The Boiling Crab

Messy but delicious. We ordered shrimp and larger size crab(as suggested by the waiter), fries and corn on the cob. We picked the mild hot souce and the fun started. The reason for a large sheet of paper was understood at the end of the meal :)

Came in at the last hour but some of the staff still keep their smiles and warmth to entertain our orders. One of the must-go food when in LAX, but prepare for the long queue for dinner times especially weekends

The new sha-bang shrimp roll absolutely excellent. Hawaiian bun soooo good. But it's very small; smaller than the advertised picture. I could easily eat two. The cajun fries are just okay, nothing special. Sha-bang shrimp plate also delicious. My friend got a seafood boil with the whole she-bang (all sauces) and the sauces mixed tasted incredible. Excellent sausage too. Excellent service; very helpful explaining the menu.

Server is good and Justin is awesome, The food we ate is salty and some of the order came late.

So this was my first sea food boil and it was scrumptious! I devoured every last bit. I poured the boil on the table for the full experience and im glad I did it was so much fun! I would love to come again. (Picture of the aftermath)

The food came out hot 🔥. I wish they would have told me (before ordering) that they only have shrimps with the head on. I normally order shrimp with the heads off. This time they didn't give me the option. Service was mediocre. I was told our server went on break , so the service was not as we expected. I probably would not return to this location because it was too much confusion.

Disappointed is an understatement. I visited The Boiling Crab expecting a solid seafood experience, but it was hit or miss…heavy on the miss. The shrimp was the only thing that came close to enjoyable. The clams? Completely off mushy and unappetizing, but didn’t complain. But the biggest letdown was the lobster. Parts of it were hard and chewy like rubber, while other parts were so uncooked soft and black juices came out of it.. we did not touch it because we did not want to get sick, we told the manager it was NO apology he just left and never came back …the waiter came back and they took 50% off the lobster.. this whole situation made me feel uncomfortable…For the price, I expected way better. I left full… of regret… I would never come back ..

The Boiling Crab didn't disappoint. It was our first time here, and our server easily explained how to order. She offered helpful suggestions that didn't steer us wrong. The Whole Sha-Bang is the best option for flavor. Then, add a mild spice for just enough kick. The mouthwatering corn, sausage, and potatoes were great choice additions to the bag. If you're not feeling the seafood boil, try the fried catfish basket it's a pleasing substitute. Get here early because it fills up fast.

Our family loves seafood boil! We always look forward to having a savory and flavorful seafood meal. Good thing there is a branch near UCLA so we can frequent this place whenever visiting her. We love the juicy shrimp head with the whole sha-bang non-spicy sauce. Our daughter also loves to pair it with there lemon pepper fries. It is just 4-star since service is slow during peak hours and parking is challenging.

First time trying a seafood boil & super happy we chose this location. The food was very flavorful & enjoyable. The service is definitely what made this place special! Bernard at the front of the house was such a sweetheart, we originally wanted to order takeout & went up to him to have our order placed & after hearing that it was our first time trying a seafood boil he mentioned the experience behind sitting down & eating for our first time. Very happy we listened to his suggestion! He was knowledgeable & very informative. Also very kind & friendly. Made our experience truly one of my favorites at a restaurant! Our server Natalie was very attentive & sweet as well! Overall a great experience & I highly recommend!

BE WARNED; there is no parking!!! We lost our parking ticket and had to pay the maximum (almost $40)!! Ive been coming to boiling crab for years but this was my first time at this location. It was busy but the wait wasn't too long. The prices have gone up on everything but the snow crab is still a decent deal. Our server Drew opened our crab for us and was very funny and attentive. Our order was consistent with every other location I've been to so thats a plus in my book. My only complaint about this location is that there is literally nowhere to park. We had to park in a structure up the street and it was close to $40 to park for 2 hours. Overall a good experience I just wish they had a better parking situation.

My first time here and definitely won't be the last. I'm so impressed by this place and how good the food is, my husband and I have been trying yo come for a while and it didn't happen. I came with a friend who enjoys this place. It was a great experience! We had the shrimp, crab legs, rice, Cajun fries, which I highly recommend and corn. I am definitely returning and will recommended to friends. Service was great.

