The Crab Plant is exactly what you think of when you think of "Crystal River". It's a cash only seafood establishing nestled on the water with probably 100's of crab traps sitting on the outside. There was a wait for a table but my boyfriend and I were able to secure 2 spots at the bar. The waitresses/bartenders are BUSSSYYY but they never let our drinks be empty. We both ordered 2 low seafood boils which had sausage, corn, potato's, crawfish, shrimp, mussels/clams and a blue crab in it and covered in old bay with a side of garlic butter. We could not stop talking about this dinner the next day. Everything was so fresh and juicy. For 3 beers, 2 seafood boils with tip we paid $82 which is not a bad deal at all. We absolutely will be back. read more

The Crab Plant - Restaurant - Seafood boil - Seafood Near Me - Crystal River, Florida

It pains me to write this review as 2 years ago I went to this restaurant with my mother and had an amazing meal and experience. I'm thinking management must have changed because wow the staff has been better. We both ordered the same thing which we loved from our last trip 2 years ago, the Royal Red Alfredo. We get our dish and it is clearly not what we ordered last time but figure we haven't seen our waitress for 10 minutes and she never even checked on us. We had been out all day so we're starving. Oh, worth mentioning...it was my Birthday. Didnt even get a "Happy Birthday" after mentioning it to our waitress. My mother had to get a refill from the bar. The more we eat the more we realize this wasn't what we ordered, but rather the Shrimp Scampi variant. We call for the manager who argues with us over what an Alfredo sauce is which clearly it is not...he swears it is and that it has separated into God knows what as all we see is a soppy mess of butter and garlic. I show him a picture from Yelp of another customer's Alfredo from the restaurant we are CURRENTLY sitting in and told this is an old picture...We both realize we're getting gaslit as we know what an alfredo sauce is and had the exact dish so we know what it looks like. We agreed that we ate the food and will pay the price for the scampi dish they served us which is $2 cheaper than what we actually ordered. They refused to lower the bill so we left and paid without tipping. I've never had an experience quite like this where the manager will not even work with you. Not even an apology...we will never be back here again. You can judge for yourself if that looks like Alfredo to you. If you want straight seafood, this place might be alright, but the service we received was absolutely terrible. read more

The Crab Plant - Restaurant - Clearly NOT Alfredo Sauce... - Seafood Near Me - Crystal River, Florida

The best crab legs I have ever eaten. 5 Stars Fresh Jalapeño has become one of our favorite places! It's in a super convenient location for us since we pass it almost every week on our way to the scrap yard, so it finally made sense to stop in--and we're so glad we did. The 2-for-1 margaritas EVERY SINGLE DAY are hard to beat, but the real star is the food. Everything was incredibly fresh, flavorful, and the portions were huge. Every person at our table cleaned their plate! Now, if you know me, you know I usually eat less than half of my meal and take the rest home. This time I ate everything even my sides!!!! read more

See all

This place is very casual! The menu is big and lots to choose from. We ordered the fried green beans, conch fritters, blue crab soup, fish dip, crab platter, scallop lunch, grouper sandwich, kids fish nuggets, and a cheeseburger. Food was great!! We will return!! read more

Fresh tasty seafood, served by happy waitresses, with a fantastic view. Get there early because they run out of stuff. The attached fish market is just as good. read more

A Crystal River staple! This is the place to go for all kinds of seafood. They have seasonal options, and fresh daily catches. [CASH ONLY - ATM onsite] We came after a day out on the water - they did have a wait, but we got our party of 4 in within about 30 - 40 min around 6pm. They have quite a few options, so be ready to peruse the menu while you wait. Once seated, we ordered drinks & apps. App came out quick but with the delay between ordering drinks & ordering food, we ended up staying for quite a while. Mermaid mojito drink was great, apps varied, and dinners were quite a span. We got homey shrimp (amazing, Alfredo pasta (solid), seafood Mac & cheese (great & a veggie-packed spin) and a crab entree (slightly cold at the ends even right as it came out). Their desserts looked very good but we were too full to try it this time. read more

See all

The Crab Plant is the place to be. Sitting right on the water with an awesome atmosphere, it genuinely feels like you've been dropped straight into southern Louisiana. Our server, Grace, was fantastic--super friendly and constantly checking in on us, refilling waters and making sure everything was perfect. We ordered the four-person seafood boil, and wow--it did not disappoint. It comes with shrimp, mussels, corn, crab, potatoes, sausage, crawfish, onion, and garlic. There was a ton of food; we ate an unbelievable amount and still had leftovers, which says a lot considering I'm a 6'5" guy. The dark horse of the boil was honestly the onions. After soaking up all those Cajun juices, they were absolutely to die for. The wait can be a bit hefty, but they're pretty efficient, and it is 100% worth it. This place is an absolute must-visit if you're in the area read more

