Sea Ranch Restaurant

We found this place about 4 years ago and return every year. Calamari is tender and flavorful. Order the crab fingers, they are served hot with garlic, lemon and butter. It's not on the menu as an appetizer, but they have it. It's served with bread to dip into the yummy garlic butter that is left after you finish the crab fingers. they have a kids food and drink menu. An extended wine list and cocktail menu. Part of the restaurant sits on the dock area to look out at the boats and fish in the nearby waterway. They have always been detail oriented and service is excellent. Main dishes are good and your portions are hearty.

Loved the artwork and sculptures in and around the restaurant! Food was delicious, service was friendly and professional. We had a nice view of the marina. Great nice dinner out on vacation. This was our fancy dinner for the trip, it was excellent.

This is our go to for our birthdays and anniversary. The staff are attentive, and go the extra mile for our special dates. The fish specials are always great but the snapper is a buttery delicious favorite and my husband a land lover has enjoyed the tenderloin burst with flavor and melts in your mouth. The plate presentation is excellent, the salads and bread are so fresh and the crème brûlée is the best ever. Enjoy the beautiful sunsets off the docks and stop and look and the fun jewelry too! And take a piece of key lime pie home. That’s great too!

Turn right after the causeway for a delicious dinner. Huge selection of fish and seafood. Imaginative combinations. Good wine list. Prompt friendly service. Poke, cerviche, and seafood enchiladas were all perfect. No room for key lime pie 😞 This is a LOUD restaurant... go early if you want to talk to your dining companion.

we went in for my wife's birthday and food was exceptional. I ordered the cedar plank salmon and my wife the sea food enchiladas. Cocktails were good and service was great. Props to all the Chef and staff our visit was awesome😋

I had the filet mignon ordered medium. The steak came out and looked a bit mangled, like an animal was playing with it beforehand. It had absolutely no seasoning and it was very dry. As I started eating a 1/4 of the way through, the steak was rare to medium rare. I kept going but halfway, the steak was just pure rare. Ultimately I had to send back to get cooked a bit more. I would not recommend the steak there. My wife had the scallops and clams, which she enjoyed.

The grouper was really great and my wife had the Pirate Dan platter with snapper, shrimp and scallops. She really raved about it. We have come here for many years though we live elsewhere. The food is always wonderful and fast and the atmosphere is great. We had never eaten upstairs and if it’s open, give it a try. Nice views, dedicated attentive staff and no blinding sun (in May anyway).very pleased. Thanks Alexis for helping us have a great meal.

It is always extra treat come here when visiting South Padre! The seafood is phenomenal and so tasty. Martinis are always on point. Oysters Rockefeller has to be the best here! Service is always so great! I will come back for years to come.

Very good inside view cool gift shop a little plane on outside but they were very kind upstair is closed really expensive food but starter bread is so good Service is really good and nice oisters areso go food soo good!!

First of all I've been to SPI many times and have never tried this place. We decided to have dinner here on our final night and wow. This place is amazing! The filet is so tender and flavorful, the soups are amazing, I don't think you could go wrong with any of the menu options here! The service is the best I've seen - servers are refilling drinks as fast as you can drink them! It is pricey but worth every penny! The decor is wonderful and the staff are unbelievably polite! Many wonderful photo opportunities for the family too! If you visit SPI please visit, definitely my new fav!

We ended up going here 2 days in a row. The in-laws loved their food the first night so if it had been our choice we would have not gone back, thankfully we did. The first night the waiter made multiple mistakes and we got the impression we were being rushed out. He forgot to bring my salad with everyone else's order, he forgot my father in law's drink, but the worse was not placing my husband's baked potato order without sour cream. The hubby hates sour cream so he couldn't enjoy his potato. Everyone who ordered shrimp enjoyed it. The red snapper had no seasoning and you had to use sauce. My husband was very disappointed with his steak. The waiter also didn't ask about dessert. The second night however the service was flawless! The hubby got the burger and enjoyed it. Again the shrimp was the best entree. I had the seafood alfredo which had a nice texture and the scallops and shrimp were great, however the crab is shredded so definitely recommend mixing it up in the dish. The artichoke dip was very tasty. This time we got desserts to go. The second night the waiter was able to completely change our opinion of the restaurant! My main takeaway is order the shrimp entrees!

