We stopped in here for lunch this Sunday and were drawn by the restaurant's proximity to the water and review photos featuring beautiful bay windows. It has a great location with most booths boasting a lovely view of the boats outside and even on a rainy day it is still pleasant scenery. When we first came in, we asked about gluten free options. The hostess gave us the deer in headlights look I'm so fond of from my Nebraska time. She wasn't necessarily unpleasant, but also wasn't welcoming. She told us our server would help us with that. So we settled in and admired the water as we waited for our server. The menu has a good variation to it with plenty of options and we were excited to indulge in some delicious seafood. Our server was similar to the hostess in demeanor. She wasn't unpleasant, but we also felt that the gluten allergy wasn't being taken seriously. She had minimal knowledge of it and dismissively referred to gluten as rice and told us to just basically stay away from all of that type of stuff and then waited for us to put in our order. I had to prompt further and explain it can be in sauces and dressings and could she please ask the chef what would be safe for us to have. We really aren't picky, we like anything that we can safely eat! After she left to go speak with the kitchen, my little sister who has an even stronger allergic reaction than I do said she didn't feel comfortable eating here and so we left. I unfortunately cannot comment on the food, only the beautiful view and great menu options and our experience with the customer service. Wish we could have tried some of the delicious sounding menu items. It would be great if management could offer more information for their staff on gf allergies as it is becoming a more common issue in the restaurant industry. Additionally, training on the difference between someone who eats gf because they feel better or for dieting purposes and someone who has an actual allergic response I think would help improve the customer service for those of us who are forced to take gf eating very seriously. read more

Had dinner at Bud Bay Cafe on Sunday and it was the worst quality of food I have ever had. I ordered the salmon cedar plank and the salmon was soggy and undercooked. My husband ordered a burger with mashed potatoes which was cold, undercooked and the mashed potatoes were fishy smelling and gross. We will never go back to Bud Bay Cafe. read more

Service was very good. 14.99 for a bowl of "clam" chowder was a wee bit much especially since it was lukewarm and consisted of mostly potatoes. Total cost for two bowls of chowder, starter plate, and two nonalcoholic drinks was $70. Yikes. read more

I recently had dinner and was extremely disappointed. Being somewhat new to Olympia, I had heard good things about Budd Bay Cafe; however, I doubt I will ever eat there again. Both of us ordered the fettucine with garlic sauce, mushrooms and basil. I pictured a plate with sliced fresh mushrooms and fresh basil leaves. The actual dish was such a disappointment. The sauce was incredibly greasy and the mushrooms and basil were pretty much non-existent. Both of us searched through the pasta, hoping to find something fresh and relatively recognizable, but found nothing but bits of mushroom (freeze dried?) and basil flakes. I took it home just to dump in the compost. In retrospect, I should have left it there. I am giving one star, but the waiter was delightful and working hard to please everyone in our seated area. Kudos to the staff!! read more

I know the location is great but both times I've been here I've been highly disappointed with the high cost of mediocre food. My halibut was mushy...green beans soggy and my MILs salad looked like it had a pre frozen piece of chicken w fake grill marks. The place was packed. I don't get it. read more

Budd Bay is one of our most favorite places to eat. The atmosphere is great, the service is always accommodating, and the food NEVER disappoints. Our server tonight was Maria, and she was great! It was very busy this evening, and she was doing an impeccable job of tending to all of her customers. She is funny, down to earth and has a way about her, that makes you feel like family. It's people like her, that keeps me and my family coming back! We always recommend Budd Bay to friends and family. The manager is also great! He is also very accommodating, making sure his customers have a great experience. It does not go unnoticed! We started with the artichoke and crab dip for our appetizer, and I tell you it is the BEST. Tonight, it was particularly scrumptious. My husband had the 10 oz sirloin, green beans and baked potato. His steak was cooked to perfection! I had a fresh garden salad and loader baker, SO SO good! The sourdough rolls were crunchy on the outside, and so very soft and piping hot on the inside! We love them with the whipped butter it comes with! Thank you all for a great experience, our date night was one to remember :) We will be back soon! P.S. sorry you had to deal with the rude and obnoxious patron, you can't make everyone happy I suppose. read more

The setting and view is fabulous but the food was disappointing. The rolled up napkins were dirty when we opened them, and the Pinot Gris tasted like it had been opened too long. Our server was friendly and helpful, but stretched too thin from what we observed. I'm not sure what the sauce was that was served with the crab cakes, but it was bland and tasteless. The calamari said Cajun but the seasoning seemed to have been omitted. There might not be a direct correlation, but my husband and I both had an upset stomach after eating here. I wanted to like this place because the location is so special, but they need to improve the food quality. read more

