Interesting decor from the ‘60’s/70’s. Pleasant service, but like with many younger wait staff the no-smile, flat affect can be perceived as grumpy or uninterested. The food was acceptable. The sautéed veggies were actually amazing. Two things kept this from being a stellar dining experience. 1) the Diet Coke tasted very sugary like lines had been mixed up or because it was just plain coke. 2) the shrimp was nicely done but had a taste of stale, over-used oil. A little more attention to detail and this would be a lovely dining establishment.
Very disappointing. Service was good but food was pretty bad. Chargrilled oysters were over cooked. Crab bisque tasted okay but the texture was not good. Red beans and rice was decent. I had The Fat Boy poboy and it was terrible. Bread was stale and the filling (shrimp, oyster and crawfish) was all fried and tasted like nothing. Wife had the shrimp and grits. They were rich and salty but had no depth of flavor, just blah. Grits were old and clumped together like they had set for a few hours, at least. Just a dated restaurant with sub par overpriced food. Won’t be back.
So glad I came to this restaurant the food was fanatic! I got the Cajun blackened catfish with sautéed spinach, it was so flavorful. I would definitely come here again.
We've been eating at Half Shell quite regularly for years, and to be honest, had been getting a little tired of the same old menu (they'd only done one menu revamp in the past decade, I know). The food was unpredictable, and things just weren't feeling as good any more.Well!Last Sunday evening we had absolutely YUMMY, FRESH, HOT, FLAVORFUL food, delivered exactly right (by the ever awesome Matt Doyle). The prices have increased, but to get this kind of quality in a place that doesn't require fancy dress and isn't filled with a bunch of loudmouth snobs, I'm completely ok with it. I hear it's a new chef? Whatever it is, y'all just keep doing it, and we will see you again soon!
Have been to S.Mendenhall Half Shell several times. If you have a nonexistent palate you’ll love the food. If, however, you have a true, delicate palate you hate it. The food (all of it) is too peppery and way too oversalted! You’ll leave with your tongue wondering wtf happened! The service is sometimes good and sometimes bad. I wouldn’t know if they have dessert because it’s never been offered. Once you “eat” your check is down. Period. Don’t go!!
If it was not for our server MJ and the Grilled oysters we had, my ranking would have been a two star at best. MJ did a good job taking care of us. During our meal she made suggestions and was tentative. The Grilled oysters were very goo, but they served them with saltine crackers and not bread. For those of you who know grilled oysters, understand why bread needs to served and not crackers. My wife's Shrimp Po' Boy was not very good. The shrimp were overcooked and the bun they used for the sandwich tasted stale. The mushrooms she ordered came straight out of a can. My Catfish Pauline was very bland. For the price of this meal we had, it was very underwhelming. I really wanted to like this place, but to be honest, I did not.
My experience was terrible. They didn’t give me enough noodles in my pasta so it was like I was eating soup. I asked for more noodles and they said that it would be an up charge. I said never mind I don’t want it anymore. The manager said she didn’t see anything wrong with my food so I had to keep it. The server had a nasty attitude. He barely checked on me during my time there. I wouldn’t waste my time or money there ever again.
I arrived to pick up order and was disgusted by my peek into area leading to kitchen! It is filthy. There is a sign as you enter that there will be a 18% tip on all pick up orders after 4 p.m. That was fine as I expect to tip the staff. However, after looking at my ticket I saw that I was charged 18% of not only my order, but it included $.25 to go order charge, and a $2.07 tax, so actually I was paying over a 20% tip. Tips should only be calculated on the price of the food, NOT other charges and tax! To top it all off, the waitress brought me a charge statement to sign that had a place on it for the tip, which I ignored as the tip had been included. Additionally, the fried onion rings and shrimp were so heavily coated in a soggy crust that it was almost impossible to bite off a bite and eat. I realize that sitting in a to go box can make fried orders that were once crisp soggy, but the onions were cut easily in 2 inch wide slices and were never going to be crispy. Way too large. Whole meal was a disappointment.
I’m only giving this 5 starts because of our bartender, Jessica Hughes. She was laid back despite the volume of customers and the new staff she was dealing with (she has been here for 20+ years). Then this bartender came in an 1-1/2 early, told her to turn down the Grizzlies playoff game (first one in 5+ years), and was not polite. He told the customer to quiet down (his name is Chris) and said it was a legal issue. I find this ridiculous that in support of a local team making the playoffs to tell your customers to quiet down.This review is for Jessica and for how much she has to deal with. Chris was a bartender from a different location and came in early then told her how to run her bar. None of the customers had an issue and most of us were sitting at the bar to watch the playoff game. Jessica, we are here for you.
Thr food used to be better. I ordered the gumbo and it was too thick. Needed a loose consistency such as extra broth or heck, water. The salmon cakes are very dry. My drinks were basic, nothing fancy or overpoured. I'd recommend going at night vs. for lunch. The bartenders are better.