I searched for a nice restaurant for my friend's 50th birthday. She loves filet mignon and crème brûlée so my search was going to be difficult as we were headed to an island. I chose the Sea Ranch as it was the only option. I thought it was fine dining based on the prices. It isn't. It is more of a tourist "turn and burn" concept. While our server was amazing - there was no "experience" with our meal. It was very robotic. In and out is their goal. Now to the food.....mediocre at best. We both had the tenderloin kabob and shrimp with scalloped potatoes and a house salad. The greens were good (mix of everything) and the dressing was fabulous. Obviously house made. The entree was disappointing. The kabobs are made from the tail end of the tenderloin and are chewy - full of gristle. The shrimp was amazing - like it was just caught and grilled. The scalloped potatoes were gross and that is being nice. COVERED in nasty breading with gobs and gobs of what tasted like processed cheese. So disappointed. Our server did ask what we wanted for dessert and my friend (the birthday girl) chose the key lime pie (what - we came for the crème brûlée). She said she was already disappointed with the entree and didn't want to taste bad crème brûlée too. Our server did bring the pie out on a plate that said "happy birthday." That was a nice touch. They still charged $7.99 for the pie. Not a lot of class shown in that decision. Do not recommend this restaurant unless you are coming for seafood. However, a guest at our hotel said he came here for dinner and had the scallops and was disappointed. His wife had shrimp and was happy. Our dinner (before tip) with two glasses of wine cost $95.23. I will not come back.

Solid choice. We hosted a dinner here with 29 in our party and they had us in and out in 2 hours. Efficient, attentive service and every dish was a winner! Large parties can be rough and they handled everything beautifully. They're an island institution for good reason!

Lovely atmosphere, great service and fantastic food! Scallops are my favorite and these totally satisfied!

Best place we ate at in S Padre Island. Service was great in the bar. The fish was excellent! We also had oysters and shrimp cocktail and it was excellent.

Great portion of food, I had the Pirate Dan's. It was a busy night but they seated us right away at the bar area since it was just the two of us. Waiter was available and checked on us frequently despite how busy it was.

Warm a family style place lots of seafood choices on the menu. Appreciate the wide variety inclusive of all the preparation styles with large portions. We started with the calamari and the shrimp Rockefeller which were both pretty solid. The marinara was warm and the calamari were lightly breaded with real pieces of meat. And the crispy bread for the shrimp Rockefeller was outstanding. Large portions of the apps too! Not pictured was the shrimp bisque which had good flavor but was like warm at best and could have used a shot of acid to op off however still solid soup. A friend and I split the private Dan blackened which comes with two sides. The snapper was fresh and shrimp were really good. Scallops were undercooked significantly. And both of us got the scalloped potatoes after a recommendation from the waiter. You could tell they should be good due to all the cream and cheese however one serving took a while to come out and when it did, those potatoes were not cooked through. And by a while, after I finished eating the meat. This was disappointing unfortunately. And another friend got the special which was flounder, shrimp, scallops, and veggies. Solid except scallops undercooked again. Staff was super nice and they were fast at refilling waters. I would think about returning but probably error on the side of the shrimp and request for things to be hot.

Me and my family have a tradition of going to Sea Ranch while we are on the island. We are never disappointed here and that continues. The service at Sea Ranch is great the staff is on it. I suggest booking a reservation because it can get busy. Inside of Sea Ranch is fancy but casual. The food is always great, we the special, mussels pasta, the seafood pasta, and chicken tinders. The food was delicious and steaming hot. Sea Ranch is a great place to go - I could not recommend it more.

Took forever to be seated and get a server. The whole place smelled. We walked out. Don't go.

