This is one of the most full-service marinas on the lake. The store is well stocked and we've had good experiences renting jet skis. Unfortunately, the restaurant is a bit of a letdown. I've been many times so this isn't a one- off experience. Staff is typically very young and untrained. If it's crazy busy I'm patient, but if there are only one or two other tables and the staff is just standing around talking and provide terrible service, it's frustrating. Recently stopped in and stood by the hostess stand for 10 mins without any acknowledgment. They weren't that busy, but the hostess was cleaning tables, so we didn't mind waiting. When she came over no greeting or anything. We asked for a table and she just handed us a buzzer without saying a word. If there's a wait, good grief please just communicate that. I asked how long the wait was as she was walking away and she says "45 mins"... crazy she expected us to wait without telling us how long it would be. I honestly think this place would do much better if it was self-service. The food is OK but the cod sandwich did have visible parasites last time I ordered it. read more

Great marina, fantastic atmosphere, and amazing shop. We stopped in on the recommendation of someone at our resort and we are so glad we did. The drinks were tasty, the service was very friendly (from the moment we were greeted and seated outside, to our server and inside the store itself). This is a super family friendly place, but do know there is LOTS of partying going on at the bar - it's a marina at Norris Lake, I'd expect nothing less. During the summer they do theme nights. You'll see everything from Halloween to a Polynesian luau. These guys don't mess around. The food is quite good too. We ordered the chicken quesadilla with everything (based on the recommendation of our "dock guy") and it was really tasty. It's very filling and packed with cheese (so if you are not a cheese person, might want to order it with light cheese). The onion rings are so good and served with a remoulade type dressing. One of us ordered the grouper bites. He didn't love them, but they weren't bad. Of course, we're on a lake, not the ocean, so it's to be expected. As for drinks, they have a good variety of beers and can make just about anything you'd like. I ordered a mai tai and it was strong and delicious. It was SO tempting to buy something in the gift shop. It's the best gift shop I've seen on the lake. So if you're looking for a fun souvenir, beach gear, a great hat, or even jewelry, stop in here. You won't be disappointed. They also have plenty of GREAT beverage options - alcoholic and otherwise. I was impressed with their selection. When we head back to Norris next year, we'll pop in for an early dinner again for sure. read more

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It is a cute marina has potential for the future such a pretty place but needs investing more money to make it worthwhile to come back. it is in the middle of nowhere there is absolutely no cell phone service near the marina and barely any at the hotel. I was told by staff and friends we made here that they use to have service and they cut it ( probably cheaper for them but not good if you're not telling people ahead there's going to be no service so they can prepare ). The room was basic but had everything we needed except it had bugs but it is in the wilderness so the daddy longleg and spiders I wasn't too fond of but dealt with without complaining but that may bother someone else . Unfortunate event we got locked out of our car yeah our fault dumb but we had no cellphone service so we had to use their phone way back at the dock and go back and forth to the motel to their dock which is a long walk up the hill in 90 degrees with a child to try to get a tow truck drive this was stressful. I'm severely anemic ( currently doing infusions ) so going up and down was harder for me. They didn't seem to care about our stress they weren't rude but they didn't go to help us like majority of companies would do to go back to the car. We asked to use a golf cart they said they had none but the manager we had been working with we saw later had a golf cart sitting right across the marina at his house and a car . He could've offered the help knowing what we were going through it would of only took 5 mins of his time to drive my husband to his car. We had a death in the family and they were able to accomodate our shorten trip which meant so much to us so that alone gave 3 stars. I totally think this is such a cute place but with no hospitals fire stations and cell phone usage anywhere near here and the store and activities shutting down at 8 pm was a bummer ! I even asked to put on the fire pit to have my daughter enjoy that and they said they don't allow it in the summer. It was an amenity listed. The games to play during the day were cute but definitely they could use some of their young staff that hangs around to maybe make some fun little family friendly events like maybe games story telling music and dance something ! to those who don't own a boat or plan to rent one there's really no point to coming here. Luckily we rented a boat and it made it enjoyable. When we got our keys locked out and because no cell phone service we missed a few good hours of boating and we asked for maybe a discount which would've been nice and manager said no. That was also disappointing after not helping us. I think all marinas should have a lock out kit period. It is super cheap and worth it . Guests generally are nice here and we met some really nice people. My daughter had a wonderful time for the most part and enjoyed all the ducks in the pond ! Regards to Restaurant Cute minimal clean - uses plastic plates and forks instead of real silverware which is not great for the environment and not good to eat hot food on plastic health wise . None of the staff knew what gluten free was ( granted they are probably 17-22years old ) but it took over an hour to get food which was very confusing to how not busy it was. I got glutened by their pizza the next day. For me my throat swells within an hour and lasts for a week so I know when I eat it if it has any gluten. Def make staff aware of what gluten is what has gluten and what can be made gluten free there should be several options since gluten allergy is very common in the world. read more

