The Crow's Nest Reviews

I live a couple blocks from Crow's Nest and this is my go to spot for my birthday every year. I go for one thing that they do the best in Santa Cruz in my opinion. They have a alder-wood smoked prime rib that is the best. I worked in the business for many years and absolutely love prime rib done right. They do it right here. It's also a major bonus that they have a fantastic salad bar to go with it. They make all their own salad dressings, and I usually end up with about three of them on my salad because I can't decide. And the croutons are homemade and worth a trip to Crows Nest just for that.

The rest of the menu is good, but like some other reviewers noted, it's not special. You certainly get a good meal, but not really memorable. I mean the food only. The trip to Crow's Nest is worth if for the view of the harbor and ocean while you sit and watch the sunset. What a awesome place for that!!

My only regret with the Crows Nest is that I missed my birthday dinner two birthdays ago, because my birthday is March 11. That was the day of the Japanese tsunami and they had to close on my birthday.....so sad...., my birthday alternative was good... Cafe Cruz, but not my tradition. I missed my smoked prime rib dinner and fantastic salad bar....

Nice location on the beach, hence the one star, but the food is awful. It s like stepping back to 1985. Save yourself a bunch and have a drink and get diner somewhere else.

I don't know if it was we got there later in the day, but my steak was terrible. No flavor and totally over cooked. My mashed potatoes were ok, but cold. The vegetables were basically raw and cold. I felt the calamari appetizer was very small for the price. Won't go there again.

Classic Santa Cruz!! The secret spot for breakfast on the weekend in summertime.

Okay food, okay beer selection, outdoor seating always leaves some parties with no shade from the sun (in their eyes) overall okay bar but nothing to get excited about. Their view is one of their best selling points.

We sat in the large tent on the sand. It was great!! The smoked salmon was delicious. Ceasar dressing was perfect. I'm picky about my ceasar.

Their crab cakes benedict is the only redeeming menu item. This places gets by on location alone. Overpriced mediocre food, terrible service.

Great sevice with a beautiful setting. Lovely for gatherings or a nice date.

We had a Sorority Reunion today & it was better than GREAT!!! They seated us upstairs, party of 13, so we had a spectacular view & relative privacy. The service was wonderful & they didn't try to rush us. They did take care of all of our needs w/out us ever having to search for anything. And the cost was very reasonable. We ALL loved our food - lots of variety - I would HIGHLY recommend them!!!!.

The place of my first date with my now husband of 10 years. Love the atmosphere and salad bar!

Great setting. Large restaurant do you don't feel too crowded.

Everything started off just fine until we were waiting for our food. The calamari was very good no doubt but our waiter on the other hand was a disappointment. I can't remember his name but he barely attended to us. People who arrived about 30-40 minutes after us (about 5-7 people) had a different waiter and got their food way before me and my friend. Take note we didn't take much time at all ordering so why did it take so long? Everyone around us was receiving their orders, refills, and being attened to but where was our waiter with our food? He finally came back after roughly 35 minutes saying it'll be out in 10 minutes, we were glad. BUT it took another 20-30 minutes for our food to get to us. To make things worse our food was not even warm at all! It was very cold and unpleasant. We just ate it since who knows how long it will take to fix this mess! We had to wait once again for our check. When we got it we were very disappointed and didn't want to leave a tip, but we figured $4.00 is good enough for the horrible service. Just recently we found out the waiter had the nerve to put a zero next to $4.00 making it a $40.00 tip!! I really expected better treatment coming from such a high rated place, make things worse it was my birthday also. Such a disappointment.

The wait staff is great. The blonde at the entrance needs to lose the glaring attitude. It was almost enough to make me want to go somewhere else.

Veggie burger is pretty decent. The house made chips and cocktail drinks are good. Best thing is the view from the outdoor seats.

Excellent happy hour deals. Delicious chicken nachos! Great margaritas.

Best calamari ever, that's why I'm giving it five stars. 4 stars for fresh salad bar. I love that they also include macaroni salad. Nice staff. Sometimes slow. Wish they had a better micro brew selection. Great views.

Upstairs bar is the hidden gem... Wendesday nights are best for the deals.

We try to go here every time that we visit Santa Cruz. So yummy :) :P

Awesome views and even better calamari. Kind of touristy but not in an offputting way

Nest restaurant in Santa Cruz some say. Full service bar. Great food, with indoor or outdoor patio seating. Situated at the yacht harbor entry, you can have lovely ocean views including the lighthouse, or watch the boats coming and going. It all adds to the ambiance while enjoying lunch or dinner.

This Classy sit down restaurant sits directly on a santa cruz beach, right next to where people dock their boats. They take limited resurvations, so they are open to walk-ins. The view is great, as they have indoor seating and outdoor seating(with heaters). The waiters are nice, and the food is unique ( commonly garnished with edible orcids) The salad bar isn't too great and the fresh baked bread used to be better.

Very good food. Long wait and had reservations. Very good service.

I love the location of this restaurant the views are absolutely incredible from almost anywhere inside or out side of the restaurant. The food is decent nothing special unfortunately. And their prices seem a little on the high side for what you get. Service is adequate but you should try it out.

