Captain Benny's Half Shell Oyster Bar   8506 Main St Houston TX 77025 713.666.5469   11777 Wilcrest Dr Houston TX 77031 281.498.3909   28431 State Highway 249 Tomball TX 77375 713.351.5778 You might also be interested in these:     Seafood Restaurants    ZIP 77025    ZIP 77031    ZIP 77375   Add Review       8506 Main St, Houston, Texas 77025  713.666.5469 MY REVIEW: It was about 4:00 PM and this little place was FULL today. My husband and I just found this place. We are from Iowa. I wasn't sure we could be seated, but a server named George told us to just wait a minute and we would have a seat. The manager Kelly came to us within a minute and told us a seat would be open soon and if we'd like something to drink he would get it for us. We wanted to look at the menue, and he got us some and said our menue is no secret, it can be viewed by all. Less than a minute later Elisabeth asked us if she could help. This little place was full and romping. No place to sit or stand. Just the few minutes we were in there, THREE employee's made us want to be there although there was nowhere to sit. Because of the hospitality of the people there, and, this packed little house seemed different, we chose to wait a few moments for a place to eat. True to what George said, a place opened for us in just a few minutes. It was a little wabbely stand up table. Our order was taken and we were served within about ten minutes. There were other people waiting to find a place to sit around us. The Manager came by again to see if we were OK. They were so swamped, but they still had the time to care for us. THE FOOD WAS MORE THAN ANYTHING WE EXPECTED!!!! How can such a small place exist? FOOD...EXCELLENT service..YOU won't find it anywhere else. The only drawback is that people can't find a seat in this little gem and go elsewhere. I watched as people came in, looked around and left. I feel sorry that they couldn't experience what we did. They give five stars to some fancy places, but I give this little place TEN. Five for service and five more for taste! The owners of this company should try to expand this little darling! Your food and staff are absolutley untouchable! NAME: mnmlady SUBMITTED: 7/29/2006   LAST VISIT WAS: 7/29/06 FREQUENCY: Visited once 8506 Main St, Houston, Texas 77025  713.666.5469 MY REVIEW: I have been going to captian benny's for years. The food has always been excellent. The service has suffered every since they were sold. I find now that the waitpersons are not as prompt or fast as they should be. Our order was sitting on the counter waiting to be picked up by the waiter and he was not even aware of it. He was busy shelling oysters. I had to tell him that our order was ready. We got our food and it was hot. The gumbo is also hit or miss. Some days the gumbo is very good but some days the gumbo is watery and full of celery. Overall the food is great here but the service has been going down hill NAME: manny SUBMITTED: 4/13/2006   LAST VISIT WAS: 04/08/2006 FREQUENCY: Everybody here knows my name... 11777 Wilcrest Dr, Houston, Texas 77031  281.498.3909 MY REVIEW: Excellent seafood in a casual atmosphere, service has always been spot on. Kitchen crew can be seen working while preparing your meal, something not seen too often at many fast-food places. Gumbo is excellent, my favorite is the Crawfish Pirogue. My food has always been served piping hot, to where I have to let it cool before I can eat it. Good value for the price, Wifey and I prefer Capt. Benny's over Red L*obster with regard to value for the dollar. I recommend CB's for anyone looking for good seafood at a good price served up HOT, and no pretenses. I used to be a regular at the Rankin Rd. location when living in north Houston and never had a bad meal there, ever. NAME: Human Garbage Disposal SUBMITTED: 4/3/2006   LAST VISIT WAS: 1/2006 FREQUENCY: Everybody here knows my name... 8506 Main St, Houston, Texas 77025  713.666.5469 MY REVIEW: We grew up with our parents going to the original CAPT BENNY's on HOLCOMBE. We went to it when it moved to Main and Greenbrier. And now it is at Main and Old Spanish Trail. My husband and I live near San Antonio now. When we do come to Houston, we try to find time for Capt. Benny's on Main St. We hadn't been there for at least three years when we went in last Saturday. The guy who waited on us, (Kenneth or KT), actually recalled us. Some of the people that were there when I was a little child with my parents are still there! The manager, (Kelly), remembered my 11 year old daughter's name and brought attention to his staff that this was a 3rd generation Capt. Benny patron. I wanted what I always remembered as being called a Texas Mini. They don't call it that anymore but they told me it was called a Mate Plate now. But the server told the cook's, "make me a MINI". The food was as good as anywhere, and just as I have remembered! We were all so happy that this one place hasn't changed