Higgins Crab House - South

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#163 of 328 Restaurants in Ocean City$$ - $$$, Seafood

+1 410-289-2581+ Add website

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Hours

Sun

12:00 PM - 8:00 PM

Mon

12:00 PM - 8:00 PM

Tue

12:00 PM - 8:00 PM

Wed

12:00 PM - 8:00 PM

Thu

12:00 PM - 8:00 PM

Fri

12:00 PM - 8:00 PM

Sat

12:00 PM - 8:00 PM

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What is Travelers’ Choice?

Tripadvisor gives a Travelers’ Choice award to accommodations, attractions and restaurants that consistently earn great reviews from travelers and are ranked within the top 10% of properties on Tripadvisor.

Ratings and reviews

3.5

593 reviews

#163 of 328 Restaurants in Ocean City

RATINGS

Food

Service

Value

Atmosphere

Details

Someone from this business manages this listing.

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PRICE RANGE

$9.00 – $39.00

CUISINES

Seafood

Meals

Lunch, Dinner

features

Location and contact

31st Street 3102 Philadelphia Ave, Ocean City, MD 21842

+1 410-289-2581

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Is this restaurant family-friendly?

Yes

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About

Ocean City Md's premier Maryland style Crab house and Seafood Restaurant. We go to the docks 7 days a week to purchase the very freshest Chesapeake Bay seafood from the man (or woman) that caught it. Bring the family and and enjoy the finest Maryland has to offer...The Higgins Family

PRICE RANGE

$9.00 – $39.00

CUISINES

Seafood

Meals

Lunch, Dinner

FEATURES

Takeout, Outdoor Seating, Seating, Parking Available, Highchairs Available, Wheelchair Accessible, Serves Alcohol, Full Bar, Wine and Beer, American Express, Mastercard, Visa, Discover, Accepts Credit Cards, Table Service, Gift Cards Available

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3.5

593 reviews

Excellent

168

Very good

146

Average

105

Poor

Terrible

Bones123456789

Media98 contributions

All you can eat Blue Crabs

Jun 2021 • none

Did some calling around before we came to the beach for vacation on market price for crabs in the area. The market price for all you can eat crabs ranged from 50-75 dollars. I choose Higgins as it was the cheapest and close to my hotel, walking distance. Glad I did, the blue crabs were good, not the biggest I've eaten but tasty. They come with an ear of corn, hush puppies, and chicken and slaw. The restaurant as a whole could be a cleaner, the restroom needed much attention. That being said, I would still recommend Higgins Crab House as a place to go for all you can eat blue crabs. Food is good and my server was very helpful and pleasant and attentive-he was outstanding actually! Go here for the crabs! Check the hours of operation for crab service as many places don't open before 2pm for this crab all you can eat.

Written June 23, 2021

This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

MZP232

Pittsburgh157 contributions

Small crab cakes, large price

Sep 2020 • none

We got a 2 crab cake platter that had 2 sides (we got baked potato and fries) and added another crab cake to it. This meal cost over $52. The crab cakes were good but quite small. It really wasn't worth the price. We ordered 30 minutes ahead and picked it up for take-out. The process was fine but when you add in some sort of tip to the jar - you are looking at a $55 take out meal that had to have cost them less than 10.

Written September 14, 2020

Charlie M

Colorado Springs15 contributions

Seafood choices in Ocean City

Aug 2020 • none

Lots of seafood choices, pricey $$, very casual atmosphere. Clean, COVID protocols in place, friendly, attentive staffers.......... inside and outside seating available, along with take out. Minimal wait at a peak time ( suspect overall OC Summer traffic down a bit ). Average portions, average tastes, would probably try somewhere else the next time to compare

Written August 16, 2020

Tony B

Clarksburg61 contributions

Great food and generous portions.

Sep 2020 • family

Great food and generous portions. This restaurant exceeded our expectations. We stumbled across this restaurant with no particular place or type of food in mind. Upon arrival the staff were very friendly. We were seated quickly and our waiter was very attentive. I ordered the steamed shrimp which was listed as 36 medium with two sides for $25. Without exaggeration I must have received at least 55-60 medium sized shrimp when my plate arrived (maybe more). It seemed it was never ending. I didn’t bother with the side dishes and just put my focus on the shrimp instead. They were delicious and certainly hit the spot.

Written September 12, 2020

Michael

1 contribution

All you can eat crab (shells)!!