I ve been coming to Crow s Nest for over 20 years and always have a good experience. Staff are friendly, food is delicious, and location is unbeatable. Just recently, due to COVID-19, they added another outdoor seating area which is huge More

Nice view. Poor service and food quality is not what we expected.

Love Crows Nest. There is an awesome salad bar there each day and the view is over the harbor, the skys are usually blue. Their seafood is first class. I love the live music upstairs several nights a week and an open mike comedy night on Sundays. Fun dance floor to be sure and daytime waitpersons as well give excellent attention and service for your lunch party.

Restaurant is a good experience, but not the best food. Burgers were so so and our margaritas had too much mixer. Otherwise overall decent location with really good views of the Santa Cruz harbor.

Love this place always good drink delicious appetizers is the place to go and have a little get together with friends (the upstairs)

Their food is consistly great. Also anyone that felt their meat was overdone ask to take it back! And theyll do it right. Hello speak up!

Really good food! The service was great and the atmosphere was nice. A little crowded but definitely worth it!

Great food, friendly service, easy parking and nice view. Would go again when I get back to the area.

Great view at window seat. Boats coming into Santa Cruz Harbor. Food was great also.

Went early with a
reservation in hand.
It was very busy people waiting all over the place, even people
With reservation.we had to wait a bit also but it was worth it, we got one of the best window tables ever.
I ordered the fish taco plate...it was over the top.
It's fun to go out to a nice restaurant on occasion.
PS
Gee we were crazy to pick this weekend, between Fathers Day
And Graduations I think we did OK...
IT WAS MY B DAY !

Expensive for what it is but good spot for food after a day at the beach.

Thursday night concert with James Durbin amd the lost boys were great.Food was delicious

Great appatizers, and staff. Drinks are a little on the small side for the price. But the view, food and staff make up for it. Sit up top to get a great view of the regatta parade and race which starts at 5:30p BUT... get there at least 1 hour early to get a seat by the window. We got there just before 5p and managed a decent seat but not by the window.

Excellent customer service! Excellent food!! Make a reservation! And get there early!! Parking can be a little difficult...went on a Friday night at 6pm in July.

Great happy hour and wonderful atmosphere! Such a beautiful location!

Real good service, sea food and pricing. And location at harbor.

Scenic place for mimosas and breakfast l, watching the boats go out and come in the harbour.
Nightlife is great friendly people and a comfortable place to let loose.

Food wasn't very good, I ordered the steak and eggs but my steak seemed more like a 6oz hamburger patty then a steak. Also there was residue in the water glass towards the bottom.

I'd heard great things about Crow's Nest, so my expectations were certainly high. My experience there however wasn't too great. While friendly and informative, service was really slow for us, my group and I almost wanted to walk out. The location is very lovely as you can see the harbor and lighthouse from several spots, and the building itself was clean and beautiful. The food definitely looks and smells good (it was my first time trying prawns- and I'm not a big seafood eater- so me personally saying they're good, which they were, is saying a lot). My friend wasn't too impressed with the fish tacos, which is one of their favorite foods. Overall it was an all right outing for lunch, I'd give it another try due to how many people rave about the place.

Great view, good food, a bit spendy and very crowded.

Went with my son for brunch. The food was good and our waitress was very nice, it was a little slow but the restaurant was extremely busy at the time, so understandable. It is pricey here, you are paying for admittedly spectacular views.

Food was amazing, service was excellent. Nothing bad about it at all.

Great source for high end seafood, steak and salads.

Another tasty lobster lunch at the Crow with a beautiful view on a beautiful day So glad its local special season again!

This is a perfect place to enjoy good drinks, good food and also good view of the sea. In the evenings they has live entertainment.

Was ok. Food was a bit bland and flavorless. But the view was ok.

Great restaurant in Santa Cruz right at the beach. Kids friendly!

My kids love Ahi Tuna here. I love the pear Gorgonzola salad, cocktails, and ambience. The servers are always attentive and smiling. We are regulars here. Will totally recommend.

I had ordered tempura scallops, and when the rest of the food came out the server informed me that they were out of scallops and had substituted shrimp, and said I could change my order (and presumably wait another 20 minutes while others ate. I opted for the shrimp, which were awful. Hardly warm, over-breaded, and a little fishy.

Whenever family or friends come into town and are looking for a special dining experience, we suggest The Crow's Nest. After several visits, we have never been disappointed and most often our guests leave raving about the food, location and service. Such was the case when our party of six, including two teenagers, thoroughly enjoyed a delightful dinner. The menu is beyond compare, as is the food and presentation. The restaurant overlooks the Santa Cruz Small Craft Harbor. Request a window seating, and you will not be disappointed. Did I mention the service is outstanding? Enjoy.

On the marina. Nice view. Nice range of quality beers on tap.

Always great food you can also enjoy a beautiful sunset on the beach or by the light house at the mouth of the harbour where you can watch the boats go in and out

Sat down at 5pm right when they open. Ordered at 5:05, had the food on the table by 5:20. The table in front of us sat down 5 minutes after we did and they got their food 5 min after we did. Surprisingly fast service for an upscale restaurant on the water. The CN is a stable of Santa Cruz and we can see why. Great food and plenty of options. We will be back!