The food here is usually fantastic, which is the main reason I keep coming back. The chicken ala mer and the Dirty Bird are both excellent, especially if you get the chicken blackened. That said, the service is almost always below expectations. I'm not sure if they're understaffed or just struggling with organization, but it consistently takes a long time to get food, drinks, refills, or even basic attention at the table. It's frustrating because the quality of the food is genuinely good, but the slow service takes away from the overall experience. The atmosphere is nice, and they sometimes have live music, which adds a lot. I'd still recommend trying it for the food, but go in expecting the service to be slow. read more

Literally the only place in Lubbock I can trust to be consistent and always yummy. I'd usually gatekeep my favorite waitress, but brinliegh deserves all the recognition possible. She is an absolutely amazing server, and makes everyone feel welcome. She knows the menu front and back and always has the best smile and attitude. No matter what!! She's the one that introduced me to my new favorite dish: dirty bird, but swap the rice for the Alfredo! I tried to take a photo of it but it was so good I only remembered halfway through. It's amazing. I wish I could give more than five stars read more

Gator's Bayou - Dirty Bird - Bars Near Me - Lubbock, Texas

Went visiting some family down to LBK and decided to give this place a try. It was a group of 5 so we all got different plates. I personally got the 2 choice basket which I really did enjoy. The shrimp and chicken are really good and also the shrimp basket was also good. The beading in the food was perfect and had a great taste. I asked to try the pasta and to my tasting it was just not so good as we thought it would be. So I thought there thing is the fried food, it's a great place to grab a cold beer and enjoy a game. The service here was actually good and very attentive to our table. The manager was pretty cool too. read more

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Food was good and staff were excellent. A good place for family and sports fans for the ambiance read more

Gator's Bayou - Gator - Bars Near Me - Lubbock, Texas

My first visit to Gators Bayou was a lunch meet up with friends. The decor is fun, but the music was just loud enough to make conversation difficult. The Cajun pasta was amazing, most people seemed satisfied by their food, but two of the six people had to change their order because of things Gators Bayou was out of. The waitress was attentive, changing out or refilling everyone's drink at least once. I might visit again to try the dirty rice, and maybe the frog legs. read more

Gator's Bayou - Building exterior. - Bars Near Me - Lubbock, Texas

Meh it is an ok place. I think the best thing about them is that they often have live music on the weekends and the patrons are friendly. Food is mediocre and drinks are average. This place is a solid 3. read more

Parking lot is a tight squeeze due to the fact this is in a plaza. It's seat yourself, our server was a super sweet girl. Staff had masks but there was no capacity limit, and no social distancing. This made me uncomfortable and I actually wanted to leave but our server had brought out the menus right before we could get up. The food was great though, I had the chicken Alfredo, it came with two rolls. It doesn't look like much, but believe me you get quite a good serving! The sauce was really great. I would consider coming back a second time once this corona has died down read more

Gator's Bayou - Bars Near Me - Lubbock, Texas

This place was pretty busy on a Friday night. There are several TVs to watch, and it's pretty loud. The rolls are amazing! I don't usually like white bread and I ate 3 of the 4 they brought me. I liked the jalapeño hush puppies, but mine were not hot and fresh, so they would probably be better fresh. I would have sent them back but I didn't want to wait. I asked the server about the bisque and she said it was good and was tomatoey. I've never had seafood bisque taste like tomatoes so I ordered the etoufee. Big mistake, it tasted like the base was tomato broth instead of seafood. I didn't care for it. It did have a great seasoning and a nice heat. I got some bread pudding to go and it was great. I would try them again. read more

They were great! The food was fresh and hot and the service was amazing! I forgot my wallet and the manager let me pay through cash app! The customer service was great and I would definitely recommend the visit. read more

I got my food to-go, I got the frog legs and and the jambalaya, the frog legs were under seasoned.... A lot, They were a 5/10. The jambalaya however was very good, 8/10. Of course not authentic but it's not bad considering it's Lubbock Tx. read more

