Ocean Fresh Seafood Market and Dining

New to the area
First class
My go to seafood restaurant

Fresh seafood, dinner was good, wait staff needs help. This is more of a market than a restaurant, seafood is again fresh and you can BYOB.

Service was great. Seafood nice and fresh. We forgot it was BYOB but that's OK we figured something out. Was off season so not busy. Would definitely return

The place place looked awesome inside and out. The inside was decorated like Capt.Quints living room and the outside was landscaped very nicely with seagrass and pavers. Just had a great feel. We were seated almost immediately with no reservations and chose to sit outside but once we were seated, we were forgotten about. Sat there for 15 min and not one server approached us nor did one even look at us. It was like we were invisible. It was a bit busy but that's no excuse. So we left. We will try again because the food looks so good. Let's just hope we get to order the next time.

Unbelievably great fresh seafood. The lunch menu has great choices with soup and drink included. The prices are reasonable.

The seafood market restaurant on Route 37 in Toms River has a pleasant atmosphere and seems to have a following—others rave about their fresh catches and friendly staff. The seafood dinners I tried (aside from the crab cakes) were tasty and well prepared. The interior is clean, bright, and comfortable—great place for a casual meal by the water.

That said I have to be honest about the service and crab cakes. I stood at the front door for 15 full minutes before anyone even acknowledged me. I finally had to approach a staff member to ask for a table. Then I waited another 10 minutes even though there was clearly an open table right next to me. At no point were all the tables used, and we were close to closing. By the time I left there was only one other table occupied.

Not just a matter of waiting for service, I don't mind that for a good restaurant. I do mind not being acknowledged. Smile or a nod would be sufficient if they're very busy. I got neither. It wasn't until I stood in front of somebody and practically stopped them in their tracks did I get attention. And then I went back into the waiting list.

I would imagine a manager with a new restaurant seeing a new face would be happy to greet them. We don't go to restaurants to buy food, we go to restaurants for the experience. And although some of the food was good, the overall experience was meh.

As to the food, the big problem was the crab cakes. I was really looking forward to them but they tasted more like pencil shavings and sawdust. I couldn’t find a single lump of real crab meat in the three small cakes that were plated. That was hugely disappointing. The other dishes I ordered were good, just not worth overlooking the crab cake letdown.

So overall I’d say three stars. Nice atmosphere, some solid dishes, but service could use work and the crab cakes need to be rethought.

Eat here and got food poisoning. Been sick since Saturday. Never never again

Beautiful seafood and it was absolutely delicious. I will be back!

Fresh, good seafood.

Excellent seafood and definitely not a tourist trap! The first thing you notice is that this restaurant is clean and bright inside and out. When you walk in, the seafood counter is to your left, and the seating to the right. After taking my seat, I strolled over to the seafood counter to see what looked good. Well, it all did, but the swordfish really caught my eye. The sword wasn't on the menu, but the staff was happy to prepare it for me anyway - the chef recommended blackened, and so it was.

Having seen how fresh the fish was with my own eyes, I expected a good meal, but I was really surprised by the gourmet meal our server brought out. The fish was fresh as expected, and beautifully cooked. But it was the sides that pushed this over the top. I had the rice blend and mixed grilled vegetables which were perfectly prepared and absolutely delicious. All in all, this place way outperformed my expectations for such a cozy casual restaurant.

Finally, I'll add that the service was friendly and attentive, and that the environment was very comfortable. It's BYOB, so I used the money I saved to have a very good bowl of clam chowder. I visited on a rainy weeknight during the off season, so it was a pretty mellow time. I'm sure that it gets a bit more hectic during the high season.

I highly recommend Ocean Fresh Seafood, and do suggest that you stroll over to the seafood counter to see what looks best that day.

One stop for fresh seafood. Honest portions advise concerning quantity to purchase per person. Cole- slaw outstanding!

Atmosphere is great and so are the staff food was excellent

Ordered $500 of take out fish and most of it was a disappointment.

In their defense we ordered it on a holiday (Good Friday) but everything was overcooked and tough.

We have ordered from here in years past and it was very good but this was not a great experience.

Had an absolutely delicious meal here this weekend and the staff was super friendly!

My experience with OF was great. Chef Charlie made my meal exactly as requested, Dave behind the counter gave me really good recommendations and my waitress Caroline couldn’t have been sweeter. I’ll definitely be back again!