We love RipTide! The food is delicious - try the fried calamari, it's one of my favorites! We love their seafood dishes as well as their burgers. Their mahi mahi wrap is yummy especially with their buffalo sauce instead of the ranch it comes with. We had one of our fundraising events on their enclosed patio in late December & it was warm with one of the greatest views in town that a restaurant can boast. We love Patty the owner/manager as well all of the staff! Try RipTide, you won't be disappointed! read more

RipTide Restaurant & Bar - Patio overlooking ocean - Seafood Near Me - West Haven, Connecticut

Fist time since the new owners took over. Nicely remodeled. Pretty much the same menu. Portions were large and service was fast. I would recommend it. read more

I was super excited to try this place. It has so much potential. My lobster grilled cheese was delicious. My fiancé got the NY Strip, cooked beautifully. However the service was not the experience we were hoping for. I truly believe in time quirks will be worked out. Looking forward to trying again to give this place a 5 star! read more

RipTide Restaurant & Bar - Lobster grilled cheese - Seafood Near Me - West Haven, Connecticut

I gave a tepid review early on (really missed Oyster River Tavern), so I need to correct it now. I was concerned that the frying wasn't top notch, but RipTide has resolved all issues. And, best of all, the restaurant now offers a Maine-style lobster roll (cold lobster, hot buttered roll). Not to diss Connecticut-style, but seriously, folks. Try it, but don't take my table! read more

1st time here and the food, atmosphere and the tranquility of watching the water across the street was superior... We came here for my boyfriends birthday lunch, he had steamers which he stated were done to perfection his entree was linguine ala vodka with blackened shrimp again done to perfection... I had the lobster bisque, if I could have jumped into the pot or had a straw the flavor was incredible and huge pieces of lobster in it, my entree was just chicken tender and fries which the tenders were cutlets and good flavor, moist and crispy .... Riptides did not disappoint either of us .... I wish them much success ! Spoken from the words of a true WESTIE read more

My two friends and I had a very good experience at RipTide. While I agree the main dining room is loud and there's only one bathroom stall per gender...the food and cocktails we had were very good and we'll definitely go back but will try to sit outside. It was just too hot that night. Our waitress was attentive and checked on in us frequently. Here's what we had and would order again: - Thai calamari - Thai wings - Tuna steak - Broiled scallops - Pomegranate margaritas read more

What an awesome spot!!! Beautiful renovation, great staff and delicious food. Such a fantastic addition to the area.

Went here Saturday June 12. It was my BD and we wanted to try a new place to eat. First off my french martini was fantastic, I had more than one. Anyway we had the raw clams ,oysters and shrimp, Clams were good, shrimp were delicious oysters not so good. Great service great atmosphere. Here's the bad part. I had the shrimp casserole with their-{ homade crab stuffing} what a joke . their stuffing was soggy and get this . the so called crab was imitation. What seafood restauraunt uses FAKE crabmeat especially for what they charged$$$$$$$$ The whole meal was maybe adoquit at best. If you go, go for the drinks and atmosophere. Now if you want excellent seafood or steaks go to nataz in North branford. Pricey but you will go home full and satisfied Or BIagettis in west haven excellence at its best Sincerely I'm a food critic and know what good food is ,sorry riptide read more

Growing up in West Haven I was excited to come into this restaurant when I was visiting my parents. Extremely disappointed to see the male manager walking around with out a mask. It made me uncomfortable and it's unfortunate to see during these times. Place looks beautiful and I was very excited about that but it seems poorly run. Might give it a shot next time, but have always had better and friendly results at the place next door. read more

Had the clam chowder and it was delicious!!! The potatoes were tiny and the dill was a nice touch.

I would give it 5 stars, but it's a very noisy restaurant. The shrimp tacos were amazingly delicious and the service was wonderful. Will go back and hopefully get a table outside. read more

Female bartender was super friendly and hospitable. They didn't offer a seasonal drink i wanted but she said she would try to add it for next time and surprised me with something similar after she found one of the ingredients I was looking for. read more

Last week we went to the underwhelming and next door Dive Restaurant, which lived up to its name. DIVE. Beyond sad. Riptide on the other hand was a joy. Much better view overlooking the water. The traffic in front was not too offensive. We had high top seats in front, which if we did not have that location we would not have stayed. Both of us had a basic salad with chicken. Salad $11, the chicken $6. A bit pricey, but it was by the water, and there was a gentle breeze on this sunny day. Took a while to get the food, which is kinda surprising since there was almost nobody there. but who cares when you're looking out at the water. Food is decent for three stars, location is four stars. Decent waitress. She gets five stars. read more