This place is amazing, let me start with the food, we had to visit twice, and plan on coming back every chance we get, we had the steak, fried sampler, oysters, and sadly no dessert, we ate to much, my sons macaroni and cheese was so good, he left nothing behind Service was outstanding, this people know the business, and they do not disappoint. Ambiance was exactly what we have been looking for, a vacation to remember, the view, the restaurant is just a place everyone should visit at least once.

We waited over 30 minutes for a table only for another party, same exact breakdown of people, to be sat before us. The hostess was extremely rude and kept giving us dirty looks the entire time we were there. When I inquired once about how much longer, she was very disrespectful in her response. We left without even eating there since the other party was sat before us. Prices are also high. Do not recommend.

We had two really great meals at Sea Ranch. I would highly recommend going. The plates are shareable and delicious. If you are looking for great shrimp, this is your place.

This is the best restaurant in south padre! There will most likely be a wait, but there's a beautiful spot to wait right on the water. It was poppin even at 9pm. We got seated in the main dining area and had a lovely server. They serve complimentary bread and butter, but don't fill up on that! We started with peel and eat shrimp, and these were the biggest shrimp I've seen ever. I ordered the special of the evening and my husband had the General Hector plate. Everything was delicious and so fresh. The lobster cream sauce on the special plate was so sweet and creamy, it went perfectly on the fish and just about everything else. The creamed spinach side was delicious as well, it tasted like a spinach artichoke dip minus the artichoke. 10/10 we will be retuning every time we come back to the island. It's the perfect spot for date night, celebrations or just a nice dinner.

Had a very good experience at the restaurant today. The host said it would take forty minutes to get us seated at our table, but it only took two seconds. We had the fried red snapper and the shrimp boat. We also tried the Seafood soup, and the shrimp bisque. 10/10. Two adults and one child and we were full to the max. The server was very attentive and very friendly. She gave really good recommendations on the plates we should get. Super nice place, I don't like that there's rug instead of clear floor but there's a great view of some boats in the water. Highly recommend, I would definitely come again family friendly.

Disappointed in our dinner. Grouper was unseasoned & undercooked. Scalloped potatoes also needed more cooking (potatoes were limp). Snapper was undercooked, shrimps were mushy. Should have ordered it broiled. Pilaf was not, just rice, peas, carrots & beans. I've never had to add salt to rice pilaf. Did not finish even half the meal. The bread & salads were good. Service was lacking, soda & mostly ice for $5 & never asked if I wanted a refill. Way overpriced.

I met my family for Sunday dinner there last week. We were promptly seated at the time of our reservation. Service was quick and friendly. This menu hasn't changed much, and It doesn't have to because it's fantastic. Every single item we ordered was delectable, from the complimentary bread and butter, the wine and all entrees. Everything was fresh and tasty! This restaurant is a local favorite with great ambiance and fabulous views of the marina. Places come and go in South Padre, but Sea Ranch remains on top for a reason.

Visited SPI once in October and Sea Ranch didn't disappoint! Even when we returned in November we also ate again at the restaurant. Great location to view boats at sunset. Reservations were easy to make. We loved the service and the food was also great! Escargot- great starter Lobster and steak? - YES a must , sweet and meat was perfect! Lamb chops - perfection All the soups were delish! Definitely a go to when you're down in SPI!

Double dated here and had an excellent experience both with the food and service. The food was very good and the turbo piña coladas are most excellent. The oysters looked great the shrimp was great the fish dishes were had were all excellent. 0 complaints

Mussels were extremely delicious -- exquisite! The Alaskan king crabs were fabulous, properly scored, thoroughly enjoyed. And of course Gulf Coast Jumbo Shrimp delightful. All as expected from the Sea Ranch. The service, impeccable and even scored a recipe. The ambience is as always thoroughly enjoyable. We always visit when we're in the area.