Stick to what they're best - the boiled options! My husband had the shrimp & grits, it was rather bland and just ok. The snow crab legs were incredible! Perfectly cooked and absolutely delightful. I'm not quite sure what the potato salad is but it wasn't very good at all. The service was ok, food came pretty quickly but the waitress rarely checked in on us or came around unless she was bringing food. read more

See all

The Crab Plant specializes in local fresh seafood; there's even a market attached. I'm always looking for blue crab when I'm there (only place in county where I can find it), but everything I've eaten there has been great. It's plain and casual, but very friendly with fast service. Tablecloths are paper, not linen, but the extensive water views can't be beat. It's popular enough to create waiting lines at times. Be sure to try their shrimp dip and chowders. Oh, note that it's cash only, but there's an ATM inside read more

Make sure you stop at an ATM and make your way to The Crab Plant! We split some delicious hot and savory hushpuppies and made our own simple Low Country Boil by ordering a pound of steamed shrimp and added the corn, potatoes, and sausage for $11 more. The seasoning and sharing was perfect! Since I'm doing Dry Jan I was happy they had a couple of NA beers to choose from. Our table was right by the water, the tables are large and sturdy and not too close to your neighbor, and the staff was so very friendly in the hopping place! A must visit of you like authenticity, fresh seafood, and good vibes! read more

See all

Had this place recommended to me for my first visit to Crystal River. Encountered such rude service that we walked out after three minutes.

Great dinner at a local place. Mahi was a little dry but overall a great experience. Didn't accept cards but I had just enough cash.

Crab plant has the best seafood I have eaten in years I can't complain about anything I really enjoyed the food

Casual restaurant with extremely fresh seafood /// highly recommend. Off beaten path but gps will take u right to their front door

Found this place on yelp while searching for Crystal River spots to eat. I really wanted Stone Crabs and the other place our Manatee Tour suggested I didn't see them on the menu there. We had to wait a bit but we got bar seating pretty quickly for the amount of people there. I got stone crabs and chowder and my boyfriend I think got shrimp and grits. Stone crabs were delicious and fresh and the chowder was chunky and flavorful. Had a bite of the grits and they were pretty good. Surprised they didn't have key lime pie but we did get a slice of coconut cream which was tasty. Would def come back if I was in the area again. read more

The Crab Plant - Restaurant - Stone crabs - Seafood Near Me - Crystal River, Florida

Finally made it here. Came for lunch. Between 2 of us ordered clam chowder and crab chowder, blackened groups sandwich with potato salad and snapper Reuben but subbed coleslaw for sauerkraut. Inside is open and a big loud. When you walk into the restaurant you get a big whiff of fish. If someone I. Your party is not a seafood lover I think they'd be turned off. We sat outside which is across the parking lot next to the water. Waitresses did come out to serve us. Seeing the water is nice but you are right off the parking lot so cars are parking right near you. Solid place to eat. read more

See all

EVERYTHING was amazing! Highly recommend this no frills restaurant for great food and reasonable prices!! read more

See all

This was supposed to be the Shrimp Alfredo. Clearly this greasy mess, that ended up making me sick to my stomach, was not shrimp Alfredo. The only reason I did not send it back was because my daughter was eating hers and I did not want to make her wait while I tried to track down our waitress to send this back and order a different dish. Also our waitress never returned to the table after we received our food. This was probably the Shrimp Linguine which was actually a scampi. That scampi dish was a couple dollars cheaper. I talked to the manager and asked him to change the charge to the dish I know I received. My daughter even showed him a picture of an Alfredo dish from their restaurant's menu on her phone, which had the characteristic white sauce. The manager, without apology, refused to admit that this was NOT Alfredo insisting that the cream and the butter had separated. Yeah what cream. My daughter and I had been there two years ago and ordered the Shrimp Alfredo. It was so good, we returned the next night and ordered the same dish. This was not it. I heard from the woman at our hotel that the Crab Plant has gone down hill and that she no longer recommends it. Maybe they do better with their steamed choices. We were treated rudely and our service stunk. I would not return. read more

The Crab Plant - Restaurant - Unknown shrimp dish at the Crab Plant. - Seafood Near Me - Crystal River, Florida

Stopped in for lunch, conch fritters are awesome . I had the blackened snapper sandwich , very good. Husband had mahi, equally as good . Would def return . I didn't understand why the fish and chips was frozen cod ? Other than that our server and everything else was great.. read more

I love this restaurant. Everything is fresh and reasonably priced. They are very busy. The staff is always friendly. They have mixed drinks , beer and wine. They had the whole yellow tail snapper . I loved it. It was cooked perfectly. Lightly breaded and delicious. My wife got the blackened snapper. We sat by the window overlooking the bay. read more