Jul 2020 • none

After a 5 hour ride down to Ocean City, i was extremely tired and hungry. I passed a Long John Silver’s on the NJ turnpike and thought “I’m hungry, but we’ll be eating real seafood soon!” After eating here, I’m upset i skipped the drive-thru. We checked into our hotel. I asked the gentlemen at the front desk “what’s good to eat around here?” Of the 6 places nearby, we didn’t recommend this one. Being the moron I am, i did not taking his advice, I chose this place for my girlfriend and I to dine at. We were seated promptly as we arrived. We were greeted by our server rather quickly and we ordered some drinks. It was all down hill from there. Our server arrived about 15 minutes later with our 2 drinks. My margarita was “eh” and the pina colada my girlfriend received she was far from impressed with. I understand if if a server is busy, so I don’t want to say she was bad. But there was zero presence of management to offer a hand to her. The shrimp I ordered were pretty good, so I cant fault them for that. The Alaskan King crab however, left much to be desired. Cold, overcooked and barely any meat in them. Not to mention, if you wanted more of this garbage, you had to pay an additional $11.95 a pound. So basically, you get around 7 bites of crab for $59.99. If you want more (or what you actually ordered) they expect you to pay more. When the bill was presented to me, I was floored. $149 for 2 drinks, 2 entrees and an appetizer (crab balls which I forgot to mention, nothing to write home about). Avoid this tourist trap. After reading other reviews, I find it hard to believe a place that has been this bad for this long is still operating. I assume they prey on naive tourists like myself.

Written July 3, 2020

MS1Timonium_MD

84 contributions

Get a Filet-o-Fish Instead

Nov 2020 • none

We went there on the Friday after Thanksgiving as it was one of the few seafood restaurants still open in O.C. We would have been better off getting a filet-o-fish at Mc D's. The building is kind of old and run down. It's probably fine for eating a big messy pile of steamed crabs, but not for a nice dinner. Our waiter must have just been promoted from dishwasher and only wore a mask for the 1st visit to our table. The food was mediocre at best. The crab soup was a thick overcooked heavy tomato based mess that seemed to have been fortified with catsup. The fried soft crab sandwich was a couple of sparse little crabs on plain white bread without much flavor. Crab cakes were small and not very tasty. The only thing good were the french fries. All in all a big waste of time and money.

Written December 1, 2020

L Holman

New Jersey1 contribution

Extremely bad customer service

Apr 2022 • family

My family of six dined on 4/21/22 at 5 pm. We were seated at the farthest table in the back. The waitress greeted us with a hello without stating her name. She barely gave us time to view the menu before she came and asked for our order. It seemed a bit rushed as if she wanted us to hurry and order so we can leave. Not to mention once we received our food she never came and asked us if we needed anything else, was the food ok, nothing. Which I thought was strange…. All the other waitresses were very attentive to their tables which made it more obvious that ours was not. The crab legs were over cooked and seemed as if they were sitting in water. We received a few pieces of bad corn, but the potatoes were ok. The hush puppies were fresh and the crab balls were delicious. The orange crush drink was watered down oj with the Tito’s that I requested. My daughter’s virgin pina colada was good. Our bill was over 200 dollars and was not worth that at all. My fiancé is great tipper and she received nothing. I hope this service wasn’t because we were the only black family there. Tighten up it’s 2022. WE WILL NOT DINE AGAIN!!

Written April 22, 2022

Del

2 contributions

Mediocre

Jun 2022 • couples

Wanted to try something new and wasn’t very impressed… Tons of flies swarming around the food the entire time wasn’t very pleasant. Our app wasn’t put in but I think that was for the best lol. My bf crab cake was eh not the best but edible. I got the fish and chips and it was so rock hard it was barely edible. Wayyyyy too hard to even cut with a knife!! It tasted like it was frozen fish left underneath a heat lamp then thrown back into the fryer to warm it up but then was burnt.. Waitress was nice still tipped 20$ even though she forgot our appetizer. She offered to get me another fish but I didn’t think it would be worth the wait so we paid (full price) and left. Don’t recommend and won’t be back save your money.