For some reason we'd never eaten here during any of our previous stays - big mistake! We went on Tuesday (during December - off-season) and we're glad we got there at 5:00. We didn't have reservations but got seated immediately (another 30 minutes and that would NOT have been the case). So our waiter was Joe - hands down the best waiter/waitress we've had in a long time. He was personable, knew the menu and the food, had on-point suggestions, was attentive without being in the way! We started with the complimentary bread and butter - the bread was hot and fresh - crunchy on the outside and soft inside. For an appetizer we had the asparagus/spinach dip which was very good - creamy and flavorful. I had the Caesar salad and my wife had a house salad - both came on very chilled plates which is always a plus but rarely occurs. The salads were fresh and flavorful. While it's not hard to get a salad 'right' a lot of places can't seem to manage it - Sea Ranch did well. I had the Ahi Tuna which comes with Wasabi and soy sauce. I asked if they had shaved ginger and was pleased that they did. For my side I had scalloped potatoes. The Ahi Tuna was perfectly prepared - good sear on the outside and rare on the inside. The Wasabi was strong and flavorful as it should be and the ginger was thinly shaved - as it should be but isn't in the few places that have it. The Tuna was excellent. I'm not a huge scalloped potato fan - but these were amazing! The slight bacon flavor was superb and the potatoes were prepared very well - smooth and creamy underneath with a nice crispness to the top! My wife is not a seafood fan (I know, ironic given we were at Sea Ranch) so she opted for the chicken Alfredo. It looked really good so I had to taste some - wow! Great flavor. Pasta was perfectly prepared. Grilled chicken just right. Creamy and flavorful sauce. All of the potions were generous and since we wanted to try the dessert, we packed some of our food to take home. For dessert my wife had the Turtle Cheesecake and I had the Crème Brûlée. I'm not a fan of any cheesecake but 'New York' but my wife raved about the Turtle Cheesecake so I had to at least try it. Ok - I might actually order it when we come back next time - it was really good! The Crème Brûlée was exceptional. The top was perfectly caramelized and underneath it was smooth and tasty - very good. So - this was a huge 'win' all the way around. No waiting; exceptional service (Thanks Joe!); and really great food. We WILL be back!

Promised a steak dinner and searched restaurants in the area. Ultimately didn't get a full steak because seafood sounded so good. We were a party of 3 for my sister's birthday. For drinks we ordered Rum Runner and Long Island I-tea. Drinks were good but not verys strong. Drinks were $13 dollar each. Josue was our server and he did an excellent job of answering all out questions. Food: Appetizers we got Blooming Onion and Calamri. Both fresh, hot and not oily. We enjoyed both apps. Decision for dinner was tough. I really wanted a Ribeye but ultimately I got Surf & Turf selection (Beef and Shrimp Kabobs). For sides I got loaded bake potatos and seasonal veggies. Very flavourful dish and plenty of food. Beef kaboobs were tende r. 5 stars on this dish. My sister and mom got the Seafood Alfredo. They loved their pasta. I tried the sauce and noodles and very impressed with texture of noodles and creaminess of the sauce. All in all, would come back here. Rated 4 because decor was dated, and restaurant was cold temperature wise. Service was 5 stars and Food was 4 stars. In addition to Josue, a friendly server serenade my sister at the entrance with a birthday song.

We came back here as a party of six and discovered our favorite waiter Sergio was here. There was one little hiccup in the mixed drink menu where they say they have some drinks made with 151 Bacardi, but in reality that particular liquor has not been imported to the states since 2016. I did see that they use a 151 rum but it is not Bacardi. We all enjoyed our food choices although my wife's baked red snapper was not very good at all. The calamari appetizer was really very well done to perfection. For the money this was a three star food experience, but the service bumped it up a star.

Ate at the bar , had a great time. The bartenders are awesome. We ordered the dinner of the day. Red fish with a special sauce of side. That was plenty but it also came with shrimp and rice. Over the top dinner. A Lille privy but you will definitely love it.

I had the oysters Rockefeller for appetizer and the sea food enchiladas for my main. I wasn't digging the hard garlic bread that came with the oysters. Once they brought out the regular table bread, it was warm and soft. I wished they actually brought out that bread with my appetizer. I would of rather of had that than very hard crunchy garlic bread. The seafood enchiladas was great. It came with shrimp bisque soup. I will definitely come back if I'm in the area.