The service us always great here 5/5. Nice clean restaurant with good service. Food 4/5 menu is a little to large. Food is very traditional seafood with no outlandish seasonings combos. Solid choice for a casual dining option. read more

We were lucky enough to eat outside on one of the last days of the year that it's warm enough to do so. Our server was lovely and responsive. The food was delicious. for an appetizer we ordered the sesame yellowfin tuna and the sauce was a creamy wasabi and delish. I ordered the Mahi Mahi special with a delicious strawberry glaze that was perfectly paired with the fish. My husband ordered the 14oz Prime Rib that looked more like 28oz. It was perfectly cooked and super tasty. Everyone seemed to be enjoying their meals. We will definitely be back!!! read more

Ordered the Salmon, prawns and blackened Cod with Jasmine rice and green beans. So good... Also crab cheese dip and for dessert choc tarte. read more

Budd Bay Cafe - Seafood Near Me - Olympia, Washington

So sad, third time we've been disappointed. Ordered appetizers, then chowder and salad, then our entree. We even added king crab. Chowder came with dinner, salad came after dinner was served. Our 'Loaded baked potato's' weren't loaded, as plain as an Ohio field. Asked 3 times for non creamy horseradish. Then for desert - again had to ask for it after 20 minutes. read more

Great Atmosphere and even better food! Amazing attention to detail. Good pricing for a place with such a nice view! Will return again

I have only ate here once but so far I really love this place. The view is beautiful as well as the ambiance. We ordered crab cakes, coconut prawns, clam chowder, and their chicken sandwich with blue cheese. Let me tell ya I have had good crab cakes from Ricardo's BUT I really love these crab cakes they had! No sauce required which is how you really no they are fresh tasting and delicious! Oh man the prawns didn't disappoint, super fresh and the prawns had nice big shards of coconut- YUM! Since we went a little crazy with apps we got simple entree but it ended up being a perfect meal! We both extremely satisfied. We saw they have a sunset dinner menus for two that I will forsure be taking advantage of soon! read more

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We stumbled upon this lovely restaurant in Olympia. We didn't have to wait long for a table outside that looked over the Marina boats. Our server was friendly, honest, and let us taste lots of beers before deciding on our favorite. The steamed clams were yummy. Would definitely go again. read more

Gee you would think at over $20 a plate they would have AC in summer. Let's see a roll consistency of a rock. The chowder was boiling hot. Never filled our waters once through the whole meal while the manager paraded around making jokes only joke is this restaurant. Three course dinner no first course brought no dessert brought the fish and chips served with no lemon and cocktail sauce. Said they would take the dinner off the bill and then brought the bill back incorrect waited longer to resolve that. First and last time ever going here the back up wait staff was absolutely useless!!!!! Avoid this place prices don't warrant and having to hear that the kitchen is hotter than hell from the wait staff wow that's some real ambiance going fix your Air Conditioning how unacceptable absolutely a horrific experience start to finish!!!! Wish I could give zero stars! read more

Came with my family and everything was great! Service was amazing 10/10 recommend. My kid got Mac & cheese and it was bomb. I got halibut and worth the price ! read more

Budd Bay Cafe - Seafood Near Me - Olympia, Washington

Great night at Budd Bay Cafe! Our server Denise was so nice to all of us. She always made sure we had just what we needed. Dinner was perfect. Great clam chowder and my prime rib was cooked perfectly. All of the food was great, but those stood out! Oh, and the hot rolls were such a nice touch. Can't beat the view either! read more

We have been going to this restaurant for a while, but we no longer live in Olympia so only visit occasionally these days. My daughter and I went here for lunch today and were surprised to see that they are charging a surcharge for using your debit/credit cards now. As if the prices are not high enough, they want to gouge you by adding a surcharge. Not sure if it is because they are struggling or if it is just taking advantage of the opportunity.. To add to the annoyance of this small detail I ordered a wedge salad with a side of grilled shrimp....6 shrimp...got 5. When I mentioned it the waitress look perplexed and said she would get me another shrimp. Just ridiculous and laughable, but more laughable....never got my lonely shrimp. read more

