The Seafood Shack in Southend-on-Sea

If you’re a seafood lover like me, you might want to lower your expectations — or bring your own fish. 😅 The cold seafood platter didn’t exactly scream “fresh from the ocean” — more like “chilled for a while.” The shrimp in the pasta seemed to have taken a long vacation in the freezer before showing up on my plate. To be fair, the fried items covered in a rich, flavorful sauce were actually quite good — possibly the heroes of the meal. Hey, sometimes fried and saucy saves the day! If you’re here hoping for a fresh-off-the-boat seafood feast, this spot might feel more like a well-oiled restaurant chain than a cozy seafood shack. But if you’re not super picky about freshness, the place is clean, the staff are lovely, and the vibe is friendly — so it might still be a solid pick for a casual bite by the sea.

Great food! Good sized portions. Highly recommend the crispy chilli chicken. Service was excellent. Will definitely return.

Mussels, calamari and scallops, totally delicious. The service couldn’t be better.

Went there around 4:45pm and waiter turned us away mentioning that all tables are booked until 6:30pm. Which was kind of surprising as we saw there were many empty tables. Disappointed but better to make a prior reservation

Not so sure about such a high rating. Maybe as some reviews say, the quality is variable whether or not a main chef is here? I came looking at the photos really wanted to order the huge hot seafood platter (with crab legs and all) but they said they only have it as a special from time to time. Maybe the main chef wasn't here. Food: We ordered fresh Oysters all were opened dirtily and not clean. Hot mix (starter) of seafood was good, but portion was tiny. The soft shell crab burger was the only acceptable one. No signs of kimchi in it though although it was mentioned in the menu. Service: Friendly staff, however to be frank they all didn't seem to work here for long, not sure how to navigate on the busy restaurant floor. Having to count every time they serve a table to check the numbers where to deliver the food. Ordered a drink that didn't come for a long time, however they gave me another one on service (very nice of them but that wasn't what I ordered..) Food was incredibly, incredibly slow. Missed one of our orders but by then it was way too late (waited for over 1.5h) Atmosphere: best because it was right by the sea.

Fantastic staff 👏, good food, relaxed vibe

We came in for the seafood boil and it completely blew us away. Everything was incredibly fresh, full of flavour and cooked to perfection. You can tell the shack team really cares about what they serve. The staff was friendly and very welcoming from the moment we walked in. I highly recommend this place for seafood lovers, great service and atmosphere. Can't wait to come back again.

A great little seafood place with good range of seafood. I started with Oysters (£3.25 each) then had the Hot mixed selection from the 'small plates' section (£15).

The seafood isn’t fresh, and waiting tooooooo long for one dishes

Don’t understand why it has such a high score. We waited more than 30 minutes for our food and no one brings us any water during such a long waiting. The food portions were small and tasted average. Disappointing.

Lovely place. Food amazing . Service fantastic. Thankyou guys. We will definitely be back

Would absolutely recommend. Staff were so helpful and friendly. Couldn’t do enough for us. Best Aperol Spritz 😁

It’s was worth the hour drive! Staff were welcoming, hospitable, lively, and accommodating. Will definitely pop by here again as we are certain to fill our tums!

We had a lovely family catch up celebrating my Mum's birthday this afternoon. Thanks to everyone, but especially Connor for looking after us so eell. The food was fab!

Absolutely yummy food, staff are so friendly and helpful.

We got the seafood platter, seafood paella and oysters! Everything was fresh & worth the price:)

Amazing sea food. Lovely atmosphere !

Highly recommended! Food is good, fresh, good atmosphere and friendly staff.

We came here for my nans birthday, she loved it! The food was amazing, and the staff were great. Thank you to Connor for making my nans day with the birthday cake!

Good location good service and fantastic food

My god if you ever visit southend this place is a absolute must . The Food amazing had the oysters to start where so good . Had the mussels and the surf turf both extremely good . Recommend the mussels delicious but all the food coming from the kitchen looked amazing . Had the homemade cheesecake which the owner makes is one of the best I've had .The restaurant has a lovely light atmosphere and the service from Conner and Jax was wonderful. Highly recommend this place ❤️

We went to 'The Seafood Shack' for Mother's Say and it was beautiful. From the service, to the food to the atmosphere. All the food, from the Mussels, to the Roast dinner, was perfect. The service, even though it was busy, was attentive and on the ball, and there was no wait for food. As a beautiful finishing touch, we all received a sweet package as a gift as we left. Everyone had an amazing time! Would definitely recommend.