Service was super slow Escargot was bland and the reviews for the seafood quesadillas didn't quite live up the the hype The view was very pretty upstairs which was the primary reason for the 3 stars

Have been going to this restaurant for the past 10 years. It is one of the family favorites. Food and service are amazing!

Best happy hour on the Island for sure. Really great food! Service was excellent! Lori at the bar is so nice, feel like I have a friend, don't worry, I'll be back!!! Cheers, Flash

Always good food and great service... Our go to on SPI for a nice dinner. We Like their scallops and their oyster Rockefellers..

Delicious food. Service was good. $$$ with certain in season seafood. Prices not bad. I enjoyed it and would definitely come back. Scallops and rice pilaf were delicious.

Had dinner there last night n wasn't as pleased, as our last visit. I had the scallops and oysters Rockefeller which I had, had last time..not as good, not as large.. My scallops were a bit on the rubbery side, which tells me they were a bit overcooked ..still good, but just over done Additionally, I ordered a Dewars scotch and when the second one came, it was NOT Dewars....Hope it was just a mistake..the waiter took it back and the one he brought back, was a Dewar's... When I asked what happened, he said oh, different bartenders....sorry...ummm... Anyway, aside from that, the other dinners were great. Our friends enjoyed the fish n shrimp plates, which also came with 2 sides...the shrimp bisque soup was awesome...

Great dinner spot. On the water! We watched fish jump throughout the dinner. We started with appetizers of calamari and their charbroiled oysters. Both were excellent!! The calamari came with 3 dipping sauces and the oysters were cooked to perfection. We then split the seafood enchiladas. We normally wouldn't have gone that direction but the Yelp reviews pushed us that way. Also excellent!! You could taste the seafood along with the enchilada flavor. We're here for a month and will be back!!

This is a really popular and nice restaurant especially due to its second floor and how it's situated right off a pier. Parking was a challenge on the Friday evening I visited. Service was attentive but the food was just kind of mediocre. This is just one of those places where you come for the ambiance and view which was pretty nice situated right off the water.

Pros: 1. Comes with a view 2. Food comes out fast 3.the cutest gift shop 4. Sea food hands down the best. Words from my friends who devoured it. Cons: I'm not a fan of sea food but came for my friends since they wanted some. I had the burger which honestly had no flavor and kind of dry. Only had a couple bites. And it was $18. How ever the sweet potatoes fries where really good. 2. Our waiter only checked on us 3x to take our order, to give us our food and the bill. Thankfully another waitress came and gave us water and condiments. In my opinion I would not come back since I'm not a fan of sea food. But if you do love it you should go and check them out.

I went to the Island for my B-day. To do something a little special, I went to try Sea Ranch. It was a great choice! Watching the employees, was like watching a well oiled machine. They all worked together, it was nice to see. I had snapper, scallops, shrimp, and the Oysters Rockefeller. All delicious! At the end of the meal, they brought me a birthday creme brulee! A delightful experience w a view of the marina!

We live in Houston and when we come to South Padre Island, Sea Ranch is a must!! The food and service is always excellent. We started our meal with the fresh peel and eat shrimp that was so fresh..we are pretty sure it was swimming in the ocean the night before. Absolutely must have this as one of your appetizers. I ordered the Shrimp Boat that had shrimp three ways. It included Fried Shrimp, Blackened Shrimp and three "Heat from the Deep" shrimp stuffed with cream cheese, jalapeño and wrapped in crisp bacon served with a spicy house made chipotle sauce. My husband had the General Hector which had fresh redfish and shrimp, he had it pan broiled and he selected the same sides I did...Caldo de Marisco seafood soup and the creamed Spinach. My husband ordered some Dos Eqiis and I had one of their Turbo Pina Coladas with dinner. For dessert we shared a piece of their Chocolate lovers cake. All of the entrees come with two sides but unless you hate yourself, you need to select the seafood soup as one of your sides...it was incredible. We chose the creamed spinach, but other choices are baked potato, scalloped potatoes, garlic mashed potatoes, side salad, chowder, rice pilaf and the incredible Seafood de Marisco . One of the best parts of our meal was our waiter Gio. He was top notch and his excellent service and recommendations made our meal even more enjoyable. This meal was definitely a memorable one and we will be dreaming of it for a while and looking forward to visiting again! If you have not been to Sea Ranch...it needs to be at the top of your list!

