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Clary's Seafood Restaurant

MY REVIEW: Just fantastic - I have not been in over 15 years, but it is still the best. Quiet, off the beaten track, excellent food. The flounder is fantastic, we split one and an order of crab balls along with the side orders without problems, the food was split out prior to arrival. As the restaurant is smaller the attention to the quality of the food I feel is superior. The fish was absolutely perfectly cooked with butter only, fresh and fantastic.

This has always been my favorite restaurant in Galveston and it is nice that my fond memories of past visits many years ago were rekindled with this one.

NAME: Jeff C
SUBMITTED: 6/6/2012   LAST VISIT WAS: 6/2012
FREQUENCY: Visited 4-6 times

MY REVIEW: I have been meaning to write this review for sometime! My husband and I were married in Galveston and we had our reception dinner at Clary's. Our entire party agreed that Clary's food and service is the best we have all seen and experience in a long time! The time and the attention that love that was put into our meal was complimented greatly by the excellent staff and their wonderful service. I had never heard of this restaurant before and I agree it is one of the best kept secrets I wish I had known before now. So spread the word!!

NAME: AMyrick
SUBMITTED: 4/8/2011   LAST VISIT WAS: 10/01/2010
FREQUENCY: Visited once

MY REVIEW: Galveston's best kept secret..ummm ummm good special butter crab is great lots of calories but none like it..the tarter sauce is also great. Clary is a wonderful man. He treats every customer like his favorite customer.

NAME: horselady
SUBMITTED: 7/22/2010   LAST VISIT WAS: 7/2/2010
FREQUENCY: Everybody here knows my name...

MY REVIEW: We always enjoy coming here and have never been disappointed. Both the food and service are wonderful and visiting with Mr. Clary is the icing on the cake. We like to sit by the window and look out at the bay. They make the best Colorado Bulldogs!

NAME: Claire Downing
SUBMITTED: 7/20/2010   LAST VISIT WAS: May/2010
FREQUENCY: Visited 4-6 times

MY REVIEW: A prior reviewer said it best: "Clary is a wonderful host." "Hosting" is different than simply charging for food and turning tables as fast as you can.

Service was personable and unobtrusive. Whole fried flounder was fresh and crisp. Ambiance was dated...but hey, we enjoyed the 70's when we were in them! Most everyone in the joint seemed "local." We enjoyed chatting with the folks at the next table. It was their first time & they enjoyed it.

NAME: Seafood lover
SUBMITTED: 3/7/2010   LAST VISIT WAS: 3/09
FREQUENCY: Visited 2-3 times

MY REVIEW: Food was excellent, service was the best we have had in years. The waitstaff was very attentive and we didn't have to ask for anything. Food was hot when served and very tasty. The atmosphere was great and not like the chain food places that dot the island now. Music was very good and not too loud so that you had to holler to talk to someone across the table.

Everyone in the place including Mr Clary made sure that we were well taken care of. Mr Clary said he has been in the same location for 32 years, must be doing something right. We will definitely go back for another visit soon.

NAME: Speedy & Carolyn
SUBMITTED: 1/29/2010   LAST VISIT WAS: 01/2010
FREQUENCY: Visited once

MY REVIEW: Clary's is one of my very favorite places to eat. You can have all the Tillman F*ertita's you want - they all have the same food, and it's now a chain - how boring! Clary is one of the best hosts I have ever met. Every time we go in, he takes several minutes to chat with us and he's even let me take some of his "secret" salad dressing home. One night he mixed us different cocktails to ask our opinion on some new ideas he had.

Musty smell? Good Lord, people! you're on the bay! What you are smelling is the outside bay smells! I don't want my Clary's to "remodel" and "update". That always takes the charm out of out of the way establishments. I can't wait to eat there again after they recover from the hurricane! I had to miss my birthday dinner there last year! ******. STAY TRUE TO YOURSELF, CLARY!

NAME: Janice Andrews
SUBMITTED: 10/28/2009   LAST VISIT WAS: 3/2008
FREQUENCY: Everybody here knows my name...

MY REVIEW: I ordered the Shrimp Au Seasoned, which is shrimp simmered slowly with fresh vegetables in a seasoned butter sauce from an old famaily recipe served over rice. The vegetables were NOT fresh (canned mushrooms and frozen vegetables) which was very disappointing. They served side dishes of CANNED green beans with no seasoning and Lyonnaise potatoes, which were sliced with onion sauteed. The potatoes were almost burn on the outside and not done inside. All 3 meals had the same issues, needless to say we will NOT BE BACK. The shrimp was good but fresh shrimp usually is.

NAME: NEB
SUBMITTED: 3/22/2008   LAST VISIT WAS: 03/2008
FREQUENCY: Visited once

MY REVIEW: Made reservations for a special 35 year anniversary dinner. Their web site says that the dress code is business to dress. When we arrived there were people in shorts and sandels. We waited 1 hour for our table. We had to ask for service. The food was great, but we had to ask again for our check. My first visit was the best and it's gone downhill from there. Too bad because the food is great. This should be a special place to eat at, yet it is being run like any other poorly managed restaurant.