My husband and I decided to give Budd Bay Cafe another chance,as we had a bad experience awhile ago. We both had the Sunset Dinner. I will start with the best. The rolls were warm, the wine very good and the dessert great. I had the crab cakes, the shrimp cocktail and Creme Brulee, no crab in the cakes, the shrimp had so much cocktail sauce it ruined it. The green beans were almost not cooked. My husband had the Prime Rib, clam chowder and the cheesecake. The Prime Rib was tough and almost unedible. No clams in the chowder and the mashed potatoes very strange and not edible. To make matters worse when we received the bill there was a charge of 3% if you paid with a credit card. Not only that the tax was on the balance plus the fee charge. Then when you look down at the calculation for the tip it also included the tax and the fee. Wow. Watch your bill we will never go back, what a disappointment and as far as I am concerned bad business. read more

Had dinner here tonight with a friend and we each ordered the crab/shrimp Louie salad. When the salads arrived it was quite noticeable that my dinner companion's salad had the prawns, listed on the menu and my salad had bay shrimp. I brought it up to the waitress and she left to check with the kitchen. When she returned, she stated that they had run out of prawns so used bay shrimp on my salad. She had brought a little container of extra shrimp and said that's all they have left. I responded that I felt it would have been appropriate to check with me about the substitution to let me decide whether I would still want to order the item. We were both charged full price for our salads. Pretty disappointed in the way this was handled. read more

Staff was great! Great suggestions and very helpful when you're overwhelmed by great looking options. Food was great and the view was beautiful! read more

Awesome flank steak salad. Amazing steak properly cooked and seasoned. Great service and atmosphere.

Budd Bay is excellent. You can taste the freshness and the quality in the food, and feel the genuine character of the servers. I recommend the filet mignon. I ordered it rare and it was cooked (or not so much) perfectly. Paired with a demi glaze, rice pilaf, and fresh zucchini it was a small portion but it was filling enough to take home leftovers. Every customer looked and felt (to me) to be happy and that they were enjoying their time. Dinner on South Sound couldn't have been better! read more

Budd Bay Cafe - Filet Mignon rare, rice pilaf, zucchini DELISH - Seafood Near Me - Olympia, Washington

Our favorite meal of the weekend. Starting with warm delicious rolls and nice cocktails. Flank steak in a tangy marinade with DREAMY mashed potatoes and perfectly cooked veggies. Fish n chips also great. No room for dessert but they had dinner specials for 3 courses which were a good value. The water view made it perfect. read more

Outstanding dinner experience last night on all levels. Host kindly welcomed our party of four and sat us immediately. Quickly greeted by our server for beverages as he checked on us frequently and appropriately throughout the evening. We all enjoyed entrees of salads, pastas and steak (temperature prepared as ordered) and desserts - everything was on point. read more

Great food, great service and awesome views. Never disappointed with this gem. The salmon is amazing!

Wonderful service and a very nice staff. Food was very good. Wonderful selection on the menu.

Two years ago I would have given this restaurant 5 stars. The staff was friendly. The halibut and steak were extremely over cooked. My fish was virtually inedible and the vegetables were so al dente I couldn't eat those either. Maybe new/inexperienced kitchen staff? However, the goat cheese appetizer was delicious. read more

How can a restaurant mess up on the simplistic things like salad dressings? Well Budd Bay does. Dear Chef, use a traditional recipe for your thousand island dressing and please upgrade your blu cheese. It was either way too old and rancid or it's just not a high quality blu cheese. Presentation of the Shrimp Cobb Salad was very nice and the service was outstanding but your salad dressings are atrocious. Ruins the meal. read more

Budd Bay Cafe - Seafood Near Me - Olympia, Washington

I've been stopping here for years and always enjoy this place. The very is nice and you can sit in or outside. They have a Sunday brunch and even a small bar. I usually get the crab louie salad as it's so tasty and always served with more dressing than you need but I like that because then you don't have to bother the wait staff for more. On this particular day I got iced tea and the waitress kept it coming which I appreciated. I hate ordering something with free refills and then receive none. The service was friendly and quick and I enjoyed looking out into the harbor area watching the boats and the people walking by. This was our first hot day in the Washington/Oregon area for almost the entire summer so we elected to sit inside because everyone wanted a table out and we thought why wait there's plenty inside. Free parking on Sunday and plenty of it. I'll be back once again. read more

This was my first taste of Olympia on a beautiful sunny afternoon. We sat outside and enjoyed the view of the water. The outside seating area is a bit small, however it is worth the ten minute wait. The service was great and we ordered our drinks and food pretty quickly. We had the crab sandwich and the seafood paella. The crab sandwich was very disappointing. It was super salty and I couldn't even finish half of it. On the bright side, the french fries were great. The seafood paella was awesome! This is the only redeeming thing about this place. Based upon the other reviews, I would try this place again for their Sunday brunch. read more