Boiling Crab is the sea food spot me and boy went on Friday night the king crab legs and the whole Shabang we killed it if you know you know Boiling Crab in Westwood Ca.

I have been to this location several times and never had any problems with them besides the wait sometimes you'll get lucky with no wait or 20-30 mins or you can go on a busy day like I did and wait an hour which sucks but definitely worth it if you like crab boils. I am not the biggest fan of crab boils because Cajun seasoning is sometimes too much for me and gives me heart burn but when I'm willing to live life on the edge and get a craving I definitely enjoy the boiling crab. Inside and food: Walking in you can see everyone is happy to be there sitting down after a wait. all attacking the food with their hands like animals lol. I too was loooking forward to that moment so I got a pound of the snow crab legs and some shrimp I ordered the whole shubang no spice because it just messes me up too much. The crab legs were amazing great flavor and lots of meat. The shrimp just as great it's definitely a place to enjoy with people because you're always working so hard to eat your food you definitely want to pass the time with some great conversations. The service: service was great even when checking in it all starts with the person at the front running the place. He had a great sense of humor and just looked like he had complete control of the team and had everything running smoothly. Once we got sat down the service remained amazing the girl that helped us out got us started with drinks and asked if it was our first time and let us know what wasn't on the menu for the night. Once we got to ordering our food another girl set us up with the bibs she came and tied them on all of us definitely made me feel special and like a child at the same time. Throughout the entire time waters and drinks were always topped off we were definitely taken care of that night and I can say my experience was great minus the hour wait.

We came for lunch on a Saturday, and the place was about half full. We ordered the blue crab, fried oysters, and catfish basket. The blue crabs were quite small, but we enjoyed them nonetheless. We thought the oysters and catfish were better options. Will definitely return to try their other items. Metered street parking

Bernard is amazing main reason I show up weekly he always makes my day after a long day of work his enthusiasm is one of a kind his service is impecable makes me feel welcome thank you Bernard these are the kind of sever that need to be at every restaurant

TLDR: Man oh man. I had been craving The Boiling Crab for over a month, and let me tell you, this place HITS THE SPOT every-time. My go-to is Whole Shabang Mild Shrimp with Potatoes, and it was SO good. The waiters were very attentive and even helped with my to-go order (of course I had to take some home - the photo shows how it made it home safely hehe), brought extra lemons (a mustttt), and refilled drinks as needed. The chefs outdo every time; that sauce is absolutely incredible. We went on Valentine's Day, and the music was AMAZING. Their playlist was on fire, they knew exactly who their audience was and they did so well. Boiling crab, chefs kiss. Thank you for a spectacular boil!

Stopped by with a group of 8 on Friday night. Wait time was about 20-30 minutes. Our waitress was wonderful. We ordered pounds of Crab, Shrimp, Mussels, Crawfish along with some sides. The crab and corn were crowd favorites! The table had a mixed reaction. Some people absolutely loved it and were already talking about revisiting. Others were saying it was overpriced and a lot of work for very little meat. Personally, I leaned more towards the latter opinion. I also thought the sauce became too overwhelming for me & my palate was ruined from the intense amounts of garlic. Overall, it's a fun and unique experience to try at least once. Parking: Limited street parking nearby. Had to circle around the area for a while before securing a spot. Paid parking structures available.

Been going to the boiling crab and I gotta tell you it never disappoints! It's so fire and the staff is super friendly and very attentive when it comes to having your food ready. The ambiance is casual and little bit noisy but it all comes when everyone is having a delicious bag full of yummy shrimp and lobster. I highly recommend this place.

The best place!!! Such good food and service. Bernard was such a good server, especially since it was our first time at boiling crab. Would recommend!