NAME: Baddog
SUBMITTED: 7/26/2006   LAST VISIT WAS: 7/25/05
FREQUENCY: Visited 2-3 times

MY REVIEW: First impressions mean a lot, and it is time to update the interior. It is so overdue for a makeover that it's embarrassing. We had to wait in the bar for a table, and I felt like we had stepped back in time to 1975 -- mocha indoor/outdoor carpeting on the walls, faded pictures on the walls, dingy ceiling tiles, and discount-store nautical accents. The restaurant's interior wasn't much better. A lot of people comment about the view, but the design of the restaurant actually does a spectacular job obscuring it.

The food was good, but nothing terribly adventurous or innovative. The service was outstanding -- our waiter was one of the best that we have had in quite a while. I know a lot of people on the island love this place, but I just don't get it.

NAME: Jaybear
SUBMITTED: 7/21/2006   LAST VISIT WAS: 7/2006
FREQUENCY: Visited once

MY REVIEW: Number 1: There is no sign that says "wait to be seated" and the front person that does the scheduling was to busy gabbing with other customers to tell us anything. A waiter happend to come by and told us they would seat us shortly and that was fine.

Number 2: It wasn't like the place was packed, but we still had to wait a while to be seated.

Number 3: Our waiter never asked us what we wanted to drink, we had to flag another person down just to get our drinks, she was very nice and brought us our drinks.

Number 4: Our waiter took our order, but never asked what sides we wanted with them. And then when we did get our meal he said "I couldn't remember if you said a baked potatoe or lynaisse potatoes". My husband actually wanted the rice, but he brought lynaisse potatoes I guess our waiter ordered for us.

Number 5: Ordered a shrimp cocktail figuring it would be like other shrimp cocktails (tall glass with shrimp hanging off the sides and sauce in the middle) but I got shrimp layed on top of lettuce so it was more like a shrimp salad. When I bit into the shrimp water just ran out of them. I had to squeeze them out first before I could eat them. So basically I ate two salads (the shrimp cocktail and I orderd a salad with my meal). Had I known I would have ordered a different appetizer.

Number 6: The food was overly salted.

Number 7: Our waiter never came back to take our money so we had to walk up front and hand it to the same person that brought our drinks.

We did like the view, the four spicey shrimp and the green beans.

All in all we were totally disappointed. This was by a referral, perhaps they were having a off night. We always leave a tip, but this time we did not the waiter did not deserve one. We won't be back.

NAME: Karen
SUBMITTED: 7/3/2006   LAST VISIT WAS: 6/06
FREQUENCY: Visited once

MY REVIEW: Went back this year for my partner's Birthday. The hospitality is the best of any place around or any place I have ever been. (I considered asking our waiter if he tutored manners on the side, as I am trying to civilize my 3 year old grandson)

The food was fabulous I got my usual grilled oyster platter, my partner got the Sara B Lynn platter (I think that is the proper name) had oysters and crab augratin. (along with the sides) The Couple sitting near our table also got the SBL Platter and the lady moaned deliriously throughout the meal with each bite, what a pleasure for someone to enjoy food like that.

Mr.Clary, what can you say he is such a nice genteel man, he knows how to make someone feel fabulously special in his restaurant.

I recomend this place over any other place in Galveston for a Special occasion place, or a regular dinner place you must go...

NAME: D&B
SUBMITTED: 5/17/2006   LAST VISIT WAS: 05/06
FREQUENCY: Everybody here knows my name...

MY REVIEW: Did have that "musty" smell upon entering. We loved the HUGE appetizer plate that was the special that evening (assortment of seafood). Waiter parked the two of us so close to the guitar player, I thought they wanted us to join in! Service was initially slow.

Our appetizer was exceptional and due to the fact that it was large, we decided to split a main course (crab balls). As soon as I told the waiter we would be sharing a main course, an instantaneous negative expression appeared on his face. Not sure why, but from that moment he was rude. After we finished our delicious meal, he couldn't even wait for us to finish the after meal experience before rudely removing utensils/plates.

Positives: Excellent seafood.

Negatives:
1. Rude waiter "that" night (but maybe he was having a bad night) 2. Why have waiters in tuxedo's and nice mood lighting, but use PAPER napkins???! Go with cloth, it's more classy.

3. Time to update the restaurant interior.

P.S. I'll go again.

NAME: RB
SUBMITTED: 3/16/2005   LAST VISIT WAS: 02/05
FREQUENCY: Visited once

MY REVIEW: I thought I had said it all regarding Clary's, but I'm back again with a few things I missed last time. We went to Galveston over the past weekend, this time with a friend, and of course we had to take her by our new favorite place for dinner (the lunch menu Tue-Fri looks great too).