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We call Budd Bay "the Club House". In the summer, we frequently have lunch on the deck (one of the best places to dine al fresco in Oly). The food is always well prepared and flavorful. There are no swings in quality. My spousal unit's go-to is the wasabi salmon. Tonight she said it was super!! (it was her birthday dinner so I was glad it was a good one) And in non-summer, how is Budd Bay?? Just as good ! The servers are good and quickly add to your group's fun and celebration. Tonight, Maggie played right along with me being a smart alec when I ordered my veggie soft tacos "medium rare". Food (check). Service (check). Fun (check). read more

First time visiting Olympia, Washington and needed a quick beverage and snack, and were hoping for a nice view. Budd Bay does not disappoint! The view of the water and boats is beautiful and you'd have a view from pretty much any table. All I had time for was a Bloody Mary which was very good and they garnished with asparagus which I love! I also had the sourdough toast with jam. The bread was thick and tasted fresh. Service was friendly and efficient - what else can you ask for when time is limited? Will update the review when I'm back in the area and have time to try their Northwest Bouillabaisse - hope to add another star! read more

The best prime rib I have had in Olyimpia you get to seat and enjoy the views and enjoy there food I have been there many times Also I have ordered there halibut dinner very good as well it's a must try for Olyimpia food ..................................................................................does anyone know where to get good smoked beef ribs ? Around the Olympia area read more

This is a review based on my experience for Sunday brunch, so I don't know how the restaurant fares the rest of the time. Let me also preface this 2-star review by stating that I do not like seafood. That being said, I was pretty disappointed. My two dining companions, who both thoroughly enjoy seafood, seemed to like the brunch just fine, but I left hungry. That's criminal when it comes to buffets. There were so few choices for non-seafood eaters. I was basically left with either stuffing myself with sweet items (like waffles, crepes, or donuts/desserts) or going hungry.... I chose the latter. They did have bacon and sausage and sauteed chicken breast, but chicken is just not something I can eat at 9am (same goes for spicy meatballs). I was surprised they didn't at least have scrambled eggs - oh, wait... they did, but they were mixed with crab! Yuck. The only other egg item was eggs benedict, and until recently, I didn't even know anyone who liked that at all! The other things I had on my plate were a couple of pineapple slices (they didn't bother to cut out the eyes), and a sourdough roll (didn't taste very fresh). My consolation, though, was that I was able to go to the farmer's market afterward and get a teriyaki turkey stick and some cinnamon almonds to help fill the void! read more

So disappointed that the quality of food has gone downhill. The salmon dish I normally order was overcooked, encrusted in peppercorns, and was accompanied by a bunch of mushy carrots. The only thing that has increased around here is the price. I'm not sure if they have recently changed chefs, but I noticed that even the sweet potato fries have changed. This used to be one of my favorite lunch spots, but after the sub par meal today, I won't be coming back. read more

Budd Bay Cafe - Mushy carrots are gross. Also if you're only putting in 1 vegetable, it shouldn't be advertised as "seasonal vegetables". - Seafood Near Me - Olympia, Washington

Found this place thanks to search on Yelp. We er there for breakfast and it was amazing. I had a pancake. Yes A pancake. They are huge! They are also very yummy. Nice and fluffy, just how I like them. I added eggs and a side of bacon. Total was under $10. My husband had the biscuits and gravy. The gravy was very good. It had a very nice peppercorn flavor. Total for breakfast, 2 bloody marys, and 2 coffees was around $40-45. Service was great. The view is beautiful. We were lucky to get a window seat with a wonderful view of the boats. If we ever find ourselves in Olympia again we'll have to stop in again. read more

Budd Bay Cafe - Seafood Near Me - Olympia, Washington

4:30 pm at Memorial Day weekend on Saturday still we were able to get a table outside. Front staff was jovial and relaxing. Service staff efficient and polite. Food was excellent. Menu is improved and more modern from earlier days of this restaurant. Nice location downtown Olympia with marina views. read more

We went here for dinner tonight! I've always enjoyed going here! I love sitting outside and checking out the boats! But tonight I had the NY strip steak. OMG, I've had steaks from some of the best chefs is Seattle and I ha e to say this was one of the best I've ever had! It was so perfect! I'll definitely go back and get that! Absolute perfection! Get it medium, just a suggestion! Lol read more

Beautiful view great for lunch and dinner had the blue cheese salad and clams with warm bread very tasty nice place to have s drink and a bite to eat read more

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