The Crab at Bournemouth in Bournemouth

Great food, friendly staff, but pianist was too loud.

Have always wanted to eat here so booked it for my birthday treat with my daughter. Restaurant very nice but disappointing experience. Seated at a table which was very sticky. Asked waiter to clean it 2-3 times but still very sticky, in hindsight should have moved to another table. We started with scallops & calamari. Then I had crab thermidor(as I hadn't had it before) & fish n chips. I thought waiter said that the crab was £35 but when I rec'd bill I was charged £45, which was expensive for what was served as barely any white meat in claws & brown meat was tasteless. Waiter kindly gave us some brownies as a birthday celebration. Overall very unimpressed & would not go back.

8 of us went for lunch and couldn't fault it. We had the linguini, fish and chips and catch of the day. All cooked beautifully and all the fish was supper fresh. The team that served us were lovely. Will definitely come back.

Acoustics in the restaurant poor, lots of hard surfaces and open dining space meant the music from the piano was too loud, making it difficult to chat. Nothing cosy about the place, the large sliding glass windows look directly onto a smoking area and then onto the street, made us feel very exposed. Some curtains on the large windows would not only have afforded us privacy, it would also cut down on sounds bouncing around the room. Food was 3/5, we had the seafood platter, lots of selection and good portions of fish but garlic butter that accompanied it was cool when meant to be warm for dipping. No accompaniment comes with this so additional fries had to be ordered as did bread if you wanted it. Service was ok, but staff not attentive so table wasn’t wiped down between courses and we poured our own champagne once or twice. Also please stop with calling customers ‘guys’ it’s unprofessional and irritating as it was used by every member of the waiting staff! We live just outside London and dined here when visiting relatives for the weekend….I certainly won’t book here again.

We were staying at the Park Hotel. The crab restaurant was on site. Based on the chef’s recommendations we tried the seafood linguine, whole fish and scallops for dinner. All were excellent. See pics. Friday night had a pianist, happy hour is a great time for cocktails.

Best mussels I have ever had, and I am lover of seafood. Staff is extremely friendly and try to please you any possible way. Enjoyed every bit of the experience…

This is one of our favourite restaurants and having not visited it for a while my husband treated me to my 50th birthday meal and it did not disappoint. I believe there is a new lady chef and she rocks! The food really is amazing, we had king prawns (which we always have) and these have improved ten folds!! They are now served in a beautiful plentiful delicious sauce! It was that amazing I ran across the restaurant to collect when the waiter whipped the plate I had been saving for my mains to dunk in my chips away!! We then had lobster (it has gone up in price 😢) however you now get the claws which has lots more meat so you do feel like you are getting more for your money!!! It was mouthy wateringly lovely too!! The only feedback (and they were still nice) would be I wished the triple cooked chips were just a little bit more crispy on the outside! However the meal and service blew us away. Theo our waitress looked after us and she was fabulous at her job! Ww love the piano player! We left feeling really full having had a truly amazing meal! We were so so happy it didn’t disappoint and thankfully it is still our favourite restaurant! Can’t recommend enough we shall be returning for hubbys birthday in October!

We had the most wonderful lunch today. 6 oysters, then the hot shared plate. Absolutely delicious, thoroughly enjoyed it. Everything you could imagine, beautifully cooked. All staff were friendly and helpful. Such a treat. Would definitely recommend !

The food was out of this world, staff were attentive and knowledgeable. We will definitely return.

Food very good and Friendly staff.

It isn't cheap but we couldn't fault the service or the quality of the very tasty food, happy to recommend

MY BELLY FELL OUT!! I visited on a quiet, slow Monday, I was seated immediately, and service was pretty good. I ordered 6 oysters and the (seabream) catch of the day. If you look at my other reviews and photos, you will see that I eat oysters, fish and other seafood/shellfish often. While I was eating, I didn't detect anything untoward, however, later that evening I had such a bad case of food poisoning, it was the worst I've EVER experienced. I didn't eat anything else that day. I called the restaurant on the two consecutive days after I ate there and no one answered the phone. I have also emailed the restaurant and so far (4 days later) I haven't had a reply yet. Maybe they will reply here. Although, I admittedy enjoyed the food while I was eating it, I paid for an expensive case of food poisoning.

