Used to have lunch at Gary's at least once a month. Good food, but a while back prices jumped dramatically, so I dropped it from my usual places for lunch list. I did try the Hog Pen last week and was disappointed. Only one waitress and there was a large group just getting settled at their table when I arrived. Took quite a while to place order (ribs and "moist"??? (i.e. fatty) brisket, slaw, mac'n cheese). Sides OK; ribs were covered in an over-spiced paste; not OK. What was pretty good was the "moist??" brisket. Balanced meat to fat ratio. Good flavor, but I have had better I probably will come back if I ever get a hankering for The Stack; otherwise, it's not back on my usual lunch rotation. However, it may be worth a try for you. read more

Food is fantastic. Prices are reasonable. This alone should be a reason to patronize the fine folks @ Gary's. But like the late, great Mr. Popeil said - But wait! THERE'S MORE! What truly sets Gary's Oyster Shack apart is the service and attitude of the staff. My group and I had been on the job for 13 hours straight and were looking forward to one of the only places left open past 8. Gary's was listed somewhere as open until 8:30. We walked in and were greeted warmly, and told that the winter hours were only until 8. It being 8:03, we said our thank yous and turned around to leave. One of the staff offered 'The grill is still on - if you want to stay, we'll feed you!' After our long and exhausting day, to have these folks offer to extend their long and I'm sure equally exhausting day for us was just ... awesome. By the time we were finished, it looked like all of the plates had been licked clean. A couple of us even took some desert to go after delightful and satisfying meals. Holy cow! My cheesecake was unbelievable! I had the Shack Stack and can't recommend it highly enough. I enjoyed this place so much, I returned 14 hours later on my way to the airport to grab some lunch. Way to go Gary's Oyster Shack! 10 stars! read more

Gary's has changed. I think the owner is wonderful and love seeing him when I come in. I would recommend the seafood nachos. I'm still figuring out how I feel about their recent changes but overall, great dining experience. read more

Visited Gary's, our go to seafood and restaurant today for an early Valentine's Day dinner. Zandria was our server and she was excellent. Zandria brought us our drinks quickly. We ordered fried oysters for an appetizer. I went with a brisket sandwich with spicy coleslaw and the Mrs opted for a whole fried flounder with red beans and rice and fries for sides. Oyster appetizer came out very quickly. The oysters were large and very good. Pretty much everything was downhill from there. My wife orders fried flounder here regularly and this was the worst she has had in. Very small and thin with little meat and was cooked and served differently than other times. My brisket sandwich was nowhere near as good as the one other time I had it. The meat was too salty (and I like salty food) and the bun was stale. My spicy coleslaw was decent. The red beans and rice were not good either. The "tartar sauce" that was served with both the fried oysters and my wife's fish was not typical tartar sauce but more like remoulade sauce. It's a shame that our experience was so bad. I don't know that we'll be returning. Will probably need to try somewhere else next time. I am giving 3 stars only because the oysters were good and Zandria was pleasant and apologetic. Based solely on today's experience I can no longer recommend Gary's Oyster Shack or Hog Pen Smokehouse. read more

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Delicious. The place was rustic but the service was great. I would definitely go back.

Thursday night = smoked Prime Rib night What a pleasant surprise. Service was very fast and friendly. The Prime Rib with Sliced Red Potatoes deserves 5 stars. Congratulations. read more

Got us right together! Back on Road... great decorations & environment Friendly staff. Yummy grub. read more

Great food- Friendly staff and great service- clean, cute restaurant! Food was fresh and hot and our waitress was helpful and attentive! Easy spot to stop in for a great meal read more

My oysters were delicious. My husband did not love his fish (grouper?) meal. He said that it wasn't fresh. Such a shame because service was excellent and it's a really great, charming place. I saw they also had ribs so maybe they don't sell too much seafood? I still recommend though. read more

Food was excellent The service was even better. My wife had the lunch stack I had Grouper basket both were excellent.

Really wanted to like this place but left extremely disappointed. Got their seafood tower, the price was $7 higher than 7 months ago, $35 now. Almost everything was very salty, especially with the orange house sauce. I have a heavy tastebud but i was struggling with every bite. The only thing that pleasantly surprised me was the two hush puppies were good. I went there for the seafood, it was expensive and not good. Hunts Oyster house is soo much better. read more

Absolutely delicious!! Everything we tried was awesome. The stack that had scallop, grouper, shrimp and crab cake. The loaded surf and turf was (ribeye bites and shrimp over loaded red potatoes. We had crab claws and the desserts! Everything was fabulous! Can't wait to go again. Service was excellent. read more

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Great seafood and prime rib special on Thursday. Friendly staff, quick service,. Food hot when served.

