Moby Dick Restaurant
American, Seafood
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Location and hours
Location
220 Stearns Wharf , Santa Barbara, CA
(805) 965-0549
Hours
More details
Reviews
Overall rating
(251 reviews)
He explained the menu choice very descriptive and it tasted great.
Service was excellent, but the food is not what it used to be. Used to have the best lobster roll ever, and the seafood roll they have now is ok, kind of fishy, but can’t compare to the lobster roll they used to have. .
I have gone twice on Wednesdays and both times they have been out of Lobster by 6pm.
food was okay. asked for bread and keep telling us that it was in the oven, never got it.
food was okay. asked for bread and keep telling us that it was in the oven, never got it.
I think they best tacos in town and raspberrie margaritas
I think they best tacos in town and raspberrie margaritas
Food was excellent and the service was phenomenal.
Food was excellent and the service was phenomenal.
Food was excellent and the service was phenomenal.
Fantastic food especially the stone crab, shrimp and Manhattan chowder. Great service
The view was amazing but unfortunately the food was not the best. The menu was very limited. Bones in the fish, calamari over cooked,tough taste less etc.
Great service, great food at a decent price. Nice view of Santa Barbara harbor.
REally like the way they now make the fish grilled and will go back sooner because of it! Also the salad was much better.
Although they have shortened their breakfast menu a lot since I last visited, the food is good and the service is very good. Also, they view in the morning looking over toward the harbor and seeing the boats head out for the morning is GREAT!
Service by waiter was friendly but didn't come back to table after took order. Had to ask for bread water ect
Our waiter was great ! Brought our drinks right away. Food came fast and was very good. Nice view of ocean.
Four of us went there for a birthday breakfast. They did not seem to mind we stayed 2 hours! :)
My friend and I both ordered the Moby special shrimp cocktail and the clam chowder. Before we even viewed a menu we were enjoying some freshly baked bread and whipped butter. The cocktail was delicious, savory and very generously portioned. In fact, neither of us finished and wished we'd shared one instead. The clam chowder must be the Moby special as it was out of this world! Though I don't remember his name, the highlight of the evening may have been the waiter. He was very attentive and personable.
The food was alright but not worth the amount they charge
Very enjoyable relaxing evening. Good food, attentive waiter and entertaining background guitar music.
The atmosphere was so relaxing, the lobster bisque and fish-n-chips were excellent.
special fishcakes are great
Wonderful vew, good service
The corned beef hash is exceptional. Flavorful, lean and hearty!
Our server was excellent! The food was amazing and the lobster bisque was the best :)
food was very good
Food was OK to good. This was the third time in to use our coupon as we didn't read the fine print earlier attempts that you could not use the specials on the menu.
All the staff were very attentive
Food was good. Staff was friendly, but a bit in-attentive. We found ourselves having to flag them down several times after long waits.
Everything was great
Would have been "excellent", except our party was placed directly n st to a hug party of 15, and we had difficulty talking to one another.
Great crab and shrimp cakes. Fish and chips were fresh and substantial. Excellent service.
A tourist city and this is a tourist restaurant. Crowd was pretty noisy but enjoying a good time.
Husband got whole lobster instead of just the lobster tail he had ordered, then had to wait...
Our server was very helpful and a number of other service people showed up as well. We shared the boulliabaise and the lobster bisque soup. Both were good. We watched the sun set and talked for a long time. It was a very pleasant evening.
The menu items have changed since we last went, and what we ordered was in no way near as good as what we've eaten there before. We were very disappointed. The service was still amazing though.