A seafood shack across from the beach in West Haven, CT. Good food in ample portions. My husband and I shared one very generous shrimp casserole and still had some leftover. We didn't touch our baked potato and couldn't finish the carrots accompanying the dish. The shrimp tasted very fresh and there were lots of them mixed with crab stuffing and celery. Very reasonably priced. Service was good and friendly staff made these weary travelers feel welcome. read more

Overall, not bad. The renovation is really nice. It is bright and airy. It feels like a place that is next to a beach. They have really taken advantage of the views of the Sound. The service was excellent. Very fast, friendly, and attentive. The food was OK, but we only had salads and a chicken sandwich. Hard to really judge, but a few people around me (one with a steak, another with fried shrimp) were raving. The real downfall, unfortunately, was the noise level. You just can't hear the person across the table from you. To the point where it was annoying. The ceilings are tall, and the 2 rooms open up to each other. I just don't recall the former restaurant having this issue. We had wished that we had gotten one of the nice outdoor tables because of the noise levels inside. If they can figure out how to absorb some of the sound and make it so you can have a conversation, this place is going to do great! read more

The Riptide restaurant! What can I say about it? Just that it is incredibly awesome! I must say that is one of best restaurants that I have been to in a long while! All of the food that my lovely bride and I have ordered there has been nothing short of excellent! The food comes out very quickly and the wait staff is super attentive! I am very impressed with this restaurant. For the new restaurant that it is, they have their stuff together and it shows! Their Raw Bar Tuesday is awesome. My wife loves the clams there and she is very picky, so you know if she loves them, they have to be good! A shout out to Alison and Tammy, the ladies who waited on us the times we were there........they are awesome! I'm pretty sure we will be permanent fixtures at the Riptide from now on! read more

I went when this place first opened. The outside patio is nice. I waited legit about 20 minutes for our drink order to finally come. We ordered some apps and the cheese on the nachos wasn't even melted. I would go back to try later on after they have been open for awhile. But the first impression wasn't good. Hopefully it gets better read more

Looked on Yelp for restaurants in West Haven area & decided to give Rip Tide a try glad we did! The lobster grilled cheese was the BEST!!! Will def be back read more

What a JOKE!!! Waste of $90 bucks!!! We watched the tide come in as other customers received their food.... we had a grilled cheese and wings!!! Rocket science!!! Waited Well over an hour and 1/2!!! Food was just ok.... 5.8 on the food scale!! Service was .03... It's only a matter of time before this place will be long gone!!! Don't waste your $$$ and go to Dive Bar!!! read more

45 minute wait for a table so went to sit at the bar, there are 3 open tables in the bar area but you apparently can only drink at them-not order food but if you sit at the actual bar you can order food- please explain that logic. Finally got a table and ordered immediately as I was starving at This point, wine and clams came out fast (they were out of oysters) but to get a glass of water took a good 20 minutes. Ordered the lobster special -took 30 minutes, little interaction or update from our waitress, if they are going to revamp the place they need to make the service better. Will say the stuffing and shrimp in the lobster were very good but the lobster itself was a little tough and dry. Need to work out kinks here before I return. read more

Great service but the food leaves a lot to be desired. I had the fish n' chips and fish tacos. Both tasted like saliva. As bland as it gets. The diced cabbage actually overpowered the fish in the tacos. read more

They've got three star food, but the staff were great and the views are lovely across the beach, prices are low for lots of food, and the alternatives nearby don't look good. That's a lot of caveats. The crabcakes were tasty and huge, the fried fish was bland with heavy batter, the salad was ok nothing special. read more

Awesome raw bar. Bartenders are very attentive and pleasant. My wife had the fish tacos and loved it. The lobster roll is perfect. I highly recommend this little gem. read more

Don't go here. A few months ago I ordered a Greek Goddess Salad with Chicken to go and was told the wait time would be around 20 mins. When I got there after 20 mins I was told my salad was almost ready. Yeah right- 20 mins turned into 55 mins. After I finally got my food, I drove all the way home (really wasn't that inconvenient only a 5-6 mins drive) I opened up the salad to only find I was given a small house salad with a few dried out pieces of chicken and no dressing instead of the one I ordered. I drove back to get the correct salad to only receive the wrong salad again. Luckily I opened the take out container in the car before I drove all the way home and went in for a third time in hopes of getting the correct salad. Finally, they made me the correct one but wouldn't give me new chicken for my salad and made me use the chicken from the original wrong salad (which was extremely cold). The staff was pretty nice and embarrassed about the whole thing but I found it strange how they didn't refund me for the situation or at least throw in a free appetizer or something (or give me fresh chicken). Honestly, don't go here just go to Dive Bar which is 1,000 times better. read more

