Excellent fresh seafood and southern sides. The chef definitely has mastered frying because the fried options aren't heavy or greasy at all; fried foods including hush puppies are crisp and lighter than usual. The grilled and blackened options have all been delicious. This is very casual dining with high quality seafood that is often brought in off a fishing boat the same morning it's served. Staff is friendly and service has been good even during busy hours. There's not much on the menu for dieters or 'health conscious' options so plan to go and enjoy a great meal of excellent classic southern seafood. read more

Delicious local seafood from a landmark restaurant in an authentic panhandle town. Simple surroundings combined with good service and friendly smiles make for a great meal. Fair prices and very fresh seafood. The shrimp were giant. read more

I purchased a shrimp sandwich. $12 for 4 shrimp. It was take-out so they snuck this in. Pretty pathetic. I love locals but this action is driving me away. I also tipped which made it worse afterward. read more

I have been going to Nick's since Nick was alive, I met my wife in Fort Walton in 1976. The service was always casual at best, but the food was exceptional and the price was reasonable enough. Two days ago I took two friends from Tennessee to Nick's at two in the afternoon when the place was almost empty. We were told to get a table and eventually a very young lady came to take our orders. We didn't have any silverware or water. The crab claws came soon, but were not as good, something seemed different. I didn't get my salad until two of the entrees came. They brought the wrong salad dressing. The third entree didn't come until we were asked twice if everything was okay and my friend and I had almost finished. My friend didn't get his Cole slaw until after being prompted. The food was mediocre at best and overpriced. My friends were not impressed. The manager blamed the issues on a computer problem, but what does that have to do with silverware and basic service? Today I took my friends to AJ's in Destin, about the same time of day. For the same price, we received excellent customer service and great food. I think I am done with Nick's, what a shame. read more

Nick's restaurant is an every once in awhile treat. It's a bit overpriced...but the food is so worth it. The service is always bad...but the food is so worth it. Arrived today at 11:06, the front door was locked, sign read closed. We waited...cause the food is so worth it. At 11:15 we called "Are you guys open today?", "Yes we are!". We can see a table inside eating. We wait...cause the food is so worth it. 11:25, another couple walk up behind us. We called again. She finally opens the door. We're seated, the waitress then waits on the couple that walked in behind us. She takes our order, waits on another table of 4, proceeds to the counter bring drinks to them. We get our drinks. Couple that was behind us have already enjoyed their salads. We wait. She brings out our salad with salads for the table of 4. By now we're just annoyed and ask for the rest of our dinner to go. As I was paying she asked if everything was ok, I replied "No it's been bad since we walked in." That made her mad. She tossed the receipt at me. Got home and opened our dinners. This my friends is now what a $20.00 meal at Nick's looks like. We will not go back...the food is not worth it. read more

Nick's Seafood - Seafood Near Me - Freeport, Florida

I adore this place! Food was great, service was great, view was great, and the coffee was terrible...but I loved it! But, they have an unfair advantage because of the adorable little bantam roosters that greet you at the door! I love them! If and when I return to this area of FL, I will seek this place out once again! read more

Good was a little slow and the portions are way small. Also, menu online doesn't match in store (prices) sticker shock. read more

Nick's Seafood - This was fish of the day and grilled shrimp with 2 sides. Very small portions :-( - Seafood Near Me - Freeport, Florida

Excellent food, service not so good, excellent pricing, views good, however indoor was freezing cold.

Went tonite at the suggestion of a family member who lives in the area. Pleasantly surprised! Fried calamari & gator tail apps followed by large steamed blue crab, excellent local seafood. The kids loved it! Truly an old time hidden gem on the bay. It will be on our go to list every trip. read more

A "Dive" that specializes in local fried seafood. The food isn't GREAT but it's always GOOD. We're the locals go.