Nice view from the seating at the restaurant. Enjoyed watching the sunset while having the wonderful dinner. The staff were very caring and the food was great. Visited from Bay Area and would love to go back in the future :)
Food was average and overpriced for the quality and quantity. I used to try salmon but the one served to me was to cooked and therefore not juicy. The place and views are awesome though
The New York 12 oz. steak with 1/2 lb. King Crab Legs was absolutely delicious and perfectly prepared medium rare! The service was wonderful, JUAN, our server took care of our every need immediately; he's also very personable. Debbie, the Manager on duty, stopped by, greeted and welcomed us and again took care of us. This restaurant has undergone some major changes and they are paying off nicely. It is such a pleasure to come here, enjoy really good drinks, eat delicious foods, interact with the staff, and as always, drink in the exceptional views of Santa Barbara harbor!
The food was ok but not as good as we would have expected from a Santa Barbara restaurant
We enjoyed our food! Had a great time!
Food is always great. Made a reservation on line and our reserved table was ready when we got there. Edgar was an awesome waiter. Very attentive and super nice even though they were quite busy.
just seemed expensive for lunch when we ordered only three meals. it looks like we should of just ordered on the to go menu
Great food and wonderful service to go with the amazing views.
Good great ... Service excellent
We were welcomed very warmly and escorted to our table right over the water. The fish Tacos were delicious and bread was fresh.
Just really didn't like the feel and they didn't have what I wanted on the menu. Food was average though service was decent .
Nice Place/View
Food was very average in taste and too expensive for the quality.
Nice fresh atmosphere in an older restaurant. Veteran excellent staff. Incomparable location on pier overlooking yacht harbor and breakwater, excellent food and service.
Always first rate service. Good food. We love the ceviche and the omelets are terrific.
Great food fried calamari is great with their Chipotle sauce and lobster bisque soup is awesome
Good view, good food, and nice waitress/server.
Nice restaurant, beautiful views.
The server Josafin was excellent. Professional and efficient. The oysters on the half shell were very fresh and tender. We had the crab and shrimp cake appetizer, which was superb.
Fish was u dear cooked, could not cut it with a knife. Told the waiter and he replaced one piece, eating the other pieces found another piece not fully cooked. Told the waiter but should have talk to the manager. Asked for more bread and he forgot. My pasta was tasteless, garlic bread, under cooked.
Staff was friendly, efficient, and attentive!!
The waiter was not attentive at all! He didn't seem professional at all. We had a better experience with the waiter that brought us the bread and water! When I made a reservation I specifically said it was my wife's bday and when I told the waiter about the restaurant.com voucher he seemed irritated and annoyed! Then he brought me the bill and I said do you do complimentary dessert for a birthday? I had to say it in front of my wife! He said yes we do. This was a horrible experience. The fish & chips my wife got was old and not fresh she enjoyed the appetizers more than her main entree! I will never go back! I had a horrible experience!
Great food and service
Service was prompt, polite, very personable. We had children with us. The waitress made sure their needs were taken care of as kids tend to get bored at restaurants. Their food came out fast which we appreciated.
Nice location but the food quality is so so.
Service was outstanding food was good enough to want to return again.
Nice location, beautiful scenery! Appetizers very good. Entrees did not have favor as expected.
Hard to find parking at this restaurant! We had to park far away and walk. At least it was a pleasant walk.
Food was great, really fresh. Service was also excellent.
The mussels were by far the poorest dish of mussels I have eaten in a restaurant. Broth was too salty, mussels were meaty but tasted old, not fresh. Poor, poor quality.
The view is the best in SB. The service was very attentive and food was good. I had the grilled salmon, baked potato, and clam chowder-all were very tasty. My guest had the bacon wrapped shrimp and baked potato and said it was very good.
Great food and GREAT staff, never had a dish I didn't love
The chef cooks the seafood perfectly every time!
The food and service are good. Prices may seem a bit high but the portions are quite large.
Everything was great but the when the check came there was an extra soup charge on the bill and my husband didn't notice it until we were home.
It's a wonderful place to sit and watch what's happening on the water. The service is always good and the food pretty good.
Best waitress I have ever had there and better service than in 5 star restaurants I have gone to
Fast fresh foodgreat staff
Great service. Food was very good.