Wouldn’t recommend to eat here, only the oyster and service were nice. Food aren’t really fresh and does not worth the price at all🥲🥲

Çok keyifli ve lezzetli yemekler . hem göz dolduruyor hem de çok lezzetliydi. Ortam ve ambiyans çok güzeldi. Mutlaka Yine geleceğiz ve tavsiye edeceğiz. Teşekkürler the crab restorant and bar…

Staff very helpful. Food excellent. Had crab with garlic sauce. Outstanding. Also Martini cocktail - perfectly made (used to be professional drinks Educator/cocktail judge & Area Chairman UK Bartenders Guild, SW England. Wine choice good - glass of Picpoul de Pinet - really good with crab. Finished with double espresso & glass of Diplomatico Reserve rum. Perfect finish to perfect meal!

It's been a few years since I have eaten in the Crab and my wife and I popped in for dinner after a day at the beach. I must say the service was attentive and courteous. The food was exceptional It's a great relaxed atmosphere with tables not to close.

Had really delicious whole seabass here (catch of the day). King prawns cooked in a delicious sauce I have never had elsewhere. This is a place for seafood lovers. Service was attentive though this might have been because it was a quiet day.walked in with no reservation.

The service was consistently friendly and professional. The seafood was delicious, and the menu innovative. It is not cheap, but it is worth it. Highly recommend.

I had the fish and chips with a twist. 🤭🤭 They recommended me to make it pan fried and it was delicious. Only small complain would be the lack of salt in the food. But everything was jolly good. 🐟❤️🍀

A nice meal focusing on seafood. Good wine list and friendly service.

OMG, the fish was so delicious ,cooked at perfection 👌.But the scallops were so yummy 😋. This is one of my top 5 restaurants.

Would have been a five, but first two fish mains choices were not available. The chef did come up with an alternative however. Lobster, chips and salad were incredibly tasty. Great wine selection reasonably priced.

Atmosphere was okay, breakfast was terrible, had an eggs Benedict and the yolk was solid. Would not recommend.

Brilliant food brilliant service enjoyed every minute

We were served by Theo, excellent service and very attentive. We had the moules for starter, creamy and cooked to perfection. We both had the seafood linguine which was amaaaaazing! Recommend.

Brilliant food, I had the mussels to share for a starter and the Seafood Linguine for my main. The mussels were the best I have had in years. We also received cream of tomato soup, compliments from the chef, also some of the best tomato soup I've had in ages. The service was excellent, we had Theo serving us and she was a delight! She was attentive and friendly and made our time all the more lovely!

A wonderful seafood restaurant in Bournemouth. The food is delicious, and I advise you, besides calamari, mussels, and seafood with potatoes, nothing special.

Love this restaurant. We had a lovely evening last week - such amazing service (thank you Theo) and also delicious food. Prawns, calamari and seafood linguine were all fantastic. Highly recommended. You can tell the staff are well trained in customer service - which is rare to find these days. The chef and kitchen team are also very talented! Best seafood night out in a long time. Thank you.

This is the best restaurant in Bournemouth, serving high quality sea food with attention to detail. Do ask for Varun, who was our waiter, he took the upmost care of us, making us feel so special. The chef prepared all our dishes with perfection and accommodated our dietary requirements . The cocktails were divine. We will definitely return !

It’s been a week since we ate here and we are all still reminiscing about our seafood experience. Honestly the tastiest, freshest seafood we have had. I would highly recommend the special fries and the fruit de mere platter. We also ordered a whole crab, lobster and seabass. The crab, lobster, shrimps, mussels and Scallops were cooked to perfection as was the Sea Bass. It was amazing and one of the best meals we have ever had. Our food arrived in a short time after ordering and the waiters and waitresses were very helpful and friendly. It’s really sad though that this business had to close early and suffer due to reports of EDL activities in the evening.