This place does not want your business. Or, they didn't want ours anyway. Both our meals were WAY oversalted. What's up with that? Besides that, nothing is homemade. Canned vegetables, etc. read more

**** ONLY ACCEPTS VISA AND MASTERCARD **** OVERALL REVIEW: I had this rated at 4 stars but dropped it down to 3 after our second visit. DO NOT come here expecting quality waitresses. The service here is average at best and -- in fact -- our second waitress seemed like she hated her life and was actually very grumpy and rude. This hole-in-the wall joint makes you feel right at home. It's off of the water, the fish is all fresh, and it has a very casual atmosphere. It's out in the middle of nowhere but it's worth the drive if you're looking for fresh seafood and down-home cooking. I ordered the Tile Fish and was pleasantly surprised at how delicious it was! The service wasn't over-the-top; but it fits the place. Don't come here expecting 5-star waitressing and you'll be fine! Our waitress was friendly and down to earth (visit #1) (And she was also working 10 tables while we were there!) And don't worry about dressing up -- just come in whatever you're wearing...swimsuit, jeans, shorts, doesn't matter! BEST TIME TO GO: early evening. It seems there is a late night / dinner rush as 8 tables filled up after we got there @ 6pm. DECOR: Reminds me of grandma's kitchen / bait shop rolled into one. Not fancy at all...but causal / nautical. DOWNSIDE(s): Our waitress the 2nd time was extremely grumpy and forgetful. There's a younger (I hate to say "kid") that works there and he's very polite and helpful, though! You won't want to linger in the parking lot as they dump oyster shells etc in the dumpster outside and it does smell rather fishy. Also, the veggies they serve are comparable to ones from a hospital or nursing home (frozen / canned & disgusting). ITEMS ORDERED (over the span of 2 visits and 4 people): -- Tile fish (yummy!!! and highly recommend) -- French Fries: very good & not too salty. If you're one that's used to ordering fast food you might want to ask for extra salt (but I rarely add it to food) -- hush puppies (not a fan....ever. I'm from Wisconsin and these southern delights do NOT trip my trigger. The 2nd time they came it looked like the outside was charred) -- hamburger: delicious and made to order. Bun was extremely soft and topped with sesame seeds. Had pickles / onions / ketchup. -- Fish sandwich: meh. Average. Lacked flavor and only came with the fish & bun and a small side order of tartar sauce. Not impressed with it! read more

Yum! Fried seafood fresh out of the gulf! Pluse there was wild turkeys and chickens running around.

This place is NOT good. Aside from my waitress, who had just clearly finished a joint as I pulled up, my food was not tasty at all. It's was poorly seasoned and over priced. I got the shrimp and fish, it's was 14 dollars and I only got TWO shrimp. Never again. read more

Hey I if use wzanted y'all to know if you neediestand is that the time I can get there anything yu

I would give zero but don't have that luxury. Get there, sat, annnnnd sat.... about 6 or so mins after we sat down we had menus thrown at us, never greeted, never got the waitresses name nothing, got menus & then she walked off. Waited longer & finally got fed up with the crap service so we walked out. read more

This place has great food, service and an amazing view. I went with a good sized group and got to try a variety of foods. The gator tail was very good, and I personally got cobia, green beans and fries. I also had the Wisconsin cheese balls. That was probly the best appetizer I've ever had, along with the best fish I've ever had. If you happen to go look for the Boston Red Sox championship banner by the bar and you'll see all of our dollar bills we posted on the wall. Tell cracker the rooster who hangs out in the front I said hi too. 10/10 for this place, seriously if it's an option you need to try it. read more

Great local restaurant. Their food is unbelievable. It is cooked fresh when you order and comes out steaming hot. You have to try the fried green tomatoes. They come out hot and are the best I have ever eaten. The shrimp is great however you get it. Small restaurant and a little under staffed the last time we went. But that does not lessen the food quality at all. read more

Went there on a Thursday night 8 days ago. Took over 30 minutes to be seated. After being seated took about 10-15 minutes for our order to be taken. Once that was accomplished and our drinks delivered, did not see our waitress again. Food was brought to us an hour later. Wife's flounder was delivered barely warm, daughter's crab legs were barely warm as well. My son and I had the seafood platter and that was at an appropriate temperature. Since our waitress was nowhere to be found we relied in another waitress for refills when she was near and had to get her attention in order to get a refill...even had to send my son to get a refill. When we paid, the hostess asked my wife how was evrything and when she told her what happened, she seemed disinterested, apologised and made no effort to make anything right. As far as taste goes, my wife was disappointed in the bland taste of the whole flounder, my daughter said that the crab legs were ok and my son and I liked our food. My opinion of Nick's is that it is no better than any other "fried seafood" restaurant I have been to. Actually, it ranks pretty low with the poor customer service and bland food. The price was pretty expensive...the 4 of us $96. Will not ever go back. read more

