First time at Boston Lobster on Lower Azusa Road and I was impressed!…read more I went with my son for a one-year-old's birthday party and somehow managed to arrive an HOUR late ‍. Thankfully, they were incredibly gracious and accommodating when we showed up. The food is served family style, so we got to sample a little bit of everything. The filet mignon medallions were delectable--tender, flavorful, and perfectly marinated. And the Lobster Noodles! This was my first time trying them and they absolutely delivered. The lobster was cut and fried in a way that made the meat tucked inside the shell really easy to get to, which made the whole experience so enjoyable. And that gravy... I was literally sucking on the lobster shell trying to get every last bit. So, so good. We also had a stir-fried green vegetable--possibly watercress--and it was delicious. Simple, savory, and cooked just right. I loved having something fresh and green alongside all the richer dishes. Great food, warm service, and such a fun meal to share with a group. I'll definitely be back.

I've been coming to this establishment since it was still located in that small spot on San Gabriel…read moreand Valley, so it's disappointing to say that the quality of the food seems to have gone downhill over the years. The service is still great, the restaurant itself is decently clean and spacious. Sadly, the food just wasn't up to the standards I remember. Salt & Pepper Shrimp 3/10 - Poorly seasoned and lacking the crispiness I was expecting. The shrimp just didn't have much going for it. Mongolian Beef 4/10 - This was basically steamed beef with green onions. The dish lacked the caramelized, savory flavor I typically associate with Mongolian beef. Clams with Basil 5/10 - The flavor was decent, but the clams did not taste particularly fresh, which really took away from the dish. Pan-Fried Pork 2/10 - Unfortunately, this was my least favorite. The pork didn't taste fresh, and the texture made it feel like it had been fried twice. The normally flavorful sauce it came with was also extremely bland. I'm actually very glad I came during lunch and paid lunch prices for these dishes. If I had paid dinner prices, I would have been extremely disappointed. The food from my previous visits weren't extraordinary, but at least it was "okay". However, after this visit, I have officially taken this restaurant off my rotation. I won't be returning.

My friend and I had tickets for a concert nearby, and having never been to the area before, I…read morelooked for restaurant options on Yelp and found The Dive Oyster Bar a few minutes from the show. Not knowing how busy the restaurant would be on a Saturday night, I made reservations. We dined on the earlier side, and probably could have just walked in. We ended up getting some of the sharables, which was great. I love that their happy hour is available in the entire restaurant. Our server was Shanee, and she was extremely helpful and friendly. Since it was our first visit, we had a few questions and she was able to guide us along. Another person that helped us was Veronica, who was equally helpful and friendly. The food was really good, the service great, and the vibe was friendly. If I didn't live so far from the restaurant, I would go often.

A 10/10 first visit, and I'm already planning my return…read more I stopped in on a Sunday around noon, party of one, and grabbed a seat at the bar. The place was fairly quiet when I arrived, but it picked up as my meal went on. The space is really well put together: nautical theme, interesting art, and lots of natural light from the windows balanced by dark wood furniture. You can watch the chefs cook from the dining area, and the long full bar has a great layout. They also had Sunday football on two TVs, which was a nice touch. It kept things casual without feeling too fancy or too much like a sports bar, just a great vibe for an afternoon of football and a good meal at the bar. The bartender made the experience even better. She was attentive, friendly, easy-going, and engaging, and she was quick, too. You can tell she genuinely likes her job. I'd checked the menu beforehand and spotted the mussels and fries. I love both, so I had to try it. The portion is big enough to share, but it works as an entrée if you're hungry. The fries come topped with a truffle garlic mayo, and the mussels arrive steaming hot in a delicious broth. You choose your spice level, and I went spicy. It was perfect, with plenty of heat that never buried the flavor of the broth. I usually only trust mussels near the ocean, but these were cooked perfectly and won me over. The pairing with fries is one I never would have imagined, and it works. If you like garlic, you'll love the broth. As the mayo melts in, it turns creamy and almost looks like a tomato bisque, seasoned to perfection with a flavor I've never had before. Even soaked in broth, the fries stayed crispy. One tip: I finished everything and still had a lot of broth left. My bartender offered bread for dipping, but I was too full and didn't know it was an option. Next time I'll save room or ask for bread right away. I also tried the seasonal spiked apple pie cocktail, with a cinnamon-sugar rim and a cinnamon stick garnish. It was flavorful without being overpowering, the kind of drink you could easily have more than one of. I'll be thinking about this dish until I'm back, which will probably be soon. I'm dying to try the mac & cheese topped with hot Cheetos, plus a few other things on the menu. Highly recommend!

