I wanted to try Red Lobster but decided on McGrath's thinking it would be better. I can't say I was disappointed because we were there for a family dinner, my kids loved it, the food was good and the prices were great. We enjoyed the service, the decor was nice, it was clean. But there was something about it that made me think of the Ponderosa restaurants from the 80's. Does anyone remember those? We all had a daily special with steak and shrimp or lobster. We enjoyed our meals but it felt a little bit like fast food and I probably would have been highly unsatisfied with it if we were there for a special occasion. For a family restaurant it was fine.

The restaurant is in a good location on the mall parking lot and is always clean and comfortable. I always order the same thing, which is the fried shrimp and it never disappoints. I also really like the salad with vinaigrette dressing. The servers are always polite and efficient and the atmosphere is quiet. I'm not a huge seafood eater so I can't speak on the rest of the menu. But good food at a good price along with good service will keep me returning.

When you're this close to the ocean, you'd expect to get great, fresh seafood almost anywhere. As this is a large chain, I wasn't expecting much, but knew that for a large family dinner (8 of us), it would be reasonable in price.
I decided to stay away from anything fried and was torn between the shrimp louie salad or the raw oysters on the half shell. I decided to make a dinner out of raw oysters as I can't get them where I live. Everyone else had something fried (oysters, fish & chips, seafood platter ...) and they all liked their meal (although there was a comment that the fried oysters were under-seasoned and a little tough). I was in heaven with the 9 oysters for dinner and a couple of pieces of bread.
That night, I was up all night with stomach cramps and other, less publishable things. And, it all came back to the oysters. Sadly, if you can't get good, fresh oysters in the pacific northwest, while practically on the water, I guess the only way to achieve that is to go directly to the oyster beds. Also, I couldn't quite understand why everyone ordered fried items. A grilled halibut or other fresh fish of the day would have been a much better choice. It all left a bad taste in my mouth (literally).
Choose another restaurant if you want to focus on seafood.

Went in September whe we were visiting family. Male manger was once again acting uptight and under pressure. It was early Saturday dinner time and hardly anyone was there. Once we finally got seated, we sat for nearly 30 minutes a server appeared and regretted their up for us not getting any service. Seafood was a BIG disappointment! Ordered steamed clams for an appitizer and several came with shells closed. My husband told our server, but nothing was done. He had ordered the rainbow trout and it was mushy. My crab cakes had way too much dressing. I seriously doubt if we go back the next time we are here.