We won't go back. Locals welcome, outsiders aren't. The service was horrible. We sat at the bar, on a slow day while the tender stood talking to a local couple. She didn't ask one time how our food was. Menu prices were a bit shocking, but would have been acceptable with appropriate portions. The 'Fat Hatie' consisted of 2 fried oysters, 2 hush puppies, and one 2x2 fish filet. It should have been called a 'Slim Jim'. What a disappointment. read more

The people were the best! Very quick and kind. Not touristy which was why we went while staying in Destin. Fried green tomatoes and fried mushrooms were good. Shrimp & gumbo were too! Cute place kids loved the chickens read more

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Vacationing on 30A, worth the drive. We ate there at noon, good service, good food with large portions! I had the blacken grouper sandwich, it was delish! This was the third year we had eaten at Nick's, we will be back! read more

Quite possibly the worst experience I've ever had at this restaurant. Packed with people on a Sunday afternoon (2:30) three of us sat down ordered drinks that came out warm (bottle beer) and waited on our food after 1 1/2 hours no food just our drinks and they were very simple orders. So we left hungry and very disappointed. As we have been coming here for years I think it will be along time before I come back. read more

If you like over priced fried foods you are in luck. My stomach was upset with me after that night. Won't be returning but the services was good. The services was the only reason i didn't rate them 1 star. read more

The alligator was overcooked and rubbery the service sucks net worth the money the grouper was just OK and I love grouper you don't get much of it I got 4 pieces and it was just ok I bent a way better places for less money I live in Freeport that heat they forget read more

I would give the fresh seafood 5 stars, but the place needs a bit of cleaning.... It is a bit of a dive and I am not crazy about the flies that sometimes buzz around your food. I play it safe and go for something fried as I'm not sure what the kitchen looks like.. read more

We were in the area on vacation a couple weeks ago and ran across Nick's by accident. It was towards the end of what I would consider to be a lunch rush and they were probably about half full when we went in but a lot of tables were finishing up. Our server was super friendly and we had a good time chatting with her. She explained what kind of fish they had and what it would be like. My daughter and I both got the fish sandwich and it was tasty. Lightly breaded and letting enough of the fish flavor through. Could have used a touch more salt but still one of the best fish sandwiches I have had. Wife was happy with her meal as well. The sides were good, not spectacular but definitely nothing to complain about. I did get family to try cheese grits and they really like it. The other server stopped by and chatted as well and made sure our drinks were filled while our server was back getting food. Very friendly and welcoming. When we were leaving we stopped and watched them unloading fresh catch for the evening meal for a couple minutes. Daughter was impressed with the chickens and turkey running around the grounds. Overall a very pleasant experience and we would be happy to go back next time we are in the area. read more

Really looked fwd to trying this place after seeing a dozen blue crab on their menu. Unfortunately, when we went, they were out. Ok, how about the mullet?...they were out. Soft shell crab? Out. This is just Sat lunch, btw. What are they going to do at dinner? So, I settled on Fried shrimp/oysters, the Fat Hattie Special...more like the Skinny Hattie Special. When it came out, I it only came out with 2 shrimp and 2 oysters! Really? Cook claimed I should've gotten the seafood platter, but I've had oyster/shrimp combos that came with much more for the same/similar price. My Dad got a couple of sides which he thought came with his steamer (it actually doesn't). What I didn't like about it was that they charged $3.95 per side which I think was excessive. Service was also extremely slow. I usually like local hole-in-the walls, but I'll pass on this one next time. I suggest updating the menu on the items that were out that they have limited quantities, so people don't get their hopes up before arriving to a big disappointment. read more

We just moved here from Georgia and we're trying to hunt down the best crab legs. Every time I searched for them, this place was the first to come up. It's an older restaurant on the water and we happened to catch the sunset while we waited on our table- it was packed which is a good sign in my book. I ordered the fish sandwich and my fiancé and his mom both ordered crab legs. My fried fish sandwich was AMAZING! One of the best I have ever had in my entire life and trust me, I know fish sandwiches. I tried some of their crab legs and they were hands down the best I had ever tasted, very impressed with this little place! So glad we live right down the road, will definitely be back! read more