Haven't returned to The Boiling Crab since I left school, but fate brought me back recently to try it again! To be honest, although the restaurant is know for its crab, I've found them not to be that great, as they're extremely difficult to get out of their shells (the crab legs) and overall not offer enough meat to really enjoy it. However, I would definitely recommend getting the other, non-crab items on the menu, with the mussels and fried catfish to be stars of the show: the former comes as a half-pounder, which personally was more-than-enough for 2-3 people to have, and the latter was tenderly fried and full of fresh, catfish flavor. Highly recommend both! Do expect to get messy, and do expect to have fun!

I sat on writing this review for a while because I really did love Boiling Crab. I have probably gone 100 times and ordered cajun fries medium with a pound (or 3) of crawfish the whole shabang medium ... every single time. I wish this was exaggerated, but it's not. My next bowel movement was always a bit spicy but it was always worth it ... until this last time. Now I have many regrets, and Westwood is my least favorite location. It's been a month since I've eaten here and my body still hasn't recovered from the food poisoning. I dropped 17 pounds the first 2.5 weeks (starting weight was sub 120 lb). If that isn't bad enough, the real reason I'm writing this (and the reason it took so long for this review) is because the food poisoning hit so bad that my boyfriend and I literally pooped ourselves involuntarily (his was in his sleep). Writing about this is embarrassing, but Boiling Crab's initial response was even more so. I let them know what happened 5 days after, and they said that we should've let them know within 3 days ... not showing much concern. Here's the breakdown. We ordered Postmates and ate here on a Sunday. I pooped myself sitting on the couch on Monday. My boyfriend pooped himself in his sleep on Tuesday, woke up in the middle of it, got up to vomit, fainted, then CRASHED into the bathtub & showerglass doos. I ran in (feeling awful myself) and his head was against the tub and he was SEIZING. We both had to take time off work (for obvious reasons). Friday I was finally feeling better enough to email Boiling Crab. I didn't ask for anything besides for them to look into this incident because the level of illness we had was concerning and dangerous. That's when they let me know that I should have let them know within 3 days. It felt outright negligent. I've attached screenshots of the emails. Boiling Crab- please do better. They did offer to refund me for a meal I used a coupon on (we didn't even see the charge back, sigh).

I came in on a Friday for dinner. Their dinner rush usually starts around 6pm. I arrived at 5:20pm, put on a waitlist which went pretty fast. The wait was 25 minutes. You can't make reservations on any of the apps, they have a waitlist system implemented via Yelp. I always get a pound of shrimp and rice. The pound of shrimp was $16. You can choose from a wide variety of seafood and they have 3 different sauces. You can pick any combo of the sauces. I selected the Cajun and garlic butter. You can also add in items like potatoes, corn, etc. Service was great and fast. Staff was friendly and professional. Parking sucks because it's Westwood Village but if you know you won't be more than two hours, park at Trader Joe's, Ralph's or Target to take advantage of the validated parking. It's like a 2 minute walk. You have to scan a QR code in store to get it validated otherwise it will run you over $40. There's metered street parking but good luck finding something during peak hours! Ambiance is casual and it's always crowded but it's a vibe. Would recommend coming here with friends. The process of cracking/peeling the seafood is fun and an experience. Don't worry they give you gloves if you want some and plenty of wet wipes.

Long wait but the food never disappoints. This time around I got the lobster & it was life changing

I would give them 5 stars beside the lobster. The sauce was so TASTY, and the combo of sausage, corn and shrimps was perfect. However the lobster ruined it for us, I'm so used to have the lobster fully cleaned and the tomalley fully removed, however, the first thing that got out of the lobster shell was the green stuff and it killed our appetite fully. The restaurant itself was okay, the staff were friendly and very attentive, we went on a Saturday night and even-though the restaurant was very busy but our wait time was less than 20 minutes.

Drew is one of the greatest servers I've ever had! If there was a LeBron James of service, Drew is the epitome of it. Caring, compassionate, and, somehow, heartwarming. It felt as if I was back home being served by Mom. Food is always amazing here, but Drew will be the reason why I'm back. It's not hard to see how this place DREW in so many customers.

I love the boiling crab !!!service is fast and typically nice and attentive . The flavors always hit the umami taste buds . Messy eating but worth the mess !