Very nicely remodeled, beautiful beach and ocean view scenary. They have so many dishes to choose from. The good is great I personal love ordering their burger with evwrything on it. Best tasting burger I ever tasted. My girlfriend and myself also come here for their delicious nachos. Lovely place to relax, eat and drink. read more

Had an amazing lobster roll and onion rings at RipTide! Sat at the bar, had great service. Others in my group had appetizers (wings, buffalo dip and fries) that were also great. Highly recommend! read more

RipTide Restaurant & Bar - Lobster roll and onion rings - Seafood Near Me - West Haven, Connecticut

Outstanding service. Our server Christy did an amazing job handling our large party 13. Food was absolutely amazing and atmosphere was just as great. Would highly recommend the hot lobster roll! read more

Talk about a great comeback! Good is delicious the drinks are perfect and the service is on point every time. Love coming here with friends or family! read more

First time here since the new owners and total remodel. Very nicely done, good service and fair prices. Best of all the seafood was great. Mostly just had the fried stuff but it was well prepared and there was plenty of it. read more

Best Hot lobster roll I've ever had!!!! Place looks great! Clean and the place looks great!!!

Tried to give them a second chance after being underwhelmed the first time. Sat down for 13 minutes without ever being acknowledged. Table that sat down after us was waited on and we still weren't talked to. There was at least 5 waitress standing around all of who walked past us and never said a word. Seemed like they were more worried about sitting the two bigger parties outside. Disappointed as I wanted to try the food again. read more

Went for lunch today, got the best table on the porch outside. My husband got the ahi tuna sandwich, I got the lobster roll. Both were excellent, and Tammy was delightful. We'll definitely be back! read more

We went to riptide tonight this is our third visit and I'm sorry to say it was not very good. I went there especially for fish tacos they had absolutely no flavor. I literally had to take the mayonnaise that my husband had for his burger and put it on the fish to have any flavor. My husband said his burger was fair at best, it was dry and flavorless. His french fries were good mine were overcooked and loaded with grease. Our server was excellent very friendly and efficient I had to ask her if the water was city water she verified it was tapwater but unfortunately at this time the regional water authority is telling everyone not to drink the tapwater that is contaminated and they're trying to rectify it with overload of chlorine. So it surprised me that it would be serving it she exchanged it for an ice tea no questions asked. read more

WOW. Just went to dinner here tonight with a group of 7 people. Not only has this place been remodeled, but the food is fantastic. Our waitress, Madison, was great and the other servers were tremendous. Everyone was attentive to our needs. Let's talk food......... OMG you cant beat it the Seafood Fra Diavolo was superb, and everone got some other sort of seafood dish which were all great and prepared perfect. If you don't try this place then it is definitely your loss. West Haven now has a great business to draw people to this shoreline community. We look forward to returning. read more

RipTide Restaurant & Bar - Seafood Fra Diavolo - Seafood Near Me - West Haven, Connecticut

The place is very loud. They sat us in the corner where the fly killing light is and there were at least half a dozen flies around us at all times. The food and service was super slow, 2 hours from when we sat down to the time we got the check. We had an appetizer that was out quick, the food took another 45 minutes and it took another half hour after our plates were cleared for the waitress to come and bring the check, even though we wanted dessert. We asked for 2 pieces of cake. We waited for 15 or so for her to bring out one then another 20 for the other. The entire staff seemed overwhelmed and the service looked the same for the people around us and we can hear the other wait staff also apologizing for the slow service. The dinner was ok and the dessert was anything but impressive. At $37 a person, I get better service and food at a diner for half that. Probably won't be back. It seems like the restaurant is geared more toward a bar crowd and probably shouldn't be trying the restaurant route. read more

Although our server tried her best the experience had tonight was truly disappointing. It took over an hour for us to get our meals. When the food came it was not even what was ordered and at that point we were so hungry we didn't even care to send it back. If the staff cannot handle large parties while also having normal sized tables then they should not do so. Will not be returning any time soon. read more

Good food. Terrible service. Took more than an hour to get food. Will not be back for a LONG time.

Busy evening but incredible service and food. Our apps were delicious (boneless chicken Buffalo tenders). Dinner was blackened ahi tuna with sides - perfectly prepared as per our request! Staff was excellent & owner was extremely attentive as well! Can't wait to go back. read more

Ordered take out, salad was missing ingredients, food was cold, onion ring appetizer was very small. Very disappointing experience.

From seating to full service .. completely lack luster and rude.. never acknowledged while waiting for a table .. not even a "be with you in a minute".. could be such a nice local spot but service is horrible read more