too much in all these years. The people there made this such an experience and I couldn't believe that the cost was so much lower than most places. Capt Bennys is an ICON of our lives for sure, and we may decide to drive a day trip just for the great memories and experience. We will certainly be there ANYTIME we go to Houston. NAME: JoAnne Julius SUBMITTED: 3/27/2006   LAST VISIT WAS: 3-25-2006 FREQUENCY: Everybody here knows my name... 8506 Main St, Houston, Texas 77025  713.666.5469 MY REVIEW: I hadn't been into a Capt. Benny's in a long time but I'll be comin back alot after my last visit. I went saturday night after the rodeo and man was is packed. It was alittle tough getting a table but the wait was worth it. Gumbo and oysters were excellent. And they still have the best fried catfish in town. NAME: GZ SUBMITTED: 3/22/2006   LAST VISIT WAS: 03/18/2006 FREQUENCY: Visited 4-6 times 8506 Main St, Houston, Texas 77025  713.666.5469 MY REVIEW: Once was more than enough. I won't go back. I had read the reviews here, then drove across town to visit Captain Benny's. No service. Approx 12 people standing around behond counter like they were in mama's kitchen socializing. I sat at a table. looked around for info on food served. Found a small "placard" on the table with a "special" on it. Looked around and waited for a server, or some clues about how ordering is handled. Eventually saw a menu on a table. got it, went back to my table, made my choices.....waited, kept looking for a server........finally decided that perhaps I needed to order at the counter.....it was clear to me that several employees had seen me sitting for some time, so perhaps they just neglected to tell me that they expected me to order at the counter? So, I left my table to go to the counter (5 steps away) to ask if that was where I should order. Immediately, a couple of (perhaps the preferred customer type of the establishment) took my table before I could even get a server to take an order. The server told me that I had been in her area, and she was getting that couple some gumbo. (perhaps I had been neglected with a purpose?) She offered me the "worst" seat in the house on a stool at the counter squeezed up against and with my back to the front door. NO, I did not want to sit there. She then offered to take my order to go. NO, I had driven across town to have dinner. I just told her I guess I won't be having dinner here tonight. No other night is likely either. I won't bother going back. Poor service can ruin any restaurant. I hope the new owners/management get some employees who work and understand the concept of customers. The ones they have now need to go stnad around mama's kitchen, not in a commercial establishment. NO commerce = NO money = NO business NAME: deirdre SUBMITTED: 7/15/2005   LAST VISIT WAS: 7/05 FREQUENCY: Visited once 8506 Main St, Houston, Texas 77025  713.666.5469 MY REVIEW: At first I wasn't so sure about the changes there. The expanded menu is great and most of the old stuff is still the same. The same folks are cooking and serving and even one of the old managers are still there. They seem to be happier and the place is still fun to be at. New furnishings and more employees than before make it even better. The only drawback is no more Rockets or Astros games as they don't seem to afford cable so we just have to remember to eat somwhere else to watch the games. NAME: Doreen Jackson SUBMITTED: 2/21/2005   LAST VISIT WAS: 01/2005 FREQUENCY: Everybody here knows my name... 8506 Main St, Houston, Texas 77025  713.666.5469 MY REVIEW: Well, I must say that I am now disappointed in the "new" Captain Benny's. For those of you that have not noticed; it's under new management or been sold. Either way, the food is not as good as it once was when I did visit 4-6 times per month. The gumbo tastes like celery now; nothing compared to what it once was. The overall ambiance has changed. I will not be going back. NAME: Ms. C SUBMITTED: 10/5/2004   LAST VISIT WAS: September/04 FREQUENCY: Visited 4-6 times 8506 Main St, Houston, Texas 77025  713.666.5469 MY REVIEW: Went here tonight. They had only three other customers and three workers behind the counter. I sat at the counter, grabbed a menu and read it, deciding I wanted a shrimp cocktail and gumbo. I looked up. No one was looking my way or bringing me water. I waited. No one even looked my way so I could catch their eye. After waiting another ten minutes with no attention, I slammed the menu down, stood up and stalked out yelling, "Goodbye you idiots! I WILL NOT BE BACK!" And I won't. NAME: DaveBerk SUBMITTED: 9/19/2004   LAST VISIT WAS: 09/19/04 FREQUENCY: Visited once 8506 Main St, Houston, Texas 77025  713.666.5469 MY REVIEW: for my money, captain bennies is the best seafood in texas. i have been coming here for over 25 years during the houston stock show. gets crowded at times...but hey, when your foods good and the price is right that's