Great little place along the seafront - definitely a much needed addition as so many places in Southend are very run down. Incredibly clean, food was great and staff were lovely. Service was a bit slow but it was also a busy Saturday and they are so nice that it makes up for it!

Sat outside on a fantastically blue and warm day in March. Fish and Chips top notch Cycled from London and had a big appetite that was satisfied

Great food! A little on the expensive side.

Great place, the food was delicious, staff were lovely and had a nice atmosphere. Desserts were quite expensive though for what they were

We visited on Saturday evening and throughly enjoyed our meal. The 2 servers were both friendly but seemed run off their feet. It did take a little time to get their attention a couple of times but they were both incredibly warm and helpful when they were serving us. The food was wonderful, fresh and tasty and we wouldn't not hesitate to return when in the area.

Consistently delicious, good service. Best to book.

First time trying this place. Lovely fresh seafood! Definitely recommend

The food was full of flavor, with just the right amount of seasoning. The owner was prompt, polite, and made sure everything was perfect throughout the meal. A wonderful spot I’ll be returning to!

Great service and excellent food.

My first time coming here & was welcomed so warmly! The food was unreal and the service was so so lovely! I would definitely come again! X

The Seafood Shack is still holding our crown for one of the best seafood restaurants so far. Came down from London just to have a meal and was totally satisfied. Mussels were delicious, garlic shrimp I could eat every day. Great service from the lovely staff. Lovely atmosphere in the restaurant (much quieter than the summer) which we liked. Love this place and will be back soon. Photos do not do it justice I’m afraid, the flavours are to die for. Thanks again.x

I visited yesterday with my family to celebrate my daughter's 30th Birthday. The staff were all friendly and helpful and went out of their way to ensure that all eight of us had a good time. We all enjoyed the food, which was excellent and we will definitely be returning.

Another great lunch at Seafood Shack. Great service, great food! Took my mum here 8 Feb for her 86th birthday and she told staff that’s she’s eaten in Rick Stein restaurant a few times and Seafood Shack is far far better! Always great to come to Southend for Seafood Shack! See you soon Mel

Great place for seafood. The staff were knowledgeable and friendly, the food was very good and we had a great evening. No photos of food, we ate it!

Excellent food, great service. Also serves meat

Really friendly place serving very generousley sized portions of good food. We really enjoyed our visit and will happily return!

Excellent food and service, will be back

Went to our sons surprise lunch. Atmosphere great and all staff very professional and friendly. Oh yes... the food was great too.

Wau. What an amazing, tasty and welcoming place. We loved the food. Good quality and fresh. Service was really nice and the place was nice too. They are ready for kids too. If you love sea food - I definitely recommend this restaurant.

I've been meaning to come try this place for a while but being in the same industry meant it's been difficult. Managed to finally give it a go and my boys and I loved it. Wendy and the team are brilliant. I ordered 2 large lobsters in, cooked the way I wanted and they were fantastic. And we also tried their seafood boil. Very good sized portions and the price was very reasonable. But most importantly Cooked to perfection. My boys all rated the experience 5⭐️. It's nice to have a local restaurant that can prepare seafood to this standard. Well done guys. And thanks for a very enjoyable experience

Great little gem. The food was amazing (particularly the oysters!)

Absolutely fabulous dishes! Great service and friendly atmosphere. Superb all round

Amazing food. Very Friendly and helpful staff. Would highly recommend.

Totally lovely seafront food restaurant. We arrived as a large family group and were well looked after. Great food portions and tasty adult meals too.

Great food great service! Highly recommend!!

Came here on a whim to see the Southend fireworks with our 3 year old. Really good choice. Very welcoming atmosphere and service - attentive, kid-friendly, and food was great too. Recommend!

Very tasty food (especially the fish pie) and lovely atmosphere with very friendly staff

The best fish and chips I've ever had. Crispy batter, even crispier chips – exactly what you want when visiting the seaside. A must try in Southend!

Delicious food and great friendly service.

Great meal for my lads birthday, totally stuffed. 3 different types of meal was had all 3 were great. Lovely syaff, very at tentative and friendly

So brilliant the platter was delicious I would recommend here and I'm coming back in July!

