Enjoy Durham's finest selection of seafood and pasta's. Many alternatives for discriminating tastes! LLBO - Garden patio catering for all occasions in house or off-site!
If there’s one word that describes the Shrimp Cocktail and its owner Wanda, it has to be “dedication.” The long-standing Oshawa restaurant has been serving up authentic, French-inspired meals with excellent service since it first opened back in the ‘90s. The recipe, according to Wanda, is simple: take advantage of local produce and meat and make amazing, fresh food.
“If the farmer’s market is open, I’m there picking up produce,” Wanda says. After serving and managing for over 25 years, she took over the restaurant in 2010 from the former owners. And while the menu has been tweaked, she’s stuck to what’s made the restaurant so successful all these years: quality ingredients, quality staff and great overall customer experiences.
The menu has plenty of selections, from seafood to the popular rib-eye steak served with a smoky-bacon-and-onion jus, but it all comes down to just a few items. “We use only the finest ingredients,” assures Wanda. “Everything’s made in-house. People don’t come here for something smothered in sauce, they want recipes that bring out the flavours of a few fresh ingredients.”
We dined here last night and the food was absolutely TERRIBLE for a fine dining restaurant. The menu/ prices they have on here are not correct, we ordered the crispy calamari as an appetizer and paid $17 for a plate that had so much added salt we couldn’t eat it. For our main course I got the steak and lobster tail, and while I asked for my steak medium rare, it was extremely over cooked and dry. and the lobster tail was pathetically small. Save your money and eat somewhere else!
I have been a patron of "The Shrimp" for many years and am sad to see it slipping. It may be the young chef is somewhat inexperienced and hasn't adjusted to his role yet. The owners were much more hands on in the past, and now seem to be invisible. Maybe with the new enterprize in Whitby they are spreading themselves a little thin. C'mon guys i'm cheering for you.
WOW!!! My parents 50th Wedding Anniversary party was Wonderful. The 5 course meal prepared by Chef Mike consisted of antipasto platter - penne prepared with a real authentic Italian tomatoe sauce - veal chop cooked to each person's request along with rapini and roasted fingerling potatoes - balsamic salad and tartuffo and coffee. This was absolutely delicious! I had many guests calling me the next day commenting on what a great place to have held the party. Thank you Wanda for making this occasion for everyone enjoyable . The restaurant looked so elegant with the white tablecloths. You made sure everyone was attended to (all 29 of us). Thanks also to Rob, for making sure our wine glasses were refilled and always with a smile!
We will be back again.
Cheers.
I used to work up the street and frequented here quite a bit 20 years ago. Loved it then and still do. We were meeting friends for dinner. We now live in London ON so when they asked where we wanted to go this was my first choice. Dinner was great - brought back some great memories too.
WOW! For my best friend's birthday I was looking for some place special & different for us to dine as we both have very broad palette's & enjoy a wide variety of foods & very much appreciate different & unique dishes.
I was super excited to book us The Chef's Table because it would be a different dining experience & a complete surprise to both of us what we would be enjoying for the evening.
When I phoned to book they were extra thorough asking our likes & dislikes & gave me a little idea of what to expect which made me even more excited to go.
When we arrived we were sat right away & our waiter was amazing & extremely attentive. We ordered a bottle of wine & as he lit a candle for our table he explained that the Chef would be over to deliver one course at a time & explain each dish.
The ambiance in this restaurant is beautiful, very welcoming & made the occasion even more special.
He & the Chef came by shortly after & explained our 1st course which was a delicious spring salad with a seared piece of salmon on a bed of pickled asparugus & spicy green beans. The salmon was cooked to perfection & the beans were very unique & delicious. We both loved the dressing on the salad.
The waiter was very attentive always refilling our wine glasses so that we never needed to lift a finger. With each course we were given fresh cutlery & each course always came out at the perfect moment.
Our 2nd course was absolutely to die for!!! It was a mouth watering beef tenderloin cooked to perfection. So tender it melted in our mouths. Topped with mushrooms & parmesan cheese ontop of a bed of bell peppers & roasted fingerling potatoes & swirled around our plate a veal & red wine reduction...MMMMM! A dish we will never forget!
Our 3rd dish was an amazing bacon risotto topped with a brandy half lobster...also so good!
And lst but not least our dessert was an espresso creme brulee beside their house banana bread.