Let start off by saying our server was great. We went there on our lunch break, took a seat and within 2 min had our food and drink order in. 3 more min we had our drinks! 55 min into our 60 min lunch break our food had not come out. We told our server to cancel the order because we had to get back to work, she brought the bill for the sodas, and we paid. I have no problem paying for the sodas but we were not offered to go cups and the manager ignored us. read more

I ordered Jambalaya and the rice was iced cold. my server Taylor refused to address my concerns and insul my friends present as she made inappropriate jokes regarding their race. based on my experienc, I'll never return and feel upset and offended by our server's racist and degrading interaction. I'm very disappointed in my experience read more

After my 3rd visit, it is fair to rate. Raw oysters are fantastic, and there is a definite cajun flair; service is good, the food is fresh, and the beer is cold. Brunch is on the "to do" list one of these Sundays. Plenty of screens to watch in every direction read more

I ordered the crawfish étouffée ($9.50) and found 4 or 5 crawfish tails swimming in a sea of dark brown sauce. I asked the waitress to come see for herself. The kitchen brought out 5 more crawfish tails in a bowl. This is the worst service recovery I have ever experience. This is after the manager came over to my table to talk to me. The other 3 friends of mine also were not impressed with their portion size. I should have read earlier reviews on Yelp about this restaurant! I WILL NEVER GO BACK TO THIS PLACE. read more

Gator's Bayou - Bars Near Me - Lubbock, Texas

Went to Gators on April 30 th, what a great place and such a variety of delicious food. We will return in the future.

Gators is one of our favorite places to eat! Always incredible eats and amazing service. Big fans!

Food was great. The staff, not so much. They are not practicing any type of social distancing. We were told to seat ourselves. The waitress along with most of the staff had masks under their chins. My waitress would lean in and talk while her mask was slipping from her chin to in her mouth. It was gross. Keep in mind my mask is off now that I'm seated. So if she accidentally spit or coughed we have no barrier. I wanted to put my mask back on but didn't want to offend her. Awkward. Bottom line, Cajun food was great, but get it to go. read more

Decided to stop in and grab some lunch today at this location. The special was a chicken fried steak and one side. I chose the dirty rice and it was very tasty. This is one location that I will return to every chance I get! read more

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Good cold beer at a Happy Hour price. Ordered the Cajun Sampler plate, which was good, too, (but I wished for a bit mor gator tail meat). We had a small discrepancy on our bill, but the restaurant took care of it right away. Live music on the patio today. Looks like there is also an outdoor bar on the patio to open at busy tines. read more

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Here's the thing- when I've dined in, the food has been great. Solid service, good drinks, all that good stuff. The only reason I gave four stars instead of five was because when we ordered delivery today, the food was... just nasty. The exception was the swamp platter appetizer- that was delish. But my chicken a la mer was salty to the point of being inedible. It was 90% the sauce, which came on the side. Like I said, when I've dined in, it's been great. One of my favorite chicken dishes. But please... don't order it for delivery. The boudin burger my roommate got looked awful but he said it tasted "like it would have been good fresh from the kitchen." So yeah, 4 stars, because if you go to the place you'll love it. Just don't order delivery. To be 100% fair, their delivery is through a 3rd party, so clearly it's not food designed to be delivered. If you really want to order in, stick to the delicious fried goodness!! Travels much better. read more

Our first time dining at Gator's Bayou, and the food / service was awesome! Highly recommend stopping in.

Ate here for the first time yesterday afternoon. Had a combo basket of fried shrimp, crawfish tails, gator bites and fries. All were good choices. Shrimp were nice sized and tasty. Gator bites were as good as anything we have ever gotten on trips to Florida. Crawfish tails, even though a little small, were very tasty. Fries good too. Food came out hot and wasn't greasy at all. Our server was Shelbie and she took real good care of us. Gave us some good recommendations on what to order as well. The only complainant was the very limited number of on tap beers. And they needed to be served in either frosted glasses or much colder than they came out. All in all a very good first visit and we will be going back. read more