Loved the view, and the waitress was very friendly
wine was watered down...fish was not fresh and tasted old. service was adequate, could have been more informative and friendly. can not recommend this restaurant for dinner, but I hear breakfast is much better.
The staff was very attentive
Food mediocre and over priced
Cod & shrimp skewers excellent...as were the crab cakes and calamari as appetizer. Also excellent a local white wine.
The pier restaurant was a fabulous Santa Barbara experience. I don't know which dinner was better, my husband's lamb chops or my fillet of sole special. We'll be visiting EVERYTIME we go to Santa Barbara!
Excellent breakfast and service. Better than My memory of the quality of my last meal ther...which was dinner, not breakfast.
This was an enjoyable experience. The view from the dining room overlooking the very active harbor is exceptional. The waiter was helpful and very understanding
Overall the food was good
Good food and good service beautiful view and lovely facility
We had three little ones with us and the food and service was so great that the whole experience was pleasant. We never felt rushed and the children also loved it. Not to mention the view during the sunset! Beatiful.
I had fish and chips. Lots of chips the fish was like fish that you buy frozen " the other two had pasta and they left half of it. Plus very expensive.
Service was bad and food was subpar.
Great service. Window table looking at the ocean and the breakwater. Good food. What's not to love?
WE ORDERED ONE SALAD FOR TABLE TO SHARE. SERVER BROT PLATES 7 MINUTES LATER. COULD ANTICIPATE THIS AND BRING PLATES WITH SALAD. IT NOT TOO HEAVY TO CARRY BACK TO KITCHEN IF NOT NEEDED.
Food and service were great , that's why we are regular long time customers from Santa Barbara .
Our waiter, Armando, was great and the ambiance and food were excellent.
Great staff. Everything cooker to perfection.
The staff was great, helpful,funny and timely.Thank you for a fun evening.
Great views,Awesome background Guitar player,Weekend Lobster Special!
Seafood was overlooked, tough and tasteless.waitstaff was attentive but offered no solution.Staff and management stood 15 feet away and socialized during entire meal within sight and ear shot but mgt never came to check on us though very few tables were filled.
Did not get what was ordered on first try. Manager was quite willing to try to make it right, however while waiting for the correct dish, the other food got cold.
food was not good, the people sitting next to us also told us the their food wasn't good either.
good service by jesus
Steven was a great server, prompt and courteous! Very nice young man.
The staff was smiling and friendly. The service was great and the food is soooo good...only one suggestion...hard to red little print on menu due to poor color choice of menu and small type face...waiter helped us! The food is really good!
Excellent waiter!!
The waiter was very slow. I don't know if they were shorthanded. He seemed overwhelmed.
Server said there was no spice in the sauce and it was loaded with spice which I do not like.
Nice atmosphere, good location
great view
great service great food great atmosphere
pretty expensive for lunch
The staff is always friendly, good service and the Manager in Charge is always so helpful with, always greeting people, menu, drinks.
The staff is always friendly, good service and the Manager in Charge is always so helpful with, always greeting people, menu, drinks.
Service was great, but food was a little cold.
Very good service.
Seating outside -gorgeous view
The food was delicious and came out hot. Signs of a good server.
Nice location, good food
Not only was the food terrific and the view from our table awesome, but we had a great server who went out of his way to take care of us and to make our little granddaughter feel welcome.
The young man who helped our server was very helpful and kind.
Great views and friendly staff
Food very, very dry and very, very, very salty.
The server was polite and made sure we had the items we ordered. The food was freshly prepared and served quickly. The atmosphere was upbeat and inviting.
great sunset from our window seat
top notch preparation and looked as good as it tasted
Food was very good & well presented
My steak was done just right
Fish and chips was just OK. But the lobster bisque was fabulous.
The food and service met all our expectations plus!!
Watching the sunset while enjoying our seafood dinner. Waiter helpful in getting a sample of Diablo sauce for me to try, and then getting the chef to put sauce on the side rather than sautéing with it. Food would have been too spicey for me. On the side was just right for me.
