The Oyster Bar and Grill serves passable food with a hefty price, but at least the beer is cheap.
After entering the frigid restaurant, we took our seats and ordered a pitcher of beer for $7.50, definitely a fair price. After the waitress brought out the beer, we ordered our food: raw oysters in a half shell, fried shrimp with french fries and hush puppies, and crab cakes with french fries and coleslaw.
When the food arrived, everything but the oysters seemed like they were bought in the frozen section at a local grocery store. Like they say, you eat with your eyes first, and this meal didn’t look very appetizing.
For starters, the shrimp didn’t stick to the breading so as soon as I put the food in my mouth, the fried crustacean fell right out of the breading as though it was running for its life. When I order fried shrimp—or fried anything for that matter—I want breaded shrimp, not shrimp with fried bread crumbs on the side.
The crab cakes were disappointing, and resembled the shape of a hockey puck. They were too perfectly shaped to be fresh.
The oysters were what you would expect from “fresh” seafood in Wichita Falls. It’s nice if you love oysters and have not had them in a long time, but don’t expect quality, just a quick oyster fix. The cocktail sauce, while tasty, was the standard “seafood ketchup” one would find anywhere else. The horseradish sauce was a bit more unique, but again, standard fare.
I paid $18, a little steep for the quality of food we were provided. The restaurant was clean and our service was great, but I expected that since there were hardly any customers.
At 7:30 p.m., this restaurant and bar should have had quite a few people in there, but it had nine. While it was a Monday, the waitress told us with new restaurants opening in the area, business has slowly been declining.
I would recommend getting the fried catfish or a burger unless you are just dying for oysters. This restaurant seems to be hurting for customers, and if that’s the case, upping the food quality might be a good place to start getting more hungry eaters in the door.
4214 Kell W. Blvd
(940) 689-0774
2 stars
