The Fish Shack Restaurant

Food is hot and fresh. A bit of a wait but so worth it! Friendly staff and right on the water! Will come for the vibe again!

NOW A TOURIST TRAP RIP OFF WITH LOUSY FOOD
This place changed from excellent to terrible
We first had the CLAM CHOWDER - Chowder with nearly no clams !!
Wife had the CHICKEN DINNER with a VERY SMALL PIECE OF FLAVORLESS CHICKEN.
I had the LAZY LOBSTER dinner - It contained shredded pieces of lobster that was 60% bread crumbs - Not one piece of a LOBSTER - ALL SHREDS - Might have had about 3 ounces of shredded crappy lobster
The best part of the meal was the rice !!
AVOID THIS PLACE !!!!!!!!!

My party showed up on a Friday evening and when we got there, the room was pretty bustling. Our waitress was friendly enough, but a bit short with our table. Our orders came to us very quickly. The food wasn't much to write home about. Not bad, not great. I ordered the plate of fried haddock and it was exactly that. Fried fish nuggets, french fries, cole slaw. Tartar sauce came in a little plastic cup that made this feel extra like it was a tourist spot. And that's what it really is, it's a tourist restaurant. It didn't blow my socks off but it did its job while we were in town.

Average everything. Lobster roll was good but the clam chowder was average. Stuffed clams were average. Servers were nice though.
View is nice. Priced for the location not the quality of food.

no, sorry. i really wanted to be happy here. the fried haddock was neither fresh nor well prepared. boiled lobster was overcooked. these are not complicated dishes to do well. this service was fine.

On a cold fall day, I stopped in, my first visit to Rockport in 20 years. I took a seat at the bar and ordered a local IPA. It was the 1620 from Ipswich, absolutely fantastic to the point that I ordered a second. I figured I would just get some seafood, only an appetizer. I saw the fried clams and asked for an order. The menu said they were market price, I guess I should have asked. They cost 29 freaking dollars! Yes I got a large plate, but for that price, I expect a lot more than just clams.

Out and about last week, we needed a bite to eat. The Fish Shack is conveniently located at the beginning of Bear Skin Row. The ambiance is casual and almost divey, but we liked the no-nonsense atmosphere. Greeted right away and seated close to windows to overlook the water. Tap water was handed out, and uh, no thank you, none of us could drink it:( One person opted for a cup of clam chowder to start, which was decent consistency. However, it needed some more flavor to make it stand out. Two opted for the fisherman Rueban, and they both said it was very good and finished their plates. My aunt chose the fish tacos and said they were good. I had the fried shrimp tacos, and while they were stuffed full of shrimp, the shrimp was overcooked and not seasoned at all, sigh. Everyone enjoyed the fries, crispy, hot, and seasoned just right. We all opted for beers and cider; these prices were nice and cheap for the drinks, and I loved that they had canned cider as an option for me. Service was ok. Would I come back? Probably not.

We stopped by here for lunch during our day trip to Rockport. We were seated fairly quickly despite the full house. I was relieved to see a charging outlet near our table because my phone battery was running low due to the long ride over + sightseeing!

I ordered the Calamari Plate ($17) but you have the option to get the basket-sized version of it as well for $14. The Plate consisted of a huge helping of breaded calamari, coleslaw, and tartar + cocktail sauces. I thought the calamari was just okay. They were nicely breaded, not too crispy + not too chewy, and tasted quite fresh. The portion was massive-- I couldn't finish it! However, the calamari definitely lacked flavor and was actually quite plain even though I used the two sauces. I would've appreciated some seasoning, herbs, spices, and some on there salt for sure.

The service was very prompt and friendly. I liked being able to look out into the water for some nice sightseeing while dining!

Good casual seafood restaurant by the water. The place is very popular so come early for good seats. As they do not sell hot lobster rolls I ordered the next best thing, the lobster mac and cheese. The dish was great and had plenty of lobster. Service was fast and very friendly. This is a good place to visit when visiting Rockport in the summer.

The lobster pasta is outstanding! We also had clam chowder and baked haddock. Both very very good. Our waitress was super friendly and very efficient. The dining room has a great view. There were lots of families, so if noise is an issue for you, you might wish to go elsewhere. It's a very casual spot but the food is a bit more upscale than the atmosphere would suggest.
We also came back and enjoyed the bar on another occasion. Good drinks, decent prices, and they have some cards and other games available to play while you're sitting there.