The only thing that was great was the service the food was terrible and crazy expensive
Our waiter Jorge was great!
Great server! Food was hot and good.
The server was great!!!The view was awesome....our dinner was yummy!! I had the Alaskan king crab legs and the steak!! It was cooked perfect and you could taste the quality of the steak.
Our server Nicholas deserves a shout-out! He was very knowledgable, attentive and friendly. We sat outside enjoying the beautiful SB weather with view of the ocean. We both ordered the crab and shrimp melt and it was delicious!! We will definitely be going back soon!
Food was great and the waiter was very friendly and knowledgeable.
Food horrible
Friendly professional employees Excellent service. Great food reasonable price and Clean
Food was good. Portion of salmon could have been larger. We were there after dark but view of harbor lights was still great. I would come back but we live in AZ and probably won't be back to the area.
Amazing service
the view was the best thing..everything else was mediocre
Well, I went with someone who commented this place being a "tourist trap", so bias might be inevitable. However I did feel that the server wasn't as enthusiastic, and I've had better seafood elsewhere. At least it was quiet the night we went there.
Great views and really on the ball busboys.
Armando was a great waiter. Seemed like bus boy served food and no verbal interaction. Would like Armando to serve food.
All staff very friendly and accommodating.
Good food ,great location,friendly servers. Would go again.
The view is exceptional, but the food was good, not great. The seasoned fries seemed frozen, would be nice if they were fresh and with less seasoning.
We went there for lunch. We were seated immediately. The waitress was attentive by not overly so, she refilled drinks often, asked us about the food and was very good.
waitress very slow, restaurant was not very busy. Our visit was midweek after lunch rush.
Canadian cod was excellent. Fish and chips not as good. Hard to understand waiter.
All seafood entree's are now a la carte pretty cheap if you ask me Al would never do this
The setting and service is always great for breakfast. Everyone in our group was happy and had not been there before, but surely will return.
waiter reminded us of our parking ticket validation
Wonderful views of the harbor and beach.
Great location with good food and service.
Shocked they don't have any TV's. We would have stayed longer, but there was a football game on and they don't have a single tv. Seems like a sports bar-type place.
Did enjoy the crab and shrimp cakes. The lobster was cooked just right. We enjoyed the ocean view. The service was very good and the staff friendly.
great location; friendly servers, receptionist and wait staff, food ok to good
Great service and fabulous food !
Service was great!
Atmosphere and seating was nice & peaceful with a great view of the ocean. Food was delicious , and the service was great!
I brought my friend who had never had lobster before so we ordered her the Maine Lobster. She loved her plate. However, to be honest my dish (shrimp, scallops, and chips) was not very good. I also did not care for the lobster bisque, it tasted bad and had a lot of imitation meat.
Great atmosphere and service.
Great atmosphere and service.
they know seafood
Perfect spot on the water. Good waitstaff. Fries are super yummy. Burger was delish. Fish was pretty good. Perfect place for lunch!
Good food. Spectacular views. Excellent waitstaff.
We wanted excellent seafood and we wanted to sit out on the water during sunset. This restaurant provided that for us.
Food and service was good. casual place to dine.
Great ambiance, view and customer service. We stopped by to celebrate my daughter's birthday while visiting Santa Barbara.
Location and view of the water was great . There were 4 of us and we all enjoyed our food. Our waiter was very attentive and we definite return.
Great place, great view
Clam chowder was excellent which made us feel food would be good. We were wrong. At best, both of our dinners were mediocre. Dessert was OK. Glad we didn't have to pay full price for this !!Waiter seemed that he was being bothered by a discount customer.
beautiful view, excellent service, great food
Sorry to say this b/c it has been years since we have eaten at this restaurant and wanted to try it again. Have to say it was one of the WORST meals we have had in Santa Barbara. We were surprised it is still there after so many years and has not gotten any better! Must be b/c it is a tourist trap. I am truly not normally so critical, and if our meal hadn't been soooo bad I would not even have bothered to comment. But really... "poor" is a "high" rating...
