The Crow's Nest Reviews

Overpriced tourist trap. Food is mediocre, my bloody Mary was about 4 oz total. Not going back anymore.

american food and the setting at this spot is great. great location to chill, eat some good food. next time i'll be back with my friends. prices are decent.

Cute outdoor COVID seating when you get to sit in the big wedding tent facing the ocean. You can watch the boats go in and out of the harbor, see the waves on the beach, watch the beach volleyball players and see the sidewalk all from your table under the big wedding tent. Great food, great people watching, wonderful service. Although if you don't get the seating under the tent then you may have to sit in front of the restaurant which is facing the parking lot. If you're lucky enough to get parking in the Crow's Nest parking lot then you can stay there all day and go to the beach too (you do have to pay for parking). The restaurant restrooms are clean and both men's and women's restrooms have a changing table we found out, although the restrooms are really tiny and tight. You should definitely make a reservation although it is not required. There is also a cute shop right on the dock that you can browse in while you wait for your table. The little Crow's Nest store has so many adorable trinkets and beach goodies. The kids loved the free bread and salty butter that they bring to the table, lol they couldn't get enough of it! The server was patient and fun!

I love the location and the view. The food is decent.

One of our favorite restaurants. Good selection of food. However A little disappointed as the Halibut was over cooked. Great location and good service. Maybe, next time I'll send it back.

Always come here when we are in santacruz lobster is amazing a little pricey but well worth it.

This place has great SC harbor and ocean views, the atmosphere was bright and airy and the service was good. I've been here maybe 15 times and the food is always consistently good. They have a great salad bar and a menu with something for everyone to enjoy. Today, I had the tomato basil soup and caprese pizza and my friend had the Norwegian salmon and rice pilaf. Both delicious! Afterwards, we walked out towards the beach, found a free bench and coffee spot, grabbed coffee and an Americano, sat there soaking up the beautiful sunny day!

Prime Rib on special for my 6'5" son, Sand dabs for my Beautiful Wife, and the scrumptious house burge for Pops made this dinner a smash hit. Window table in the evening or lunch offers a great view. Service was highly professional with a local feel. Crow's Nest is a favorite family and business restaurant.

We love it here. The food and the ambience is great and the service has always been very good. We just enjoyed beeakfast for the first time and it was wonderful! Not surprised.
And the view is beautiful.

Nice expensive shore area restaurant. Live music upstairs on some nights. Good date place. Excellent service

Great happy hour appetizers and drinks! The upstairs grill also has a great view of the ocean.

The food's not bad, however it is very overpriced, when paying $20 for fried mahi mahi, i would expect it to atleast be seasoned with something. There was nothing inovative about the dish, it was just fried fish. There really isnt any more flavor.

For a "touristy-type" seaside bar/restaurant, this place is HUGE and surprisingly good. And w/o crazy touristy prices. Outdoor and patio ocean-front/view seating was easily and quickly available. Partially due to a huge tented seating area on the beachfront as well. Service was excellent too. (Tip) See Carrie on the self-seating upstairs balcony. And the American-Seafood inspired menu provides many options. The fish tacos, both grilled and fried were excellent, w/a fresh mango salsa. One of the measuring-sticks of establishments such as this is their clam chowder...and this one MORE than measures-up.
Decent draft beer selection, incl some local ones, and an extensive custom cocktail menu.

Terrific View Great Food and Service. One of my favorite places in Santa Cruz.

Nice view~ good food, lots of variety to choose from. Good service. Have brunch till very late , like 3:00 pm.

Relaxing environment by the beach, with indoor and outdoor seatings. Staff is friendly.

This place is more about the location than the food and drink. Happy hour is great. Live music occasionally.

Mahi mahi was off the boat. Haha word play. It was great

Wonderful food, spectular view by the harbor entrance, and great service!

Bar staff upstairs was annoyed that I ordered a decent amount of take out food near the time the kitchen was closing. Instead of just saying no the kitchen is closed they gave me a very hard time. The bar was busy so I get it but still, there's no excuse to treat a patron the way the bar upstairs did. This was a few weeks ago. Never going back.

It's a amazing place I've been going there since ive been a 1 year old

Downstairs is for 50+. Go upstairs and eat for less and have a better view.