Always a good time we have been guests there for years. You always feel at home and never have a bad experience. The food is next level. These men can cook. There was an oyster salad app on their old menu years ago I wish they would bring back! If you want good food to be waited on like you are at your grandparents house try it out. Promise you won't be disappointed. read more

Absolutely better than any seafood in PCB! Gary was amazing as much as the food! Good atmosphere and family oriented

We had a great dinner at Gary's. If you don't try the smoked tuna dip you are missing out! Char grilled steakhouse oysters were delicious and everything on the seafood platter (crab cake, shrimp, scallops, oysters and flounder) included generous portions. Crab cake was good not too much breading, seafood lightly battered to perfection. Services was friendly and swift without feeling rushed. So glad we found this place! read more

Everything is delicious! Service is quick and very nice staff! I've had several dishes and all were very good!

Friendly employees and the food was delicious I called ahead, at arrival the food was ready and hot.

We are so glad we decided to try this place for the first time for lunch. There was no wait and service was quick. The owner even takes the time to come by and welcome you at your table. The inside is very nice and there are plenty of options to pick from the menu. We started with their baked oysters with all the toppings (cheese, jalapeño, garlic and lemon). The oysters were fresh and delicious. We also ordered their chargrilled burger, and it was cooked perfectly. The burger was very good. They make fresh desserts daily, and we ordered their brownie to go. Overall, I highly recommend this place! We look forward to coming back and trying other things on the menu. See photos below. read more

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Food was fresh! Service was great. We always love it here! Fried shrimp and grouper were great! Wish they had the old Mac and Cheese back. read more

I am prefacing this review knowing that Panama City Beach and Panama City has a different outlook on business, and speed / quality of service. I brought my family here because I wanted to have some BBQ while we were in PCB. Unfortunately, the BBQ menu was not available online, so we stopped in on our way to Tyndall AFB. They are on a corner with signage, but pretty easy to miss and drive by. There is lots of parking. We even saw the guy grilling close to the parking area. The atmosphere is great. Very cozy, and they were slightly busy for lunchtime. A few employees acknowledged us right away, and let us know that they would be right with us. I ended up speaking to a gentleman, who I later found out was Gary. He gave us a BBQ and regular menu and warned us that when the BBQ runs out, that's that. Any good BBQ place is like that so I did not give it a second thought. We did return in the evening around 6:45pm for dinner because they were serving Prime Rib (Thursday Night), and was greeted that same way we were earlier. Gary ended up seating us after a short wait. He was very personable, and a great story teller! At the server's and Gary's recommendation, we ordered the Smoked Tuna Dip and Wonton Chips (homemade.) I also order some Fried Crab Fingers. We ordered the Shack Stack, BBQ Chicken and Pulled Pork, Pulled Pork Sandwich, and the Thursday night Prime Rib. At dessert time we opted for Cheesecake, Key Lime Pie, and Chocolate Holy Cake = $157.49 (they do have military discount.) Three people in the group said that the Tuna Dip was the best they ever had. I had it and thought meh, but the Wonton Chips were off the chain. The Crab Fingers were meaty, and easy to eat. Just meh for me because I was not a fan of the sauce it comes with (or on the table.) Perhaps a really good cocktail sauce or butter might have been in order. Wife said the Prime Rib was good and cooked to perfection. It was also a pretty thick slice! The BBQ, unfortunately was just OK. I really would like to try the ribs next time, as they did run out as warned. For the kids, it was the BBQ sauce on the table that did the BBQ in. A few choices of BBQ sauces would be great addition to the menu. I had the Shack Stack, and thought that is was all good and tasty, but nothing like WOW. Now the desserts we were told were all homemade. They looked very sweet, but they were not overpowering, and were all very, very good. Everyone enjoyed the desserts. We will definitely return for lunch (so that I can try the ribs), and would definitely recommend Gary's for the original menu. At this time, the BBQ was just meh for us. read more

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Friendly owners! Delicious food! Our go to is the catfish, fried oysters, gator bites and jalepeno coleslaw.

A great little spot in Tyndall. Fresh seafood and great service. I got the shack stack: white fish, topped with a delightful crab cake, topped with yummy scallops. You can get it blackened (as I did ), fried, or grilled. Overall a great local spot! Cant wait to try their oysters next time. Everyone there was eating them. read more