Poor customer service they only like Asians to come here. Racist staff. They even locked the doors…read moreafter I walked out terrible experience. I'll just go down the street You can say a little excuse all you want but when you say no fish for you I understand what it means, what a coincidence she had to use the bathroom when I was there but was just sitting her on her butt doing nothing when I walked in... Again this store doesn't want brown people walking in only Asians.

They have fresh and different types of fish. Reasonably priced. I give Two Thumbs up!read more

First time ever trying a seafood boil and Crab Grabber in Pasadena was such a great experience! The…read morestaff was super helpful and attentive, especially since we were new to seafood boils. We ordered two of the Combo A options. One with peeled shrimp and snow crab legs, and another with mussels and sausage. We tried both the mild and medium heat levels, and everything was really well seasoned and flavorful without being overwhelming. They also have a salad bar with appetizer-style dishes and desserts, which was a nice addition to the meal. Overall, we had such a lovely time, the food was delicious, and it was a great first seafood boil experience. Definitely would come back!

I never thought I'd see a combination of Cajun seafood boil and Sichuan food but here we are. The…read morefusion works surprisingly well! We got Combo A with shrimp and crawfish tossed in their mixed boil sauce, which was incredibly rich and flavorful. It came with corn, potatoes, and a boiled egg that soaked up all that delicious sauce. The crawfish were some of the biggest I've seen, they definitely hook it up with the portions. The Chinese specialties were also good, we ordered the Tea-Smoked Duck which had tender, smoky meat and the Beef Dry Pot. Fair warning on the dry pot: we ordered the medium spice level and it was extremely spicy, so beware if you are sensitive to heat! That numbing Sichuan kick was intense but solid. To top it all off, they have a self-serve bar with unlimited gizzards, which was such an awesome bonus.

This place is my favorite for Cajun snow crabs, in extra juicy stinkin special sauce, medium spice,…read moreand hints of lime. Delicious! The corn and potatoes also go great with it. The staff is great, especially Leslie! She's friendly, helpful, and sweet! They always take care of us well and because we are repeat customers, whether it's a dine-in or to-go/doordash order, they give us two-complimentary Oreo ice cream desserts which is out of this world! Thank you for treating us well! And please keep the military discounts going! :)

This location of Stinkin Crawfish is located in Old Town Monrovia. There are a few public lots and…read morestreet parking throughout the area. I was already in the area and when it was time for dinner I was walking around to see what looked good. I was so excited to see Stinkin Crawfish. It was weird though because I went to the restroom to wash my hands, and when I came back, they gave another group the table they gave me. I picked a different table, but I thought that was odd. After a quick glance at their menu I saw that they had Happy Hour is Monday to Friday from 4 to 6:30pm. It was a bit pass 6pm so I put in a Dozen Oysters (HH $15 | regular $33) while I looked at the rest of the menu. Ugh regret. These were SO BAD!! First off, the majority was not shucked, it was still attacked to the shell. I turned to the table next to me since I saw they had ordered oysters and I asked if theirs were shucked, and they said some were and some weren't. Oh goodness, so inconsistent. Then they also warned me that they got charged regular pricing instead of happy hour pricing. Also they didn't give me any utensils... so I had to go grab a plastic fork myself cause no staff was in sight and I had to scrap these oysters off their shells. First one not good. Second one, I drowned it in marinara sauce, still not good. Third one... SO BAD I SPLIT IT OUT... Fourth one, ALSO BAD. Okay I don't want to get sit... I'm over this... I just set it aside and covered it with one napkin to indicate I'm over it. Honestly they can see there were many untouched if they wanted to ask me how I liked them. Maybe I should have left but I made the mistake of ordering more food. I ordered a Raspberry Iced Tea ($3.75). Can't really mess that up but I want to point out that no refills were offered my whole time there. I did their Build Your Own with 1lb Shrimp ($17.75), 1lb Crawfish ($11 when added on to an order), with the Make it Awesome ($5.75) which is 1 corn, 2 potatoes, 3 sausages all in their Garlic Butter Mild. Okay... garlic... butter... can't go wrong right?? Well I'm wrong wrong wrong. I don't know HOW they managed to serve me the blandest cajun meal of my life. I am beyond baffled. I see the garlic. The color looks like butter. Definitely not mild, more like zero spice and zero seasonings. Even the limes they gave were dried out and bitter. My theory on the bland garlic was that it was prepped and frozen for so long it lost its' flavor. The seafood itself didn't taste fresh either. Bleh. It really needed a better sauce to mask the musky taste. Oh and the sausage was BURNT. Sigh. I think service tried to be nice. They did come and ask if I needed anything else. But honestly I didn't even want the food in front of me, let alone anything else. At the end they provided complimentary dessert to every guest. It was like a deep fried oreo with a scoop of ice cream on the day I went. The dessert was good. Just nothing else. Oh wait for it... when I got the check, I was also overcharged for the oysters, ringing up at $33 instead of the $1.50/oyster HH price being $15. The waitress was surprised and she even expressed how that happened to another customer (I know) previously and she had asked "him", who I assume is a manager or boss, to fix it in the system. Sigh... Apparently he didn't. The portions were fair, the pricing is fair... WHEN THEY RING YOU UP CORRECTLY. it just tastes bad. Low production quality. Maybe they are able to keep these prices by buying low quality product. Regardless I DEFINITELY won't be coming back. This meal, or rather the stuff that was edible, is not worth the calories. I rarely give 1 star reviews but I almost considered it... but no one was mean and I didn't get sick (because I spit up the bad oysters and stopped eating them). This is such a generous 2 stars review for the mess I had to deal with.