DELICIOUS- we had a late lunch here today. We loved every morsel of food we had. For two people we had: a lobster, 1lb of crab legs, 1lb of clams, 2 orders of potatoes, two corns on the cob, and rice. We were stuffed but able to finish everything. Be aware they do not take reservations - we waited 20 min. Park dinner time can be up to 2 hour waits. There's a cute bar next door that we had a beer while we waited. Discounted parking garage on site. Can't wait to go back!

The food is always fresh hot and full of flavor. Service was A1 on my last visit Thank you TBC Westwood.

i love this place so much! it's so delicious, i love boiling crab i always get the whole shabang mild. service is always super fast, there's usually a shorter wait time compared to other boiling crabs!

FIRST (re)visit in a loooong time: Gimme that shebang sauce, bottle it up~ * FARES feasted on:   === King Crab legs   === Shriiiimps and corn on cob   === Lemon pepper fries   === TWO bowls of rice just for me, lol * FRIENDLY service: Yes * FRESH air seating outside?  N/A * FAIR pricing: Yes * FEE processing: None. Accepts credit cards * FREE parking: No, there's metered parking around. Or a hack is to park inside the Trader Joe's lot around the corner (north), and buy something there to validate for 1 free hour. * FYI: We really loved making a mess of our feast and spreading that garlicky-saucy goodness out as if we hadn't eaten in days. Huge sinks in bathrooms to wash hands or both lemon slices & hand wipes really keep this grubbin' affair nice and clean... FIVE stars *****

Love this place! We got the medium spicy mix with all the spices mixed together. The crab, shrimp, and mussels were all delicious and I loved adding the corn and French fries to the mix. Service was quick and fast and the restaurants vibes were casual and relaxed.

BC BC BC !!! I love boiling crab. It's the og spot, and it is always busy as such. I don't know how you haven't tried this if you're from LA, but if you are yet to try YOU HAVE TO!! It's such a unique experience and such great quality. I always enjoy it when I go in bigger groups. The staff are always super attentive and helpful for newcomers. I love boiling crab and I don't even like seafood like that

Very friendly, food was good, took a little longer than usual but it worked out. Bryan did a great job and handled his tables well. We sat outside since the wait was an hour, it was a little chilly so may need heaters. Thank you.

Had dinner here with friends over the weekend. We waited for about 25 minutes to be seated, and the restaurant was quite crowded- it was loud but not excessively so! I ordered the SBB with no spice, and my friends ordered the same in mild. We also got sides of sweet potato and lemon pepper fries. SBB: So delicious! Got really spicy at the end, especially for no spice. My friend who ordered mild found it extremely spicy but still enjoyable! Sweet potato/lemon pepper fries: So yummy and crispy, pairs really well with the shrimp! Our waiter Richard was delightful and made our experience. He gave us so many condiments and lemons for our meal, and was very friendly. Highly recommend!

I love boiling crab. Even better that this place is walking distance from UCLA. Shrimp was fresh. I wish they gave more sauce though. Always get a corn in the bag.

best food of the night: fried oysters and shrimp. 9/10 crawfish was good but the only decent part is the tail 6/10 softshell crab was 7/10 ngl gotta make the food spicier nxt time the girl working there was not happy to see us i felt bad but also like ok u work there place is dark, lighting is not too great n u can't rly hear the music either but it's fun w friends or fam !

TIP: If you don't know already let me put you guys on this -- try DoorDashing Boiling Crab for the same experience at home!!! I started DoorDashing BC since getting lazy to drive there + wait and its been so good. They put in consideration of the mess it can be and provide you with bibs and the same big paper sheet so you can eat on it mess free eat home PLUS easy cleanup after. The seafoods and add-ons tastes like the same good quality if you want a more peaceful night in with friends. Perk of being at home is you can also get real creative. Add in those ramen noodles, toppings, etc to your desire & spice things up!! Overall, great fresh seafood whether you want to enjoy it in store or at home PS: my favorites are the shrimp + oysters, and must get the whole shabang seasoning!!