Not what it use to be!!! Pitiful service, small portions. 6 out of the 12 crabs i ordered did not have claws. use to be really good not worth the drive anymore. you will see if you go. read more

I have been eating at Nick's over 40 years. Only the staff has changed - maybe some of the exterior paint and very, very little of the interior decor. This is a locally famous and popular greasy-spoon, seafood restaurant. No aires, just hard working people preparing and serving up pretty good seafood, burgers, etc. Service is directly linked to the quantity of diners in the building. Food is what on would expect of such a place. Regrettably, there are no signature flavors or dishes, except perhaps that they steam rather than bake potatoes. It is late in the season for me eating raw oysters on the half-shell, but when ordered, I was advised none but cooked were available. That was the reason for my 20 mile trip. Never in 40 years was I ever not able to get raw oysters. Don't know if it was a matter of markets price, bio hazards, politics, or just ran out. Our arrival was going on noon, on a Sunday morning. About 3/4 full when arrived. It was 100%+ when we left. read more

Has great food but the service is just okay. The heads on the wall are funny and the atmosphere is good. Right on the bay.

Calimari was delicious. Grilled grouper was too. Good service and friendly too. Worth the stop

Awesome family run(??) business! Food was good but a little over seasoned for my palette but so FRESH!!! And, super fresh yummy oysters!!! The ambiance is charming country-ish bait shop-ish. Clean place. The owner let us sit with our dogs at the bar and eat! LOVED THEM FOR THIS!!! We will be back, FOR SURE! read more

Long wait time. Call ahead. Service is all over the place, but once seated pretty fast. Busy busy. Cool view. This place has a local vibe. Intercostal feel. Not touristy. Not the best snow crab I have ever had, but I still ate it. I think the experience over all was fun! I would go back and try something else. read more

We are from out of town and we chose Nick's because I read it was a favorite for the locals. We waited all week to go and had been looking forward to it. Our experience there was not great. Our server was nice but I think she was the only one out on the floor and the dining room was full. So service was really slow. Then, right before our food was finally about to come out, we were informed that they were out of baked potatoes so we had to pick another side dish. We picked cheese grits and fries as there wasn't much else to choose from. Cheese grits were good, fries are your regular run of the mill krinkle fries, nothing special. I had the "Fat Hatties" special which I chose fried grouper and shrimp. It came with two fried shrimp (yes 2) and two small chunks of fish, both were tasty but such a small portion. The rest of the plate was full of mediocre fries and dense hushpuppies. It was the saddest plate of seafood, and this platter was $20. Felt very ripped off, considering we drove 35 minutes from Miramar to come here. I did have a piece of Key Lime pie and that was tasty, not sure if it was homemade or not. We had much better seafood meals at Dewey Destins and Bayou Bills. read more

We heard Nicks was not great, but a good seafood restaurant, so we took the chance. When we walked in, they did not appear to be busy at all. The overall appearance is that it was not that clean, guess we should have turned around and walk at that point. The seats had holes in them and were old. The Bar was dirty and sticky and the whole placed smelled. It is very small and cramped restaurant. There are deer heads on all the walls, at the bar is a big hog head. We're not expecting that since it is a Seafood place, and the last thing we wanted to do was look at dead animal heads in a seafood restaurant. The kids were grossed out, so NOT kid friendly. The blond/white-haired middle-aged woman who works the bar has NO customer service skills. We had to ask for everything and she acted like we were always bothering her. The food is well OVERPRICED, everything is fried and salty for what you get. It took us 2 hours to get food and eat. The grouper was not grouper at all, when we said something to the bar tender, she said they have the right to substitute the fish. "the right"? If we had known that up front we would not have paid extra for "Grouper". When we told the bartender, the food was salty she said we do that, so you tourists buy more drinks. Appeared the staff wanted just to talk with their friends and not wait on the paying customers. So, we won't be back and if you are a tourist you might want to rethink Nicks Seafood. read more

A local favorite. Good seafood and bar. Very rustic but friendly.

I will ride all the way from Destin to eat here! If you like old fashioned seafood, here it is! Fried oysters are great! Fresh and good! Warm and friendly service, even when they are shorthanded! Steaks are good too! So reasonable! One of my favorites!! read more

Great "local" place. Right on the bay so the view is fantastic. Had the fish sandwich with fries. Hot and Fresh. If you want good and plenty of food this is the spot. I will go back read more