Shanghai Resort - Marina by hotel - Vacation Rentals Near Me - La Follette, Tennessee

Shanghai is one of my favorite marinas. They always have a great selection of merchandise. Love shopping there! It's a fun place to hang out, play games, and have a drink or food! read more

First time renting a boat and got briefed in less than 5 minutes, came back after using the boat for 7 hours to 1/2 tank, had issues with motor that I recorded and they refused to believe me. 2nd day I rented we had to be towed in because we ran out of gas and used it again another 7 hours. I was yelled at by an older white haired gentlemen because I was "arguing" with them about a late fee because it took them over an hour to tow us in when we were less than 1/2 mile from their dock. Definitely not the southern hospitality I was expecting especially after vacationing and renting boats there for our first time. Will definitely use another marina in the future, as there are plenty of other options. read more

Some bomb-amazing marina food. Our service was great. Ambiance on the water with floating docks where you eat was such a vibe. Highly recommend Dramamine if you get seasick . For apps, we got the nachos with pulled pork and blue cheese kettle chips. My fiancé dove into the nachos and I did the kettle chips so we didn't have the opportunity to take pictures of those but man they were incredible. Our meals were also amazing - highly recommend the very generous Cobb salad. That and the blue cheese kettle chips are a stinky cheese lover's best friend. We all enjoyed our food thoroughly. They also have slap-your-face-good cocktails. We went on Memorial Day weekend and it was super busy. I'm sure it's better on non-holiday times but just a heads up that the wait can be hefty! There is cornhole, beer stands, and firepits to entertain the wait on the docks though. We also rented a pontoon from them and it was incredible - such a nice comfy ride. The only thing to consider is that they don't come with anchors which can make water activities difficult, but they notified us of this at booking. read more

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This is not so much a review about the present, but a review for a few years past. I'm hoping things have improved, although some recent comments have me thinking I might be out of luck. Outward appearances back then were very hopeful as the resort looked outwardly very nice. Things took a turn for the worse when two drunken couples pulled up to the dock while we were observing from the porch of the hotel. Soon they joined us, becoming quite loud and annoying - very crude. Later as we were trying to sleep, one of the couples were right next door and we could literally hear everything as if we were in the same room as they were, including their sexual activities and loud arguments, which evolved to him threatening the woman's life. Clearly, the walls had no insulation from noise. There was no hotel night staff and no emergency contacts. Thinking she might be harmed, we tried calling 911. Mobile phone reception was practically impossible until standing in a particular spot outside our door. Due to the distance involved, it took 30 minutes or so for police to arrive, where the woman denied everything, and the police left. Returning to our room, it wasn't long before we heard the man threatening to harm us. Called the police again, and instead of the threatening man being evicted, we were advised we should leave for our own safety. Mind you this was at 2 AM in the morning and involved packing ourselves up, my maneuvering a jet ski without lights around the dark marina, trailering it, and leaving in the dark of night as if we had done something wrong. Later in the day contacted Shanghai Management which gave no apology and made it difficult for us to get a refund for our disaster of a stay. I want us to go back since I think the place had a lot of potential, but things would have to be a lot better. I'm hoping that we will hear that from some of you who have recently stayed, or the ugly truth if things have stayed the same. Buyer beware as the old saying goes. read more

I live on this lake and stop by this marina for food, drinks and gas several times each summer. Expect it to be busy. Expect to exercise your patience if it's busy. Terrific marina with great food. People complain about the owner but I just don't get where they are coming from. Perfectly respectable man. If you come into this establishment thinking you have weight as a customer. Think again. The volume that this place deals with makes you a nobody. So be respectful, don't just come in and sit down unless it's the at bar. Seems like some folks expect this establishment to bend over backwards for them. For example, I read a mornonic 1star review of someone who had never rented a boat before. They ran it out of gas and had to get it towed then blamed the marina when they got charged a late fee. Absolute Dumbass. ‍ Anyways, There's outdoor seating for the restaurant and lake morons will come in and think they can sit wherever because of the location of seats and tables at the dock. They've got great ice cream in the gift shop. They've got quality rooming. The rentals are clean looking. When you dock your own boat they've got prompt dock hands. ( don't forget to tip these guys) they will get you landed/launched and take good care of your boat. Check this place out. Most of the bad reviews are literal white trash snobs. Sorry not sorry. Check out my other reviews. I'm not in anyway affiliated with this marina or its staff. But I'm also going to be real with you. read more

