My dining experience felt lacking. The food was just OK and seemed a bit overpriced. The staff was OK. It was kind of crowded and loud.

Great atmosphere. A little bit of the beach. Food was very good as well. Definitely will be back.

Prompt service even after an impromptu change of tables (a family with small LOUD children sat next to us in the bar area and my parents are profoundly deaf ;-) Do not miss the blackened fish tacos! My daughter loved her crab cakes and my parents likewise loved the peel & eat shrimp. The key lime pie was divine... read more

The food is the winner here. The rest could use a little work. Overall, would definitely come back to this kitschy, island-feel joint. The shrimp po boy was really good. Perfectly fried shrimp, crispy and tasty, fresh bread and a nice chipotle sauce. My only complaint was the bread was just a bit too thick for the size of the shrimp. I would have liked a larger shrimp to bread ratio, but it was still a nice sandwich. The battered fries were crispy on the outside and creamy on the inside. Yum! I tasted the fried shrimp basket as well. Again, perfectly fried, fairly big shrimp. Really good. The only puzzling thing was the Caesar salad. The dressing tasted like Dijon mustard. It was good, but it was definitely not anything near tasting like Caesar dressing. Maybe they gave us the wrong one? They definitely have their fry game on. Breading is nice and not too think. Nothing is falling off, nothing is drenched in oil. Just crispy, fried goodness. read more

Best seafood in the city. Try the Island Tacos with blackened Mahi. Amazing flavors! Worth every penny!

The restaurant has two different restaurants in the building. The lower Pelican reef has more options for seafood. The Reef top upstairs has a limited menu but great atmosphere! There was a acoustic musician playing and a excellent vibe in the restaurant. The server was great, fast, and courteous. I really enjoyed my dish. The Cuban was delicious! The bruschetta with shrimp was a great way to start our meal! The shrimp risotto had great flavor! They have drink specials and a nice selection of craft beer with mix drinks as well. I recommend checking this place out! read more

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The absolute best fried seafood I've ever had. The biggest problem I face when coming here is deciding what to order. I'm working my way through the menu and haven't found anything I don't really care for. The lobster fritters, fried clam strips, fried shrimp, calamari, New England clam chowder, crab legs; all amazing! I'm a huge fan of the fries. I can't really put my finger on what makes them so amazing, but they are perfectly crispy on the outside and fluffy on the inside. I'm always too full for dessert, so I can't speak as to what is good. The downside is that they aren't open on Sundays. I would really love to sit in the bar area, watch football, and gorge myself on fried food. read more

Pelican's Reef - Pina Colada - Seafood Near Me - Cincinnati, Ohio

It's NOT the SAME under the new ownership. Not at all! We live in the Anderson area and have frequented this restaurant for over 20 years. We loved it! My husband & I have been there twice since the new ownership and it was awful! My clam chowder was cold...not luke warm but cold! His Beer battered Cod was way over cooked..dry and he could not eat it all. My fish sandwich was also over cooked and not on the rye bread I asked for. We tried again a few weeks later. Sat at the bar at lunch. The bartender was occupied with stocking the coolers and not her patrons. Again, overcooked fish and yet it was cold. We waited a long time, so it had been sitting back there a while. We would have had a cocktail, but bartender was preoccupied. The big concern came when we watched a server rush into his job, throw his coat aside and grabbed two large salads to deliver. He stuck both thumbs down into the salads and he most definitely did not wash his hands upon arrival. This WAS a treasure to our area but now it's like so many other places where there is no supervision, so the employees gather and share pics on their phones instead of working their customers. Prior owners were always there and they ran a tight ship. This ship will probably go under in a year or so, once everyone realizes it's nothing like it was, for so many years. New owners should get invested, personally, and teach staff how to cook fish properly. read more

Overall, this is an amazing mom n pop place. You won't find lobster bisque this good unless you go to the east coast. Their ranch is homemade and seriously delicious - very nice side salad too. They offer an assortment of fresh fish that comes fried or baked. Tarter sauce is on the sweeter side but very good. Highly recommend the coconut shrimp, but the dipping sauce isn't my personal fav - but they don't need it! Their assortment of desserts is also a highlight - if you're too full, order a slice to go... you won't regret it. Sometimes the service, timing of the food, or temperature of the restaurant can leave something to be desired. But the quality of the food and friendliness of the servers is always 5 stars! read more

Wow we were so happy to have a place to go. The grouper was excellent! the walleye was a little iodiney it was strange we are From northwest Ohio where this is normally caught. We will definitely get for the grouper again. The lobster chowder was great! We will return. read more