Good food. Great views. Service is always good. The upstairs is fun as well.

All you can eat salad bar is the best value here. Nice staff.

Had the crab cakes and calamari, and then watched the free concert out front. Good time!

Awesome calamari appetizer, good selection of draught beer

Best Calamari in the West and the Bloody' s are to die for.

Went for prom, in 1989. Great food, but could be better.

We enjoyed our visit here. Great reviews from all the sources. The restaurant is on the main floor and reservations save one from a long wait. We were upstairs in the bar area with a great menu, live music on a Tuesday night. The views were spectacular! Looking back toward the public wharf area at sunset was a treat. Give them a try especially if you are visiting.

The view, food and ambiance was wonderful and relaxing. Our waitress was the best. She was very attentive, pleasant and very accommodating. My husband and I will definitely be back!

Yes it's been here for years they have good fish dishes, but honestly you're coming here for the Ambiance or music or Thursday night party that they have on the beach or just to look at the ocean while you eat that's what you're paying for here.

Beautiful views, especially at dusk, and the best fried calamari I've ever tried! Also a friendly, helpful staff and a very nice wine list. I was especially pleased with my salmon. Also recommend the Kahlua fudge cake with coffee ice cream and fresh whipped cream - just make sure you have a friend to share with!

Great views of the ocean. And best calamari on the planet if you go upstairs

Always a reunion go visit a place I worked for 20 years. What a beautiful blessing to re visit.

I was born in Santa Cruz in 1968. The Crow's Nest was born in '69. I remember my mom taking us there when I was a kid. We eventually moved up here to Oregon but I still return to the Nest every time I visit SC, which is about every few years. I hope it is still around when I'm in my last chapter of life.

This is one of my favorite places to dine. I only ever sit on the heated patio so, I don't know what the inside of the restaurant is like as far as atmosphere. I prefer to watch the sun set behind the light house as the sea lions play in the water. My favorite appetizer is a hot crab and artichoke dip. I loved it so much that I went home and found a recipe as close as I could to match and have been making it for several years since. The Australian lobster tail is so large that it is a meal all by itself. It was cooked to perfection, tender and delicious. If you are in the area, you MUST GO!!

Outstanding service , views and food... RSVP a must.

The food here is exceptional, especially the smoked salmon hash! Combining that with great views and a beautiful interior makes for a great dining experience.

We enjoyed the location, and the food was great. Unfortunately, the mood of this beautiful restaurant was hampered for us by our server, Laura.

If you have questions, take more than one trip for her to come by your table (even though she only gave us 2 minutes to look at the menu before asking if we're ready), or just try to interact with her on any level of humanity, this waitress will make you feel like a complete and utter inconvenience.

I guess she wasn't happy with her mediocre tip for sub par service, so she ran my credit card for another $4...really? What a shame! This restaurant has so much potential to be amazing, but maybe they are complacent with the status quo.

Money talks, and I'm walkin'!

Cute patio out back. Super friendly staff. Probably the best fish entree I ve had in SC.

In the many years (8) I've lived in S'Cruz, I've only been to The Nest for brunch... Until last night (1-19-19). Took a date, sat at the bar with a view of the stage. Bartender was professional and attentive, drinks were well made, and the salad my friend ordered was tasty and a decent proportion.
The place was packed for a Santana cover band show. The band was excellent, the dance floor absolutely packed, and the crowd was a festive, friendly, well dressed, and fairly attractive lot, age 30s-40s+.
There was no cover charge (that I can recall) at the time we arrived, which was maybe 45 minutes or an hour before the band began.
I had heard Saturday nights could be a lot of fun there, and, well, lets just say the music, the drinks, the vibe, and my date had me dancing and spinning her around on the dance floor to quite avfrw songs. And, generally, I do not dance.
It was a good time!

Fun place to eat the food is always good excellent wait staff can't hardly wait to go back desserts are pretty doggone good too

Drinks good so far...busy nite.. Have yet to taste apps...

Bad customer service/ people I was with were great so still had a good time, we were give broken water cup. I ordered the halibut will not order it there again fish was not fresh and dry, veggies were nothing special, and mashed potatoes needed salt and pepper neither of which were provided.