Written June 5, 2022

Raymond F

Fredericksburg25 contributions

You will be sorry if you go here

Sep 2021 • none

My family and I went here because most of the reviews were positive, and it was close to where we were staying. To start off with, our waitress was good but that is where the "good" stops. My daughter and her husband both ordered crab cakes, one on a sandwich the other on the plate. They said they crab cakes were OK. My son got the all you can eat crabs which he said were OK, but when you order them, before you get any crabs they bring out chicken, fries and bread for you to fill up on so you don't eat to many crabs. If you don't eat all that stuff before the crabs come, the second time you order more crabs, they only bring a couple, very small crabs, plus you have to wait another 15 minutes or more. I ordered the fish and chips. You might say, "how can you screw this up?" Let me tell you. When they brought my dish out, the fish was one medium size ball of batter about the size of a grapefruit. No one would think this was any kind of fish. It was as hard as a rock (I am not kidding) and dripping with oil. When I was able to break into this ball of batter the fish inside did not resemble any fish I have ever had. I brought this to the attention of our waitress and she said she has heard the same complaints before and she would never have that. She offered me a substitute of crab cake (one) which I accepted and when it came it also was not what a crab cake should be. I mean we live in Virginia where crabs and crab cakes are plentiful and usually prepared really good. This cake had no crab lumps in it and and very little taste. Couldn't get worse you say...read on. My wife ordered the mussels. When they came there were about 9 or 10 that did not open during the steaming phase and so, like we are all told, don't eat them, they were dead on arrival. So we told the waitress and she said she would bring some more. She came back shortly and took the mussels that didn't open to "show them to the cooks". She came back about 10 minutes later, with the same mussels, but this time they had been pryed open I guess by the cook. The reason we know they were the same muscles is that, when mussels are steamed alive, theirs shells open slightly and you have to open them the rest of the way with your hands. This shells were opened with some sort of instrument because they were shattered and in pieces. They brought back the same dead mussels. We left them as they were and departed never, ever to enter this place again. If you want good seafood, DON'T GO HERE!!!!! Plus the prices were extremely high.

Written September 21, 2021

HMFWT

Washington DC13 contributions

Disappointed

Oct 2022 • family

We are avid blue crab lovers. I was a satisfied regular here many years ago. That was not the case this time. Our server was great, even though he was new. The AYCE crabs were dry and tasted old & reheated. My mother sent her crab balls (dry & bready) & scallops (rubbery) back bc it was inedible. The corn, fries & hush puppies were good. Unfortunately, that was not what we went there for. We sadly ended up spending close to $100 each for less than subpar food. Still mad . . .

Written October 27, 2022

Diana M

124 contributions

Would you like a fly with your meal

May 2021 • couples

Would you like a fly with your meal? Do not go here there was more flies than there were crabs. Our hush puppies came out they were cold and greasy. The service was awful the flies came by my table more than the server did. I can see the corn was delicious but that’s all I could say the water even tasted funky

Written May 4, 2021

kimellis78

Virginia12 contributions

Poor management and food.

May 2023 • none

Sorry, but this post doesn’t deserve a star. But I will be generous! Let me start with this, our server was a sweet young man who tried regardless of his lack of experience. This place was poorly managed, the main entrance of this place was packed with young employees, who had no sense of customer service or how to greet customers. They stood crowing the door. The food was poor quality and don’t get me started on the bar. My husband order a drink (Vodka Collins) and they gave him something totally different (2 shots of vodka and water in a separate glass), which then we waited for the server to come around, who often was in hiding or not seen, to let him know about the drinks. My drink was a Mojito, that was basically mint, water, ice and a stale lemon (rum-was not in the equation because the bartender didn’t know what she was doing). My husband left and went to the Conor store and bought a Red Bull energy drink for his mixed drink that we already were paying for. Our food was horrible and yet we paid $113.00 even after we displayed our distaste for the overall quality. It should have been a refund. Just poor everything.

Written May 27, 2023

porsh

1 contribution

The best thus far

Aug 2021 • family

My family and I were attracted to the outside look of the restaurant. We were seated fast and attended to right after by our waitress SARAH MARIE, if customer service was a person it would most definitely be her. She checked on us constantly but not to a bothersome, she kept the crabs coming which were delicious. The shrimp, the fried chicken and let’s talk about price. The prices were decent Sarah Marie was patient but time efficient which most waiters/waitresses lack. She was pleasant gave suggestions and my family loved her. The service and the food was literally the best while staying in ocean city for 5 days and we have been to 4 restaurants for the crabs. HIGGINS was the best thus far and when I return I will request Sarah Marie as my waitress and when you go you should too!!

Written August 15, 2021

hmapps

Plainsboro3 contributions

Not worth it!

Feb 2023 • family

Went here for dinner with 4 people (3 adults and 1 child) spent $200 and was very dissatisfied. Service was great, but the food was very underwhelming. We thought we would try the crab legs because we were on the island and assumed we had to try them! $40 down the drain… the legs were tasteless. Chopped salad was not a chopped salad, just a large garden salad. Crab cake for $21, didn’t even finish it. Fish and chips weren’t terrible, but nothing special. Kids burger was fine as well. Overall, wish that we went somewhere else.

Written February 25, 2023

Genti M

2 contributions

The worst experience!

Aug 2021 • family

I would put 0 stars if it was possible. My pet peeve is complaining in restaurants, but this place was the worst experience I’ve ever had. The server was fine and he was just doing is job, but everything else from the food to the manager were horrendous. We wanted to let the manager know that the soup was salty and he came like he was in drugs not apologizing for anything. I feel bad about myself that I spent 150$ for 2 people and I didn’t eat anything.