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Completely awesome, I don't come here enough because I'm always getting crazy with a couple dozen of the blue point oysters that are fresh as hell and some mahi-mahi. This time the sandwich in the picture was heaven!!!! Good draft beers too. read more

Pelican's Reef - This is the Lizard King, it's like a shrimp pi-boy on steroids. - Seafood Near Me - Cincinnati, Ohio

I almost hesitate to write a review, because if I tell everyone how great it is, I'll never be able to get a table there again. It's in a strip mall. The decor is beach-cheesy. In a totally charming and fun way. And the seafood is drop-dead so good amazing. It's so fresh. It's so well-prepared. It's creative, it's fresh, there are lots of awesome sides. The service is good. It's busy, but they're working hard and taking care of you. The waits can be long, they run out of stuff, etc. But it's one of the very best seafood restaurants in Cincinnati, and that's saying something. Don't miss it. read more

- Great atmosphere and food - The warm bacon salad with scallops is outstanding. read more

Pelican's Reef - Warm bacon vinaigrette salad with scallops. - Seafood Near Me - Cincinnati, Ohio

We always prefer to eat non-chain and Pelican's Reef is one of our go-to spots located conveniently close to home. The wide-ranging menu includes a great variety of seafood dishes served as salads, wraps and sandwiches available in baskets, with pasta, as fillets, etc., as well as good non-seafood dishes (my husband says the burgers are excellent). I've always enjoyed my meals at Pelican's Reef. The staff is super. There's usually a wait and they don't take reservations so plan accordingly. read more

When we moved to Cincinnati from the Gulf Coast a few years back, we were very much aware that we were leaving behind some great seafood. We didn't realize the degree of the deprivation, though, because, as the old saying goes, you don't miss your water until the well runs dry. Or almost dry. Pelican's Reef is among the very few decent restaurant options in Anderson Township, and it's one of the very few reasonably-priced seafood options in the whole Cincinnati area. It has a wide-ranging menu of fried and grilled fish, stews/gumbos, and shellfish, and the kitchen does a solid job with most of it. Grilled/blackened fish has been cooked properly, which isn't as common as it ought to be. The seafood stew, loaded with mussels, scallops, and shimp, was well-balanced and satifsying. Side salads aren't too shabby, given that they are often an afterthought in places like this. The broiled grouper wasn't too successful, though: two grouper filets with rather bland wild-rice-and-crab stuffing; the filet on top was overcooked and rather dried-out. But overall, Pelican's Reef's batting average is respectable. The beer and wine list isn't anything like broad-ranging or trendy but it's better than you'd expect from a place on the Beechmont drag. When you walk into the restaurant, it's easy to forget you're in Southwest Ohio. The low-ceilinged rooms have the feel of a genuine dockside seafood joint. Pelican's Reef's owners have done a tasteful job with a rather typical nautical theme, and the atmosphere is relaxed and conviviial the way a casual seafood place should be. The only weird thing about the atmosphere is the absence of music, which this place seems to call for. Pelican's Reef isn't what I'd call great but it's easily a net-plus for this side of town. read more

Food was very good. I went here for the first time last Friday and I've been thinking about the food ever since! The salad was great and the tacos were amazing. My only thing I would of liked to be different is that they warm the tortillas first but still the food was great! read more

Pelican's Reef - Delicious fish tacos! Yum! These were delicious. The only thing I wish is that they would warm the tortilla. - Seafood Near Me - Cincinnati, Ohio

This has always been a place the Abas family loves to go too. Has never ever disappointed us. One of the best places to go for awesome food, hot, fresh, wonderful service, friendly smiles, knowledgeable of the menu, drinks, any specials you name it they know. Patty is one great gal! Keep up the great work everyone. Thank you for a family, friendly place to go! read more

The reed seems like a no frill seafood staple of the Anderson.Camp Washington area. Families, couples, and singles old and young all traverse through the doors into the reef's kitschy decor. The service is always attentive and you see a lot of tables who seem to be regulars. The portions are large and menu extensive. They have about a dozen drafts beers and more in bottles. There is even an upstairs. Though you have lots of fried varieties there are also grilled options. They have everything from oysters on the half shell to fried clam strips, burgers, and grouper. Everything here is pretty good except for the "dirty rice", which is more of a tomato rice pilaf, no liver in sight. Their Caesar salad has a great sweet dressing and comes with a large portion of fish if you get the grouper Caesar salad. If you are on the east side and want seafood definitely come here. read more