See all

Fast and friendly service, beautiful views, and delicious seafood! What more could you want! read more

The Crab Plant - Restaurant - Famous snow crabs in Medium, Large, Jumbo (Jimmy's), and Colossal! Loved them cold with white mustard! - Seafood Near Me - Crystal River, Florida

This place is just a giant trap! You walk in, lured by the bait, next thing you know, you're hooked. Well, I'll be damned. Waving 'Sup? to folks passing by on their Stand Up Paddle boards. Watchin the tourists covered in oil. (Thanks, Jimmy) Eating seafood that's glee food. Blackened Grouper sandwich here. Soft Shell Crab sammich there. Our trapper Mary took great delight in ensuring we were solidly hooked! Oh, she's good. Real good. Fortunately for us, today must've been 'Catch and release day'. We found our way back into the 19 stream and set a course for home. I don't know how we escaped this trap! I am worried, however. I have a nagging feeling we're going to fall prey to that trap again. Real soon. read more

See all

Excellent seafood. We travel from Lady Lake just to eat here. Have not been disappointed.

If you're looking for fresh seafood, this is your place! Great location right on the water! Generous portions! Service was excellent! Highly recommended read more

Fresh seafood cooked right. Good prices too! The view of the water adds to the ambiance.

Such a fun experience for Marylanders! The crabs were amazing! The fish dip, calamari, and gator bites were also great! We had great service and enjoyed our time! We will definitely be back when we come back to town! read more

See all

Wonderful local seafood place situated right on the water. Staff does an amazing job of keeping up with their tables. Only downside is that is extremely crowded on weekends and thru snowbird and scallop season. To many tourists but that's the reality in CR. read more

Ya'll, we're visiting the area and I can tell you this is the place to be for good food!! Tons of locals in here! We started with conch fritters. They were made fresh and OH, SO good!! Definitely need to try them!! For lunch I had the fish tacos and hubby the grouper sandwich. Again, both cooked fresh and EXCELLENT!! Our server was efficient and fun! We'll definitely be back!!! read more

The area features a charming old Florida atmosphere, complemented by picturesque views of the bay where visitors can observe boats, turtles, and manatees. Loved the Dungeness crabs and clam chowder. read more

See all

Some of what we ordered was good. Hogfish was broiled, alittle dry. Snapper was ok. Corn was the best! Seafood boil was good but very spicy. Linguine and clams were good. Service was excellent in spite of being very busy. The ambiance is a concrete floor and walls. Very casual. The view was very pretty looking out over water. Overall ok. read more

Some of the best shrimp and cheese grits I've had. Along with shrimp tacos we will be back !!! read more

The Crab Plant - Restaurant - Seafood Near Me - Crystal River, Florida

Great stone crab, bay scallops, shrimp burger, and everything else. Industrial setting as the name implies, but not uncomfortable. Good service. Can get busy. read more

The Crab Plant - Restaurant - The restaurant side of the fishing business on the water in Crystal River. - Seafood Near Me - Crystal River, Florida

Very disappointed in Grouper Fish sandwich, blackened wife & I each ordered 1, Very very thin, piece of fish, did not get what we paid for, tasted only bread, dirty windows to lookout of, read more

Wow this was a pleasant surprise. Beautiful view. Fresh and tasty shrimp. Very friendly service. Fair price. I'd go again.

Authentic original atmosphere with waterside views, wonderful fresh seafood and excellent service - perfect lunch location read more

See all

We had a great late lunch at the crab plant! The mullet dip was so good! All our food was fresh and delicious. Our server Alicia was the absolute best! Her recommendations were spot on! read more

We had a great server (Shelby) who while very busy, was always prompt with drink refills. We had hush puppies for an appetizer and we really enjoyed them. Our part had the lobster roll, Mahi, fried shrimp and crab cakes. Everything was fresh tasting and delicious. The waterfront setting with fishing boats docked right outside the restaurant speaks to the freshness of the seafood here. We would definitely come back. read more

Angels service was great and so was the food, just annoys me to get charged for more saltine crackers...and a Doller at that read more

The Crab Plant - Restaurant - Shrimp and grits - Seafood Near Me - Crystal River, Florida

Been going for years.... Food was marginal at best tonight. It's "cash only" but you're paying sales tax.... The best part was I watched a waitress open a new ketchup bottle... pulled the foil off the top with her teeth. read more

Perfectly-steamed shrimp, a fresh, crisp salad, mighty tasty potato salad. Great prices. Fast service. Old Florida fish & seafood house ambience. Don't forget the Mullet Dip! They just need hushpuppies. (Oh! There's a great bonus! Hand-washing stations with sinks, soap, and towels in the dining room instead of micro wipes that only clean a finger or two. Genius!!!) Be sure to notice the high water mark of Hurricane Helene. April, 2025 read more