Just popped in sour moment Let me tell you the food service was very good however the big surprise at the end was the lemon drizzle pie cake whatever this masterpiece was baked to perfection I had to take some home yummy You won’t be disappointed

Lovely food with good section on menu . Really friendly helpful staff well worth the money , and definitely a return visit

I wouldn't recommend this place purely for the fact the service was disgusting. Upon walking in and waiting for our table we witnessed a manager speaking to another member of staff (a chef) disgustingly. The attitude from some of the staff members was shocking to say the least. The female that mainly served us had a stinking attitude and made us feel unwelcome. We was a big table of around 10 people and we was sat by the windows where the sun was beaming hot right at us, we couldn't see and it was making us hot. They did move us to a different table but they didn't sound happy about it just complete attitude. We had to pre order our food I'm guessing this was because it was a large table booking, there was one meal missing and didn't come out until the rest of us had finished all our meals. They made it seem like it was our mistake. However, we checked the email we sent them, and it was on the email. The manager came out to us and said in a patronising tone "Do you have everything then?" Overall, the food was very nice, we had 2 seafood boils and they were very overrated for £75. I wouldn't recommend coming here for a seafood boil you may be disappointed. When it came to paying the bill, the same waitress with the stinking attitude came over and just gave us more attitude and when we kindly asked if we could have the missing meal taken off the Bill she bluntly said no, we then argued it and she agreed with an attitude of course. Overall, we all felt unwelcome and to top it off one of us was throwing up after we left.

We had a delightful experience here for lunch, it certainly deserves the good reviews it has. We were served by Ella and it's been a long time since we had such a friendly and professional service when eating out, she was fabulous. The food was delicious, and the atmosphere relaxed. Will definitely return!

Very nice meal and good service. I hope they keep the good work

Great food, great location. Hosted 21 of us. Thank you!

I had really high expectations and thought the menu looked interesting. However the food was average, sardines weren’t big, fresh and juicy and prawn salad was more coating than prawn. It would have been great to have a few really fresh grilled fish dishes on hand he menu

Highly recommend the spicy dynamite prawns and the salt & pepper baby squid. The mussels were alright but the bread that came with it was a put off I'd say.

We came last night to celebrate our friends birthday. There was approx 20+ of us and the service was so great! Well organized & all our food came out on time which was very delicious 🤤 Highly recommend ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Great restaurant , Best fish and chips I have ever had 👍

We had my mum's birthday dinner here a week ago. Nothing was too much trouble for any of the staff, including odd dietary requirements. Great food and fizz, fab atmosphere and staff. Highly recommended!!

Nice informal dinner spot. Seafood was lovely, warm crab dip was very tasty

Absolutely amazing food, service & drinks! Highly recommended, we had the seafood boil and it was delicious! We will be back

Excellent food. Amazing quantity. I have eaten platters across UK but this stood out. Awesome team they have. You shouldnt be at any other place if you are here.. great job gals

Went yesterday with my son. Food was incredible, we were given a kids menu but my son loves seafood. Servers were polite and friendly. Would highly recommend and definitely will back when in the area.

Such a lovley place and friendly staff and good food

Lovely restaurant great food and service. From my experience the best seafood in Southend.

All I can say go to this place.it is amazing

Myself and my girlfriend visited during our time in Southend, I love this bar and the food is incredible. Will absolutely visit again :)

The drinks and food and service is absolutely amazing. I 100% recommend this place to anyone visiting.

6* This is definitely in my top twenty favourite restaurants in the world (I've been to a fair few). First visit, no problems getting a table but admittedly we didn't go at peak time. Service was friendly, helpful and professional. Very nice choice of food. We went for a dressed oyster, hot crab dip, prawn and crayfish macaroni cheese (it sounds as though this combination shouldn't work but trust me when I say it did work ) and grilled sardines. Every dish was perfect and the crab dip and macaroni were really amazing. Prices were very reasonable considering the quality of the food. The only negative were the dirty glasses we got for the water but they were changed straight away when we mentioned it, it certainly didn't dampen our enjoyment. If I find myself in Southend again I would definitely revisit. Well worth checking out. Thank you to the staff and the owner (who introduced herself as well left).

Visited on Saturday evening with my partner. We shared a couple of sides, one main each and a bottle of cider - £30 per head. Good quality seafood, generous portions, well presented. I particularly enjoyed the dynamite prawns. We're not blessed with many seafood options in Essex, but this was well worth the trip. Nice location along the seafront with plenty of parking options close by.

Lovely seafood, nice restaurant and the company of good friends..... What's not to like

I don’t think this is worthy. Bad service waitress!

The waiter has not been trained, the service attitude is very bad, and the food in the restaurant is not delicious, and the next day will have diarrhea.