A warm and nice restaurant in the core of the Bournemouth Beach opposite to the convention centre. The staff are super friendly and helpful. The foods are mainly seafood dishes with a reasonable price given the location and atmosphere. Crab, lobster and oyster are fantastic.

The food was good but the location of the restaurant does not fit the vibe.

Having booked for a 70th Birthday and being contacted the evening before and told that they were not serving alcohol was not great. Also to find a man playing piano loudly so conversation became difficult , somewhat disappointing. Food was good but service at times a little slack. Pricy in my thinking.

The best place in Bournemouth The food nice ,fresh and delicious Restaurant very clean and cozy… The waiters just perfect all of them expertly the Brazilian girl Isadora all our family just adores her very kind and friendly always smiling and such an adorable lady … Thank you for welcoming us there

Expensive but the best dining experience we had in Bournemouth. Would definitely return

My partner was really looking forward to trying the lobster. She wasn't disappointed, it looked and tasted amazing. Mine, not so much but it was only cod n chips. The cod was great but triple cooked chips seemed underdone. All in all though, a great dining experience.

Food was amazing, mussels soo good 5*

Wife was happy with her crab she has I had the fish and chips and thought the fish was bit small and chips too big and dry and no garnish , whole dish too dry

Love fish and this place didn't disappoint. Food was really tasty and well presented. Good atmosphere. I learnt later that they are one of the few restaurants in the area that use fresh fish, instead of frozen - bit surprising to hear about a seaside town . Would recommend 👌

Good service but terrible food quality. The seafood is not fresh, me and my girlfriend both had diarrhea after eating here.

We ordered half a lobster and seafood linguine. My husband asked for no mussels and was advised that small prawns could be added instead. The waitress noted this but it was not adhered to by the chef. They took the linguine cost off the bill, but that didn’t improve our experience. We said we wanted quick service as we were going to a show at the BIC. We waited for half an hour and had to ask twice, when our order would arrive. We had 20 minutes to gulp down our food. The crab was £43 and was literally two mouthfuls the size of a king prawn and tasteless! We were so disappointed and I was left hungry all evening.

Me and my friends had the most delicious meal, all the staff were very polite and couldn’t do enough for you. Would highly recommend.

Wonderful experience, lovely friendly staff and very good cocktails Highly recommended to anyone who wants fresh sea food or perfectly made cocktails.

Beautiful food so wonderfully cooked and presented. We had the 1/2 lobster and whole crab, followed by a really beautiful and delicious chocolate candle cake. The staff were very nice but was let down by the really slow service. Also we were almost forgotten after finishing our main course. One member of staff mumbled something about trouble in the kitchen.

Best seafood i have had so far in the Uk ,food full of flavour from starters to mains to everything,meat tender,best fish and chips and linguine ,sauté vegetables ,very friendly staff

Fantastic seafood dinner. Well seasoned and seared scallops. Catch of the day was seabream and it was tasty succulent with sauté potatoes and fresh salad on the side. Staff was tentative. The slight down side was the wine menu - low end wine and decaf espresso was watery. But the perfect two courses trumped the drink matters - I’ll happily come back to dine again and recommend any seafood lover to go here.

Brilliant restaurant 👌. Amazing food, great service, lovely live music, and a good atmosphere. I'd visit again.

We arrived in Bournemouth and were looking for a restaurant within walking distance of our hotel. We specifically wanted fish and chips. Well, the restaurant did not disappoint! They gave us a table with no prior booking. Thank you for that. We were seated at the bar for about 15 minutes before being told our table was ready. Our table had a lovely view of the beach and ocean and the food was superb! For starters we ordered the anchovies and arancini which were both absolutely delicious and the wine recommendation was spot-on. Service was very good.

Food was amazing. Fresh and hot.