A hit more rigged atmosphere but I really love the gator bites and the Cajun pasta. Wish there was a bit more on draft to select but after a few it's all the same. read more

Have been coming here for years, but this last visit was absolutely awful. my husbands burger was burnt and inedible. the raw oysters tasted very far from fresh. The gator was cut in huge chunks and undercooked. gumbo was by far the worst gumbo I have ever had as it was watery and lacked flavor. they put too much rice to try to help give it some thickness I think. $100 bill for three people. WILL NOT BE BACK. read more

This place was amazing! I can't believe they have 3-stars. Went here for lunch a few days ago and food was delicious! We ordered chicken tenders with fries and their Bayou Burger. The chicken tenders were absolutely *tender* (much emphasis on "tender"). The chicken was juicy and filled with flavor and the bredding wasn't over-fried which we appreciated because other places making it difficult to enjoy when they've fried it too much. Their jalapeño hush puppies were AHHHMAAAZZING! Dipped it in honey and tasted great! Their Bayou Burger was juicy and I loved the fact everything balanced each other out. Their buns were thick, but not thick enough to outweigh the hamburger meat, just enough condiments inside not leaving the bottom bun soggy. Definitely coming back here again. read more

Best Spicy Shrimp Fettuccine Alfredo in town! Service is always great as well. Crawfish bisque was ehh as was the Sunday Bloody Mary. Also had a waitress with hair down past her waist, which is fine, but should be pulled up as it was dragging on tables as she walked by them. Will I be back? Yep, 100%. Will I expect the same? Yep Oh yeah, the rolls are great too! read more

Four of us wanted to go out but didn't really feel like getting all dolled up and ready to fight the usual douche bags you find at bars around campus. We found exactly what we were looking for. Gator's Bayou was a low key laid back bar/restaurant that seemed to have a loyal following. It was very lively during the Cowboys game but I think a few of the people should have been kicked to the curb... some of the guys were pretty annoying. The drinks were reasonably priced and the service was decent. A huge plus was that is smoke free. The sole reason Gator's Bayou didn't get more stars is because our waitress was trying really hard to flirt with some people a few tables over. I'm pretty sure she spent more time adjusting her boobs then she spent helping us. read more

I stopped by here for a nightcap with my brother, because we wanted a place close to 98th & Frankford. The Good: I asked for a double of Crown on the rocks, and they gave me the little crushed ice. I love little crushed ice! I'd never had it like that before and it seemed to cut the taste well while keeping the drink cold. The beer was cold. The Bad: What absolutely, 100% turned me off about this place was the waitresses/bartenders. The whole time we sat there trying to enjoy our beers, avoid talking like men do, and watch the CWS game, all they did was complain about their evening. They weren't even complaining to us. They were loudly talking about how much that night sucked because two big parties came in and they were short handed. I understand that the situation wasn't optimal for them, but professionalism means shutting up in front of the customers and continuing to give them a great experience. We seemed to be rushed out of the door even though, I thought, we had plenty of time until close. I guess closing is when they want it to be. Overall: I'm half-temped to try food there one day, but otherwise, there are far better places to have a drink. Note to the waitresses: Everyone's job sucks, and it doesn't do much difference to complain about it. Suck it up and put a smile on! read more

Nice place to enjoy a beer but the food is average and should cost about half of what it does. Left there unsatisfied and spent 20-25 dollars. Won't eat there again. Cool place to watch a game however. read more

How do you mess up making Red Beans and Rice? Well, having no sausage in in (like it says it has in the menu) .... and rice that is not thoroughly cooked. The Crawfish Etouffee was all roux, very few crawfish and three 2" pieces of celery...?? WTH..?? Spicy, yes. Most people probably could not handle it. Shrimp Gumbo.... Horrible. Wouldn't feed it to my dog. Embarrassing indeed. Boudin Balls.... what? You DO NOT fry boudin. Period. Save your business and fire your cook, cause he or she sure is not a chef. Only redeeming quality you ask?? The beer was cold. read more