Happy hour! Good prices and great appetizers! Smoked salmon is killer. Loved the nachos. And the view is the best. One of our favorite stops.

We were a big rowdy 70th bday party. Our waiter was Robby and he rocked. We had 3 children and they had kid menus, crayons and a treasure chest of toys. We all felt taken care of.

Hands down the best place for hiking in the world. You need a couple of days to really see it all. Consider camping at cotillion camp and rv for easy access to the park

Always a fun time here, great food and beverages, good music, and comedy in Sunday nights too.

Fine spot for quality american food. Got there about one, it wasn't busy. Definitely worth going back to.

Great view. Excellent service and the food was good too.

We went for my birthday because a friend invited us for happy hour. We ended up being there over two and a half hours and only got seen by our server a few times because she had tables all over the restaurant, and couldn t keep up. The food was cold by the time we got it. She came to the table over 15 minutes after we got there, and that was only because I stopped another server who was attentive to her tables and our server saw, and rudely told me should be with us, shortly. We got our drinks about 10 minutes after she took our order, and then by the time we got our food, our drinks were gone. Had the service been better, we would have ordered a lot more. I would like to go back for the view but that is about it. I think the food would have been good if it was hot, but I m not sure I want to give it another try. We ll see!

Just make sure u have good company and you'll have the best experience trust me. Just remember, Bring
Good Company

Clams where good the steak was mediocre at best. Services was okay.

Yummy food (as always) and great view of the sunset over the ocean... Excellent service.

Great food and views. Nice to watch the boats come in harbor while you eat.

The Shrimp and crab Louie is loaded with seafood. Excellent! I ate most of it, and took the rest home for dinner. The cardboard container is a smart choice. Styrofoam sucks.

Awesome location, with great food. You can't go wrong here!!!

Bar is open for food service. The bar is more like a casual dining area with a good crowd. Very welcoming. Not aware of the dining hours since I just got to the bar upstairs. I'm not an expert in capacity estimates, but the bar can fit 70-100 people... Service is VERY solid since they staff many people there. Calamari appetizer is great! They use steak cuts. And clam chowder everyday. Hella beer taps to choose from. I didn't drink one tho

We had a wonderful experience tonight from the time we walked in the door and said we had reservations, we were greeted with "Happy Anniversary". They said they were preparing a table for us by the window. Our waitress, Justine was wonderful, we couldn't ask for better service. She surprised us with a luscious dessert for our anniversary. It was a beautiful sunset, dinner, everything lovely for our 25th Anniversary. Thank you!

Terrible. Lies about prices online AND in person when confronted. After waiting 30 mins for a table, we were given a menu with COMPLETELY different prices than those listed online. Then when asked why, they said we should have gone to the upstairs "bar and grill" which they said has the same name. BUT it's actually called Breakside Bar & Grill. And the prices are still 50-75% higher than those listed online. Actually a $$$ restaurant. Don't be fooled. Food was gross.

Ending the weekend with Sunday night comedy is a Santa Cruz treasure. $7 will spoil you especially when you travel elsewhere and see how much comedy can be. I always treat myself to the salad bar which has so many options!

Unfortunately they were out of the mushroom ravioli which was kind of the highlight for me. However the salmon was excellent as was the cheesecake. Great attentive service and mostly good food means I'll likely come back on other nights with specials.

Note: I've been back a few times since and have been disappointed each time. Their menu and cooks seemed to have put out their best for restaurant week, but on a normal day I found everything to be a bit overpriced considering both the underseasoning, the preparation, and the portions. You can eat better on the wharf, or at Johnny's just down the road. Not looking forward to going back here, but won't refuse an invitation.

We absolutely loved our visit to the Crow s nest. My husband, parents and I went during lunch, and tried the sweet potato and walnut ravioli, cod, blackened chicken salad, and prime rib sandwich. Jesse served us with a smile, answered all of our questions and made us feel like we were his only customers. The view is picturesque, with a lighthouse in the distance and sailboats and kayaks on the water. I highly recommend a visit if you re in the area.

Have been here many times. Was very disappointed with this visit. The Crow's Nest is a traditional visit when I come to the San Jose area, but perhaps no longer.