Great customer service and the seafood is fresh! I suggest trying their freshly fried Salmon and…read moreLarge Shrimp! Delicious seasoning and you can even purchase a fresh container of white rice to go with it! It gets quite busy, so call in your order to lesson your wait time!

I really enjoyed the food here! I got the tilapia, shrimp, and seafood balls, and everything was…read morecooked really well. The flavor was delicious, and I was happy that nothing was dry. The seafood was flavorful and cooked just right. One thing to be careful about: check your receipt before leaving. The receipt doesn't itemize each individual item, so it's difficult to see exactly what you're being charged for. I noticed afterward that I was overcharged, which was disappointing. Overall, I liked the food and would come back, but I definitely recommend checking your total and making sure the charges are correct before leaving.

Solid spot for dim sum. Parking can be bit tight. The restaurant is mid sized and the service was…read moregood. It wasn't too busy when we went but I can see how it may get busy during peak hours. Ambiance is similar to any other family style Chinese restaurant. What we got: shu mai, hargow, pork spare ribs, rice noodle rolls, bbq pork (I think), pineapple buns, bbq pork buns, and egg tarts All of the food was good, though I thought the hargow was slightly more doughy. I can't complain because everything we ordered was delicious.

Food: 1/5 Ambiance: 3/5 (average)…read more Service: -5/5 The tea was good tho and that's about it.

Stopped by Blue Magpie Local Find for the first time and lucked out -- they're running a special…read moremenu this week for Mid-Autumn Festival! We tried the majority of the special menu items, and everything was delicious. You can tell they put real care into these dishes. Portions were decent -- we left full and happy. The service was excellent, really friendly and attentive without hovering. The atmosphere is warm and welcoming, and the place was clean throughout. We'll definitely be back. Highly recommend checking out the special menu while it's still available!

First time: 5 stars We came for a birthday last year with…read moreextended family, and they were nice enough to give us one of the two private rooms. Service was great, food was great, and they gave free desserts for the birthday peeps. Second time: 3.5 stars Not sure what happened but went again recently with a smaller group of 4. Food was mixed-- Highs: Duck breast was so tender and perfectly cooked with delicious sauce and interesting side of grilled brocolli and mandarin. Truffle scallion noodle was their take on cold noodles, so rich with lick your plate good sauce. Middles: ribs pretty good and fork tender. Grilled fish collar was fine, nothing special, didnt like the sauce. Bottom: Sweetfish was super salty, to the point it was almost inedible. Pork lettuce wraps were tasty, but the middle part was not cooked through, to their credit the restaurant remade it for us Parking lot in back is free. Nicely decorated and modern look. Food was not super consistent, but worth checking out if especially if you need a private room

This was my first time at Mikiya, and I had such a fantastic experience! Landen was an amazing…read moreserver friendly, attentive, knowledgeable, and genuinely made the experience even better. He was on top of everything and made us feel very welcomed. Great service from start to finish. I'll definitely be coming back! And the food was bussin.

Mikiya Wagyu Shabu House is one of the most consistent shabu-shabu spots in the area. The quality…read moreis always great, the meats are flavorful and tender, and I feel like the pricing is reasonable for what you get. We usually go with either the Silver or Gold Wagyu set and add on the Wagyu tartare or Wagyu bone marrow. Both are always delicious and packed with flavor. For broth, I normally choose either the Japanese tomato or spicy miso. You really cannot go wrong with either option. For sides, we usually order the vegetable platter, Japanese ramen, and rice. My go-to meats are the premium Wagyu chuck ribeye, premium Wagyu shoulder cut, and kurobuta pork. In my opinion, those are the best choices on the menu. They are consistently tender, well-marbled, and have a great balance of fat and meat without feeling overly heavy. I usually skip most of the other sides and ask for extra garlic and green onions to add to the goma sauce. That combination with the Wagyu is so good. It can add up depending on how much you order, but I think it is reasonably priced for the overall quality. If you get around seven to ten rounds of the meats mentioned above, you will likely get close to your money's worth. I would definitely recommend Mikiya to anyone looking for a solid Wagyu shabu-shabu experience.