Was visiting in South Padre and wanted to try some local seafood. Do not go here unless you are ready to spend a substantial amount of money per meal. The price of the meal is compensated for by the free bread and soup that came with my pasta. The waiter brought out our appetizers after our main course which was a little disappointing because the time we had received it, we were already full on the soup which came out before the pasta. The view of the dock from the restaurant is great as well as the stunning sunset view. The food was excellent and the view was stunning. If you're looking for a nice evening out at higher price margin per meal, this might be your place to go.

Seated right away but we went early - around 5:30. Service was fantastic. Everyone was attentive. Waters right away. Drinks and apps request was taken. We never sat waited long. There was someone to pick up dirty plates , someone to bring app and drinks right away, waitress was very sweet and attentive as well. Highly recommend getting there early to beat the crowd. The food was amazing. Yes we know it was a bit pricey but well worth the splurge. Atmosphere watching the harbor thru window while we ate. All around a great experience.

Service was impeccable, very attentive and they ran that ship like a well oiled machine. The food was delicious, we got shrimp and the red snapper. Both were great. The prices were high but we expected that being a vacation 'town'. The only complaint I have was the air conditioning, where we were sitting got very warm. Saw multiple tables fanning themselves.

Decided to stop at this restaurant for a nice sit down dinner. The selection was great and our food was delicious. Service was very good. Was disappointed as I tried to order one of the signature drinks which wasn't available for thirty minutes. Thought things would have been ready at opening service. It was a bit loud. I would definitely give it another visit.

Food is amazing! It's South Padre Island so hope you are wanting to eat seafood because their seafood is amazing!!

Excellent food 5/5! However, this review is for our waiter. Be aware and check you receipt (if you're splitting it). Our server split our tip with the "suggested tip" amount $40 for person. It should have only been $20 bucks tips each. We were buzzed and almost gave him $40 each but we did the math and the numbers weren't adding up. Super unethical.

Whether you're a area local or a visitor to the island this restaurant is a must! The food is delicious and the service is outstanding! I had Oysters Rockefeller and the whole red snapper (cubano style) and my wife had her favorite tenderloin kabob and shrimp. All were outstanding! While everything here is up scale the dress and atmosphere is casual! You won't be disappointed!

We were seated next to the window, yeah! We had shrimp bisque and salad, followed by a baked potato and broiled snapper and the special which included a whole snapper grilled with Cajun sauce and pasta with shrimp, scallops and vegetable- asparagus. WONDERFUL! We took home cheesecake and half the baked potato- it was huge! ENJOY!

Elisa is WONDERFUL! Very attentive, she always had a smile on her face and just great energy overall. My Husband and I eat here every time we visit SPI. Don't let the decor fool you, the interior design may need a makeover, but the food is excellent every time and the service is great. Thank you for a great dinner, and great service Elisa! You're the best!

It was okay, nothing really outstanding. The service was good, but I guess we expected more based on the ambiance and price ...probably will not return.

We always have a meal or two at Sea Ranch when we vacation on SPI. Food is ALWAYS yummy. It's always busy so plan ahead, you can make reservation or chance it and just walk in, just always be prepared to wait a bit.

Stopped in based on reviews and it did not disappoint! Started with the South Padre Poke and the Shrimp Bisque, which both were excellent! Our main course was the Seafood Enchiladas which were also very good. Our waiter was very attentive and helpful with our choices and dishes were cleaned off the table immediately. The restaurant itself was very nice and clean and had a wonderful view of the docks. Will definitely be back!

Excellent food, drinks and service. My husband and I shared the trio scallops, shrimp and red snapper blackened. The pictures on yelp make the meal look small but it was enough to share. Best scalloped potatoes I ever had.