This place is very good. The fried macaroni & cheese appetizers were delicious. The service was fast for it to be a holiday (valentine's)...no wait time...immediately seated. Our waitress was efficient and kind. Now for why 3 out of 5 stars given...the drinks were average at best. The daiquiri and lemon chill drinks were very watered down and inconsistent color. The cajun pasta is not great..the sauce was unlike anything I have tasted. Next time I'll stick to the alfredo pasta dish. Overall, we will return for the food and service. read more

Awful!!! Went the other day with some friends. Our appetizer came out before our waters, a different waitress brought out the waters on a tray & said "do you want me to pass them out?" isn't that a waitress' job? Then she brought out a giant pitcher because she was too lazy to refill our drinks. Ordered a Cesesr salad & was served a house and the waitress had NO IDEA what a Cesesr salad was - she was asking us!!! We ordered two sides of hush puppies & only received one. When asked the waitress said "oh we're out. Well actually we have one more in the back but I didn't bring it cause it's our last one" I'm a paying costumer??? I will never go back to this place because of the POOR service from everyone involved at this restaurant read more

This was a great place for lunch! I had the étouffée, which was very flavorful, some spice, but not too much to overpower the crawfish or the other flavors of the dish. The waitress was very quick to make sure that my drink always was full, and made sure to check with me and make sure I didn't need anything. The food came out hot and very quickly. I would defiantly come back and order that dish again. read more

Gator's Bayou - Crawfish étouffée - Bars Near Me - Lubbock, Texas

After three years of a delay, I finally got to eat at GB. First, I would not call this a restaurant as much as a bar that happens to serve food. The place is clean with good TV setup. I witnessed customers who all seemed to know each other. That was nice. The T&A of the servers was pleasant, but not family oriented. I do not drink so I cannot comment on the drinks. Most people seemed to be drinking beer. I had the crawfish Po Boy with Ceasar. The Po B oy bread was toasted and way too dry. The Po Boy was dry too. The crawfish was all breading and no flavor. The salad was not made with romaine. Strange, although the lettuce was fine. Then I smelled the outdoor eating area. Smoking, really? Is it 1970? OK, I won't return for sub-par food and the smell of smoke, but this place could be the cup of tea for other locals, and that's OK. I long for a place that has good food and the atmosphere, sans smoke, of this place. read more

Did a great job with food quality even with delivery, my favorite Cajun restaurant in town by far

Ordered to go on a Thursday night. We ordered the oyster basket, chicken and sausage gumbo, and pork chops. The gumbo had neither sausage nor rice, so was basically just chicken soup. There were no hushpuppies with the oyster basket, the red beans and rice side was super salty. The pork chops were over cooked and dry. read more

The food was alright, and the atmosphere was nice. It's just that the service was lacking. It was midday, and there weren't a lot of customers, but the staff spent more time around each other, at the bar, looking at pictures on their phones, than paying attention to their tables. It might be different when they're busy, but just in case, go when there's no rush to leave. read more

I've been going here for a long time but since management has changed this place has gone to shit! Food is good, atmosphere is good but the management is less than impressive! read more

Arrived for brunch right after opening, we were the first table and probably were for the next 20 minutes or so. Ordered Bloody Mary's, which were really good, both of us ordered Crab Cake Hollandaise after about 45 minutes we are told that they were out and we needed to pick something else. Settled for a salad and breakfast sandwich. After about another 30 minutes we asked if we could just skip out on the food as we had already been there an hour and a half. We were told they were super busy and had a lot of orders, but that ours was coming (keep in mind we were the first people to order and because the mishap our food should have been pushed to the front). Overall we paid $40 for two bloody Mary's and subpar food that took far too long. read more

Nice restaurant. The building was clean, and the staff was friendly. For the appetizer, we ordered gator bites and frog legs. This being my first time eating reptiles, it was delicious. For the main dish, I had catfish and crawfish with a side of hushpuppies and Cajun macaroni and cheese. All was very delicious. Unfortunately, I was too full for dessert, but I would definitely like to return, one day. So, maybe next time. read more