Great seafood.
Great waitress
Great waitress
the waiter and host were excellent and very friendly
Both the food and the service were good. The atmosphere was great, and they had some very interesting, and tasty, mixed alcoholic drinks. We'll go back if we're in the SB area.
Great Service !!!
jonathon was an excellent waiter
No one asked to re-fill my drink, not once. The wait person was, however, good in asking if she could validate my parking ticket.
Fantastic views, fantastic service, fantastic food!
we make a reservation the night before, got excellent seating with great view(unobstructed) of the harbor. the service was quick, good food and drink. prices were very reasonable for the area. would eat there again
Beautiful view of the harbor, table at the window as requested,excellent service, lobsters were to die for, prices not bad.
Good food great service
My son loved his vegetarian meal, my husband felt the ceasar salad with shrimp and added chicken was so-so, chicken was over cooked and dressing was blah. Service was great. We will go back.
The servers were very attentive and accommodating.
Our server Erica was terrific. Very professional and made great suggestions for our party. I would request her again.
Romantic place to have dinner on date or wife. They specialize in sea food. Great views of the Santa Barbara Coast on the Wharf man's pier.
Overall, food quality was poor. Also, poor timing (they delivered the appetizer with our salad/soup), then literally 1 minute later our dinners came out.
servers were friendly
Service was wonderful. Our server did not make an issue about taking the gift certificate and made it a point to note that gratuity was already included even though knew and meant to leave additional tip.
The fresh fish selections were varied and delicious! The ambience on the water was perfect. The wait staff (Enrique) took care of our every need and more!
The fresh fish selections were varied and delicious! The ambience on the water was perfect. The wait staff (Enrique) took care of our every need and more!
Great food at reasonable prices and excellent service.
It was a monday about 6pm seated quiclky, nice window view. Waiter was quick, polite and checked on us several times. Food was hot and good. Good dinner specials and extensive selection.
Wonderful food, reasonable prices and good service.
Very enjoyable experience! Service was great and so was the food. Would diffidently go again.
The food was just ok and the service was terrible. There were only 3 people in our party and we were there for 2 hours. We had to wait a lkng te for everything. It took our server 15 minutesto bring us the bill and we asked for it twice.
Great ambiance, service and food!
Very good service, fabulous view
Nice location and atmosphere. One of the 2 meals was good, the other was a bit dry. The waiter seemed a bit disinterested, but ended up taking pretty good care of us.
Service was cheerful and on the spot.They immediately returned with any requests and also refilled the kids' drinks before we asked. The food was quite good-fresh seafood.
Prices are high considering there is no table linen. Basically one pays for the view.
It was a wonderful experience. My husband and I celebrated our 36th anniversary and the staff really made us feel special. We got amazing service in English as well as Spanish and that just made it much more comfortable for us. We will be going back!
$24.95 lobster WOW!!
Awesome location/view/ambiance! Great food & service! Day or night ~ good selection!
Employees were very friendly and the view is amazing! Food is great too!
Jonathon did a tremendous job in taking care of us. The venue with its view was wonderful.
Aside from sitting next to a screaming child, we had a great experience. Might want to dedicate sections for families with children so adult patrons don't have to be subject to unruly kids.
All 4 in our party enjoyed the pleasantly presented and tasteful food.
wait staff was accommodating and fairly prompt.
good food at reasonable prices in a lovely setting. Happy Hour is an especially good value.
Price of food higher than advertised. Discount not available as advertised.
Not only was it a bad dinning experience, the room smelled. This place needs work!
good food good service!
Everything was excellent! The lobster bisque & the crabcakes were sooooo good! And we really enjoyed the half price clams & mussels at happy hour too!!! Don't change a thing!