I was thrilled that I had chosen this Gem for his birthday & would definitely recommend this restaurant to anyone. The Chef's Table is definitely an amazing experience & great if U wanna wow a special someone for a special occasion.
The service was incredible, the food scrumptious, the decor stunning & the price for all that amazing!
We will definitely be back!!!! And begging for the tenderloin!!!! MMMM!!!!!
We went to Shrimp Cocktail again for dinner the other night. This could be anywhere up to our 100th visit over many, many years. Not as many as Bob but it is still one our favourite places.
My husband always orders the Clam Chowder and he said this time it was the best he has ever had there, a little more spicey than before. I had the Crab Cakes and they were very good as well. They could have used a little more sauce on the top.
For the main course he had the Shrimp and Scallop Cachitorri as he usually does and also enjoyed it very much. I decided to have something lighter and had the Lobster Waldorf Salad for my main course. It was delicious, lots of lobster claw meat, apple and candied pecans.
There is so much on the menu to chose from that I'm sure everyone could find something to love. They also have sandwiches on the menu now if you aren't quite so hungry. Last year they redecorated the entire place and it is really quite nice, still a little noisey because it is an open concept. We went around 8:15 on a Friday night and didn't have to wait at all for a table but it can get a lot busier in the fall/ winter season.
We found the service was excellent and it was only 10 to 15 minutes before we had our appetizers and about the same for our entrees after the apps were finished. Had to save room for the six layer chocolate cake but even with both of us eating it I still took a little home in a cute little black takehome box.
All in all we have had very, very few bad experiences at this restaurant in all the years we have been going there. The wait can be a little long if they are super busy but the food is always great.
Great food, great service and at reasonable prices. I've been several times and will continue to come back. The entrees are the right portion size and the taste is amazing. If you are looking for a good night out I'd recommend shrip cocktail
Tried the Chef's table experience - really enjoyed the "surprise factor" of the meal, as we told them what we didn't want (no wild game) but they could make whatever they wanted. Meal started with Arctic Char over wild mushroom rissotto - awesome/amazing! Then we had some beef with asparagus and double baked potato pieces (something about cooking them in duck oil, and then cooked again) - really tasty. Then we had shrimp and tuna and beets - the shrimp and beets were really good - but I am not a tuna lover (can't get over the "seared rare / inside raw" part)...so I would have to say this was my least favourite dish. I am probably not describing these well - the Chef talked about reduction sauces etc...and described each course as it was delivered to the table. For dessert, they brought us a sample of 5 different desserts off the menu...it was nice to get the variety - but I don't really like having to reach my spoon fork over to grab bits and pieces of each dessert - I would prefer my own dessert. Next time we do this, I will be a bit more vocal in terms of what I want - definitely the arctic char and rissotto course for sure...a beef and/or pork and/or chicken dish(es) and perhaps something warm, possibly chocolate, for dessert with ice cream! The only negatives were 1. the night we went they were having problems with their air conditioner (it was a cold night and they couldn't seem to figure out why the air conditioner was turning on - they even had to tied back some curtains behind our table because the drapes were blowing out of control on our heads!) and 2. the waitress wasn't really attentive to us - perhaps because she didn't have to take orders, perhaps because they were getting ready for a large 40th birthday celebration - not sure what the reason but we waited a long time between the 3rd course and the dessert - to the point where we almost asked if we even had dessert included - or if we were done? Overall, however, I recommend this Chef's table experience for any special occasion.
We were looking for a seafood place in Whitby and...
We were looking for a seafood place in Whitby and decided to give Shrimp Cocktail a try. It was a forgettable experience.
We didn't go during an especially busy time, but service was slow. The food is adequate, but really nothing special. We've never gone back.
I really like it here. Yes the service is a bit...
I really like it here. Yes the service is a bit slow but the food is well worth the wait. You HAVE to have their Shrimp cocktail!
Kudos to the wonderfully creative chef. Quality of the food is excellent and presentation is remarkable.
My husband and myself visited Shrimp Cocktail for...
My husband and myself visited Shrimp Cocktail for the first time last week (Feb 11, 2009), and I have to say we both really enjoyed the experience! The food was very flavourful, and the atmosphere was very modern and open concept. I also liked how the kitchen was open to the restaurant, so you could watch them cook. Everything we ordered tasted great. We were both very excited by the tastes and textures, especially the Escargot with Blue Cheese Cream, the Baked Roughy (stuffed with King Crab and served on a bed of Risotto), and the Butternut Squash soup with lobster ravioli. Fabulous.