Good food, restaurant, marina. Great drinks. Especially frozen drinks like pina coladas. Had a salad one day and coconut shrimp. Another day ordered the pesto chicken sandwich which was good and the grouper. Over all the food was good. Service and seating could be a bit better. But overall happy with the food and drinks. read more

Could not recommend a place less. Rented boats from them and they didn't tell us they removed the anchors from the boats. So we got out on the water and had no options to relax so our captains had to literally keep us from beaching them every 5 minutes. Went in the next day to talk to them about why they weren't included (or why they felt to keep it from us) and they said we had to buy anchors and ropes for $200+ and that's the norm that boats never include anchors (not true have rented a boat dozens of times and there was always an anchor) To cap all this off and the $2k in boat rental now adding on another $200 they were nasty to us the whole time. Like it's our fault for not bringing our own anchor to a boat rental? They said most non boat owners "bring their own anchor". Lol no, people that don't own a boat don't have spare anchors they carry on them. The crappy managers name was Lucas I believe but his employees were just as rude read more

Review is based on the food service for lunch. Came here late September while on the lake. During off season (post Labor Day) hours are limited. Pizza only available for lunch during the week but full menu other days towards the weekend. Service was attentive and friendly and food was decent and cheap. Nachos could've been more substantial. Side salad was good. Pizza was one of the better menu items. Outdoor Patio was sweet. No one wearing masks inside. read more

Shanghai Resort - Pizza - Vacation Rentals Near Me - La Follette, Tennessee

We had a boat break down over Memorial Day weekend and Shanghai saved the day! We needed a part and they had it ready for us when we showed up. It saved the weekend for us even when they were extremely busy with the holiday crowd. -Al M. read more

Wish I could give a negative star! We rented jet skis from them and were treated very badly. They said someone in our party hit the dock while getting gas and caused a dent. I don't understand why they didn't try to help her instead letting it get damaged and making us pay a outrageous fee for a little scratch. Supposedly their crew were right near when they saw her do it and didn't even try to help her to not scratch it. When we returned it, they accused a different member of our party for damaging it while getting gas even tho she wasn't present during the incident. They were very disrespectful when speaking to us and we will never be coming back. read more

I have owned a house in Shanghai marina for the last 3 years and will say that it is the nicest marina on the lake. Lucas Scholl the operations manager does a great job maintaining the property and keeping things moving. The food is great, the drinks are even better and the atmosphere is very family friendly. Thank You Shanghai read more

This place had crappy food and were out of just about everything after we waited an hour to get food. I would not recommend this place to anyone. read more

Will not be back and do not recommend anyone going to this place. They have horrible service and the owner is very disrespectful. The owner is a profiling prick that disrespected my family while we we there and treated us horribly. This is not the first time we came here to eat, we've been there several times and have had poor service. We were told we couldn't sit in chairs that no one was sitting in as we have been standing for hours waiting on a table by the owner and we got a little upset with him for being rude and them were told to leave. Very unprofessional and I hope this establishment can work on their manors and the ability to treat everyone with the same respect. There are great Marina's on Norris lake and we will be bypassing that one from now on. read more

We are new to the area and wanted to explore around Norris Lake. We stopped for lunch at Shanghai Marina. It was Saturday afternoon and a beautiful day so it was packed. They seated us on outside patio pretty quickly. Kaitlyn waited on us and was very personable and efficient. I had the blackened grouper sandwich and my husband had a burger and onion rings. Everything was excellent. read more

We enjoy visiting this marina during our Norris trips. We like the food and our kids enjoy the store. This time we had plans to stay at the motel but we had an issue with our travel plans. The Shanghai staff was very accommodating and worked with us to make some modifications to our travel plans. We appreciate them and will definitely be back! read more