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I was not expecting what I got. A very small hidden gem in the Mt. Washington area. From the food to the service to the atmosphere you can't get it anywhere else. Allie was absolutely amazing. Did I mention that they know how to make margaritas. I got the stuffed Grouper upon recommendation from Allie and it d is not disappoint. The food was hot savory and was served with a smile. Thank you Allie and Pelicans Reef. read more

One of my favorite places to visit in town. Food never disappointing! Started with calamari appetizer and sea scallops for meal. Only recommendation I would give is ask for detail on what seasonings are on the scallops. It didn't specify Cajun. But food is always tasty drinks are good and great atmosphere! read more

Pelican's Reef - Calamari appetizer - Seafood Near Me - Cincinnati, Ohio

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This place has the best Caesar salad EVER! I usually get the grilled shrimp in mine, it tastes amazing. The sweet potato fries were crispy and sweet. The coconut shrimp was crispy as well. Great food :) read more

Pelican's Reef - Sweet potato fries, coconut shrimp, shrimp Caesar salad - Seafood Near Me - Cincinnati, Ohio

We got carry out on a Saturday for lunchtime and was surprised that it was ready in less than 30 minutes. Their menu says the calamari is the best in Cincinnati and we agree. It was lightly breaded without any greasy flavor. The beer-battered perch was excellent as well. The homemade French Fries tasted fresh and again not greasy. The only criticism is that the shrimp was a bit skimpy in the tacos at two/taco instead of three. read more

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One of the best seafood restaurants in the cincinnati area. They make you feel like your in Florida with out the beach. I get the blacken Mahi-mahi. Sandwich, it's very good. The small potatoes as a side is excellent too. The food, service are all great never had an issue. Highly recommend this place for seafood. Plus the attire is Florida casual. read more

I will never visit this restaurant again. Its hard to believe that in 2023 racism still exist. We waited for over an hour for our food. Our waitress never returned to our table but serviced every other table around us. She checked on them multiple times but I had to ask for a refill on my husband's drink. We NEVER received our food and the manager on duty January 13, 2023 didn't even come to speak to us about the situation. How disrespectful??? read more

If you want decent seafood in Cincinnati this is your place. Has a very Florida feel to it. I had the stuffed grouper and was very happy.

We had a late lunch at Pelican's Reef today. We've eaten here before but it's been about about 5 years since our last visit. The upside to the late lunch time is that we didn't have to deal with lack of adequate parking that we've dealt with on other occasions. After ordering our drinks, we both ordered Fried Oyster baskets. I ordered the Dirty Rice and a Tossed Salad as my sides. My husband ordered Garlic Bread and a Tossed Salad. Our salads came out first. I wasn't expecting much from the salad since most times that salads are offered as a side they are very disappointing. Not this time! The salads were good and we were both pleased. The fried oysters, with our other side item, came out before we were done with our salads. The fried oysters were quite good! They were seasoned well and fried perfectly. The dirty rice was ok. It wasn't great but it wasn't bad tasting. I probably wouldn't order it again. My husband said the garlic bread was really good. It was a tasty meal and the service was good. read more

Pelican's Reef - Fried Oysters with Dirty Rice - Seafood Near Me - Cincinnati, Ohio

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I should first mention, I am allergic to shellfish, so many of the things that they are probably known for, I could not have anyway. Overall, not impressed. I think it is higher rated from others because Anderson has so few medium tier eating establishments. We had a table that was next to the bar that was over crowded. Service was lukewarm and too casual for the cost. Drinks were watered-down. I had the steak which tasted chalky and over cooked. It was almost med well when I ordered med rare. It took over 1.5 hours so not worth sending back. My son had fries and the grease seemed like it had not changed in over a month. Again, don't understand the hype. read more

We went there on a Wednesday evening around 7 and were really surprised that we had to wait for a table. It was all good when we noticed that there was seats at the bar where we could wait and this worked out to our advantage because with the decor we enjoyed looking around and reading all the different signs that they have hanging around (mostly beach themes). They look to have a full bar and I think they had 6-8 beers on tap so you should be able to find something you like between the taps and the bottles. They also had a nice wine list for my wife to choose from There are two sides to the restaurant the bar side and just a restaurant side and we were lucky enough to get the restaurant side, reason being that the bar side is louder and I have a hard time hearing when it is too loud. We started off with the calamari, and don't forget to ask for the sweet chili sauce this was awesome. I had the Jambalaya Po Boy, I am kind of missing NOLA right now and it was a great sandwich. Everyone else had different types of fish meals like the fish tacos and stuffed fish. Just keep in mind that you might have to go with a backup fish because my wife had go to her third choice on fish because they were out of the first two. She was happy with what she ended up with so it was all good. We finished around 8:30 are were surprised to see that there was only one other table of people on our side of the place but the other side was still full. My only suggestion to the management is that employees should never sit out in the restaurant area socializing with their friends, it was a small thing but I think the management did notice and for some reason did not want to say anything to the employee. Great place and when I am back on that side of town we will be heading back in for a bite. read more

