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McT's Shrimp House & Tavern: Traveler Reviews

TripAdvisor Traveler Rating:
  • A summary score based on quality, quantity and age of traveler ratings.
4.5 of 5 stars 52 ratings
52 ratings
5.0 of 5 stars
10
4.0 of 5 stars
15
3.0 of 5 stars
7
2.0 of 5 stars
11
1.0 of 5 stars
9
TripAdvisor Popularity Index:
  • Measures overall traveler satisfaction based on ratings, reviews and other sources.
#30 of 39 restaurants in Sanibel Island
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  • Cuisines: Seafood
  • Average price*: $ 28

TripAdvisor Traveler Reviews

Reviews of McT's Shrimp House & Tavern

( 19-23 of 51 )
“the old quaint mctees is finally dead...read on...”

McT's Shrimp House & Tavern

Jan 7, 2008
1/1 found this review helpful

we have been going to mctees for over 10 years...when the new owner took over few yrs ago...couldnt believe the mermaids
were just about gone...the place used to be so artistic and it was
the most amazing shrimp house..do any of you old timers remember the crowds...and the ambience?and of course the food..well heres what went downhill first:
1) no more mermaids and an odis fisherman instead
along with the disappearamce of the honey maple bread loaf with special honey butter, and also disappearance
of what seemed like a really homemade honey mustard dressing...these things were very good here!
2) now the bread they had introduced which was an
amazing garlic ciabatta has just disappeared being replaced
with a fairly good bread...but not as good
3) the lounge has just been ripped apart and remodeled
to fit more drinkers in...its a sports bar now...brightly lit
and no more seaside painted artwork..all covered with
yellow paint...only 4 tables in the entire lounge sit
a couple...all others are 8 or more huge tables...
makes no sense....very high hard wooden barstools throughout
hard to climb up on and uncomfortable...just remembering the cozy booths candlelit before ...they totally destroyed it.no traces
of the old mc tees except they left the trees...that is all
4)they dont honor coupons that have no expiration date
that is a little odd...wasnt type to argue...its just principle
if you printed it thankgiving week..and a few weeks after...
alot of us come back xmas into january and if no expiration
we will clip it and save it...wouldnt you ???
5)cant tell for sure, but shrimp breading tastes
different...dont know if its changing
6) waitresses are nice , seems the owners are going for
the bucks now...and mctee's is going totally away from
what it was...food is still "good"...but was shocked to see
the lounge missing all its charm...hope i am not being to critical
does anyone agree?

This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC.
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“Pretty BAD”

McT's Shrimp House & Tavern

Sep 23, 2007
0/1 found this review helpful

Not very good, brown salad and a rotten sweet potato.
They offered to replace but my meal was ruined

This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC.
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“Still like Mc T's”

McT's Shrimp House & Tavern

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4 of 5 stars
columbus, IN
Sep 4, 2007

We went to Mc T's during our most recent vacation on the island (Aug. 3, 2007) and had another great experience at Mc T's. We have been coming to Sanibel for awhile now and really, we can't tell any difference from our first fabulous meal.

This time, I had the catch-all blackened and it was great. Everything was served hot and flavored just right. The rest of our party loved their meal too.

As for the service and atmosphere, both were just fine with none of the aforementioned (in other reviews) bad smells or waitstaff.

Compared to other local eateries, Mc T's consistently delivers quality food and service and it has become our favorite.

This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC.
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“so-so for McT's Tavern”

McT's Shrimp House & Tavern

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3 of 5 stars
Maryville, Tennessee
Aug 29, 2007

The family and myself decided on Mc T's Shrimp Tavern after walking out of The Bubble Room.
I had looked at the menu online and it sounded so good. I badly wanted to like McT's, I really did!
Well first things first.
The menu apparently changed the day we visited. (August 25th, 2007) The server actually even told us that when we asked where the creamy honey butter was that was supposed to accompany the bread. "it is available upon request only."
Also you don't get a veggie and potato as the menu states with an entree. You now get either or. That was no biggie, I wish that was the worst of it!
The first batch of bread for our hungry group of nine was almost cold and stale as all heck.
We ate it anyway b/c we were starving but once the second batch arrived, which was fresh, hot and even seemed to be a different type of bread, we were all stuffed off the first loaf and couldn't really enjoy it :(
My husband ordered coconut shrimp which was good. I even tried it and yes, it was good.
I ordered the say cheese! which is shrimp baked in monterey jack cheese and scallions.
It was so gross. The gross part was I had never tasted shrimp that was so fishy! My sister in law who lives locally said that is how the shrimp tastes over here.
Well if that is the case, they can have it!
I had to load my shrimp up with cocktail sauce and kind of hold my breath as not to taste the overwhelming fishiness of this shrimp.
It literally was all I tasted. Not the cheese, not the scaillions, just fishy shrimp!
Also the shrimp were not deveined which was kind of gross.
Even though my hubbys coconut shrimp was good, it also was not deveined.
My sister in law ordered butterflied shrimp which was also filled with veins. She said the reason she orders butterfly shrimp is so she doesn't get the veins!
That prompted everyone with shrimp meals to look at their shrimps and none were deveined, no matter what type of shrimp was ordered, they all had their nasty veins!
My mother in law ordered shrimp alfredo which she said was very good but she is paralyzed, in a wheelchair and eats microwave meals 99% of the time so I would imagine anything other than a frozen dinner would taste good to her.
My other sister in law ordered prime rib which she said was good.
The salads were your ordinary salad, except I had to send my first one back because it had a hair in it.
My brother in law ordered the all you can eat crab legs.
His third serving, he went to cut into it only to find it was frozen solid.
He came to the assumption they just plopped it on the plate from the freezer, got sidetracked and than sent the server out with it. I couldn't imagine them purposely giving it to a guest frozen!
So I have to say the food was not up to par at all. The good thing about it was the price was alot lower than many of the other establishments on the island so it kind of made up for it in a way. I guess it feels better having a bad $18 meal than a bad $25 meal, right????
The things I liked was the restaraunt itself was nice inside. Dim lighting which was quaint, romantic and cozy. (brother in law made a joke that they do that so you don't see the hairs in your salad and the veins in your shrimp, lol!)
the seating and tables were comfy. The bathroom was clean and well stocked.
Our server was nice and the other staff members seemed to be friendly and nice also.
In closing, i can say a good thing about the desert!
We ordered the sanibel mud pie for desert and our group of nine shared it.
It was huge and it was delicous and well worth enduring the horrible dinner entrees!
I dont' know it it is homemade or store bought but it doesn't matter! It was so good. Gooey, chocolately, whip creamy, yum yum yum!
I would recommend this restaraunt if you don't mind fiercly fishy tasting shrimp with veins or if you like steak instead as the prime rib was apparently good.
If you can get past the veiny, fishy shrimp problem, possibility of hairy salad, the meals are pretty much edible.
Make sure you get a fresh, hot basket of bread also and wash it down with the sanibel mud pie and your good to go!

This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC.
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“not very good”

McT's Shrimp House & Tavern

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1 of 5 stars
Portsmouth, Ohio
Aug 8, 2007
1/1 found this review helpful

I have visited this restaurant one time, and will never return again. The food just wasn't very good, my pina colada was so gross, I had to send it back, and our server was rude. I would pass on this place, especially considering there are so many better places to eat in the area.

This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC.
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Reviews of McT's Shrimp House & Tavern

( 19-23 of 51 )
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McT's Shrimp House & Tavern Address

1523 Periwinkle Way, Sanibel Island, FL 33957
Tel: 239 472-3161
* Restaurant price information is based on meal cost per person, excluding drinks, tax and tip.