We went about 30 minutes later than we did last time (around 6:30) and with the days growing shorter, the candle light on the tables was even more impressive. This time we got to watch evening set over the water and noticed the twinkling lights appear as darkness fell. The soft guitar music in the background made for a wonderful romantic touch. I noticed several couples sitting by the window as we did last time, holding hands and gazing into each other's eyes.

Mr. Clary remembered us and stopped by to chat several times. We talked alot about great food! Many of the dishes at Clary's are ones that he has created. Many others are from "Mama's kitchen" in S. Louisiana. He even gave us an article written about the background of the restaurant and how he got started.

We were not super hungry, so after much discussion, the 3 of us decided to split the appetizers for 4 as a meal. That way we could try several things. My husband's favorites were the crab claws (he said they were excellent) and the flame broiled shrimp, which all 3 of us agreed were fantastic. My friend absolutely loved the potato bread, so much so that she had trouble helping us finish the platter. The platter also had the fish fingers and crab balls, which were very good, and we substituted fried shrimp for the oysters. We thoroughly enjoyed it all.

To top it off, Mr. Clary sent over several items for us to try. First, we had a cup of shrimp gumbo, full of large shrimp. I'd have to say this is some of the best gumbo I've ever tasted! It is prepared Southern Louisiana style and the roux is done just right, slightly thick, very smooth and creamy with just the right amount of spice. I consider myself picky regarding gumbo and this was absolutely WONDERFUL!!! Next, he had us sample the green beans that come with many of the meals. They were excellent--fresh, steamed with small bits of potato, perfectly seasoned, cooked just right, just like Mama used to do them.

For the grand finale, Mr. Clary had us try the MOST WONDERFUL bread pudding I have ever put in my mouth! It was heavenly! All 3 of us were in agreement about that! It was full of raisens and nuts and big chunks of apple covered with a rich creamy praline type sauce. Even though we were already full, we made room to split this delicious dessert (and cleaned the plate). My German husband said this tasted like the German apfel cake he grew up with. My friend was so enthralled, she talked about how wonderful it was the rest of the evening. "I'd come back here just for the bread pudding", she said.

All of this and as before, we had the same excellent service! And I cannot say enough about the warmth and hospitality shown by Mr. Clary. It truly felt more as though we were visiting a longtime friend for dinner. What a place!

As we "rolled" out the door, I was thinking, when we come back, I'd like a big bowl of gumbo and an order of delicious bread pudding for myself!

For a fine culinary experience, romantic evening or just a good ole time, you can not get any better than Clary's! Yum!!!

NAME: Even More Starry-Eyed
SUBMITTED: 9/29/2004   LAST VISIT WAS: 09/25/2004
FREQUENCY: Visited 2-3 times

MY REVIEW: I did not smell any kind of "musty" odor when we went in to Clary's, nor did I see any "rundown" building. What we found was a WONDERFUL restaurant in a sunny looking building surrounded by plants, right on the water! We went around 6pm on Saturday evening and the first thing we noticed were all the photos covering the walls. There are hundreds of photos of smiling happy faces, many of them famous and autographed. But as we later found out, everyone is treated "famously" here. The bar area, although quiet when we visited, was beautiful. We walked into the dining area and were seated promptly at the most perfect table, right by the window, where we could look out and admire the view of the water. It was wonderful! Everything about this place says "fine restaurant". The tables are elegantly set, the staff is perfectly trained--I would have been hard pressed to find anything that I would call less than perfect. Our waiter came over right away with crackers and butter and a bowl of--WONDERFUL BOILED SHRIMP!!! I have never had shrimp brought before even ordering before. And they were excellent! My husband enjoyed the shrimp so much that he ordered them for dinner! My husband has eaten in fine restaurants all over the world and he is fairly "picky" about seafood. It has to be really good to merit a compliment from him. He said their "spicy boiled shrimp" was the best shrimp he had ever tasted anywhere--very flavorful and fresh, with just the right amount of "spicy". He further stated that Clary's was one of the finest restaurants he had visited.

We had a fabulous meal with excellent service! The staff was superb! I had the fried fish fingers and the Lyonnaise potatoes, both of which were excellent! We were both too full to even try a dessert. The prices were very reasonable for such a fine quality restaurant. The appetizers were big enough to double as meals if you weren't super hungry. When we had finished eating, I wanted to commend the "manager" on the excellent meal and service. Well, Mr. Clary Millburn himself came over. He was warm and friendly and engaging and I immediately felt like I had known him for years. I noticed during our meal that he was making the rounds, checking on the patrons, making sure they were happy. Most of them looked to be "regulars", which is what I plan to become in the near future. The food, the service, the view and the warmth and hospitality Mr. Clary showed will keep us coming back.

This place is a well-kept secret, off the beaten path, but if you want an excellent meal, or a romantic or special place for dinner, this is it!

NAME: Starry-eyed
SUBMITTED: 9/20/2004   LAST VISIT WAS: 09/18/2004
FREQUENCY: Visited once

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