DiNardo's Famous Seafood

Went there for restaurant week and was surprised to see that the inside DID NOT fit the outside at all! We still decided to give it a try. Then the Crab Bisque soup came out....eww...I had to practically beg the waitress to take it back so that I could try something new. Then the Clam Chowder came out....eww...it didn't look or taste fresh...almost like it was old. The buffalo shrimp were fried frozen shrimp drizzled with chicken buffalo sauce that was so spicy and salty my taste buds went numb. To top it all off, when we told the manager that the food quality wasn't good and that we wanted to leave, they charged us for our UNEATEN food...then yelled at us because they alread "started cookin" (microwaving) our entrees. Overall it was terrible. One of those places that puts a lot of lemons and lettuce on the plates as garnish...If you want better seafood...Trust the Gordon's Fisherman's...or go to Red Lobster!

Pros: Location

Cons: Food is Terrible, Service is Bad, Restaurant is Old/Dirty

Posted 09/23/09

asked a group of friends to go here to celebrate my birthday with the hopes of getting some succulent crab legs.. We all decided we would never dine here again. First of all the place is as big as a city row house. The tables are all jam packed together. Its just a little too close. The lighting is very dim and the light over our table flickered the whole time. There is no background noise, no elevator music.. nothing. That in addition to the dim lights gave the restaurant an eerie feeling. Our waitress spilled drinks on us as she was setting them down. She did not know from which side to serve. The crab soup was nothing but canned veg soup with crab meat and added salt. Our entrees were tasty but 2 people ordered the crab cake and they both had shells in them. The food is overpriced (I ordered the king crab legs for $35 and received 2 {two} crab legs and a baked potato. One slice of boxed pumpkin cheesecake was $6.75) and the quality is extremely lacking. NOT fine dining in the least. I would never recommend this hole in the wall.

Pros: The crab legs were not horrible.

Cons: Too expensive for the quality. My whole party was disappointed and wanted Red Lobster instead.

Posted 11/04/08

I have always heard this was a Philly hotspot- one of those places you have to try. I went here a few months back for restaurant week and i thought it was ok. I wasn't expecting it to be as laidback and casual as it was. The interior kind of reminded me of a diner. The food wasn't horrible but it also wasn't the best seafood I have had.

Pros: beer

Cons: ambiance, food is ok

Posted 07/22/08

I have eaten there twice and completely regretted it both times. Service is fine, but the food is just pathetic.

Pros: None

Cons: Food Stinks

Posted 05/28/08

I am a native Philadelphian living out of the area now. We go to Dinardo's when we are in town mostly because of the location and because it's very kid-friendly. We have never had a bad experience with service there, but we usually go on a weeknight when it's not too busy. The food is good - I really enjoy their stuffed flounder, but it is really overpriced. Dinner for 2 (plus a 3 year old) costs us over $100 - without appetizers.

My other major complaint is that they get their crabs from Louisiana. Why? Drive 2 hours south to the Chesapeake and you can find the best blue crabs in the world.

Pros: Location, Kid-friendly

Cons: Expensive

Posted 04/30/08

Everytime I come to Philly, I come to Dinardo's. It is my favorite place to go. The service is great, the food is great. I usually go for the hot crabs. When my husband orders his Surf and Turf, it is always cooked to perfection. We also order 2 baskets of their unbelievable fries ever time We just went over the weekend I felt like a came home to a family. Someone is always greeting you at the door with a smile. They remember your face. Dinardo's is a great dining experience and I recomend everyone go there when in Philly.

Pros: The crabs

Cons: that I can't get there enough

Posted 02/25/08

I went to Dinardos with my boyfriend and another couple and it was loved by all!! Service was excellent and everyone was extremely friendly! The guys had the crabs and said they were the best they ever had! My friend had the shrimp platter and I had the tilapia special and we would be back in a second! The fries are certainly famous for a reason! This place is a definate must when in the city!

Pros: great food and great for kids as well!!

Posted 02/23/08

My friends and i went to Dinardo's Tonight there was 8 of use. What a great time we had. Our server told us the speicals and they all sounded great. But we was looking for fun food.We told her what we wanted and she took over from there.She started us out with Crab soup it was great .from there she brought us out 2 dozen crabs. she told us they had med all the way up to triple jumbos.She thought jumbos would be perfect and they was so much that we ordered 12 more. we order 4 baskets of fries she brought out 2 at a time so they would stay hot.And of course with crabs we needed beer The picthers of Stella was ice cold.What a fun night had by all Thanks Dinador's we will be back.

Posted 02/22/08

I went to Dinardo's during Center City's restaurant week. I made reservations and was promptly seated. That is the only positive moment of my dining experience at Dinardo's. The food was horrible!! I've tasted better seafood out of the frozen food section at the local grocery store. As a resident of Philadelphia, I feel bad that tourists will go to this place and taste this food due to its location. This place is not a representation of the good food that you can find in Philadelphia. One would definitely expect better food and ambiance from a place that charges more than casual dining restaurants and for a place in that area of the city. Do not go to this restaurant!