My Husband and I were celebrating our 10 years and 1st wedding anniversary. We decided to try Crab and treat ourselves to the Hot Fruit de Mer for 2. At £120 it was definitely pricey, but since this was a special occasion we decided to spoil ourselves. It was delicious, so fresh and well prepared and presented. The staff were fantastic, on top of everything and nothing was too much trouble for them. When we booked our table they asked if the visit was for a particular occasion, so I ticked the anniversary option. To our delighted surprise, at the end of the meal they presented us with a little treat on the house to celebrate. It's little touches like that, that elevate the special above the mediocre. We would highly recommend Crab for any celebration, or even just an excuse for a lovely meal out.

1st time at The Crab Restaurant. Really excellent service. Great value for money. Would definitely recommend and will definitely be going back. Thank you.

The whole evening was of the the highest order.Everything was perfect,the waiting staff exceptional,the atmosphere lovely,food ...just amazing!Next time we ll visit Bournemouth, we ll be back!

Amazing service and food. Will definitely be coming back!❤️❤️❤️

The place is nice and the food was well presented but unfortunately it tasted really bad. We had a lot of things on the menu, and everything was bad except the halloumi fries Prawns were undercooked, tartare was awful Mussels overcooked, octopus wasn't fresh. Such a shame.

This could have been an easy 4 star as all of the food really tasted well except for one. We were served with spoiled scallops. It tasted and smelled heavily of ammonia, which is a telltale sign that a seafood is old or spoiled. While we all make mistakes at time a simple apology from the chef and or staff could have sorted it. Instead we were told that scallops do taste that way and that it was “delivered yesterday” making it sound as if they are still fresh. To top it off some of the staff are not welcoming, the waitress that took our order specially. Pretty sure she wasn’t happy to take our order or to be there in general. Also they should update their online menu.

Amazing food Excellent service

I just walk in about 10 min waiting to be set and they told me is close. Please change the Google times that's very confusing i drive to this plaice to don't be atended

This is the one of the best seafood restaurants in Bournemouth. We chose the catch of the day, it was sea bass and it was delicious. It came with the roasted potato and salad.

Really attentive staff with honest suggestions. Food was really great (lovely sea bass and see bream). Definitely coming back.

Excellent food, and excellent service. A little expensive, but well worth it and you definitely get what you pay for.

My husband and I stayed at the hotel on a Travelzoo deal on a B&B + evening meal. We had the 3 course set menu with choices, though could have changed to the a la carte and had money off, but the set menu had everything that we wanted. We both had mussels and I had seafood linguine in a tomato sauce, which was very flavoursome, and my husband had the fish and chips - in the lightest, tastiest batter he has tasted. Deserts we chose, chocolate brownie and deconstructed strawberry cheesecake. This was so tasty and small, just what I wanted. Nothing like the deconstructed ones I have had before. Everyone was also given a small cup of homemade broccoli soup before we started, it was delicious. We also had breakfast in the restaurant as part of our deal. Again both service and food was very good and professional in their manner. Fresh fruit salad (not in a tin) and the usual other continental offerings. No cold meal or cheese, but did not need that. The cooked breakfasts were huge, my husband had the full English - 2 eggs, 2 bacon rashers, sausage, tomato, hash brown, mushrooms and baked beans (separate). I had scrambled eggs on toast with 2 bacon rashers. Both with toast and all very filling. Would definitely recommend this restaurant, even if staying at another hotel in Bournemouth. Food lovely and service/friendly and attentive staff 100%.

Food was good, we had the seafood dish for two, and were surprised by the amount of food. It was very good. Service was good, waiters were friendly. Food took long time to be served

Voorafgaand aan een concert in het BIC hier gegeten en omdat we een nacht in het hotel verbleven ook het ontbijt hier gehad. Ontbijt ok, diner ook goed, alleen moet je dan wel van vis houden (zoals de naam al doet vermoeden). Aanrader wat ons betreft (en omdat we niet heel lang de tijd hadden) is de Fish and Chips, maar de echte visliefhebber zal hier ongetwijfeld andere lekkere gerechten vinden.

We took some friends who were visiting from Yorkshire. We had a lovely welcome by each staff member as we walked to our table, sat right by a window, so we had a clear view of Bournemouth Pier. The choice of food was refreshing. I ordered the catch of the day. Seabass hubby had the steak. They tasted divine, and we finished with almost empty plates. I can not recommend this place enough if you are looking for great food and atmosphere. We will be back again soon.

