my warm, skinned over lobster bisque and cold broccoli and fries by any means and I personally would not try again as it was not what I was expecting. But you can make up your own mind.
    2 people found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 Kristi M. 1 year ago on Google
    We had the best food and Eric our server was amazing!!! He was so good to us as we've never been before and explained everything. He was great with our Autistic son and made our time there an even better experience!!!
    2 people found this review helpful 👍

  • 3/5 Kevin B. 1 year ago on Google
    This was our first time eating here, been wanting to try it for years. The atmosphere is great! And the people working there were very nice. The food did taste good, but not great, portions were not much, they gave us alot of fries, which made it look like more. It's a very expensive place for the food you get, you are paying for the name and place for sure. Because of this, I will probably not be going back, but if money is no problem for you, then this would be a great place to eat it.
    2 people found this review helpful 👍

  • 3/5 Mary K. 10 months ago on Google
    Food is super bland... & expensive.. Tables was dirty.. Staff was amazing & views on the deck are priceless.. But if you want good seafood I'd go to pier 17 before this place...js
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 5/5 JT O. 11 months ago on Google
    Had an amazing experience with my wife and a friend. Our server was Tristan and he was amazing he helped us decide what to eat, he kept us updated with how our order was coming and made sure we never had to wait for anything. BE SURE TO HAVE TRISTAN AS YOUR SERVER FOR AN AMAZING EXPERIENCE!!!
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 4/5 C S. 2 years ago on Google
    The food is delicious with a wide choice of seafood and crabs. The service is good and prices are reasonable for seafood. Look at around $20 per person medium pricing for dinner.
    1 person found this review helpful 👍

  • 4/5 Dylan T. 1 year ago on Google
    The stuffed mushrooms were top notch!! I recommend for sure!😋the appetizers in general were great. I had the low country boil id rate it on flavor 5/10 and overall on that dish 6/10. The main problem was it was overcooked making it hard to shell the shrimp and crab legs. Overall experience was a 7/10. Maybe if you try a higher quality and more expensive item on menu it would be better? But doubtful. That said i love seafood 😋 and had a good time.

  • 4/5 Greg Naves I. 11 months ago on Google
    Customer service is good and it’s a nice view in the warm months. I don’t like the seafood boils but she does and so does the kids. I got the stuffed tilapia last time and it was decent . The steak and pasta I’ve had in the past is good was well. I’ll update this one day with interior and exterior photos. Cool place with gift shop area and plenty of televisions.

  • 5/5 Alex A. 11 months ago on Google
    We were in town for the NASP tournament looking for a nice place to eat, and so glad we chose this location. We were able to make reservations which was extremely nice considering we had 16 people with us. The waitress that took care of us was excellent! For her to be handling the entire party alone, we had absolutely no complaints. She was very friendly and accommodating and made sure all of our drinks were full and we were happy. The food itself was OUTSTANDING! The grilled shrimp was maybe a TAD overdone, but overall it was DELICIOUS!!! We spent more than I care to admit, but no regrets here! This will be a place we visit every time we are in town!

  • 4/5 Jennifer D. 2 years ago on Google
    Great view. Fast service. Kid friendly. They gave both girls a shark (which would have gone over better giving them at the end of the meal bc then they wouldn't eat for playing). We called ahead for a reservation but they told us they did not expect to be busy to just come in. We are Landry members which is worth it! you immediately get the year fee back on your first meal spend ...you get $25 off the meal. They gave me a free cup for being a member and if you have that membership they must seat you within 5 mins regardless of a line or wait time. It can be used at any Landry restaurant (like a Rainforest cafe). our food was wonderful at this location and the service was excellent as well.

  • 4/5 Sondra D. 10 months ago on Google
    Food is pretty pricey ($21 for a kids crab leg meal after tip). I don’t eat seafood and I only went to purchase a kids meal but the girl that was at the hostess stand and got our order together was pretty awesome and I am in the food service industry as one of my jobs so I have very high expectations. My son enjoyed the food and it was just a bit much. I would say we would probably visit more often if they cut the amount of food down, reflecting in the price. Seafood isn’t good to eat leftovers of.