Impressively bad waitress🆘, spilled sauce on customer's skirt without any apology✖️, food was not worth the price, they burned my money instead of the steak🔥🔥🔥

Excellent food as usual and value for money

Had a lovely lunch. Soft shell crab for starters. Followed by hadock and chips. Really nice crunch on the crab and haddock

Not a very good experience, althought the food was good, service was poor. Waitress made sure she told me the price before I order (had the menu on my hands). When asked to open the umbrella outside,the same waitres said "she would try" but did not try hard enough so we had to do it ourselves. The lady behind the bar was really nice and friendly but both waitresses need a bit more of costumer service training.

Came here because we saw great rating and reviews on google. I don’t usually write reviews unless it’s terrible or amazing and unfortunately this time round it’s terrible. We ordered the hot mix- the broth had an overpowering lemon taste and it was rather greasy. Portion size was tiny. And the seafood rubbery. Paella was tasteless and dry. Portion size ok. The calamari was coated with a greasy batter, I expect a light crisp batter coating which is pretty standard to make. The portion was also tiny. Non of the dishes I would consider above average which is disappointing considering they were charging London prices. I would not come here again

Delicious fresh seafood dishes. Great portions and lovely atmosphere. Definitely one of the best independent places to eat in town, and the one of the only genuinely good restaurants on the seafront.

It’s a small lovely fish & chip restaurant in Southend. The prices are higher comparing other restaurants on the same street. However, the food was delicious. In love with the mussels.

Just ate here and whilst the staff were pleasant the food was terrible. We ordered: - Seafood Paella - Lacked any seafood flavour and tasted as if it were doused in lemon juice, really not nice. - Hot Mix - Bits of seafood served in a sour tasting broth, the seafood was overcooked, mushy in texture and the portion was very small. - Garlic and White Wine Mussels - An extremely small portion, perhaps we got given approximately 7 mussels in total, which is frankly a joke considering the price. Also the mussels were not cleaned properly, and the broth was similar to the hot mix, with a strong sour/lemon taste. - Calamari - Small portion, too salty and quite greasy. Subjective but we all found it odd to have a chilli sauce served with it. Overall the quality and quantity of food were terrible value for money. If you're going to serve small portions, the food has to be good. Unfortunately we all thought every dish was bad. The staff also forgot to serve one of our drinks, and a portion of chips. Disssapointing as we thought this place would be much better considering it's highly rated on Google and TripAdvisor. Don't be fooled.

Enjoyed our fish and chips at The Seafood Shack. Our meals were really good and the staff were really friendly. The decor was clean and modern in itself design which was a plus too.

Foul mouthed waitress was mouthy do not recommend. Response from restaurant is incorrect. Rude staff avoid

Visited the Seafood Shack for the first time last weekend and will definitely be going back. The tables were nicely spaced, it is clean, bright and airy space. The food was excellent and the portion sizes were generous. All the waitresses looked happy (which is really nice to see) they were friendly, helpful and attentive. Needless to say, I recommend giving it a try, you won’t regret it!

Always an amazing meal at the Seafood shack and their customer service is top tier. Probably some of the best seafood in Southend (and Mac and cheese too!) their cheesecake is also to die for. Couldn’t recommend this place enough. Thank you!

Very friendly and professional staff, food amazing and atmosphere very nice. Will be back again

The food is mega, fresh and really tasty. And their cheesecake - Wow! We will definitely be coming back again. Great place for food and really lovely staff.

Great food, great staff, there is nothing more to say, one of the best restaurants I have been to for a long time

Came across this lovely restaurant what a great place the food was absolutely amazing would recommend anyone to visit here

Great fish and chips, amazing atmosphere. Highly recommended to walk a bit off the strip to experience such a lovely food.

Absolutely Brilliant Highly Recommend Here in Southend for the weekend Great Staff Friendly Atmosphere More than 5 stars Worth a visit

There was a worm on the plate and the staff didn’t do anything to compensate for it. And the restaurant was really busy that I waited for more than 15 minutes to pay my bills and asked 3 staff to give me the bills but no one came at the end. So at last, I had to go to the reception in front of the entrance to let them give me the bills to pay. Overall, I really don’t recommend this restaurant. It ruined my trip to south end.

Such a great spot - the staff are awesome and the food is banging.

Staff is very kind and food very tasty!

Drinks and food orders were incorrect because the waitress clearly wasn't paying attention. Then they tried to charge for the incorrect items 😕 Other than that food was okay