Fish Chips Cafe - Monterey

Great place. I love that they have older, experienced waiters. They know what you want before you do. Clam chowder one of the best I’ve had. I got the seafood pasta clams, lobster, pasta, about $50 and more than I could eat. Wife had Sea Bass which she loved. Sat upstairs by the window and watched the seals play in the bay. Fun, enjoyable experience. We walked around, other restaurants were nearly empty. They definitely have the good reputation.

We enjoyed this restaurant so much we went twice! Wait staff was pleasant and efficient. The food was wonderful! The first night, I had the seafood risotto and my wife had the sea bass. Both were wonderful. We had key lime pie and NY cheesecake for dessert. Both were delicious. The second night we shared the Cioppino, which was out only negative. While it was delicious, at the $53 price, we had one clam and zero mussels, and the scallops were very tiny. Really good, but not great value. We also shared a beat and goat cheese salad which was delicious. Had the tiramisu for dessert...delicious! We would definitely recommend this place. Absolutely great food and service!

Get the clam chowder bread bowl at the stand outside of the seated dining room. We had that the first night on the wharf and it was yummy. Decided to check out the actual dining room the next night and it was a different story. Seemed to be quite the tourist trap. Huge portions, mid to low quality food, luxury prices. We only ordered entrees which as a restaurant worker I would almost never do if the place hadn’t immediately announced itself as a trap in the way it had. My partner had the grilled scallops which were inconsistent. The sautéed vegetables were the best thing on the plate. I had the linguini with clams which was decent, although the clams were not presented in shells and were chewy. I’m not for sure, but I think they were canned. Came out to about an $100 tab with the two entrees, soda and tip. I think you can do better on the wharf for less. Get the clam chowder on the stand next to the host station and post up on the wharf like we did the night before. Second night was a bummer experience.

I was just standing there. Not a hi or hello. The guy beyond the register did not even look at us. Bye!

After a disappointing seafood meal in Cambria, we decided to take a day trip up to Monterey for a truly awesome lunch. Once again, we chose our favorite restaurant, The Old Fisherman's Grotto, located on the wharf. It was Father's Day weekend and the place was packed, necessitating a long wait. When we finally got inside, we were seated in a comfortable upstairs booth. My sidekick Cookielee ordered her favorite large bread bowl full of their award winning Chowder. I chose chowder, tasty fried calamari, and an order of scallops with onion risotto. We absolutely love this restaurant. After lunch, we enjoyed the annual hot rod show. We'll be back soon for some more great chowder.