Pros: Prompt Seating with Reservations

Cons: Low Quality Food

Posted 02/04/08

I wish I had read the current reviews here before I made our reservations. My hubby ordered the special (blackened tilapia) and it was overcooked. I ordered the seafood imperial and it was supposed to be in a cream sauce, but it was rather dry. The "famous" fries weren't as good as the ones I make at home...from a bag! Next time I'll pass on DiNardo's!

Pros: Didn't have a problem getting a reservation

Cons: Food

Posted 12/08/07

I can't say the food was bad, but the service was horrible. Our waitress took half our table's drink order, then we had to ask her to return to take the other half. She acted like she could care less and never came back to ask how our meals were - -and it was not busy. The prices were very expensive and not as the online menu advertised. Looking back, I guess maybe it's so close to the historic district that maybe it relies on tourist traffic. I would not go back again.

Pros: Might be a fun place for kids.

Cons: There is better seafood out there for less cost.

Posted 08/21/07

This was one of the worst restaurants I have ever been to. All the food we ordered seemed like it came out of a Mrs. Paul's fish box or Vandecamps from the supermarket. The service was bad, the food took forever, and the food was such low quality that I would have chosen Red Lobster over it any day. Who would have thought that a Red Lobster was superior to a center city crab restaurant noted for crabs? Yuck, I would never go back.

Pros: The parking on off nights.

Cons: The food, the ambiance, the service, the quality.

Posted 04/23/07

Let me just say, that when you pay the kind of prices that you pay at a place like DiNardos, you expect to get a great experience. Saturday night we had a party of 6 that arrived for a 7:30 reservation. We got sat about 7:45 to our table. We then waited at least 20 minutes before our waiter even came to get our drinks. I believe he may have walked by one or twice in the those 20 minutes saying he'd be right with us. But the point is, they should have had someone else get our drink orders if he was too busy. Then by the time we placed our order it was around 8:15, we didn't get our food until 9:10. That almost an hour wait and we mostly had seafood in our order. We had one steak (cooked medium), one order of king crab legs, two order of the full blue crabs, and then two other seafood dishes. So there was nothing in our order that should have taken a full hour. When I complained to the manager, she said she'd refund a round of drinks for us, which she never delivered on.

Now, on to the actual food. The steak came out medium well instead of medium, the whole blue crabs were cold and the other two seafood dishes were just average. Nothing special for the price. They did replace the clue crabs with fresh hot ones, and after that our friends said they were much better. And our friend who had the king crab legs said they were good. So, my advice would be to stick with the crab dishes, as the rest of the food was pretty average.

One last hint, we were told that the whole blue crabs are not cooked to order. They just make a batch say every hour or so. So, if they make a batch at 8:00 and you get served at like 8:45, you are going to get cold crabs, which is what happened at our table. It was only when we complained that our party got hot ones.

Pros: Crabs are good

Cons: Poor service, long wait, average food

Posted 08/20/06

The crabs are the best around. The crab soup is really good too!

Pros: Crabs, Crabs, Crabs

Posted 12/19/05

if you want crab legs than this is the place for you but as a whole be prepared to spend more than a $100 for 2 people if u want to get full. if you want raw bar and crab cakes this place is good but i have been to other places that have fresh seafood and are cheaper. the fries have too much seasoning on them so they are salty. if you want to gulp down clams and oysters with a pitcher of beer go somewhere that costs less. if you want a place with nice decor find somewhere else.

Pros: crab legs, raw bar

Cons: expensive, boring, small portions

Posted 10/16/05

I was in Philly for the weekend and looked for a resurant that was close to the waterfront with great seafood and not over priced. I definately found it with Dinardo's. The service was really good and the food was great. I would recommend that you nto leave there with out tasting their crabs or fries.

Pros: Service, Parking, Crabs

Cons: View/No Windows

Posted 07/05/05

the crabs here are an absolute joy. having frequented this restaurant on many occassions with different groups. the general consensus is that their crabs are excellent, their other seafood dishes and non-seafood dishes are average to good. they use a house seasoning for the crabs and they are supposedly flown in daily from the gulf of mexico though their crabs seem to taste a bit better when in season along the east coast. this is the best crab house in philadelphia. decor is cute, tackle and lures line the walls in glass showcases.

Pros: taste, service, variety

Cons: , parking, speed

Posted 01/24/05

I wanted seafood and had trouble finding something open on Sunday, so DiNardo's won by default. I wasn't disappointed at all! I saw a lot of fine looking steamed crabs walk past me and was tempted, but I was too tired to pick them, so I opted for sauted lump crabmeat. Ooo baby...succulent. Service was attentive without being annoying, and I intend to be back on my next trip to Philly. Fancy it isn't, but worthwhile it is.

Pros: food, bargain

Posted 08/30/03