I've eaten here countless times with friends and family over the years. I can't believe I haven't…read morereviewed you guys! Always consistent in service and quality. They are known for: Special Lobster (A+) Beef Loc Lac (A) Clams with spicy sauce (A+) Chinese broccoli (B+) - depends on how thick or thin it is Pea shoots with garlic (A) Eggplant (A) Yang Chow fried rice (A) Reservations are highly recommended either by calling or thru Yelp. There are private rooms in the back on request if you have a larger party and seafood is always fresh as they have an aquarium with lobsters, crab, geoduck, and fish. The decor is charming with vintage trinkets along the side of the wall. There is a waiting area by the lobby and restrooms in the back of the restaurant. Since it gets so crowded and busy the restrooms could be tended better. Parking is available on the street otherwise you have to valet on the lot.

I had lunch at Newport Seafood Restaurant today with a friend I hadn't seen in a very long time…read more She recently reached out to me after being out of touch for quite a while and asked if I wanted to meet up. Today was a day that worked for me, so we decided to have lunch together and then get a massage afterward. Whenever I come to this area for a massage, I usually have lunch at Boston Lobster. I've heard that Boston Lobster was opened by a chef and some of the staff who used to work here at Newport Seafood Restaurant, so I wanted to come back here after a long time and compare the two restaurants for myself. First, parking. Boston Lobster has regular self-parking, while Newport Seafood has valet parking, which was $2. As for the food, I ordered one of my favorite dishes, shrimp with cashews. I've had it at Boston Lobster many times, and I definitely preferred Boston Lobster's version. We also ordered beef with tomato sauce. Honestly, it didn't look particularly appetizing when it first came out, but once I tried it, it was actually pretty good. We also ordered beef chow mein, and this was probably my favorite dish of the meal. It almost had a slightly Thai-food-like flavor, and it was really delicious. As for the service, this is where I noticed the biggest difference between the two restaurants. Every time I go to Boston Lobster, everyone there is always extremely friendly and welcoming. Here, some of the staff were friendly, but some were not friendly at all. The hostess who greeted us when we first arrived was very nice. After we sat down, she brought a small cucumber dish to our table and asked if we wanted it as an appetizer. We politely declined. Then a male server came to take our drink order and asked whether we wanted hot tea or water. I asked if they had any caffeine-free hot tea, but he didn't seem to understand me. My friend repeated the question very slowly, but he still didn't seem to understand. After we explained it one more time, he finally seemed to get what I was asking and asked if I wanted jasmine tea. I said yes, so we had jasmine tea. It was extremely hot at first, so I also asked for some cold water without ice. Later, while we were eating, we needed to serve ourselves some of the chow mein. The spoon that came with the chow mein wasn't really useful for picking up the noodles, so I asked for an extra pair of chopsticks. The server brought the chopsticks over and basically tossed them down on our table. Honestly, I found that pretty unpleasant. My friend and I looked at each other while we were eating and said, "What was that?" My friend even commented, "Chinese restaurant staff can be so unfriendly sometimes." That has never happened to me at Boston Lobster. The staff there have always been very friendly and attentive whenever I've gone. I had actually been to Newport Seafood Restaurant several times before the COVID pandemic, and I even got their lobster for takeout back then. I remember it being so delicious that, during the pandemic, I once saw on Google that the restaurant was open and drove all the way here, only to find that it was actually closed. I remember being pretty disappointed that day. So coming back here again after such a long time brought back some memories. Unfortunately, I was a little disappointed with the service today. On the positive side, I found the restroom here to be cleaner than the one at Boston Lobster. However, the toilet here flushes automatically rather than having a manual flush, and I actually found that a little inconvenient. One nice advantage here is that they have private rooms, which would be great if you come with a larger group and want to sit separately with your own party. They do have lunch specials on weekends, which is nice. But personally, I think I'll probably go back to Boston Lobster next time. Their prices are actually about $1-$2 cheaper, I prefer their food overall, there's no valet parking charge, and most importantly, their service has been consistently much friendlier in my experience. So while I enjoyed coming back to Newport Seafood Restaurant after all these years and I did find some dishes here very good, Boston Lobster is still the place I would personally choose for my next visit to this area.