to be expected. oysters on the shell out of this world. never had a bad meal at bennies. NAME: gail christian SUBMITTED: 3/14/2004   LAST VISIT WAS: 3-10-04 FREQUENCY: Everybody here knows my name... 8506 Main St, Houston, Texas 77025  713.666.5469 MY REVIEW: I don't know about the other locations but I do know the South Main location has the best shrimp, catfish and oyster's in Texas. I can't comment on the gumbo because I can't get past ordering the shrimp, but my mom says it's good and if she says it's good.... It's G-O-O-D! Service is prompt and friendly. You're acknowledged soon as you walk in the door. I only wish they could expand, it can get pretty crowded in there at times. NAME: Weeza Bourgeois SUBMITTED: 7/2/2003   LAST VISIT WAS: 05/03 FREQUENCY: Everybody here knows my name... 8506 Main St, Houston, Texas 77025  713.666.5469 MY REVIEW: Some of the best fried catfish in Houston (order it seasoned). Excellent gumbo. South Main location now takes credit cards. If you don't like fried seafood, you may have a tough time ordering. But it is g-o-o-d! NAME: BluesBoy SUBMITTED: 3/5/2003   LAST VISIT WAS: 03/2003 FREQUENCY: Visited 4-6 times 11777 Wilcrest Dr, Houston, Texas 77031  281.498.3909 MY REVIEW: I visited Captain Benny's this evening to celebrate Valentine's Day with my wife of 10 years, my brother and his wife of 20 years. I must say, the evening was less than perfect. When dining out, there is nothing more important than service. That's why we pay. Otherwise, we can just purchase the fish ourselves, cook it and serve ourselves at home. We pay for service. The better the service, the bigger the tip. My purpose for this submission is this: I received no service. I had to request a utensil to eat, my drink went flat and my food was cold. All the while, we sat patiently. At the end of the evening, the waitress seemed surprised we requested a manager. She introduced herself to me as the manager and pretended to listen to my situation. When I expressed our concern, she said the other table gave her problems and she just forgot. How can you the people who pay your salaries? The people who keep you in business? The people who support your establishment and become repeat customers? With so much on the minds of people today, I don't want to be labeled as a complainer. Just someone who wants, deserves and feels entitled to great service whenever he enters an establishment in the service industry. NAME: Nmitchell311 SUBMITTED: 2/14/2003   LAST VISIT WAS: 02/14/03 FREQUENCY: Visited once 11777 Wilcrest Dr, Houston, Texas 77031  281.498.3909 MY REVIEW: A favorite for 20 years. I'd be hard pressed to suggest how they could improve other than expanding the menu. Tho much of the menu consists of fried foods, it's not greasy. From some chats with a manager a few years back, some of the reasons for their success include going to great length to get the best ingredients (boiled shrimp are Gulf; fried shrimp are Pacific, etc.) and keeping the cooking oil fresh. Lots of restaurants, including many well known chains, cut corners by using cooking oil way past its prime; food browns too quickly in older oil and absorbs more oil. Fried foods at Benny's are golden, not golden brown or brown. I'll nominate their french fries for best in town, as close to the ideal twice-fried fry the cookbooks describe and as far from the limp, greasy, brown fries served by so many places as one can imagine. They're so grease-free it's hard to get 'em salted. I also like the lighter breading on the catfish, much lighter than the traditional coating. The stuffed crab is not very interesting; their gumbo is excellent but sometimes simmers in the slow cooker so long it becomes too mushy. These are my only quibbles. If you ever see them pouring a freshly made pot of gumbo in the slow cooker its a great time to order gumbo. Okay, one suggestion for an improvement: hush puppies are one of the dumbest culinary inventions ever. Capt. Benny does as good a job as anyone, sometimes they can almost be described as airy. But I'd really rather just have cornbread. P.S. My comments do not necessarily apply to the Westheimer location where I have found the service to be less dependable and the fry cook less consistent. NAME: Capt. Stew SUBMITTED: 1/1/2002   LAST VISIT WAS: November, 2001 FREQUENCY: Everybody here knows my name... 8506 Main St, Houston, Texas 77025  713.666.5469 MY REVIEW: Homey, welcoming. This place is like a neighborhood bar, where you are remembered and welcomed. They don't take checks or credit cards and you are not given a bill. Honor system. And it works. Good plentiful seafood. Virtually all of it fried and with no regard to whether it's healthy or not. The question is, does it taste good? NAME: Jon Hurtado SUBMITTED: 7/19/2001   LAST VISIT WAS: July/2001 FREQUENCY: Everybody here knows my name... ©Copyright 1991 - 2008 B4-U-EAT.COM. All rights reserved. Design and database by B4-U-BUY