It's Tradition!
Having enjoyed many Daytona 500s we never miss the opportunity to dine at Shells in Daytona Beach. Try the Godfather's Pasta, white wine, olive oil, butter with seafood over spaghetti! It's not on the menu, but they will prepare it for you if you request it.    [16 Jul 2003 09:13:08]

Food:    Service:    Ambiance:    Overall: 
Recommended Dishes: Godfather's Pasta

     ­Anonymous   

Dinner from Hell
My experience started out bad and got progressively worse. Ten of us were to meet at Shells at 5:30 for dinner. My lady friend and I got there first, around 5:15 and told the hostess that there would be 10 for dinner. She asked if we were all there and I told her the other 8 wold be here in about 10 minutes or so. She told me to let her know when they were all here and then she proceeded to ask for the next party. When she returned I asked her if we could be seated and she told me no so I asked for the manager. The manager also told me that we had to wait for the entire party to be present before we could be seated, even though half the restaurant was empty and I could see where they set up our table. When the rest of our friends arrived, my 75 year old mother and father included, we finally got seated. I was determined not to let this ruin my night. The waiter, Marty, came to take our drink order and I ordered a carafe of cabernet savignon. When Marty came back with the other drinks he advised me that they no longer have carafes of wine, even though it is on their menu. I then ordered a bottle of Eco Domoni from the menu. Marty once again told me that they didn't have this wine so I asked for a glass of water. While Marty was delivering the other people's drinks, he spilled one of the drinks on one of the kids. The soups and salads were delivered next and we asked for bread with the salads. Marty must have forgotten the bread because he didn't deliver it until after we received our entrees. Anyway, Marty delivered the entrees and asked if we needed anything ele. We told him we would like the bread, catsup for the french fries and some grated cheese for the pasta dishes. Marty returned with the bread and catsup but no cheese. At this time he asked how the food was and my lady friend informed Marty that her food was cold. Marty took the food back to be reheated and 5 minutes later he returned with my lady friend's food. My mother then inquired about the grated cheese which Marty had to make another trip to retrieve. Above my 75 year old father was an air conditioning vent that dripped on the table next to him throughout our stay. When we told Marty about this he said there's nothing he can do about it to position himself so he doesn't get dripped on. After all of this Marty then had the nerve to add a 15% gratuity to our check. I asked Marty to take of the 15% and he told me that parties of 8 or more automatically received a 15% gratuity and that this policy was stated on the menu. I then made a smart remark to the effect of I finally get something off the menu and it's the tip, could I please see the manager. As the manager was taking the tip off my check Marty asked me three separate times if anything was wrong with the service. Not wanting to get into an argument, I declined to comment. By the way, I did leave a 10% tip, not my usual 25%. As a local that dines out two to three times a week, I will never go to Shells again. Oh, one more thing. I asked the manager for the phone number of the District Manager. I called him first thing yesterday morning and left a message with a secretary at the office about my dining adventure. I haven't heard from him yet, go figure.    [17 Jul 2003 07:20:06]

Food: -   Service:    Ambiance:    Overall: 
Recommended Dishes: Go to Inlet Harbor, Down The Hatch or even Red Lobster

     ­Mike   

This guy is nuts...
I love this place. The food is great and so was the service all three times we went. First off EVERY restaurant waits until the whole party is there to seat the guests; that is why there are chairs in the lobby. Second EVERY restaurant puts an automatic 15% gratuity on a party of eight or more because it is very dificult to serve such a large party. Obviously this person has never had to wait tables at $2.17 an hour. That's what servers make you know. As far as no longer serving wine and not being seated with two people there and the air conditioner dripping; please explain to me how that is the server's fault? It seems to me this guy is just looking for a free meal. So the server forgot your cheese sounds to me you had him running back and forth to the kitchen a thousand times for things that weren't his fault at all. Then you're going to short pay the server for forgetting cheese. That is ridiculous but whatever! I love this restaurant, we eat there at least twice every time we are in town and have never had such a hard time. Perhaps this guy should learn the fruits (love, peace, patience, and kindness) then perhaps his dining experiences will be more enjoyable from now on.    [18 Jul 2003 12:16:12]