We stopped in there on a Wednesday night and were seated right away. I went with my husband and my parents and we found it funny that we were the youngest people in there by 20+ years. Anyhow, the decor was really beachy. I could see this place being on a boardwalk someplace coastal. There was a good amount of seating and all of the staff was so friendly! The clam chowder was awesome! My mom and I both got it and agreed that it was probably one of our favorites we've ever had. As for entrees, I had the build your own combo basket with shrimp and crab cakes. Everyone had raved about how amazing the crab cakes were so I had to try them. I wasn't super impressed. I thought there was a lot of filler compared to some of the other ones I've tried. The shrimp was good, but it's pretty hard to mess up fried shrimp. Everyone else said they really enjoyed what they ordered. My husband had the grilled salmon, my dad had the fried halibut and my mom had Mahi tacos. Overall I can see us returning here again. :) read more

Had lunch there today. Cute decor, excellent service and delicious food. Everything was great (lobster bisque, fries, hand breaded cod, chicken sandwich, even the salad) but I have to rave about the onion rings!! Hot, crispy, crunchy and delicious. It's so hard to find really good onion rings so now I know where to go. read more

We've been regulars for many years, and were there again last night - and disappointed to discover they seem to have changed the recipe for my favorite, the coconut shrimp. It used to be butterflied and fried in a light tempura-like batter - very crisp, very coconutty. Last night, it was whole shrimp in a thick batter that frankly tasted like it had been previously frozen and then re-warmed. What happened? I heard the restaurant is under new management. If so - BRING BACK THE OLD COCONUT SHRIMP RECIPE!!!! read more

One of my favorite restaurants in the area! The staff is great and I always enjoy my food. I don't like to get seafood when I'm far from the coast, but this establishment always has the best seafood and prices! read more

This is not red lobster. The apps were delicious and the dinner was a great portion. The lobster bisque was my favorite and would get it again next time. The staff was super friendly and polite. This will definitely be my go to seafood place to eat with my family read more

Always excellent food and service. Literally feel like your beachside because the seafood is so fresh and delicious.

We've been fans for years but the last two visits were disappointing. Last night the a tomato basil lobster bisque really pulled my rating today up! Past that, the "bang bang shrimp" was okay but the presentation made it and the fried pickles unappetizing. There were no hush puppies in the house. It just wasn't worth the price. Will make the trip to Bonefish instead. Sad; we really loved PR. read more

Seafood inland? Yes, the best fried cod around these parts. This restaurant has a cramped parking lot at the front of the restaurant but plenty in the back. There isn't a lot of room in their lobby to stand around so we opted for outside. I was wowed by the food but the wait time and staff were not the friendless on this Saturday evening. We waited 30 minutes to sit down and the waitress took even longer to even say hello. When we did get greeted we were able to put the drink and food order right away. I ordered the fried cod dinner and chose waffle fries and a salad to round out the meal. I am telling you the cod was unbelievable. It was perfectly cooked. Not over fried and the batter was crispy to the bite but the fish was soft and flaky. The waffle fries were good and I had plenty of them, even a few to share. I couldn't share my fish though. It was that good. Can't wait to come back and have some! read more

Pelican's Reef - House salad with ranch - Seafood Near Me - Cincinnati, Ohio

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This is our second visit since the new ownership took over. As bad as the first visit was, the second left a lot to be desired. The Calamari was still on point but at what seemed to be a half portion. The po-boy however was served on what could only be described as a soft hotdog bun. For $18 I expected much more than what we received. The reef has gone cheap under the new ownership. I would always send people here when asked where to get good seafood. The reef now just just seems like run of the mill overpriced bar food. read more

Front desk lady was rood and combative. We have eaten there many times and will never go back after being treated so rudely

I love the stuffed grouper here! They make the best homemade ranch to go with salad. Got the twice baked potato and it really didn't have much flavor. I expected chives or more butter in the potato. The lobster fritters were OK. There was very little lobster in them. The service is always excellent when I go! I like this place because their seafood is fresh and the service never lets me down. read more

Cajun Grilled Grooper was excellent. Sweet Potato fries were the best I have ever had. Very good My wife had the coconut shrimp which was also very good. Cole slaw was unique and very tasty. Neat environment- kind of feel like you are in Key West or island environment. Great service. Can't wait to go back. read more