Gary's Oyster Shack - Seafood Near Me - Panama City, Florida

Made it this afternoon to Gary's. It was worth the trip in the rain. I started with the Steakhouse oysters which were absolutely wonderful. Very tasty and well made!! Next time it's a dozen for me. We also had the grouper fried with slaw and red potatoes. These too were very delicious. Lots to eat and brought some home. Also, the fried catfish strips with the sweet slaw and red potatoes. These were also prepared and cooked well. I discussed with one of the owners having whole catfish as they are more flavorful on the bone. He agreed. I suggested he add to the menu and I would be there every Friday night. We brought home a piece of chocolate silk pie. All their pies in the case looked wonderful. Service from Jennifer was excellent. A real sweet lady and very attentive to our needs. And as mentioned above, one of the owners stopped by to check on us. Nice touch. The restaurant isn't huge, maybe 18 tables, and a larger room for parties. It was just right for us locals. The place is neat and clean. Being in Callaway may keep some of the tourist away, but we locals like to keep our good places a secret. I highly recommend and will return again. Enjoy! read more

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The staff were awesome and the food was delicious! We had a sampler platter and everything was amazing! The jalapeño slaw was on point! Definitely will be making this place a must stop when we are in Panama City! read more

Great food. Great friendly service. Really enjoyed it. A little far from the beach but well worth it read more

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Food is always good. Never an issue coming in at any time. Service is also exceptional each time.

Family eats here minimum of twice a month. I've been going since it originally opened. Every aspect is positive. Try the key lime cake it's amazing. read more

This place is delicious and charming... everyone is so nice and the food was beyond tasty. Smoked tuna dip and tuna tacos were today's choices, we will be back again soon! read more

Gary's Oyster Shack - Tuna tacos - Seafood Near Me - Panama City, Florida

Flew into town for work. Praise and worship music playing throughout the building with the outdoor channel on the TV. Visited with the owner Gary for a good bit. I'm from South Louisiana and the seafood was as good as I've ever had. What more could you ask for? I'd give it more stars if I could. Highly recommended for the food and fellowship. read more

This is one of the best seafood places in Bay County. Food is outstanding. We enjoy the shack stack, and their seafood tacos. There are so many great items on the menu, it's hard to decide. Highly recommend. Great service. read more

10/10 experience for our first night of family vacation! After a long drive in from Tennessee we knew we'd want to start the week off strong with some good seafood and Gary's did not disappoint! Exceptional service, great menu selection, delicious food, friendly atmosphere, and wonderful time spent with family and meeting the owner, Gary! Our party of 10 was seated immediately and our server Jennifer made sure we were well taken care of all night! The stand out dishes from our meal were the tuna dip (with homemade chips), Grouper Imperial, Shack Stack, fish tacos with jalapeño slaw, and green beans! read more

Gary's Oyster Shack - Shack Stack with fries and green beans - Seafood Near Me - Panama City, Florida

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Ended up here because it was the only restaurant open after landing at the airport and WOW were we pleasantly surprised!! The food was amazing. We ordered the shrimp tacos, grouper tacos and a size of French fries... there wasn't a crumb left on either plate. The grilled shrimp taco might be the best I've ever had. The sweet slaw and spicy sauce complimented each other perfectly. Fries were hot and crispy. Highly recommend. The staff was incredibly friendly and attentive too despite the fact that we showed up 10 minutes before the kitchen closed. The restaurant itself had a very welcoming atmosphere and was clean. I really don't have anything negative to say about the experience. No pics to add because we ate it all too quick! read more

One of our favorite go to's for seafood. I LOVE THEIR SLAW! And everything else. The service is also great. I love the owner. He is awesome and so is his family. read more

Food is great. not much in ambiance (local dive) but the service was good. Great seafood and busters. I recommend.

Wonderful service and extremely delicious food! Had the grouper sandwich, kids meals, crab fingers and homemade desserts. All very very scrumptious and fresh tasting. Clean and nice atmosphere. Would highly recommend. read more

Amazing Prime Rib! Salad and crispy flavorful French fries! Thursday nights! Wonderful service, served by Gary himself! read more

My husband and I went for lunch a couple of days ago. He got the shrimp basket & fries, I got the lunch Shack stack, grilled. The fried shrimp & fries were tasty...not bad at all. The Shack stack, consisting of a crab cake, grouper, topped with shrimp were okay. The fish was questionable as to whether it was really grouper. It was not as light as grouper is and a bit chewy. The crab cake was sub-par. No visible crab meat & was brown & mushy, unlike a good crab cake would usually be. I would not order this again. The scalloped potatoes were good. The atmosphere is okay...kinda laid back, country low-rent on the bayou look. The waitress was excellent in every way. Very attentive. A tall lady with glasses...I wish I'd gotten her name, but I didn't, I really liked her. We'd eat there again and try something new. It's a comfortable place to visit. Very casual. read more

The smoked tuna dip was phenomenal!! Everything we had was great and the service was great

Had oyster basket and wife had scallops. Both were very good. The service was good and very polite. I would recommend this restaurant for seafood, however on Thursday they have a Prime Rib special that looks really good. read more