When I first came to Moby Dick I was 15 to which later my parents took me there again for my 16th birthday I loved the restaraunt and have been excited ever since to visit again soon. Years later I decided to spend a special evening with my boyfriend for our one year at Moby Dick. The service was great but I specifically asked for my meat to be cooked medium-well, explaining that the blood in the meat makes me feel sick. Not only was the meat brought out to me cold along with the mashed potatoes, but also was medium rare. From that point on I question the amount of thought that is being put into actually cooking the wood rather than the reputation built in the place.
Food was cold and unimpressive - very disappointing.
Very pleasant experience
Service was pretty good, but food did not seem fresh and shrimp was very fishy.
Good restaurant and you cannot beat the view!
NY steak was awesome,vegitables were ok, the baked potatoe was good, the lobster bisk was excellent my son said. the waiter ( even though he didn't give his name, and it was long...Evendeer?) was very nice, and polite would recommend him to assist us in the future.
I visited while on vacation. The food was okay, nothing spectacular. The view was beautiful!
The only negative was the salad. It was lettuce (gourmet lettuce) with a few croutons. Very plain. Easy and cheap to upgrade a salad.
A very good experience - we have visited this restaurant twice since this first visit
My food was served luke warm, I like it hot.
The food quality is ok but not nearly worth the price. The staff is ok but don't really add to the dining experience. There are many better places to eat in town.
Our food was great and the view was so pretty! Our waiter was attentive, and made sure we had everything but was all business and barely smiled...he wasn't very friendly, but did take good care of us. All in all, we had a great time.
Great location with good service. Really need to rethink the menu and food quality.
We had the lobster special--it was great. I think it's a shame, however, that the lobster wasn't served with even a very small amount of (real) butter would have been so much better than a large bowl of fake buttery oil. The baked potato, veggies, and clam chowder were all very good.
the filet mignon was dry and tasteless
Our food server was EXCELLENT! Thank you Moby Dick's for a wonderful lobster dinner!
Service was great. Loved the atmosphere and being able to watch the activities on the water. The only dish that wasn't great was my grilled teryaki chicken with rice. It was good, flavorful and cooked right. But for these prices, I expected something a bit more special. And the rice didn't really compliment the chicken, in my opinion.
Atmosphere was good, the restaurant being on the wharf. Although the menu focused on fish, etc., my entree appeared to have been pre-cooked or frozen and 'refreshed'. Sorry, no cheers for this place. Tourists beware.
Beautiful place toeat
Sitting by the window and watching the pelicans at sunset was entertaining.
our server was great and we would go back and enjoy the resturant again thank you
Great views of the pacific ocean if sitting by the window. Laid back atmosphere with quality service. Tasty food (i had the roundcut steak) made to your liking. Would dine here again!
Table and view was nice. Waiter tried hard. Food was mediocre at best.
The lobster was tasteless. My husband said it was like eating air. The soup was very good though.
We are on vacation and are trying to use your certif. Helps keep the costs down.
We enjoyed our visit very much!
This is the third time we have visited Moby Dick. It's always a fun evening with great food and harbor views.
they recognized the rest.com coupon even though it was Sat night and that was a blackout evening. I had called in the morning and a person onn the phone said they would allow the coupon to be used. Although the coupon clearly said they would not, they stood by the person on the phone and honored it. We were on cacation in Santa Barbara and would not be back anytime soon. Very honorable.
Friendliness was average. Food was very expensive for the quality. We had the platter for 2 for $29.99 and it was ok, nothing more. It was too much fried food. Would of been nice with a side salad or something else not fried.
The fish & chips where just o k
The wait staff was EXTREMELY nice, especially to my kids, which I really appreciate. My son was a little tired and loopy from the day, and they didn't seem the least bit annoyed. made my night. THANK YOU!
I would definitely not recommend this restaurant to anyone unless they are only interested in going for drinks. The bread served before the meal was very good, however it ended there. This is very unfortunate since the restaurant is at a prime location.
The food Oder was placed wrong. They gladly accomidated and repressed our food.
Server was excellent and very patient with the young children in our group.