Freshly made dishes make this place special. Nice ambient and Oyster is must!

The servers here are on island time and the food is good but not great for what your paying I wouldn't go back.

Nice place to sit outside with a drink in the sun

My most favourite restaurant for crab in UK

Excellent food and service. I would love return on a night when the beautiful white piano 🎹 is being played (for a 5 star atmosphere). Although it was a week night, it was very busy - not that affected service in any way, the staff were brilliant, friendly and polite. Had a whole crab 🦀 which was delicious!

Excellent restaurant - lovely food served by welcoming and professional staff. Particularly impressed by the wide range of fish options Would recommend without hesitation

Food was delicious. Staff were caring and very lovely. Patrick and Shubham were fantastic hosts and looked after us, helping us plan our journey and destinations during our stay. We were given a complimentary soup taster on arrival which was delicious. The dessert was one the best crème brûlées we have ever had. Coffee flavoured creme brûlée was to die for!!!

Fantastic spot to eat great food. Location, food, atmosphere and staff were fantastic. Staff were incredibly helpful to our whole trip by helping us navigate and honestly advising us on the best places to go during our time in Bournemouth. Especially Patrick and Shubham who really helped us out and delivered a brilliant service. Food was fantastic. One of the best meals we had eaten all week whilst staying in Bournemouth. The coffee crème brûlée was to die for! It was so good, we instantly booked ourselves in there on our last night (a Friday) which is when a live piano player plays in the restaurant.

Delicious seafood and wines. Elegant modern dining room. Attentive service. We shared the steamed and baked crab with Thermidor sauce as a starter. So delicious, especially as we subbed the French fries (the crab is a main dish) with the most intriguing black bread, which is made with squid ink. This combination of crab meats, warm sauce and the black bread was so tasty, We both chose the tempura fillets of red mullet- a real fusion dish from the daily specials board. Will definitely go again when in Bournemouth.

Very impressed, clean, comfortable and nice environment. Service attendance was excellent and very friendly, if a little lacking in product knowledge. Food was presented nicely, very hot and great flavours.

They managed to fit us in with no reservation before we went to BIC. Service was great. Food was delicious - best mushroom risotto I’ve ever eaten.

We ate at the Crab 🦀 Restaurant in Bournemouth at the Park Central Hotel, must say the food is very delicious & has interesting opinions. The Muscles in the white sauce were amazing 😋😋 the Seafood Linguine & all other dishes we ordered were very good. Do give a try 👍🏻👍🏻

I don't often leave reviews unless I'm impressed. This was such a gem of a find, we had a lovely cooked fruits de mer in a non-rushed environment. The staff were great, not constantly pestering like some places but balanced and attentive. Perfect location too, literally a stones through from the beach.

A friend and I were in Bournemouth for the day from London (collecting a large Etsy purchase!) and had a lovely on-the-spur-of-the-moment lunch here on Friday. We had fish soup, crevettes and Caesar salad with anchovies. The soup was elegant and delicate whilst still being robustly flavoured, the crevettes were generous and cooked to perfection and the Caesar salad was unusual in that the tasty, creamy dressing didn't overwhelm the beautifully crispy leaves - so, as a light side dish, it complemented the crevettes perfectly. Our server was cheerful, friendly and professional and we thoroughly enjoyed our little glimpse of the sea through the lovely big windows in the light, spacious dining room. The restaurant was quiet so we didn't have any issues whatsoever with slow service mentioned in other reviews. In fact it was the perfect lunch. And we would both go again without hesitation.

Delicious food, impeccable service.