The only negative things to mention about the food was that the Asian shrimp were a bit too greasy for my liking (but still tasted good), and the curry cilantro mussels could have been spicier.
The servers were all very nice, but service was quite slow.
The only thing I would not recommend at this restaurant is the Shrimptini- it's their signature fruity martini. I think they missed the boat a bit on this- it's overly sweet and bland at the same time. Not good. Stick the the Leffe Blonde on tap instead!!
Overall it was a great place to go and we will definitely be back!
My husband and myself visited Shrimp Cocktail for...
My husband and myself visited Shrimp Cocktail for the first time last week (Feb 11, 2009), and I have to say we both really enjoyed the experience! The food was very flavourful, and the atmosphere was very modern and open concept. I also liked how the kitchen was open to the restaurant, so you could watch them cook. Everything we ordered tasted great. We were both very excited by the tastes and textures, especially the Escargot with Blue Cheese Cream, the Baked Roughy (stuffed with King Crab and served on a bed of Risotto), and the Butternut Squash soup with lobster ravioli. Fabulous.
The only negative things to mention about the food was that the Asian shrimp were a bit too greasy for my liking (but still tasted good), and the curry cilantro mussels could have been spicier.
The servers were all very nice, but service was quite slow.
The only thing I would not recommend at this restaurant is the Shrimptini- it's their signature fruity martini. I think they missed the boat a bit on this- it's overly sweet and bland at the same time. Not good. Stick the the Leffe Blonde on tap instead!!
Overall it was a great place to go and we will definitely be back!
I have visited the Shrimp Cocktail on many occasions and this time was my favourite! The new menu is spectacular with interesting takes on classic dishes. The poutine was amazing (one of my favourite foods), and when I asked for more gravy our server brought it to me quickly.
The seafood platter was excellent and I liked the type of variety they chose for it. The baby back ribs were suculant and super tasty with a nice hint of spice, though I could have went a bit spicer!
I was too full for dessert this time but the spanish coffee was a nice suggestion by our server for the end of our meal. I also like the change in atmosphere and the new decor was warm, inviting and great for date night!
All in all I would recommend this restaurant to anyone visiting the Oshawa/Whitby region.
i have been at the restaurant many times, one of the things i really noticed was that i didnt stink like garlic for two days after i was there this time. I noticed a change in satff but there was a lot of very comfortable, familar faces there. The service was outstanding, very attentive but not smothering. The change in meu was very exciting and refreshing.(not Smothered in cream). The new atmosphere they have is amazing, cant wait to spend time and refer my friends to a great place to eat and socialize
Tried the clam chowder & the shrimp/lobster...
Tried the clam chowder & the shrimp/lobster bisque & the caesar salad. Soups were good but nothing out of the ordinary. Service was quick and were able to leave within the hour.
Had Valentine dinner with my wife. The food and...
Had Valentine dinner with my wife. The food and service on such a busy night went beyond my expectations. The atmosphere was amazing. We look forward to our next visit with our new neighbours who have not yet been.
We visited here with no idea what we were in for. We had some of the best seafood we have ever ordered and what was even better is all four of us tried something different and we all loved the dishes. Our waiter I think was Morgan Freeman’s double he was very pleasant and prompt. I swear it was his double. Highly recommend it and definitely will return!
I am 28 years odl and I haven't been to Shrimp Cocktail in a number of years. My parents used to bring me to the restaurant occasionaly when I was a teenager and always loved the restaurant. I thought it would be exciting to take my fiance because he had never been. When we arrived I had recognized some formilar faces of the staff but was served by an unformilar but friendly face. Not only was our server very helpful but extremely knowledgable. She recommended wines that would pair well with our food and were excellent choices. My fiance, being a meat eater, order the New York striploin and I had ordered Linguine Del Mare. They were both spectacular in flavour and in presentation. It was an important evening for me because I was bringing my fiance to a place of my past, and Shrimp Cocktail did not disappoint. My fiance had commented that if we had not already booked our caterers that he would have loved Shrimp Cocktail cater our wedding for us. An extremely good value for the entire evening.
Cesaer was wayyyy to garlicy
Pasta dishes were both run of the mill and a little bit on the rich side (i.e. too much cream)
The food is definatly NOT worth the money.
I ordered a cesaer (drink) to start off, too watery and the shrimp on it looked a little dated.
Would I reccomend it to anyone, no.