BEST place ever - LOVE their food- all of it! Cannot wait to go back. The sauces that accompany the bags are super yummy! Fun atmosphere.

I used to love The Boiling Crab. I stopped going because of the long wait times and the lack of reservations. However, while driving, I spotted one with no line out the door! When we walked up, we were able to sit right away! My jaw dropped in both excitement and confusion haha. My family always gets our usual. Clams, shrimp, potatoes, and corn with the whole sha-bang sauce. We also ordered a side of fries and rice. Everything came out in good time and was delicious! My only annoyance was that they didn't have any lemons. Ugh! They had limes but it just wasn't the same flavors. It sounds minor, but lemon just really makes the flavors pop. The service was great and our waters were constantly being refilled. The ambiance was nice. They had a basketball game playing so hubby was in his element. If we are always lucky to be sat right away, then I might start coming back on a regular lol. Will see.

I have order food and have the delivery and my sister walked in my house and she said, smell so good and I Sher my order with her and she love it, I also told her to go and eat at the restaurant she love the spicy shy. So good I'm never disappointed of this restaurant. One of my favorite places to eat.

Writing this review for this specific location because this is probably the best Boiling Crab location there is!!! Ever since we moved here, we've been coming to this location almost every month because of how good the quality is. We've tried so many other locations but this one knows wtf is going on. Every time we've been here, they have all their seafood piping hot and not once have I felt that they over cooked it. Also the staff are all super sweet and one of the managers here is always so kind to us :)

Food was excellent! Always an awesome date night when fresh crab legs are involved. Cant go wrong with speedy service, and a fun environment

Crab is King and lemme tell you they know how to cook all the King Crab you can eat. You have to try all the different seasonings, and their add-ons are unmatched in those big bags of pure shelled flavor.

I've been here for several times and people here are so nice and of course the food is always great that's why it's been always a long line. I wanna shout out BRYAN, one of the crews here!! Very energetic, awesome crew brings positive vibes to our table and for that i wanna rate him 5 perfect !! Thank you so much for your service!!

We tried this spot fairly late on a Thursday, and it was still pretty crowded. It is pretty much what it is. The shrimp and sausage were well-seasoned, and the King Crab was above average. We also asked for a pound of Dungeness, but they gave us an entire crab. Easy mistake, but they wound up charging us $77 instead of $30ish for it. The Dungeness had some age or freezer burn going, and was rough to try. For a pound of shrimp, a pound of Alaskan, the accidental whole Dungeness, and the sausage (and two cokes), we dropped about $175. Wish we'd gone with shrimp and Alaskan only and asked for a manager on the mixup. Lesson learned, though.

First and foremost what I would like to say about this establishment was it's professionalism. Edith the manager was absolutely amazing about taking care of us . Our waitress Emily was the sweetest thing in the world and check in on us every so often . And not in a way that's annoying the food was spot on as always . The vibe was definitely a family ambiance . We live two hours away and will continue to only come this location thank you !

Food is sooooo good and service is on point. The only downfall is the wait on weekends. The lemon pepper are amazing

It was mine and my husband's first time at boiling crab. We came on Sunday after church and it was BUSY. But our server Liz definitely made this visit worth it. She explained to us how everything works. recommended we start off with 1lb so we did, we tried the shrimp and it was AMAZING. The sauce was so good, we ate it so quick. She checked up on us making sure everything came out the way we wanted it. We asked for more suggestion and she recommended the crawfish. It ended being our favorite , she said we should come back when they get live in stock because it's even better. We definitely will, for our first time dining in, it was great. Great restaurant, great service and great food.

This place was great if you're craving a little boil, but the seafood and quality definitely miss. I came here on a Saturday with some friends as we were craving some shrimp, crab and oysters. We ordered a bag each along with a couple dozen raw oysters. The oysters were some of the smallest I've seen in my life. Like these little mfers probably needed to grow to adulthood before being plucked up for our consumption. Like I think I've had lougies bigger than these little guys we ate. The boil itself was alright, the shrimps were definitely the highlight. The craw fish were also tiny, difficult to eat and didn't have much flavor to them. I felt like they could have added more seasoning and potatoes to our bag as well, that stuff doesn't cost much, but adds a lot to a boil bag! Overall, it was a decent place if you're hunting for a seafood boil, but there are better options out there for the price.