Chose to stay at the adjoining Hotel and book for dinner here as we were attending a show at the BIC which is just opposite. Show was at 8pm and table booked for 6.15pm. We arrived a few minutes early and were seated with a drink and order taken for a main course only by 6.15pm. By 7pm we had finished our drinks but no sign of any food...other guests were served a small amuse bouch on arrival but this was not offered to us until I explained to the waiter we needed to leave by approx 7.40 and we had already been waiting 45 minutes. Apologies and a free drink given but still another 15 minutes before being served our meal. The food itself was lovely but a 1 hour wait for fish and chips in sea food restaurant is not acceptable. The whole point of booking into this hotel and restaurant was to take the hassle out of the meal and getting to and from the venue . The restaurant itself was clean but unremarkable and quite basic.

We had a lovely anniversary meal with a piano playing in the background and it was absolutely fantastic. You could not complain about the food one bit order service

Fantastic seafood as fresh as you can get at very reasonable prices.Staff are really nice and helpful and make your visit one to remember. Have eaten here while on holiday for the last two years and we always visit more than once each time.A must if you visit Bournemouth.

I had the great pleasure of staying at the park central hotel I booked a reservation for dinner and it was so lovely the ambiance there was a piano player and it was candle lit which made it very romantic ! The food was amazing the fish was so fresh and it is Michelin star the quality of the food coming out was perfect a must go to Resturant they serve catch of the day which is perfect so everything is freshly caught and made !

Food was excellent but the service was even better , thank you . My wife has mobility issues at the moment and the staff were very helpful to us … and during the meal they were very friendly, attentive and professional. A great experience and food was really good … mussels and calamari to start , seafood linguine and chicken for main and ice cream/cheese board for dessert.

Lovely food and Service was very professional. Loved the seafood selection. Prices are little high may be but otherwise really good . Very welcoming and friendly staff . Will come back to try the mix selection of seafood 😋

Beautiful place inside! Food is amazing and great portion sizes. Staff were very friendly and checked on you frequently. Would definitely come back again!

Me and the missus arrived at the restaurant for our first valentine and I must the food was amazing. The staff were friendly, welcoming and professional. The service were definitely above and beyond. I love the ambience and atmosphere. Me and the missus love the the sea bass, highly recommended

The food and atmosphere was beautiful. Incredible food and wonderfully cooked. Service was bright and friendly. Lovely place for date night, family event, or catch up with friends.

We were staying in the connected hotel which we booked including dinner. We opted to spend a little more and have the crab and lobster. Absolutely fantastic food, delicious and cooked well. Loads of flavour with massive portion size. Staff all friendly and attentive. Happy to help and answer questions. Wine was tasty. We would strongly recommend this place to anyone travelling here or visiting Bournemouth.

Absolutely delicious food from starter to dessert. Great friendly service. A hidden gem found by accident. You need to eat here if you visit Bournemouth.

Not the cheapest but we'll worth a visit The hot seafood sharing platter is to die for. Everything cooked to perfection Staff well informed, friendly and helpful Live music very pleasant

Such friendly service and welcoming - especially from Grace who seated us and served with a smile. The restaurant was fantastic for a lovely romantic meal booked as part of our stay at the adjoining Park Central. There was a resident pianist there too which made the experience even more special. They also offered a lovely breakfast with good portion size, although the continental option was a little basic for a 4* hotel.

The food was amazing and service impeccable.

We stumbled upon this place and had a thoroughly satisfying seafood platter! The service was exceptional and the food was spectacular! I would happily return to try the a la carte menu!

I had a visitor from South Africa who wanted to eat Dorset crab. This was the only restaurant in the area we could find serving crab that day and he was delighted with the freshness and flavour of the crab. I had probably the best...

Nice place with a pianist during New Year's eve

First time to this restaurant for a wedding anniversary and it did not disappoint. The atmosphere was lovely the staff all welcoming and attentive. The seafood was so fresh and we indulged in the hot seafood platter which was a good array of seafood. It...

Excellent food at a reasonable price. This combination equals many return visits.

Food was really good. Service was good. Quiet but it was a wet Monday in winter.

We visited The Crab, which was not probably the best idea when I suffer with shellfish allergy, however the staff were amazingly helpful and supportive. enabling myself and friend to enjoy their cuisine. I had an excellent fish dinner, while my friend enjoyed her shellfish....