Come for the clam chowder.Fish was also great. Very fresh Cod.Servers were very nice and overwhelmed by the crowd but kept very good attitude. The place is simple, unpretentious. I loved the 70s
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Chowder, Fish
Terry Ow-Wing
Great food. The oysters and chips had one more oyster than showed. I got hungry.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Fish
Erica M
Hands down the best clam chowder in Monterey! Reservations recommended. Get the bread bowl with the cheesy garlic bread!! Service is wonderful, great atmosphere, very clean.
Been eating there for 30 years. It's a nice change when nothing is changed.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Rikki N.
We got there a little late, maybe 40-30 minutes before closing and you could tell the place was packed. I was worried they would turn us away, but not only did they not do that, they were super nice and seated us really quickly.It took a while before we were able to place our order, but it was worth the wait. The food came out faster than it took to get our order in. The food was good, and not as pricey as other places in the area.Kid-friendliness: They have markers and paper coloring/activity sheets and a small kids menu.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Clam Chowder Bowl
Patrick Uhazie
All the food was excellent, but I wish I would have doubled down on the chowder and gone with a big bread bowl. Fresh food and great service!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Chang Liu
Best of best clam chowder I have had so far in Monterey! It’s very local, approachable family style restaurant. Really love it! Very popular place. Nice cute and cosy with cute decorations !
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Sabina d'Agliano
Best chowder... Best cheesecake... Great service... Great fun! Well done Chowder House!!!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Chowder
Lynn Stoppe
Delicious clam chowder and salad!!! My husband loved his fish tacos. The staff were so attentive and very nice. Great place!
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Clam Chowder Bowl, Chowder
M J.
We love this place. The food is delicious. This most recent time the fish came out cooler than we would have likes. The waiter probably forgot to get it. That's a pet peeve for me as I like my food hot or warm not cool unless it should be cold or cool like Sushi. Oysters were amazing. Bread was decent. We got the sole special.
This is small out of the way restaurant it worth the hunt. The food is yummy and the service has been wonderful My favorite is the clam chowder in the toasted warm bread bowl.
Jeanette L.
Visited Monterey for the weekend and was looking for a good chowder place. Decided to come here after visiting the Monterey Aquarium (less than 10 min walk away) and Vivolo's clam chowder did not disappoint. AMBIANCE: Casual - nothing fancy. Both indoor and outdoor seating available. We went on a Sunday at 11:30am when it opened and there was plenty of seating. FOOD: Clam chowder with cheddar bowl - The chowder isn't too thick here so you don't feel as overwhelmingly full as other places. Fish & Chips - Fish was better than the chips. Nothing particularly outstanding about this dish. Fried Calamari - Not the best I ever had but decent. Batter could have been better. I personally like my calamari crispier Half Dozen Oysters - very fresh Guava Mimosa - it's a lot smaller than anticipated. One person can easily down 2 of them. Champagne ratio was generous. SERVICE: Nothing particularly outstanding. They did their job but did not go above and beyond to introduce the menu or make us feel extra welcome.
Brandon McVeigh
Crab salad sandwich was incredible. Fish and chips were great! Cod tacos were also great!
Daniel Coronado
The service was decent, but other than the salad, the meal just kind of felt short.My girlfriend ordered the Dungeness Crab Salad Sandwich and there wasn't any way of identifying the crab even when taking a bite of the crab itself it just tasted more like a chicken salad sandwich. We hoped that the Clam Chowder would be good due to the name, but that fell short.We had walked down by Cannery Row and were given a sample that was much better.I had the Quick Bite, which was plenty of food, but I figured my Garlic Bread would have came with the soup rather than the salad.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 3
Service: 4
Recommended dishes: Chowder, Crab Salad
Chloe R.
The Dungeness crab sandwich is delicious! Our waiter was so attentive and patient (especially with my grandparents). My aunt brought her dog and wanted to sit on the patio and they accommodated us with no issues and even turned out heat lamps.
Come for the clam chowder.Fish was also great. Very fresh Cod.Servers were very nice and overwhelmed by the crowd but kept very good attitude. The place is simple, unpretentious. I loved the 70s
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Chowder, Fish
Great food. The oysters and chips had one more oyster than showed. I got hungry.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Fish
Hands down the best clam chowder in Monterey! Reservations recommended. Get the bread bowl with the cheesy garlic bread!! Service is wonderful, great atmosphere, very clean.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Clam Chowder Bread Bowl with Lid, Chowder, Bread Bowl
Been eating there for 30 years. It's a nice change when nothing is changed.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
We got there a little late, maybe 40-30 minutes before closing and you could tell the place was packed. I was worried they would turn us away, but not only did they not do that, they were super nice and seated us really quickly.It took a while before we were able to place our order, but it was worth the wait. The food came out faster than it took to get our order in. The food was good, and not as pricey as other places in the area.Kid-friendliness: They have markers and paper coloring/activity sheets and a small kids menu.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Clam Chowder Bowl
All the food was excellent, but I wish I would have doubled down on the chowder and gone with a big bread bowl. Fresh food and great service!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Best of best clam chowder I have had so far in Monterey! It’s very local, approachable family style restaurant. Really love it! Very popular place. Nice cute and cosy with cute decorations !
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Best chowder... Best cheesecake... Great service... Great fun! Well done Chowder House!!!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Chowder
Delicious clam chowder and salad!!! My husband loved his fish tacos. The staff were so attentive and very nice. Great place!
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Clam Chowder Bowl, Chowder
We love this place. The food is delicious. This most recent time the fish came out cooler than we would have likes. The waiter probably forgot to get it. That's a pet peeve for me as I like my food hot or warm not cool unless it should be cold or cool like Sushi. Oysters were amazing. Bread was decent. We got the sole special.
Restaurantji Recommends
This is small out of the way restaurant it worth the hunt. The food is yummy and the service has been wonderful My favorite is the clam chowder in the toasted warm bread bowl.
Visited Monterey for the weekend and was looking for a good chowder place. Decided to come here after visiting the Monterey Aquarium (less than 10 min walk away) and Vivolo's clam chowder did not disappoint. AMBIANCE: Casual - nothing fancy. Both indoor and outdoor seating available. We went on a Sunday at 11:30am when it opened and there was plenty of seating. FOOD: Clam chowder with cheddar bowl - The chowder isn't too thick here so you don't feel as overwhelmingly full as other places. Fish & Chips - Fish was better than the chips. Nothing particularly outstanding about this dish. Fried Calamari - Not the best I ever had but decent. Batter could have been better. I personally like my calamari crispier Half Dozen Oysters - very fresh Guava Mimosa - it's a lot smaller than anticipated. One person can easily down 2 of them. Champagne ratio was generous. SERVICE: Nothing particularly outstanding. They did their job but did not go above and beyond to introduce the menu or make us feel extra welcome.
Crab salad sandwich was incredible. Fish and chips were great! Cod tacos were also great!
The service was decent, but other than the salad, the meal just kind of felt short.My girlfriend ordered the Dungeness Crab Salad Sandwich and there wasn't any way of identifying the crab even when taking a bite of the crab itself it just tasted more like a chicken salad sandwich. We hoped that the Clam Chowder would be good due to the name, but that fell short.We had walked down by Cannery Row and were given a sample that was much better.I had the Quick Bite, which was plenty of food, but I figured my Garlic Bread would have came with the soup rather than the salad.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 3
Service: 4
Recommended dishes: Chowder, Crab Salad
The Dungeness crab sandwich is delicious! Our waiter was so attentive and patient (especially with my grandparents). My aunt brought her dog and wanted to sit on the patio and they accommodated us with no issues and even turned out heat lamps.