We drive 2+ hours just for Boiling Crab and it is always worth it. The service is always great and it is a fun atmosphere at all locations. Our favorite food items are the shrimp with whole shaband sauce, and the fried calamari. We will continue to come back!

Boiling Daddy brings good vibes. With friendly service from Luis and a lively atmosphere, this spot is a must-visit for anyone craving a taste of cajun seafood boil!

Ambiance: 5/5 A really big restaurant. There's plenty of indoor seating, but it does get crowded fast, especially on the weekends, so get there early so you don't have to wait (They don't take reservations!). The restaurant is quite clean for a place that has constant amounts of seafood shells being dropped from all the tables. I saw the staff workers constantly sweeping the floors during the dinner hour. They also thoroughly cleaned the tables before and after each guest. Food: 4/5 The food was pretty good. My party had a 3lb bag of shrimp with 6 cobs of corn and 1 sausage in the whole shabang sauce. The sauce had a great flavor to it. We got the medium level spice and it wasn't too spicy. I recommend that level if you're worried about your meal being too spicy but it still has a good flavor. Service: 5/5 Our waiter was very nice and accommodating. We had a party of 12 and he nicely split the bill 4 ways. He was also very patient when our big party was taking a while to order. He checked on us regularly to make sure that our meal was to our liking and made sure all of our meals came out at around the same time. Very nice staff.

I used to go to Boiling Crab all the time. I have been to all their locations, and I loved it. I've been craving it for so long, and it's time to go yum, yum. They deserved five starts that I haven't done it before.

I live for a good seafood boil! On a rainy Monday evening decided what can be better than diving into all this goodness. they didn't take reservations and advise that it would be a 15 to 20 minute wait. Arrived and put our name on the list - got yelp notifications of our place in line which is very helpful. We sat in the car because the waiting area was packed. it took about 25 to 30 minutes to get a table and after we were seated we were told that they were out of crawfish, muscles, and Dungeness crab which was really disappointing. It's a busy buzzing place with lots of messy tables - in a good way. We had the shrimp, clams, and snow crab along with the lemon pepper wings and all the sides - corn, potatoes, eggs and sausage. Decided on the 'the whole shebang' sauce for everything, it was packed with flavor but a tad salty in my opinion. Generally it was all good, messy and fun. Service was good until it wasn't. We waited way too long for a few of our orders which put a slight damper on the experience. Parking can be challenging as well, there are meters all around but it's a busy area so can take some time.

I LOVE SEAFOOD BOIL. Seriously, what's not to like? Flavor of the whole shabang sauce is always on point, and the crawfish is a must-get. The crab fries are also really good. The gumbo/jambalaya was whatever, but it wasn't bad. It's a messy eating experience so don't wear anything too nice (although they do provide aprons). They can get a little busy so be prepared to wait if you come during dinner time.

I'm usually such a fan of seafood boil, but the quality of Boiling Crab has definitely gone down significantly since my undergrad days. I recently ordered on PostMates, and I was a bit disappointed with the quality of the food, which I found overly salty and not the most fresh (especially the clams). The Sha Bang Bang shrimp cost $15 and only came with 7 shrimps and the saddest portion of rice (see picture). The seafood boil would also give the nephrology department at UCLA a run for their money with how overly salty and oily their Sha-Bang sauce was. Not sure if seafood quality in general is just poor in West LA, but I'll recommend sticking to safe options (such as the shrimp) here and not risking the integrity of your intestines and behind.

There was no wait on a Saturday night for a party of 2 but pretty crowded inside. This Boiling Crab location is significantly worse than the one in KTown. I always get the whole shabang medium spicy, and the sauce at this location was a lot more bland and not spicy. Even though the food was subpar, the staff was nice and attentive, while not being overbearing. I would only come back if I had an intense craving for Boiling Crab and was in the area again. Otherwise, I would just go to the KTown location.