  • 5/5 The W. 1 year ago on Google
    Seafood is always a good idea! We got a BROILED SEAFOOD PLATTER Lobster tail, seafood stuffed crab, bacon-wrapped shrimp filled with seafood stuffing, cheese and jalapeños, grilled shrimp all drizzled with lemon butter, with white rice and seasonal vegetables $37.99 (1162 cal.) Shrimp & Seafood ensemble Crispy fried shrimp, coconut shrimp, popcorn shrimp, fish fillet with fries coleslaws with hushpuppies. $24.99 (1750 cal) It was so satisfying we didn’t even get a dessert of being so much stuffed. Everything’s perfect we will definitely be back.

  • 3/5 Elainea C. 1 year ago on Google
    Went for dinner for my birthday. Bill was almost $200 for 4 people. Less crab legs then expected in a bucket. Also two of the meals were a different higher price then what was advertised on the menu. Food tasted ok but found hair in the coleslaw. I don't think we will be going back.

  • 5/5 Daphne B. 6 months ago on Google
    Being from the Maritimes in Canada, and having access to five minutes fresh from the ocean seafood, I was wary of trying it in a landlocked state. I had no reason to fear though, as all three of the dishes I tried at Joe's were completely knocked out of the park. I strongly recommend this place for good seafood. It is as close to as good at home as I've ever found abroad. If you do go here, do yourself a favor and get the crab dip. You won't regret it.

  • 3/5 Andy N. 6 months ago on Google
    As we traveled through Louisville, KY we wanted to have some lunch at the Riverfront area. Stopped in for late lunch around 2 pm. Place was practically empty with wait staff standing around the bar doing nothing. When the waiter finally came to our table she took our order and wandered off. 15 minutes of doing nothing and no effort made to bring us water. When we received the food our dishes were not very tasty, cold and dry. This was the worst experience we’ve ever had at this chain restaurant.

  • 5/5 Morne L. 6 months ago on Google
    Lovely restaurant downtown Louisville. The food is amazing. Yum. The restrooms spotless. Really snazzy place to dine.

  • 4/5 Yinka A. 7 months ago on Google
    The seafood snow crab leg was expensive. You are probably better off doing the seafood boil. Menu say some items are market price, you should ask for the price before ordering food. Friendly staff and they show UFC fights if that’s something that interests you. There was some thrift event going on so they were charging to park, paid $10 for parking. I repeatedly ask parking attendant what I would get for paying such an exorbitant amount for parking when I’m not even going to the event. She eventually gave me a coupon for free appetizer.


Call (502) 568-1171 Open on Google Maps

Amenities


  • Parking
    • ✓️ Paid parking lot
    • ✓️ Plenty of parking
  • Payments
    • ✓️ Debit cards
    • ✓️ Credit cards
  • Offerings
    • ✓️ Beer
    • ✓️ Wine
    • ✓️ Alcohol
    • ✓️ Cocktails
    • ✓️ Quick bite
    • ✓️ Hard liquor
    • ✓️ Comfort food
    • ✓️ Happy hour food
    • ✓️ Healthy options
    • ✓️ Happy hour drinks
    • ✓️ Vegetarian options
  • Popular for
    • ✓️ Lunch
    • ✓️ Dinner
    • ✓️ Solo dining
  • Accessibility
    • ✓️ Wheelchair accessible seating
    • ✓️ Wheelchair accessible entrance
    • ✓️ Wheelchair accessible restroom
    • ✓️ Wheelchair accessible parking lot
  • Dining options
    • ✓️ Lunch
    • ✓️ Dinner
    • ✓️ Dessert
    • ✓️ Seating
    • ✓️ Catering
  • Service options
    • ✓️ Dine-in
    • ✓️ Takeout
    • ✓️ Delivery
    • ✓️ Curbside pickup
    • ✓️ Outdoor seating

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