Food:    Service:    Ambiance:    Overall: 
Recommended Dishes: Clam Chowder; Snow Crab legs; Crab cakes

     ­Jennifer Suttle   

Great Food and Service!
I have enjoyed eating at Shells.    [11 Sep 2003 14:10:09]

Food:    Service:    Ambiance:    Overall: 
Recommended Dishes: Crab Cakes

     ­Anonymous   

If you want a tip earn it!!!
During a recent vacation we decided to check out Shells. Unfortunately, the waitress was not as excited about our business as we were of our visit. First of all we had a party of 12 (7 of which were children). We asked that if we could not all be seated together that we would settle for children at one table and adults at another. The waitress informed us they couldn't do that even though there was an empty table next to us. So, consequently one adult had to sit alone with a table of 7 children. I must note that although this upset me a little I was was more upset by the waitress' bad attitude. When we tried to explain how the three checks were to be separated, she made a mistake and while standing in front of the children's table she says "!hit". Ok, I'll let that ride, but then when I ask for a bowl of chowder to go (because I thought it was delicious) she says *amn! now I have to re-do the ticket. I'm sorry for enjoying your food, and even sorry that I made you do a little extra. I was under the impression that was your job. Well we all leave additional tips (15% added), because we recognize that wait staff make their money through tips, but can wait staff realize that they get their tips as a sign of appreciation for good service? Note to waitress (middle aged woman with young hair style)...be good to customers and they will be good to you and whatever you do don't curse in front of children!!!    [11 Apr 2004 23:17:38]

Food:    Service:    Ambiance:    Overall: 
Recommended Dishes: Shrimp Pasta and Clam Chowder

     ­Chrys   

Great Seafood
I live around the corner from Shells, and stop here occasionally for lunch, or a dinner to go.

They usually feature a deal on the "catch of the day" and their standard menu choices are generally excellent. Some of their sauces are a little exotic for newbies, and they usually will offer a substitute if a sauce is not to your liking. I generally find the staff and management very accommodating.

Working in the hospitality industry myself (hotels), I find that some customers are happy, only if they can COMPLAIN all the time [rolleyes].    [05 Aug 2004 14:19:12]

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Recommended Dishes: Steak and Shrimp Dinner

     ­George Miziuk, Daytona Beach   

Excellence near the beach!!!!!!!!
Dinner from hell?? Hell no.... Crab, Mussels, Whitefish, Chicken and Calamari was fantastic. We went in not knowing a thing about the place and the server explained and answered questions about the food with great detail. The server was very informed and friendly. Everything was clean. The food came fast. We enjoyed it all until the last bite. On top of everything, on the way out we had 4 or 5 different servers and hosts, say thanks for stopping in. All in all a great meal.    [08 Jan 2005 21:16:00]

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Recommended Dishes: All of the above

     ­Mike Loud   

Totally Awesome!
My husband & I ate there almost daily while on vacation for 5 days. We loved everything, the food, atmosphere, service, etc. We especially liked the conch fritters, yummy!    [28 May 2005 22:54:41]

Food:    Service:    Ambiance:    Overall: 
Recommended Dishes: conch fritters

     ­Sandy Crabtree   

CANNOT GO WRONG
...Having been a shells customer since the first stores in Tampa I can say you just can't go wrong. Every time I am in Daytona I stop in. Last Saturday the Pepsi 400 was in town. I was fortunate enough to be seated next to a party of four that (1) could find nothing right with anything and ran their server ragged. Nothing but rude comments, why didn't they just leave? And (2) had a great meal with a wonderful server (Jackie). Having been "run over" for several days by race fans I think the restaurant did a great job of keeping the place clean and still friendly...atta girl Jackie!!!    [06 Jul 2005 19:58:43]

Food:    Service: -   Ambiance:    Overall: 
Recommended Dishes: KING CRAB LEGS

     ­JERRY MARTIN   GRTSCOTT69 at AOL dot COM

Great place
I have been there 8-10 times over the years while vacationing. Great food at very good prices. It is a family-oriented casual restaurant in a good location.    [05 Mar 2007 06:06:58]

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Recommended Dishes: Mahi-Mahi

     ­Scott , Evansville, IN