Back to: Key West Restaurants & Bars - Turtle Kraals

Set in the heart of Land's End Village, the Half Shell Raw Bar is an authentic Key West fish house. Once a shrimp packing building, it has stayed true to its blue-collar harborfront heritage. Fancy folks looking for fancy stuff will have to look elsewhere. No carpet on the floors. No expensive art on the walls. No air conditioning for that matter. Just a main dining room inches from the waterfront, where customers pull up to picnic tables and ceiling hung blackboard menus. The centerpiece of the action is the shucker station with its mounds of fresh shrimp, oysters, clams and stone crabs. One dozen...two dozen...three dozen... plates of oysters and stone crabs fly across the room with pitchers of cold beer and chilled bottles of wine not far behind. Get a"FREE BEER" Here

A Key West institution among visitors and locals alike, the kitchen commands access to the island's widest selection of fresh seafood. The Half Shell's success lies in its commitment to serve its guests fresh seafood, simply prepared - with few gestures to those who would prefer otherwise. This kitchen knows that consistency counts. It's customers, most of whom have made the pilgrimage before, start with obligatory dozen oysters or spicy Buffalo shrimp, move on to their favorite seafood selection with Half Shell's signature presentation of boiled potatoes, corn-on-the-cob, and cole slaw, and polish the meal off with a chilled slice of Key Lime Pie, baked daily on the premises. Washed down with a cold beverage and a sigh of content, you just might imagine yourself back in simpler times - the way Key West is meant to be.