Rooms smelled like raw sewer and hint of cat pee. Big hint! We came here to rent a houseboat nobody is staying at the hotel. People who leave five stars are usually somebody that is a friend or family of owners read more

Do not recommend the owner is the worst person you could imagine..After standing for hours waiting for our food my family decided to sit in some chairs that were empty the hole time we was there. The owner instantly told us we were not welcomed so as we go to walk off a nice man that's in the army spoke up and said those chairs are open seating while waiting some words were exchanged between them the owner calling him white trash and some other names bc of his tattoos. Which did offend us as he was kicking this man out we asked why him the Owner what the big deal was then he started calling us names my 15year old son told him not to speak to his mom that way and the owner told my child he was thug and couldn't wait to read about him being shot in the news paper..As a mom I lost it and started crying and instead of an apology he got the cops to kick us out without even giving us our money back for the food we was waiting on .. do not take ur family there especially if anyone has tattoos. read more

One of the nicest marinas on Norris Lake! Great experience with everyone at Shanghai Resort! They are also the only boat dealer in the area offering Tige boats! read more

Shanghai Resort - Aerial view of Shanghai Resort and Marina on Norris Lake! - Vacation Rentals Near Me - La Follette, Tennessee

Make sure to ask for Lucas. Was an absolute great dude to work with. Was very helpful for knowing the lake very well for a first time goer. Would highly recommend using this marina for any boat rentals. Also has a very cool restaurant for hanging out after coming off the water. read more

Rented a pontoon boat here for two days. Very friendly service. Boat was lots of fun and no problems. Clean and well organized.

The employees at this marina are the friendliest people you will ever meet! Lucas Scholl is without a doubt the best general manager Dylan could ask for! Jake and Sadie are top notch servers as well!! read more

Just spend the weekend at Shanghai will be back for years to come. Great service and great food at castaways. Staff was very polite and helpful. The ribs and burgers are on my group of 8 next year as well. Stayed right on site in the lodge for the price will do that again next year. The party pontoon was a great experience, if your looking for a great long weekend I would recommend this for anyone in the tri state area read more

We spent Memorial Day Weekend here. Too many bugs in the room. When we killed them, the staff wouldn't even clean them up! There is no phone service, cell or landline-not even a room phone to connect to hotel staff. There are supposed to be "quiet hours", but there is nobody to enforce them. People grill on the sidewalk outside of the rooms, sending smoke into other guests rooms. Too much trouble for way overpriced rooms. Norris lake is pretty nice so seek other accomodations. read more

We have been vacationing at Norris Lake for many years and have always used Shanghai as our marina of choice. The staff is friendly, and the marina store is clean and well stocked. We rented a ski boat just this past week and I am happy to report is was in excellent condition. After many bad boat rental experiences, this was a welcome relief. A personal thank you to the manager, Lucas, who saved our vacation. We had rented a second boat for the vacation from a different vendor, which ended up being a disaster. When Lucas learned of this he offered to rent us his personal boat for the week. A big thank you to everyone at Shaghai! You guys are awesome! read more

I have never experience such poor service as I did at this marina restaurant. The manager of this place was embarrassingly rude and aggressive towards his staff, the patrons, and even his own dog (which he keeps at the restaurant). My friends and I come to Norris every single year and will NEVER return to this marina. You're better off going a little further down the lake to the other marina/bar where the employees are welcoming and decent human beings. read more

We have been coming to Norris Lake the past few years and always rent our boats from Shanghai. Lucas always has our boat ready to go and the staff goes above and beyond to ensure your visit is the best experience. Not to mention the great food at Castaways! Pulled Pork quesadilla is a family favorite! read more

My family and I traveled from Florida on a recommendation from a friend to enjoy some lakeside relaxation. We found everything we could hope for here for a week. The hotel had the perfect view looking out over the lake from our room and it was fresh & clean. We rented a boat for a few days for skiing and cruising then and ate at the restaurant. The food was great, my favorite was the brisket! Every employee was very friendly. What can we say, my wife, son and myself were very happy and will be back with a larger group next year to take one of the houseboats! read more

Shanghai is a wonderful, family friendly marina. All of the workers are extremely friendly and went out of their way to make sure that we were well taken care of went out of their way to make sure that we were well taken care of and that our vacation went as smoothly as possibly. The store has the best variety I've seen on the lake. Loved their little lake front lodge and the food at Castaways Grill. Overall, we had a fantastic experience and will definitely be returning and recommend it to everyone. read more