King Crab
1816 N. Halsted

The Basics
Where you’ll find it: 1816 N. Halsted in the south end of Lincoln Park between Armitage and North Avenue. (312) 280-8990. www.kingcrabrestaurant.com

When it’s open: 11:30 a.m.-11:20 p.m. Monday-Friday; 11:30 a.m.-midnight Saturday; 11:30 a.m.-midnight Sunday.

Reservations: Accepted and recommended on weekends for brunch and dinner.

What you’ve heard: From the owners of Cy’s Crab House and Cy’s Steak House, which have stellar reputations. ... Great beer garden for summertime, as well as the type of specials most seafood restaurants shy away from. ... The only thing I ever heard was that they had good crab. Otherwise, I hadn’t heard too much about this restaurant. … I heard they have a great raw bar.

Visual Aids
First impressions: It was a cozy setting, and the host was very welcoming. It was a very nice venue, and you would assume a place that sells seafood would be a little pretentious, overpriced and give off a vibe of fine dining — which kind of worried me. However, it was the complete opposite; the minute I sat down, I saw a paper menu, and when I ordered my drink, it was in a cute plastic cup. It was very laid-back with good food, good prices and a fun staff. ... Overall, very visually appealing. … I noticed they had valet service, and they came right out to take our car. ... Great window seating in front, and an inviting U-shaped bar that is hard to pass without sitting down.

The atmosphere: Very relaxed vibe and cool seaside decorations that made me feel like I stepped off the beach or a pier somewhere on the coast. ... The scene was unpretentious and friendly. ... The raw oyster bar, visuals on the wall and the dark wood made me feel like I was on the East Coast. ... Some Jimmy Buffett music played in the background, and it was at a great volume, where it didn’t drown out conversation. ... It was not too crowded, which I liked but was surprised at, given their great Monday-night specials and how tasty it ended up being. … Low lighting and definitely a fisherman’s delight with all the mounted fish and crab decor. ... Good spot for both groups and couples.

The Experience
At your service: Service was fantastic. ... Our server was very personable, and our mai tais stayed full throughout the night. Appetizers and entrées were delivered to our table fairly quickly, which pleasantly surprised me considering that seafood sometimes takes longer to prepare. … Our waitress was a delight and very attentive to whatever we needed ... It was great to hear her stories of living in Nantucket and her love for Jimmy Buffett, whom she met there. We are fans too. … We got lucky with the street parking, but I would guess on a weekend, it could be an issue. The good news is King Crab offers valet service, which is always a good plan B. ... From the host to the waitress, they couldn’t have been friendlier, not to mention more knowledgeable of the menu.

Get your drink on: We chose mai tais, which were a very smart choice and very tasty. You can even keep the plastic cups that they serve it in. … $5 mai tais!! All night long!! ... They also have a good selection of beer, wine, a full bar and plenty of alternative island-type concoctions.

Menu variety and prices: They have every type of seafood you could want, not to mention a wide variety of other options like BBQ ribs, filet mignon, pastas and chicken. ... While we’d heard the steak and ribs were definitely worth trying, we couldn’t stray from their seafood specialties that included every kind of crab known to man (Alaskan snow, soft shell, king and dungeness), Lake Superior whitefish, salmon, twin lobster tails, crab-stuffed shrimp and jumbo sea scallops, among many others. ... It really is an extensive menu, covering soups and salads, hot and cold appetizers, desserts and dozens of entrée options, and they serve up a lot of combination plates, offering a hearty taste of several choices if you can’t decide on just one. ... Most salads, soups and appetizers fall in the $5-12 range, ribs and steaks were between $19-27 and seafood was reasonably priced, mostly in the $20-25 range. ... Don’t overlook a great list of daily specials.

Description of what you did decide on: The appetizer combo we ordered consisted of small fried shrimp, calamari and a crab cake. The calamari, although small, was delicious! I also really enjoyed the crabcake, which must be prepared right, and it was. It did not leave us disappointed. ... The lobster bisque was creamy and delicious. ... I opted for the special, which was the Alaskan king crab for $18.95 that was more than enough food. I found some room for it all next to my crabcakes, shrimp, calamari and lobster bisque. Also, make sure you order the garlic drawn butter for a dollar more. ... I ordered the Monday-night special (also a Tuesday-night special) — the Alaskan king crab. I’m always weary about ordering crab legs from places because I don’t think they will fill me up. But surprisingly, for what you pay, you get quite a bit. I actually couldn’t even finish all my crab, which shocked me! You also get a side of either fries, rice, broccoli or asparagus. ... After staring at the menu for about half an hour, I chose the ultimate seafood combo, which consisted of a half-pound of snow crab legs, half-pound of king crab legs, three fried shrimp and pasta marinara (for $31.95) — a perfect mix of food. ... A couple of us split a piece of key lime pie for dessert, which was sweet and had a great crust. Solid way to end the meal.

Something that caught your eye: I really liked the raw bar. That added to the entire seafood decor. It also made me feel like the food that was ordered was very fresh, which it was. … I liked the idea of the people seated at the raw bar enjoying each other’s conversations. Looks like a place I would like to belly up to on a Sunday. Maybe some spicy bloody marys with oyster shooters. ... The atmosphere made me feel like I was on the wharf in San Francisco or Boston.

What you’ll tell your friends: I’ll tell friends of mine what great food you get for a great price. It was definitely a hidden treasure. ... They have various specials during the week, which I would never have guessed because I assumed that only sports bars had weekday specials. On the contrary, if you want good, quality seafood, check this place out. I’ll be back! … I would tell my friends to go and try and make it to the all-you-can-eat crab legs on Sunday afternoon. ... Be prepared to have a difficult time making a decision on what to eat. Incredible variety. ... Try the beer garden on a summer evening.

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